Darwin's Live Music Scene Needs Change

By Joseph Hathaway-Wilson

Topic: Music Industry

Sun 2 Aug 2026 at 10:25am

Music fans in Darwin usually see touring acts at the Bass in the Grass Festival, but that's about it.

In short:

The live music industry in Darwin is struggling because not many touring artists visit.

Bands and venue managers say traveling and accommodation costs are too high for touring acts to come to Darwin.

What's next?

They want to focus on local live music and find new ways to fund it.

For local musicians like Leisa Howlett, playing with big touring artists is a great opportunity.

This year, Howlett's band TANG played at the Bass in the Grass Festival with famous bands like The Living End.

Howlett said it was great to connect with other musicians and show what they can do.

Howlett is part of a local music scene with many new and talented musicians.

TANG's Leisa Howlett says Darwin's local music scene is missing out on touring artists.

But opportunities to play with touring acts from other states or countries are rare.

Howlett remembers hearing about big bands playing in Darwin's venues in the past.

She doesn't think that happens anymore.

Mark Smith from MusicNT agrees that Darwin's live music scene is not as good as it used to be.

From Perth to Albury, Australia's live music scene is struggling after the pandemic and cost of living crisis.

Smith remembers when big artists like Stevie Wonder and Dire Straits came to Darwin.

That doesn't happen much anymore.

Smith says one reason is that planes don't have to stop in Darwin to refuel, and costs have increased.

Data shows that the Northern Territory has fewer international touring artists than other states and territories.

Industry stakeholders are worried that the problem will get worse over time.

'No profitable tours' in Darwin

Live music venues are struggling across the country due to the cost of living crisis and pandemic.

In Darwin, high travel and accommodation costs make it hard for venues to make money from touring acts.

Russell Temple, manager of Mayberry venue, says he's seen ticket sales decrease over 30 years.

He says most venues lose money when booking touring acts in Darwin.

Temple says high overhead costs and low ticket prices are a big problem.

He remembers times when other states sold out shows, but Darwin didn't.

Ms Howlett says lesser-known Australian acts often avoid touring in the Northern Territory due to high costs.

While live venues struggle nationwide, touring costs in Darwin were already high.

Howlett says long distances, travel risks, and insurance costs make it hard to plan a big tour without funding.

For Mr Temple, the lack of touring acts and low profitability might become a self-fulfilling problem.

He says the industry doesn't talk positively about Darwin.

Industry urges ground-up approach

Local live music scene stakeholders say there's a way to fix the problem, but it requires new thinking.

Mr Smith says they need to build a strong local scene before bigger acts will take a chance on Darwin.

Smith wants to focus on supporting local live music and venues.

He asks how to get people to support live music and what spaces are available for bands to play.

There's talk of redeveloping the Darwin Amphitheatre to make it a better venue for artists.

This is an ongoing conversation between local and territory governments.

Behind the scenes of the Guts tour, a solar-powered tour through remote Northern Territory communities.

Smith says bigger solutions require government to work with the local scene to help promoters and venues take risks.

He thinks they can use existing funding in new ways to reduce risks for promoters.

For Ms Howlett and bands like TANG, it's about supporting local talent.

Howlett says giving local acts a chance to play at festivals like Darwin Festival and Bass in the Grass is crucial.

People are eager for live music, and it's exciting to see local talent and meet bands from other cities.

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