Oh Yeah Music Centre

If you’re here for a popular band it’s not that great for queuing. I’ve only been once so it might not always be the case but the lighting was really bad, could barely see the band members and I was at the front.

Right in the middle of Belfast’s cultural area — The Cathedral Quarter — this brilliant music centre is a wonderful location for hearing live music. They have a great café/​bar and exhibition space also. There is a wonderful relaxed bohemian atmosphere to this centre and a diverse range of music events all at extremely reasonable prices. Great for an evening out that is just a bit more exciting and interesting than the norm…

This is quite an interesting venue. It has so many applications… rehearsal space, offices, café, music venue, gallery and music museum.
It is great that it exists and that Belfast has stuck its neck out and is trying to make the music center work. Its not really a place that you can just go into and hang out, unlike the Black Box where you can just go into anytime and it not be unusual…
It is now looking the part after having a couple of years of being renovated in stages. I think it serves its purpose pretty well as it is just a new venture and is making baby steps to have more of a presence in the local scene.

Although I think I know a lot about Belfast, in the side streets and alleys of Cathedral Quarter I may as well be in foreign lands as most of the time I’m completely lost around here. That was until recently when the greatness of Belfast’s Culture Night provided an ample opportunity to find my way round the myriad of entries. So I happened across the Oh Yeah Music Centre which opened relatively recently and is a performance venue/​music museum/​meeting space for the artistically and musically minded amongst us. The performance area is a relatively small space but great for small gigs. The museum covers everything in the city’s musical history from the Undertones to Snow Patrol. I will definitely be back here to discover more about the upcoming gigs that will feature here. The Oh Yeah Music Centre is an exceptional space which will add to our ever expanding cultural scene.

Oh Yeah Music Centre should be praised from the hilltops for the excellent work that it is trying to achieve. There is a wide and rich tapestry of high quality local bands that will unfortunately never get the breaks that they deserve due to the isolated nature of our little country away from the rest of the UK mainland.
The centre provides a recording environment for local bands and also an area for gigs, which are frequently aimed at under 18s to help get them involved in local music, with Ash a more illustrious recent headliner at the centre!
The centre has a wee exhibition area with paraphernalia and memorabilia of local bands and things about the music scene over here which is pretty interesting and is importantly free to see! I hope the centre grows and grows and continues its excellent work in helping local bands get on the radar and become more successful, and hopefully we will see more and more local bands getting the breaks they deserve with the help of places like this.

The Oh Yeah Centre is the brain child/​labour of love of Stuart Bailie, former editor of the NME. Based in the former home of Oh Yeah Records, a punk label from the 1980s, the centre provides a home for local music. Their main aim is to help support and promote the local music industry and they do that pretty well.
The range of activities and events it stages is vast. There are gigs, obviously, some of which are aimed at under 18s (something Belfast sorely needed), rehearsal rooms for hire for bands who need space and equipment, a café and space for kids to come in, listen to music and hang out, and their crown jewel — the music exhibition.
The exhibition basically charts Northern Ireland music from its traditional roots, to modern heroes like Snow Patrol (say what you like about them, at least they’re flying the flag!). Recently, the whole thing was expanded and now features video confessionals from civilians like you and me, recounting their favourite gigs, lyrics, Northern Irish bands and so on.
The building is also home to small businesses as well, such as Start Together Studios and Small Town America Records — both of which are success stories in their own right and would find it difficult to get city centre premises otherwise.
The exhibition is free and open to the public every day except Sunday, so if you have even a passing interest in anything musical, I’d give it a whirl.

I’m a fan of the Oh Yeah Music Centre. Anywhere that supports local arts and music always gets a thumbs up from me and the Oh Yeah Centre has immersed itself in the NI Music scene.
The Oh Yeah Centre was recognised as a charity in 2008. Since moving into the building in 2007, they have hosted live events with the likes of Elbow, Gary Lightbody, Tim Wheeler from Ash, Duke Special, Foy Vance, Iain Archer, James Walsh from Starsailor and Lisa Hannigan.
Continuing their charitable streak they have worked with organisations such as Oxfam, Amnesty International, The Equality Commission, The Prince’s Trust, Include Youth, Opportunity Youth, UnLtd and Common Purpose.
Industry organisations such as the Musician’s Union, PRS, MCPS plus Creative And Cultural Skills have used their facilities.
In 2008 The Oh Yeah Centre even released an album, ‘The Oh Yeah Sessions’ featuring Belfast talent like Cashier No. 9, Panama Kings, Kowalski, General Fiasco and In Case Of Fire.
They have staged events for the Ulster Bank Festival at Queens, The Open House Festival, The Belfast Nashville Songwriters Festival, the Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival and the Trans Festival and are currently hosting Belfast City Blues Festival.
Commendably the OYC has also held a series of outreach programmes– training disadvantaged young people in the fields of music photography, drumming and DJ skills.
They also host an indie disco at weekends, one which is on my list to do. I’ve been here for a Cabaret night which featured bands, belly dancers and circus performers! It was a really eclectic night and great fun. The bar was pretty basic but this wouldn’t put me off. A great spot.

The Oh Yeah building is a bit of a landmark culturally for Belfast and the wider N. I. music and arts scene. Obviously a labour of love from those who put it together it serves as a one stop workshop/​space/​hangout for the local music scene. There’s so much going on in this place I recommend a good look at their website to get the full picture of all that’s occurring.
The distinctive red doors lead into a small reception area with the main office and performance space in to the right. It’s a white concrete room and there are regular gigs and exhibitions in here. There also is a fine selection of memorabilia documenting the rise of the Northern Irish music scene from folk, through Van Morrison, through the punk scene up to the present day. Very impressive.
When I’ve been at shows here they usually run a little bar in on the left and they do a small but potent selection of beers, wine and soft drinks. Belfast needs places like this so lend them your support.
Pros: Great vibe, always buzzing.
Cons: A bit tricky to find.