O2 Academy Brixton

I love seeing concerts here.
Really love it.
Easy to get to, easy to find, great food around the area and then, the concert itself was just amazing. It’s such a great venue to see someone play.
What I love most about it is the sloping floor. It’s easy to see the stage anywhere no matter where you are standing. And then if you want to get closer, it’s easy to weave in and out of people to get almost to the front of the stage.
Sound is good, visuals is good, staff are good, I’d see a concert here anytime.

This is a solid venue with big names scheduled all year.
I have visited the Brixton O2 earlier this year to see Flying Lotus, and I am scheduled to see Jamie XX, Four Tet and Andy C later this year. I can’t wait to get back in this venue!
The building itself looks like an old cinema with a dome, and inside it is huge! The ticket office is to the left and the queues can get depressingly long along the side of the building. The security staff were very friendly and not heavy handed as others can be (read: Koko door staff).
The bar staff were friendly and in good spirits. Prices were not rage — inducing and surprisingly there seemed to be a moderate level of order while waiting to be served. That is a rarity and may vary between acts, but I can say the Flying Lotus crowd were friendly.
The venue space is an incredibly vast room. Most impressively, there are various barriers in the centre to stop crowd surges. This really put my girlfriends mind at ease as we just went infront of one of the barriers in the middle to avoid any bustling and rowdiness behind us!
The venue has incredible sound in such a vast space. The gig itself was mental, and we managed to be fed water by the security at the very front like young chicks in a nest begging for food with out mouths open.
A very stress — free entry, drama free night with very happy staff which reflects the venue.
Bonus: Jay electronica completely shafted the Koko security team with his antics, but the O2 security team didn’t allow him to do whatever he wanted. This lead Jay to apologise with ‘I appreciate the security team, but you know I don’t give a F***’. Not much of an apology, but I respect the team for controlling the event.

Awesome venue for live music. It’s small, compact and that makes for an intimate gig. Regardless how close you get to the front, the view is still really good. Drink prices are really reasonable considered it’s a concert venue. Pints are the £5 mark, which for London, isn’t too bad.
The let down of this place is definitely the toilets. They smelt really bad. I kinda expected this given its a concert venue, so this can definitely be overlooked. Especially as there’s quite a lot of toilets, given the size of the venue, so never had to queue for more than 5 minutes. This is an absolutely rarity in venues! There’s always massive queues.
All in all, I love this place. Can’t wait to return for another gig.

Definitely one of my favourite venues in London.
The stage is at the bottom of a slight slope which means that as an audience member, you get a great view of the band/​act from pretty much anywhere. Even for the vertically challenged.

It was a really nice venue and everyone was really friendly, even the bouncers

This venue was ok. I didn’t like the way they ran things for the Gerard concert… the way they organised the lines according to o2 users and non-​o2 users was inconvenient for my friend group. The inside of the venue is chilly, almost as if you are still standing outside. The floor by the stage has too many sections of barricades to move about freely, which was also very annoying.

Went to see Blink-​182 here on Friday. One of my favourite London venues. Even standing right at the back and being short I could still see the band. Pretty basic choice of beers/​cider — but definitely good beer that isn’t ridiculously over priced.

Awesome venue. Great mix of bands and DJs, in a rustic old theatre. Such a convenient location; right in the heart of Brixton, a two minute walk from the tube. Great place to go to a gig.

Great venue! (probably my second favourite for concerts out of those I’ve been to the past year)
02 Brixton hosts a lot of really good electronic artists, so I find myself here fairly often. And as far as venues go, it’s pretty solid.
Pros:
— Easy to get to (5 min walk from Brixton tube, and Brixton village for a pre-​gig meal is always nice)
— Doesn’t seem to have a specific time restriction re ending (while many shows end at 3, I was here for four tet a few weeks ago and that went till 6)
— Looks amazing (the interior décor is an actual old school theatre. You don’t really notice it much since you’re looking at the stage but every so often when you pause and gaze around it’s pretty awesome)
— Standing area is sloped (while the stage itself is elevated, beyond that, the standing area is on an incline as well. So you can usually manage a decent view
— Decent sized toilets (the ones inside the concert area itself get hectic but if you go out and up to level two there’s never much of a queue)
— Pretty good sound system
Cons:
— Security checks could be faster (e.g. when I came for Hardwell, I think we queued for at least 45 mins)
— They don’t allow chewing gum or glowsticks (which is just annoying really)
— bars can get crazy (should have more but there isn’t really space)
— Coat check queues can be bad
— Smoking area can be weird (they seem to only open it at a specific time. E.g. ⁰⁰⁰⁰⁄₀₁₀₀; it varies — and there can be a bit of a queue to get out)
Others:
— Really shitty VIP area/​bar. Won free tickets once. Thought it might be cool. It wasn’t. (No queue for the bar though)
Overall, I’m definitely pleased that so many people play here. I have gripes to be sure, but it’s still pretty good.

Great music venue with very reasonable prices that vary between 20 to 30 pounds. Wherever you stand you will have a good of the stage which is may be one of the most important things when me talk about concerts. If you are a music fan and want to see bands like The flaming lips, John Newman or Azealia Banks you can do it this March. Have fun and enjoy the music :)

Best. Venue. Ever!
Well, I may be getting a little carried away but it’s definitely my favourite place for gigs in London so far. If you want to be downstairs in the thick of it and you’re not into getting squashed at the front, the floor is sloping so you can be at the back when the crowd thins out and have an excellent view and superb sound.
The place is character, probably a little rundown for some, but I love the slight crumblyness, dark corridors and coloured lights. Also, the queue for the coat check is the most efficiently operated to I believe I’ve ever witnessed, you won’t be waiting long! And, it’s just down the road from my house…
c*

Great location for Music fans!
I came here to see Basement Jaxx and it was just amazing!
The only thing that has to take one star off is the fact that upstairs you are not allowed to stand up and dance! Well the first 3 rows aren’t… They realized though that for this kind of music basically everyone wants and has to dance so they let us do it anyways!
Also they should probably have some more people working behind the bar since I missed a lot of songs whilst waiting for my beer.

Ey up Unilocal!Merry Christmas, Happy New Year etc etc. Hope you’ve been doing well over the past few months and have not let me down at all.
On the 20^th of December this year, me and a very good friend of mine from University fulfilled a seven year ambition to see the Pogues live in Brixton. One of the first few things we bonded over, one of the first few things we talked about, and we finally managed to do what we had said we would nearly a decade ago (Christ, that makes me feel old).
Objectively, aside from the sentimental aspect, it was a belter and one of the better gigs I’ve been to. Part of its appeal was the venue, similar in size and shape to the Manchester Apollo and offering the same renovated classical architecture as its Northern cousin. Both venues are famed for their unique, sloping dance floors and often the juxtaposition between the acts on stage and the décor. Pissed, singing along to Sally McLenane and looking up into a domed, renaissance style fresco was, I must admit, one of the more surreal moments of my life.
Halfway between an opera house and a lecture theatre, it really is a venue stuck in time. It provides the gig goer with something different, something a bit more than the ever present, something aside from the same tired venue housed inside a sorry looking brutalist nightmare. Bland, boring and predictable, these are the venues that we have to have less of; we have to remove the banal and have more Brixton Academies, more Manchester Apollos, more venues that have character, life and history.
Yes, the carpets are a hideous green, torn and shabby; yes, the lighting is poor and the sound could be miles better and there is an odd, mouldy smell to the place, but it has character, it has history, it has a sense of itself; it is a photo in time, and in its mixture of old and new, of then and now, a wonderful, almost ironic, sense of modernity.

Unfortunately for me most of the artists I want to see seem to end up performing here but it’s really not my favourite place to go at all. I can never be bothered to drink in there because queues for the bars are ridiculous, about ten deep at all times. Queues for the various grotty toilets are out the door and around the corner, cloakrooms queues have at least 50 people at any one time.
No matter where you stand (front or back) you constantly have people pushing past you and your shoes stick to the floor when they’re not kicking cups out of the way. The only good points about this place are that tickets are generally reasonably priced (around £20−30) and you have a good view of the stage wherever you stand. Hammersmith Apollo is a slightly smaller venue but worlds apart in terms of organisation and cleanliness. Shame more acts I like don’t perform there!

I recently descended on Brixton Academy 02 for the first time to see Disclosure!
The ques into the venue were fast moving, the security were pleasant with the body and bag check’s, I don’t know how good their checks our when you can still smell the whiff of cannabis in the theater. The lady told me to watch my bag, so that was kind of her, I mean it is Brixton after all.
The venue has a cloakroom, which i decided not to use, because the ques was too long, so if you do want to use I suggest get in there early plus leave straight after the main act has finished because everyone is thinking the same as you concerning getting their jacket.
The main arena/​stage I thought was great,(five stars) i could see my Disclose clearly without feeling i had to move to the front row, plus its not bad maneuver you’re self to the front if you want to. The sound was excellent i could hear every bassline.
Be careful not to trip up on all the plastic beer cups plus spills that on the floor that could be easy when your getting your grove on.
I really like the quirky poster near the stage no crowd surfing ha ha!
After the main act, was done it just turned into a rave, which i thought was great because its a great space for it, with the DJ doin his thang up on the stage.
The toilets were none to be desired plus i asked myself where is the African lady who normally sells or gives perfumes tissues chewing gum etc. The toilets are well kept when they are their.
Brixton Academy seriously need a revamp, i mean the café was so outdated and reminded me of something you get on a market stall, with people selling out of a hot dog van with brightly colored stickers on it saying «Tea for 50p».
The frontage before you get into concert space was atrocious so unclean with the drink spillage and cups ewwww!
I’m sure ill come here again due to an act i want to see… but please 02 you make money don’t you? From all the money you get from me over the years phone bill wise and the rest of your customers i don’t see what the problem, i feel Brixton Academy is the ugly sister out all your venues.
Please show Brixton Academy the love she so desperately needs.

Possibly the best music venue in the whole world
Saw Zero7, with Sia. and also Primal Scream, on a very boozy night :)

I’ve been coming to this venue for 10 years and have to say it’s the king when it comes down to live gig venues. I’ve seen all sorts of bands here Kasabian, The White Stripes, Wolfmother, Faithless, Rancid, Gomez, Ocean Colour Scene, Queens Of The Stone Age, The Mars Volta, Primal Scream, Death In Vegas, Feeder and the most recent Hot Chip and I have to say what ever genre of music the sound is always perfect. Another quality of this venue is that you can see the stage wherever you stand due to it’s slooping floor, so whatever height you are, you can pretty much see (unless your stuck benhind me as I’m 6ft 3). Toilets are minging, but you find that with most gig venues. Bars are scattered all over, so it’s not to difficult to grab a drink.
So if a band you like is playing here, go check them out, you won’t be disappointed with this venue.

Probablemente el mejor local de conciertos de Londres. Su suelo ligeramente inclinado hace que el escenario sea visible desde cualquier ángulo. Si eres bajit@ solo tienes que separarte un poco del de delante o ponerte en una de las esquinas y ya.
La acústica es también bastante buena y por ahí han pasado y pasan grandes de la música cada semana.
Diría que mi favorito :)
También funciona como discoteca, pero aún no he estado.

Had a little visit to the Academy on a Friday night. By way of unique-​ness I say it’s a step above Shepard’s Bush with its double staircase to a mezzanine level with a bar, and more steps to the balcony level. And not as large as Hammersmith Apollo (which is a good thing as it feels a tad more intimate). Let’s break this down in easy to ingest review bites:
Bathrooms: Most stalls were in working order and sinks had hot water and soap. Even right after the show I waited no longer than five minutes.
Security: Friendly while doing their job; purse/​bag checks went quickly and smoothly; they were polite about kicking sneaky sneakers out of the reserved seats upstairs.
Sound: Pretty good, considering the size. Mystery Jets rocks while also delivering some fantastic harmonic vocals, and I didn’t feel cheated by one overpowering the other. My nit-​picky complaint is that the vocals were a smidge too loud and had a faint high-​pitch ring to them. Could have been worse.
Seating: Open on ground floor if you want to feel energized and the sweat of the guy inevitably pressed up against you. And even though it sloped, at 5′ 4″ I couldn’t see enough to my liking from the very back. I liked that the balcony was where the older folks could sit down after a long work week and enjoy their favorite band without having their beer knocked around by an overzealous 16 year old.
The balcony is broken in half long ways by a big aisle, and those sitting closest to the edge had to stay seated, while those wanting the best of both worlds could stand/​dance/​rock behind the aisle. A great compromise if you want to get dance-​y without having to deal with being pushed around downstairs.
Bar: There were about four or five going, and the ground floor one was busiest (about 10 minutes to get a drink). Go upstairs and the wait is far shorter. I think it cost about £3.75 for a Guiness, £15 for two double vodka drinks.
Getting there: About five minute walk from Brixton Tube. We had a pre-​drink/​meal at Trinity Arms (see my review)

I’m a massive fan of this place for live music! There is a large space for standing on the ground floor which slopes towards the stage, meaning, no matter how short you are, you are guaranteed to see the stage!
There is also space up stairs for watching too, which goes right around the venue.
Both upstairs and downstairs are generally the same price but I think downstairs is better. .
Great sound system and the place is a good size (not too big).Beautiful old building, old pillars & red velvet décor.
They show lots of alternative music here. THey also hold the NME music nights which are great fun, different bands playing in different rooms all night!
If you like your live music, you’ll love this venue!

Caught Ferry Corsten, Dash Berlin, Richard Durand amd Sied Ven Riel here on NYE 2012.
The venue is just a few minutes walk from the Brixton tube station. ATMs and liquor stores conveniently line the way.
I have concerns with the way the venue was managed, especially in regards to rubbish removal and general cleanliness of public areas. Floors were slippery all night, with rubbish strewn about everywhere. The smoking area is also quite small for a concert hall this size.
The sound system on the main floor was decent, and the lighting was intelligent enough to keep up with the base line. Though I find it unforgivable that the triple LED panels (screens) behind the DJ were set up incorrectly, shattering what could have been a contiguous graphic display into three disconnected images.
In all an above-​average rave experience at the O2 Academy.

La meilleure salle de concert de Londres
Je suis allé voir Blink 182 il y a 5 ans dans cette salle intime à l’anglais avec des fanas, l’ambiance était terrible et les membres du groupe l’ont senti et c’était vraiment super, je suis ressorti trempé tellement je me suis amusé, c’est inoubliable, les anglais sont des hooligans dans les stades mais là ils étaient super pendant ce concert et d’ailleurs les agents de sécurité ont pas l’air commode donc on se sent bien en concert. Le son résonne bien il sort de partout et c’est super, cette salle est vraiment très, très bonne pour un concert live.