Christchurch guide
The best live music venues in Christchurch
Christchurch's live-music scene came back after the quakes and never really let up — a run of small, independent rooms where the city's bands actually play, plus the pubs and jazz bars that keep a stage going all year.
11 of them across the city — the St Asaph Street strip (Darkroom, Space Academy, A Rolling Stone) at the heart of it, Wunderbar over the hill in Lyttelton, Blue Smoke out at Woolston's Tannery, Churchill's in Sydenham, jazz at Vesuvio in Merivale and a waterfront session at Evil Genius in Ferrymead. Dedicated gig rooms, pub stages and courtyard sessions alike.
Most shows are ticketed and the good ones sell out, so it pays to book ahead and get there for the openers. Line-ups change fast — check the venue before you make the trip.
Venue data checked weekly · Updated September 2026
The picks
- 01Pomeroy's Old Brewery Inn · Bar · Central City
A family-run craft-beer pub on Kilmore Street since 2001 — taps from far and wide, scratch-made pub food and a snug for the cold months.
- 02Dux Central · Bar · Central City
Craft beer and live music under one roof — a long-running central spot with its own brews and bands most weekends.
- 03Fat Eddie's · Bar · Central City
Live jazz and an American-leaning menu on the Hereford Street riverside — sax, funk duos, burgers and wings till 3am on the weekend.
- 04A Rolling Stone · Bar · Central City
An Irish-style pub on Colombo Street by day that turns into one of the city's hardest-working live-music rooms by night — proper stage, sound and lights, and a…
- 05Wunderbar · Bar · Lyttelton
Lyttelton's gloriously weird live-music bar — up a flight of stairs, decked out in oddball decor, hosting gigs and parties of every stripe.
- 06Vesuvio Jazz & Tapas Bar · Bar · Merivale
A Merivale wine and tapas bar with live jazz — Spanish-leaning small plates, a good wine list and music most nights, in an upscale-but-easy room.
- 07darkroom · Bar · Central City
A small, grassroots live-music bar on St Asaph Street, going since the quakes — the room where the city's independent scene actually plays, from metal and folk…
- 08Space Academy · Bar · Central City
Part bar, part gig venue, part pizza joint — Pizza Trap runs the kitchen from 5 and there's live music most nights, Wednesday through Sunday.
- 09Blue Smoke · Bar · Woolston
Cassels' live-music venue at The Tannery in Woolston — a proper 350-capacity room running everything from local bands to touring acts, with the brewery's craft…
- 10Churchill's Tavern · Bar · Sydenham
A Sydenham tavern with a licensed history back to 1882 — and one of the inner city's last proper pub live-music rooms, a 250-cap space with a serious PA for…
+ 1 more on the map below ↓
Keep exploring
Common questions
- Where can you see live music in Christchurch?
- A few to start with: Pomeroy's Old Brewery Inn, Dux Central, Fat Eddie's, A Rolling Stone, Wunderbar. It's a real spread — dedicated gig rooms, old pubs with a stage that book touring bands, and a couple of jazz and acoustic bars — from the central city out to Lyttelton, Woolston and Ferrymead.
- Which venues are best for gigs and touring bands?
- Darkroom and Space Academy on St Asaph Street are the heart of the independent scene, Blue Smoke out at The Tannery is Cassels' big 350-cap room for the bigger names, and Churchill's in Sydenham and A Rolling Stone in town book rock, punk and metal most weekends.
- Anywhere for a more low-key or jazz night?
- Vesuvio in Merivale does jazz and tapas, Fat Eddie's runs live music most nights in the central city, Pomeroy's leans folk and acoustic, and Wunderbar over the hill in Lyttelton is a one-of-a-kind room worth the trip.
- How do I find out who's playing?
- Line-ups move week to week and a lot of shows are ticketed, so check the venue's own listings before you head down — Under The Radar's Canterbury gig guide is the other good place to see what's on.