THE ELM TREE closed down last month in controversial circumstances after the landlord and music promoter were given just 24 hours to get out.

The pub on Cowley Road has promoted live music for over five years now and was host to two of Oxford’s most successful club nights - The Club That Cannot Be Named, which has recently attracted some of the biggest names on the UK metal and hardcore scene, and Klub Kakofanney, the long-running anything-goes club which helped launch bands like Nought and Camp Blackfoot.

According to the venue’s promoter, Joal Shearing, the pub’s landlord, Joe Ryan, had been fighting a legal battle with Morrells, which owns the Elm Tree, for two weeks but the first he knew of it was when Joe told him they had 24 hours to pack up and leave. Bands turning up to play at the Elm Tree on Thursday 13th of July found the doors locked and a notice that the pub would be closed until further notice.

Joal is as much in the dark about the exact reasons for the Elm Tree’s closure as everyone; Morrells have refused to talk to him about the situation. The brewery also refused to discuss the matter with Nightshift when we rang them but the fact that they are involved in a legal dispute with Joe Ryan means they are unlikely to be forthcoming in the near future.

While the closure initially appeared to be yet another nail in the coffin of the local venue scene - which has also lost Roots.net, the Jericho, Jongleurs and the Dolly over the past year - there was good news when it was announced that Joal would be moving his music promoting to the Wheatsheaf in the centre of town. The pub, situated just off the High Street, used to be one of the main venues in Oxford in the 1980s, playing host to the likes of My Bloody Valentine as well as local bands like Talulah Gosh and Swervedriver.

Over the last decade it has only had live music when bands have hired the upstairs venue out but with the arrival of a new manager, Graham Carr, all that is set to change. The Wheatsheaf is already home to the weekly jazz club, Spin, and now Joal has installed an updated PA from the Elm Tree in the venue, expanded the stage and installed a lighting rig. The first gig at the Wheatsheaf will be by veteran rock loony John Otway on August 4th.

A full launch party will take place over the weekend of the 1st and 2nd of September with Klub Kakofanney hosting the Friday night and Camp Blackfoot already booked for the Saturday. The Club That Cannot Be Named will also be relocating to the Wheatsheaf. The upstairs venue will now be known as the Pavilion. Bands wishing to play there should contact Joal on 0789 9025832.

In next month’s issue we will be discussing fully the local music venue situation and its implications for the future of Oxford music. To contribute to the debate email your views to Nightshift at nightshift@oxfordmusic.net