Diving Bell Social Club reopening
Music, Nightlife

Montreal music venue Diving Bell Social Club is reopening

by Lorraine Carpenter

…with safety measures that go above and beyond.

Diving Bell Social Club, a small music venue on the third floor of the Barbossa (fka Blizzarts) / Champs building on St-Laurent Blvd. (3956 St-Laurent, to be specific), opened two years ago, but like so many other venues, has been closed for six months.

They haven’t been entirely inactive during the pandemic, however. The Diving Bell crew hosted a live-streaming fundraiser for musicians just after the COVID-19 shutdown in March; released two music compilations on Bandcamp; hosted a live-streamed single release show for one of their affiliated artists, Maryze; and had a spot outside their space during the recent St-Laurent street fair.

This week, the venue has announced that the space is finally reopening on Sept. 12.

The crew from Diving Bell Social Club announce their reopeing

Diving Bell is implementing some very strict infection prevention measures, aside from the standard mandatory mask rule, capacity limits (in their case audiences of no more than 45), contactless payment for drinks and strictly pre-sale tickets for entry (no walk-ups). In addition to all that, masks will be provided to anyone in need, clientele will be greeted at the top and bottom of the stairs so that no one has to cross paths, full table service will be provided during all events, HEPA filters on air conditioning and exhaust systems will be changed frequently and all staff will be tested for COVID-19 prior to reopening and commit to a regular testing schedule. And for those who remain unwilling to go out to concerts and other shows at Diving Bell, all events will be live-streamed on their platforms for free.

Anyone with more questions is encouraged to contact the venue at info@divingbellsocial.com. ■

For more, please visit the Diving Bell Social Club website.

For more Montreal music coverage, please visit our Music section.

Posted in Music, Nightlife

by Lorraine Carpenter

Editor in chief
Lorraine Carpenter was born in Montreal and studied communications and journalism at Concordia. She co-founded Cult MTL in 2012 following 12 years at the now-defunct Montreal alt weekly the Mirror, where she worked in editorial as copy editor and music editor. She’s dedicated to supporting the cultural scene in Montreal.