Live Music Venue Spotlight: The Habitat

As some of you may know, I moved to Kelowna from the Manchester area of England in 2004. As such, I’m aware of what it’s like to be a music-loving newcomer in our city. To be fair, when I first arrived, I was too young to visit bars, pubs and other licensed establishments (the home of a lot of live music, particularly in the winter.) However, I’m confident in asserting that one of the tricky things about being a music lover in a new city, is knowing when and where to find good live music. With that in mind, part of the mission of this column is to highlight venues and acts thereby helping those that are new to Kelowna or unfamiliar with our music scene. As such, I want to highlight one of Kelowna’s venues in this piece. Kelowna is fortunate to have a number of quality live music venues throughout the city, but today I’d like to highlight Habitat. It’s one of my favourite venues in Kelowna.

Photo Credit: Jeff Willard

Habitat is located at 248 Leon Avenue, in Kelowna’s downtown core. Fascinatingly, the building in which Habitat is situated has a rich history. The building was built in the 1950s and was Kelowna’s first liquor store! Habitat is a fittingly unique venue. I often have the feeling that I could be in some trendy Vancouverite hotspot while I’m in Habitat. It’s a space with a certain debonair with a décor that’s deliberately designed to suit the sort of events that Habitat hosts.

Photo Credit: Jeff Willard

Musically, Habitat attracts an array of talented musicians from local acts like Wild Son and Thomas Kjorven through to acts like Said the Whale, Aidan Knight, The Zolas, Bahamas and Joel Plaskett to name but a few. However, Habitat isn’t a pub (although they do serve liquor and food at certain events); it’s a space that can be rented for an array of functions, which means that it’s equally at home hosting a concert, as it is an art show, a workshop, or private party.

Photo Credit: Jeff Willard

Kudos to the talented team at Habitat for continuing to give our city a sweet hangout; the next time that you’re invited to a show at Habitat, head on down and check it out. You won’t be disappointed. Habitat is well worth a visit.

You can find Habitat’s official website here.

Reminder: For those of you who have yet to vote for ‘Best of Kelowna’, you may want to act quickly as voting ends tomorrow at noon. There are all manner of great categories for the local arts and music scene, and with 78 categories, there’s likely something else in there for you too. We’re lucky to have so many awesome businesses, places, and people in Kelowna, so show your support and cast a vote for your favourite and help support and promote our fine city. You can vote here.

Do you want to contact Vince? E-mail him at: vince@welcometokelowna.com or connect with him on Twitter, Google+ or LinkedIn. You can also hear Vince play some of Canada's best indie music from emerging artists every Wednesday on the Music City Podcast.