Revolver Upstairs

Even though you might be here to rave to the best music in town, I acknowledge that you are a human being so you might want to chill out to listen to yourself — For those, Revolver is the best and safest place to be.
Surrounded by like minded people, you can have a chat with a total stranger, make friends for the night or a lifetime while enjoying stencils by one of the most famous artist in the world. You know it.
If you are not there to party, Revolver’s second life — Colonel Tans will feed you with great Thai fusion cuisine until late. Just make sure to leave some spacey space to people who are looking for some peace and fun.

Welcome to one of the most famous places in Prahran –at least to me–
I know it might not be for everyone, but I like this place with the right people around me. It’s good if you wanna spend some time dancing and drinking and be with your friends. They have a weird drug policy like you CANT do it but you CAN do it and you know it. Let’s face it, everyone is doing it. I love that it’s open all weekend and you can go whenever you want. I had fun here and never seemed dull to me but yeah sometimes it can be like «where the heck am I?»
Other than that, I liked it.

Revolver is rarely planned but a few nights have ended here. Pretty big venue but does get super crowded (I hope you don’t need to use the toilet). It has a weird vibe that it prides itself on which is what makes the venue. Best times at revolver are Sunday morning from 7am until the afternoon. Holds a lot of cool events with thick as thieves and novel. Summer series events on Sunday nights are great. Have only ever been knocked back twice but I probably wasn’t in the finest form at the time.

Ah this review. How to articulate it. There is a time and a place for Revolver.
I’ve been on both sides, watching the wasted come out and being one of them going in. Needless to say, I appreciate their grimy couches and the DJs that spin a few tunes while I chat away and occasionally micro nap. And if you are out when the sun comes up then Rev’s fixes the question of where to go next.

I came here many years ago & had a wonderful time. I suggested it to friends the other night only to be treated very poorly by the security guards who tried to over charge us on entry, were incredibly rude & appeared to be homophobic towards the other members in my party (who were all gay men). They refused entry to those wearing thongs (which I don’t have a problem with, that’s standard) but the attitudes of the bouncers were atrocious. None of my party were rude or intoxicated. I only had the chance to say «hello» to the bouncer & answer how many people were in our party «7» before they began being belligerent. I will never return to this venue with my business or recommend it to anyone. I’ve worked in bars for over 7 years & there is no excuse for treating potential clientele this way.

I’m always waiting for the police to raid Revolver whenever I find myself there (which is only when I’m there for the specific purpose of seeing a live act).
It is such a drug den, and no one even remotely tries to hide it.
It never feels unsafe, and the vibe is always quite cheery (rather than sinister), but that’s because everyone inside seems to be chewing their faces off on Ecstacy. It’s really funny to watch actually.
The fact that it’s open 24 hours over the weekend is definitely a significant contributor to this fact. Several times, when I’ve been walking down Chapel street in the bright daylight of morning, I’ve seen cabs full of wasted bogans pull up at Revolver, looking seriously off their heads, and apparently not having any problem getting inside.
It also isn’t helped by the fact that the red-​lit entrance stairway looks and feels so much like «that scene» from Irreversible. Heebie Jeebies much?
Having said that, the band room is a great space and they often program some pretty awesome bands, so they’re definitely doing something right.

Revolver (also cleverly known as Revolting) is the place that you go when everywhere else has closed. It is also the place that you walk past on a Sunday morning to see bleary-​eyed club zombies squinting at the sun, dignity most likely in tatters. Always a fun spectacle to observe.
However, Revolver does have it’s charms. It’s a nice spacious venue with soft comfy couches that are perfect to sink into when you’ve had one too many or you’re sick of wasted revelers stepping on your toes mid dance move.
Revolver holds a fond spot in the hearts of many a Melburnian, and rightly so.

Revolver may be a multi purpose venue, but I’ll always remember it for what it is in the early hours of Sunday morning: an iconic underground club that plays really loud and bass heavy techno.
I have found myself at Revolver one too many times on a weekend after a night out, as it is open until midday on Saturday and pretty much all day Sunday for all those dedicated partiers who aren’t ready to call it a night. Revolver is decked out with comfy couches, funky patterned walls and is split up into 3 different rooms. You can often find live acts and bands in the front room, while the main room is where the dj cage (yes that’s right cage) is located, with an ad hoc dance floor to boogie the night away.
The bar at Revolver does tend to get very busy, and often you are waiting quite awhile for a drink, but being a bit of a mixed bag in terms of the crowd that Revolver attracts, you can often find someone new to chat to while you wait in line to be served.

Let’s just say that Revolver has a reputation… and it’s that it is interesting. This multi-​purpose venue on Chapel Street has an interesting feel to it. It is the place to go to when nowhere else is open. For this fact, a lot of people go there but the qualities of the customers that come out at that time of night are indifferent to say the least. To be honest, I have attended many little live music gigs there and they run a good show. They know what they are doing and are prepared to deal with the types of people they get. For this, I can give them some kudos. On the other hand, a place like this is a necessity and because the place has a few different levels it is never as bad as you think. I do like the big bar and lounge area where at the early hours of the morning it is great for a little dance where the DJ’s don’t play the ear-​bursting techno all night, which is a relief, but if that’s your thing there’s a room for you too.
You can’t expect too much from the staff that has the collective face of someone who’s «seen too much» but they remain cool and have an up beat attitude for people that clearly don’t sleep. One upside for them is that everyone knows what to expect and it’s kind of comforting to know that if all else fails you can go there and expect to have a good time whether you want to see a band, chill in the lounge or really get your groove on. No doubt, I will be back there again.

NOTES:
~ They regularly put on events and host local bands. You can probably get a lot of updates on what is going on via their website and/​or Facebook.
~ There are several rooms to this place you can walk in and out of so it might look tiny when you first walk in but it actually isn’t!
~ They have a furry wall! «Get Him to the Greek» anyone? LOL.
If I could describe this place in one word, it would definitely be «trendy». They put on an event for a launch party and it was pretty awesome (served free drinks early on in the event!). Like I said, definitely look at the schedule to see what is going on because you’ll probably find something that interests you.
The venue itself is pretty cool. They have arcade games such as Street Fighter and Pinball, live-​art shows, and a really hip and trendy atmosphere!
I would probably come back again to check out what is going on. It is definitely worth a shot if you find something cool here.
Things they can improve on:
~ The bar is very short on hands. I asked my friend to grab me a glass of water and it probably took around 7 minutes before the barman even got to him. The barman was not being rude, but it was just ultimately one man working a busy bar. Poor guy.