Gang Gang Goes Gangbusters - Old Cafe, New Music Venue!

by Ruth O’Brien

Most people wouldn’t have thought that buying a cafe during COVID was, with respect, the smartest thing to do. But, when the opportunity was presented to Sam, Max, and Riley Conway (possibly known better as three quarter of the band, Slow Turismo, pictured above with dogs) these brothers said YES.

With no prior intention to own a cafe business but, being so invested in the music industry, these three young guys (who live, play, and now own a venue together) recognised the chance to impact the local music scene for the better.

“There were just so many great places for us to play when we were coming up, and the idea of being able to have a live music venue around the corner from our house? We were sold,” says Sam.

As residents of Downer and already working at the cafe, Sam and bros knew that Gang Gang Cafe & Bar was still doing quite well despite lockdowns, social distancing, and restrictions.

“The fact that we knew it could survive (the pandemic), that was all we needed to take the plunge.”

If you’ve ever been to this cool little venue (you absolutely should), you’ll know how homely and welcoming it feels as soon as you arrive. It serves great food and coffee, the staff are really nice, and perhaps most enticingly for live music lovers, there are two-to-three gigs on a week!

Sam said he and his brothers had a moment where they realised it was all coming together.

“We were sitting out the back the other day at home; we all sighed and went: ‘It’s actually kind of going to plan!’” he says.

The brothers have gigs booked at Gang Gang almost every night some weeks and are open to hosting any genre or style. One night they might have jazz. Another might be a series of singersongwriter performances. The idea of having classical music has also been thrown around.

During the warmer months, the Conway brothers made use of the beautiful summer evenings and outdoor space to create a fantastic and inviting community concert area. As the colder month roll in, I can see the venue becoming a warm and cosy haven - the Danish word hygge immediately springs to mind.

AND, their place is also incredibly dog friendly; around 7am is “dog happy-hour”.

“Some people just come to watch the dogs”, laughs Sam. “At 7:30am, we’ve got 20-25 dogs out there”.

At the heart of their success are three very genuine men with a passion for live music in Canberra. While there’s definitely been a lot of hard work, good business decision making, mentoring and support, building Gang Gang’s reputation as a live music venue has undoubtedly brought in new customers.

“Live music is good for business,” says Sam. “If you establish yourself as a good place to play, people want to come back and

bring their fans and friends. If you have a wide variety of events, you get a wide variety of people.”

So here’s to more Gang Gang-style cafes and live music venues scattered around the ‘berra burbs.

“I think there is an appetite for these kinds of community events”, agrees Sam. “The suburban local shops next to the oval? It’s very approachable.”

Gang Gang Café and Bar is at Downer Shops, Frencham Place. Open 7am-5pm Monday to Sunday, and 5pm – late Friday and Saturday. For more info about upcoming gigs head to ganggangcafeandbar.com, or go to their Facebook page - Gang Gang Cafe.