Brighton venue The Freebutt has announced that it will no longer be able to put on live music after it was ordered to reduce the cut-off level on its volume limiter by the local council.

As previously reported, The Freebutt was served with a noise abatement notice in February this year after the council received just one complaint from a neighbouring resident. Various steps were taken to remedy the issue, though the venue, the council and audio consultants brought in on either side found it hard to properly diagnose and monitor the problem because the complainant refused them all access to their property.

Apparently this situation changed earlier this month, when audio consultants were finally allowed access to the complainant’s home. They found that there were, indeed, still sound leakage issues, and the venue’s owners estimate that it will cost twenty grand to address them – twenty grand they don’t have. The result is that the council is now strictly enforcing its noise order, basically making it impossible for Freebutt gigs to go ahead.

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