In the heart of Kings Cross, Spiritland has emerged as a pioneering listening bar that focuses on delivering an unparalleled audio experience. This incredible venue is tucked inside the Locke Hotel. It was founded by Paul Noble and Sophie Uddin, who wanted to establish a place that was all about high-quality sound and catering to many different music formats. Spiritland is home to a sister location in Lisbon, Portugal, which is creatively embedded in an interior formerly occupied by an old library.
The bar’s design was influenced by Japanese listening bars, famous for their focus on sound quality. The venue is equipped with a stunning sound system designed by Living Voice. It’s built to accurately recreate the sound of acoustic instruments, filling your home with the sound of music. Spiritland offers a diverse selection of music, combining both vinyl and digital formats, alongside hosting DJs, talks, and album launches.
A Commitment to Sound Quality
At Spiritland, sound quality takes center stage. And the high-performance audio system, if you’re all in, can run well over a million pounds. It’s in service to provide a phenomenal sonic experience to the people who will listen. Paul Noble, who has a rich background in radio production including the esteemed Maida Vale sessions, emphasizes the importance of sound in defining the bar’s concept.
“I was on my own audio journey. They make some wild high-end speakers that can cost up to a million pounds with rare woods and gold finishes, but they also make some real-world ones, so I got rid of my whole sound system at home and bought from them for my lounge. And then we talked and they built this system for us. It was their tech but we had input on the design.” – Paul Noble
Noble is of course committed to providing a sonically excellent product. He feels that every detail of Spiritland’s design is crucial to fostering a deeply immersive listening experience. The bar has a great selection of music, with CDs and digital players paired with an impressive vinyl archive.
“We’ve got CD players, we’ve got digital players. We do have a big record collection. Vinyl is a really nice way to file your music and the format of an album is great. But the sound, I think, has been blown out of the water by digital high-res recording.” – Paul Noble
A Multifaceted Experience
Spiritland does a wonderful job of creating a world that feels enticing to music fans. The culture and music space has live DJs every night and runs the city’s most eclectic program of talks, panel discussions and album launches. This multi-prong approach creates an inclusive space focused on music discovery and artistic ingenuity.
It makes sense that Spiritland’s programming is a blend of such musical ecstasy and excess. You’ll see and hear from Bob Dylan, The Beach Boys, Bruce Springsteen, Jack White, those are just a few. This diverse hodgepodge exemplifies the bar’s commitment to all types of music. It draws multi-generational, multi-racial crowds who want to come and be a part of that collective listening experience.
“We just put our flag in the sand saying ‘this is a listening bar’. Lots of people came in and were saying ‘oh you can’t dance, there are chairs all over the dance floor’. It’s not a club.” – Paul Noble
Spiritland’s main location booms in Kings Cross. At the same time, its sibling venue in Lisbon infuses a thrilling cosmopolitan energy into the brand. This small business is located within a historic, transformed library. It has unapologetically positioned, and continues to position, music front and center as a profound and potent art form. Similar to its London twin, the Lisbon outpost continues a historic legacy of demanding perfectionism in sound quality.
A Global Concept with Local Roots
Noble reflects on the inspiration derived from Japan’s listening bars, which served as a model for Spiritland’s approach:
Spiritland isn’t simply about being in a great room to hear music. More than just facilitating great performances, it cultivates its own immersive experience that combines extraordinary sound quality with cultural engagement.
“I went to Japan where they have a tradition of listening bars.” – Paul Noble
As each new location continues to grow, the founders are focused on further improvement to the listening experience for their patrons. Creating the scene are vibrant exhibits and stunning artistic images—including full wall projections of psychedelic art.
As both locations flourish, the founders remain committed to enhancing the listening experience for patrons. The integration of spirited collections and artistic visuals—including projections of psychedelic imagery—further enriches the ambiance.
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