Every City Needs a Café Oto

On the importance of small venues for a healthy alternative music scene

In the current October issue of The Wire, Derek Walmsley dedicates his editorial to “microspaces”, small-scale music venues that sometimes barely accomodate 30 people. He states that for underground music scenes in China or Brazil, these microspaces have proven to be important hubs, reminding us of the long-standing tradition of living-room style gigs i…