Last month, The Tote closed down. It hasn't sunk in yet, though it hurts everytime I pass it.
The Tote was the first pub I went to see a band at when I moved to Melbourne back in 2003. I didn't know anyone in Melbourne, so went alone. It was very difficult to get out of the house that night, and I can't say I enjoyed myself very much either. As I left, I was looking around at all the other people having fun and hanging out with their friends, and thought "Awww...". I never knew back then how familiar that filthy place would become to me. I couldn't even tell you how many times I walked through those front doors, and how many of my new (now old) Melbourne friends I would see play there. I became friends with the legendary Bruce Milne (publican and so much more) a few years back, and he kindly let me poke around and take some photographs the day after The Tote shut their doors.
