VENUEWATCH: STILL GOING STRONG

The thing that stikes most firmly in our minds about our first visit to the Sheffield Leadmill was the toilets. We'd never been in a proper indie venue before that boasted the sort of proper toilets you'd expect in a cinema or a place where grown-ups went for entertainment. We were very impressed.

This month, the Sheffield Leadmill is celebrating 25 years in the business of inviting people to make strange and beautiful noises. It nearly went under a few times in the 1990s; impressively, it refused Madonna, U2 and The Darkness slots; and Julian Casablancas of the Strokes was sick on its stage.

There's usually a note of sadness most times we mention venues here - the words "is to close" hang desperately in the air most times - so it's nice to be able to toast some success for once.

Not, perhaps the most fitting tribute but Hell is For Heroes Live at the Leadmill is released tomorrow.

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