There is no cover charge for the bands. Arrive before the music starts on Thursday to Sunday to get a seat in the small front room.
Labour in Vain sits on Brunswick Street in the heart of Fitzroy, in a building that went up in 1853 and has traded as a pub since 1998. Broadsheet and Time Out both file it as a Fitzroy live music bar rather than a polished cocktail room, and that is the point. The floors are worn, the room is small, and the welcome is for everyone.
This is a pub for people who want a beer, a band and a conversation, not a tasting menu. Visit Melbourne describes it as a little gritty and a little dingy, with its heart in the right place, and that reading holds up. If you came to Fitzroy looking for the version of the neighbourhood that existed before the renovations, this is one of the rooms where it survives.
The bar itself is intimate, a single worn room off Brunswick Street with the music staged close to the drinkers. Look at the signage and you will spot the quirk locals love. The name is painted as Labour on one door and Labor on another, a nod to the short period around 1900 when Australian officials argued over dropping the U. The story is told on the pub's own pages and repeated in the local listings.
The draw at the bar is the tap wall. The pub runs twelve taps that rotate through seasonal beers, backed by wine, spirits and liqueurs, per its official site. There is no kitchen, so the house position is refreshingly simple. Order food in from a Brunswick Street restaurant and eat it at your table while you drink. For a craft beer crawl through the north side, that combination of a rotating tap list and no pressure to order a meal is exactly what makes it easy to settle in.
People of all ages and backgrounds, by the venue's own description, drawn together by the bands. The free live music from Thursday to Sunday is what regulars rate it for, and the room turns over from after-work drinkers early to a music crowd as the night runs on.
On a Fitzroy and inner north music night, line it up with Cherry Bar in Melbourne for rock and roll, The Night Cat in Melbourne for live bands in the round, and The John Curtin Hotel in Melbourne for another heritage music pub.
Planning a night out? Read our best live music bars in Melbourne guide and our best bars in Melbourne list. Browse more on the Melbourne live music bars hub or find a pour near you at craft beer near me.