Introducing Holding Patterns, Leeds city centre’s newest place to listen, read and meet.
Holding Patterns is the latest venture from Leeds legends Hyde Park Book Club, Eiger Studios and Renaissance Hair & Beauty. This new city-centre gem draws inspiration from the growing trend of Japanese-style listening bars seen in London, and we stopped by to check it out.
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“I started Hyde Park Book Club with a friend nine years ago, as well as Eiger Studios about 17 years ago,” Co-Director Jack Simpson told us. “It wasn’t until my friends Rob and Lynsey Harrison (owners of Renaissance) gave me a shout that I went down to look at the space, and I was like, this is a chance to do something really cool.”
You’ll actually find Holding Patterns below Renaissance Hair and Beauty. The joint creative collaboration of Jack, Rob and Lynsey stemmed from a desire to inject some culture into the Albion Place venue, as well as a need for more community-centred spaces in Leeds.
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As one of the only specialist audiophile spots in the North of England, it’s clear that music is the beating heart of the operation. The venue is home to a hi-fi sound system provided by Martin Audio, best known for their work with Blues Kitchen and Manchester Arena, with speakers for a controlled sound experience.
Events will be regularly programmed, with locally sourced DJs and guest selectors from around the country performing every Friday and Saturday night. Expect everything from new wave and disco to downtempo and ambient.
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But it doesn’t stop there. Even if you’re not a music aficionado, the ground floor area is kitted out for daytime workers who may want to pop in with their laptop, or groups of friends who fancy an evening catch up. There’s even a nook with new and secondhand books available for purchase.
They have a stellar drinks offering, too. As well as top-notch coffee from Casa Espresso (brewed up using a San Remo espresso machine, no less!), cocktails cover Spicy Margs, Negronis, Espresso Martinis and more, while beer lovers will be made up with Lucky Saint and Guinness on tap.
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“I think Holding Patterns will be a really nice space to get together with friends on an evening”, Jack told us. “It’s great for people to just have a coffee, whether on their own or having a meeting, and then lots of interesting programming. I think over time, there’ll be a developing program of stuff that you might not expect to see right in the middle of town.”
So, there you have it. Though Holding Patterns is in its early days, it’s clear the team behind it have brought something special to the city centre. Why not check it out next time you’re at a loose end in Leeds?
Holding Patterns, 2 Albion Place, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 6JL. Open from 10am to 12am on Fridays and Saturdays, and from 10am to 8pm Sunday to Thursday.
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