GREY LAB:
ART,
MUSIC,
AND
BUREAUCRATIC
BULLSHIT
By Ian French
Photography by Annie Di Giovanni
feature Vancouver
rt, music, and live performance go hand-in-hand with bureaucratic bullshit.
That bullshit can be a headache when you’re a mainstream venue like The Fox or The Pearl. But when you’re an illegal venue run by a 21-year-old it’s enough to make you close up shop completely.
Grey Lab YVR is one of roughly 10 underground music venues in Vancouver proper. It’s owned and operated by Mungo, a 21-year-old concert photographer and as of August 31st, 2025 it has officially shut down.
The space is zoned for health and beauty which makes the concerts taking place there strictly unofficial.
In spite of its underground status its location in downtown Vancouver means that in the nine months since it opened Grey Lab has attracted a lot of attention from members of the music scene, building inspectors, and the VPD.
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Like many DIY spaces that make up Vancouver’s music scene, Grey Lab is left with the options of filing for a lengthy permit-changing process or simply closing its doors.
After countless raids, fines and sporadic inspections from bylaw officers, Mungo is walking away from his hard earned venue roughly ten grand in the hole.
Now, a DIY setup could sound sketchy, but Grey Lab itself was far from it. Despite countless check-ins from officials, the venue routinely passed safety checks.
Seeing as breaking zoning laws is not a criminal act, all the police can do is cut the shows short and slap down hefty fines before calling it a night. Then, wait a few weeks or months to rinse and repeat.
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As rewarding as it was to see his stage lit up with anything from punk shows to Renaissance nights, running the venue has been a stressful time for Mungo who has worked through everything from the financial struggles of running a venue like this to being arrested.
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In order for the fines to stop, Mungo needs to apply to rezone the building. Makes sense, what doesn’t is how long that process takes. It could take double-digit months for the application to get into the right hands, let alone be approved or not. While waiting for time to pass, the venue still needs an income.
In a city that tops the list for average rent across the country, the only path to potentially stay open long enough to see the rezoning take place is to run it like it’s business as usual.
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This all just means Mungo needs to work around the clock to keep up. Book more bands, sell more tickets, and hope the shows don’t get busted.
There are a handful of DIY spaces around Vancouver that have managed to keep their doors open for an extended period. One of them is known as Green Auto. It’s tucked away in the city’s industrial East side, their more isolated location means that they don’t face quite as many run-ins with the police compared to Grey Lab.
These midsized venues are important. For bands that are just starting out and bands that are established, they offer the opportunity to build an audience, engage with other artists, and develop performance skills — something larger venues can’t offer in the same way. The problem is that running these venues is just too difficult. You shouldn’t be driven into debt just because you run a venue that helps build Vancouver’s music scene.
Fed up with how this system is set up, Mungo is working on a bill that would aid smaller venues specifically.
Regardless of the DIY venue, properly zoned or not, the common denominator is money, it’s important to support your local venues. Buy tickets, tell your friends, volunteer to help out, and start a band! (we’re told it’s easier than you think)