The O₂ Academy Islington, formerly known as the Carling Academy Islington, is an indoor music venue situated in the N1 Shopping Centre accessible via

Upper Street Upper Street is the main street of the Islington district of inner north London, and carries the A1 road. It begins at the junction of the A1 and Liverpool Road, continuing on from Islington High Street which runs from the crossroads at Pe ...

and Liverpool Road, in the

London Borough of Islington The London Borough of Islington ( ) is a London borough, borough in North London, England. Forming part of Inner London, Islington has an estimated population of 215,667. It was formed in 1965, under the London Government Act 1963, by the amalg ...

. It is run by the Academy Music Group. The main venue has a capacity of 800, and the adjacent O₂ Academy 2 holds 250.''Venue History''
(official site) accessed 19 August 2008

History

The venue was purpose-built and opened in September 2002. The original occupant was the short-lived Marquee N1, a music and dining venue backed by Dave Stewart of Eurythmics and club promoter Mark Fuller. The venue re-opened in its current form in September 2003 and is the smallest of the four London venues within the O2 Academy Group.

Performers

American punks Alkaline Trio performed on the venue's opening night. Other notable performers who have played at the O2 Academy Islington include MELYS, Iron Butterfly, Molly Hatchet, Tesla, Dan Reed Network, Night Ranger, Isolated Islands, Bladee, Blackfoot, Queensrÿche, KISS, Kamelot, KSI, Spock's Beard,

Stratovarius Stratovarius is a Finnish power metal band. Formed in 1984, they have released sixteen studio albums, six DVDs and six live albums. The band's line-up has changed many times, with no founding member left since the departure of drummer Tuomo ...

, Terrorvision,

Stryper Stryper is an American Christian metal and heavy metal music, heavy metal band from La Mirada, California. The group's lineup consists of Michael Sweet (lead vocals, guitar), Oz Fox (guitar), Perry Richardson (bass), and Robert Sweet (musician), ...

, Winger, Paul Gilbert, Richie Kotzen, Steve Lukather, Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel The Winery Dogs, Diamond Head, Premiata Forneria Marconi, Edguy, Symphony X, Threshold, Big Country, Magnum, The Mission, Riverside, Satyricon, FM,

Train A train (from Old French , from Latin">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles th ...

, The Damned,

MaNga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

, Melanie C,

Zebrahead Zebrahead is an American rock band from La Habra, California, formed in 1996. The group's current line-up comprises rapper Ali Tabatabaee, bassist Ben Osmundson, drummer Ed Udhus, lead guitarist Dan Palmer and lead vocalist and rhythm guita ...

Funeral for a Friend Funeral for a Friend are a Welsh post-hardcore band from Bridgend, Wales, Bridgend, formed in 2001. The band's members are Kris Roberts (guitar, backing vocals), Gavin Burrough (guitar, vocals), Darran Smith (guitar), Richard Boucher (bass), an ...

, Hugh Cornwell, Tarja Turunen, Jello Biafra, Gackt, Girugamesh, Hikaru Utada, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Coheed and Cambria, VAMPS, August Burns Red, Max Milner,

The Script The Script are an Irish Soft rock, soft-rock band formed in 2001 in Dublin. The band currently consists of Danny O'Donoghue (lead vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards), Glen Power (drums, percussion, backing vocals), Benjamin Seargent (bass, backin ...

, The Rasmus, Tyler, The Creator,

Fall Out Boy Fall Out Boy is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Wilmette, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, lead guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer A ...

, Silversun Pickups, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Paramore, East 17, Morbid Angel, Dimmu Borgir,

Sarah Harding Sarah Harding (born Sarah Nicole Hardman; 17 November 1981 – 5 September 2021) was an English singer, model and actress. Her professional career began in 2002 when she successfully auditioned for the ITV (TV channel), ITV reality series ''Po ...

, Tokio Hotel, R5,

My Chemical Romance My Chemical Romance is an American Rock music, rock band from New Jersey. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist Gerard Way, lead guitarist Ray Toro, rhythm guitarist Frank Iero, and bassist Mikey Way. They are considered one of ...

(who recorded the music video for their single Planetary (Go!) there), The Rutles, Stephen Dale Petit, Matt Stevens, Mick Taylor, JoJo, James Maslow, Achilles Heel, Toploader, Roger Chapman, Road Trip and Rolling Quartz, The Airborne Toxic Event. In May and June 2008, Sparks, led by brothers Ron and Russell Mael, held a unique event at the Carling Academy. To promote their then-new album Exotic Creatures of the Deep, the band performed all twenty of their previous albums in chronological order, across as many nights. The album premiere itself took place immediately afterwards at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire on 13 June 2008.

Events

The Academy also hosts the weekly club nights ''Club de Fromage'' and ''not another indie Disco'' every Saturday.

References

External links

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O₂ Academy Islington
{{London Clubs Music venues in London Buildings and structures in Islington Tourist attractions in the London Borough of Islington Academy Islington Wrestling venues in the United Kingdom