The Buttermarket

This venue has got so much going for it ... though there is also a big but.It is located right next to the railway station with the railway car park situated immediately behind the building. This means that it is an easy place to get to whether you are travelling by car or public transport.The marketing is good and keeps you well informed about upcoming events via various platforms.There is an appealing range of acts to cater for a variety of tastes.A good deal of investment has clearly been made to make the interior conducive to an enjoyable night out.The welcome is warm and staff / management are pleasant and approachable.As a minor drawback, the structure of the building does mean that sight lines of the stage can be obstructed when you are situated on the main floor area, but that isn't the end of the world.But sadly, the biggest letdown is the sound set-up ... and that really is a major consideration when your primary reason for visiting is to watch and listen to a live music act.I have seen a number of acts at The Buttermarket and the one consistent fault has been the sound set-up.It isn't just that it is uncomfortably loud, but mainly that is also becomes horribly distorted.A venue of this size shouldn't need particularly high volume settings in any case - though there is, perhaps, an element of personal preference to be considered.But, that point aside, it should be clear and free from distortion.I don't know whether the issue is down to the quality of the sound equipment (though given the apparent quality of other areas of the venue, I wouldn't have expected that to be the case), or whether the inherent acoustics of the architecture present insurmountable sound issues, or whether it is simply down to the person(s) responsible for setting up the sound.Whatever the reason, it does mean that an otherwise appealing live music venue is badly let down by the sound delivery.As I mentioned, I have seen several acts here, having returned in the hope that the problem was a temporary one, but I have now had to come to the conclusion that it is more fundamental than that, so have regrettably come to the conclusion that it isn't worthwhile continuing to visit The Buttermarket for live music.

Love this place! Always a good night out, whether your in the amazing concert spec main arena for a band or sipping cocktails in the sun on the newly decked out roof terrace you always get well looked after by the friendly staff!!

Friendly, helpful staff at the venue. Great vibe and atmosphere ( Fleeting Rumours) and a good choice of up and coming events on flyer. All drink choices were pretty poor though. V expensive and low quality which I didn’t expect as everything else was great.

Cracking night out with the Amazing Vicky Jackson as Pink! Supporting acts great, too! Well done to all the Buttermarket staff, keep up the fantastic work!

Great venue for events and bands, not been here in many years and EmoFest was an amazing night

Great venue, we did a glitter stall here for a Taylor Swift tribute act. Can't praise the staff and venue enough, absolutely bfilliant

Went for Bongo' Bingo. Had the best night with so much dancing and laughing. Brilliant entertainment. The only thing that let it down was the 20 min que at the bar to get drinks. Can't wait to do it again.

I went to see Jason Allan perform his first Shrewsbury show and it was the most incredible, unforgettable night of my life, when I got back to the hotel I was reflecting on the night 4 ages just tryna process what happened, and the venue was absolutely beautiful, I'm thinking of having my birthday party at the buttermarket next year, I'm missing this night already, the next morning I didn't wanna go back home, felt so sad to be going home, but I can't wait to come again soon.

Such a good venue for live music. Maybe more bar staff on high-volume gigs though please.