There’s a new kind of nightlife brewing on the corner of North Terrace and Bank Street in Adelaide’s CBD.

Once home to the gritty Fat Controller nightclub, the basement space is now undergoing an imaginative transformation into K-Box – a genre-bending karaoke destination from Matthews Architects that promises to blur the lines between intimacy, spectacle and urban escape.

Set to open late 2025, K-Box is more than just a space to belt out your favourite tune. The 900-square-metre venue features 16 private karaoke rooms, five solo booths and a central stage-and-bar area designed to host up to 300 guests. But it’s not just about soundproofed cubicles and neon lights. With managing director and senior architect Gerald Matthews at the helm, the project redefines the karaoke experience through spatial storytelling, acoustic sophistication and a moodboard of colour and texture that moves effortlessly from theatrical to relaxed.

“We didn’t want to simply gloss over the site’s history,” Matthews says. “Instead, we leaned into the raw energy of what came before, while opening the door to something more vibrant, more welcoming and more diverse.”

That sense of evolution rather than erasure anchors the design. Reclaimed materials from the former venue have been thoughtfully integrated, reducing waste while honouring the location’s underground spirit. It’s Matthews’ hope that stepping inside will feel like entering a hidden city within the city, with corridors leading to a surreal, cinematic microcosm of music and light.

Designing for connection, contrast and crowd energy

The beating heart of K-Box is a striking linear bar wrapped in warm golden-yellow cladding and natural timber. Framed by a timber-battened ceiling that subtly conceals services while enhancing acoustics, the bar doubles as a cabaret-style stage and a social anchor point.

“It’s designed to be enjoyed by everyone – whether you’re here to perform, to watch or just to drink something fabulous while soaking it all in,” Matthews says. “It needed to function as a chill-out space, a performance space and a meeting point, all at once.”

From this central zone, corridors pulse outward in vivid purples and pinks, playful, visual palate-cleansers that act as portals to the more immersive private rooms. Each of these spaces is a universe unto itself. Some nod to iconic musical eras, while others are purely about having fun. One room is loungey and low-lit, another bursts with cabaret charm. A few of the rooms have been designed with dancefloors at the core.

“No two rooms are the same,” Matthews explains. “We wanted a range of moods, from exciting to calming, so that people could find a space that suits how they feel that night. It’s karaoke for everyone, even those who don’t yet know they’re into karaoke.”

That inclusivity extends to the venue’s street-level satellite booths. Accessed via a pedestrian tunnel near Adelaide train station, these solo pods offer a spontaneous, pay-per-use singing experience for city commuters and passersby.

Inspired partly by Japan’s layered karaoke culture, the pods answer a contemporary need for self-expression without the pressure of performance. “Karaoke has evolved globally, and we wanted to reflect that,” Matthews says. “Some people love the spotlight, others are just looking for a private moment to connect with music. We made room for both.”

Letting the city in – and tuning the soundscape

Technically, the project demanded careful attention to sound. With so many zones operating simultaneously, Matthews and his team deployed a mix of irregularly shaped rooms, angled walls and acoustic treatments to keep energy high while containing noise bleed.

“We allowed just enough low-frequency sound to travel through the space,” Matthews shares. “That way, you get those tantalising glimpses of songs being sung nearby. It’s about creating that electric sense of life happening all around you, but without it being chaotic.”

For a city like Adelaide, known for doing food and wine venues with elegance and restraint, K-Box adds something exuberant to the mix. It brings theatre back to nightlife, but not in the traditional sense. Here, performance isn’t limited to a stage. It’s personal, expressive and fluid.

“We saw an opportunity to broaden the way karaoke exists in the city,” Matthews says. “To create something where people feel free to explore, whether that’s through singing, dancing, watching, or just being in a beautifully designed space that sparks something new.”

In that sense, K-Box is more than an entertainment venue. It’s a sensory journey, a multi-room escape pod and a social experiment in how design can elevate the everyday into something unforgettable.

As Matthews puts it: “It’s a collection of worlds within a world. And within those worlds, we hope people find parts of themselves.”

Images are rendered

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