Next weekend is an event I’ve been looking forward to for months: Twisterella Festival.
This one day multi-venue festival has become a key part of the music lover’s calendar on Teesside. It brings some amazing artists to Middlesbrough, performing across four venues, with a few surprise pop up gigs thrown in for good measure. With a fair chunk of the event based around Teesside University, it’s a great way for new students to get to know Middlesbrough and its live music scene.
Here are five reasons why you should get yourself a ticket.
It will introduce you to fantastic new music
This year’s line-up include 40 excellent emerging artists, many of them North East based but some from further afield.
You’ll find a mix of sounds, from acoustic to punk, with plenty in between.
You get to explore the local restaurants
Starting at 1pm and running until 11pm, there are plenty of opportunities to grab a drink and a bite to eat at one of the many amazing cafes and restaurants that have popped up around Middlesbrough in recent years. As the festival is spread across four venues, with pop up gigs in smaller bars, you’re right in the centre of the town where the best eateries are located.
It helps support the local music scene
It’s no secret that I’m proud to be from Middlesbrough and I’m always blown away by the amount of talented musicians based in the area. It might sound obvious, but pursuing any kind of creative career can be a difficult task and you need the support of your audience if you’re going to succeed.
These musicians can only go on gigging and writing new material if people go out and watch them play, spread the word and buy their music.
What are you waiting for?
The build up
Watching the build up to Twisterella really gets you in the mood for a day of live music.
As well as putting together a playlist of their favourite tracks from the artists included on the line-up, the organisers put together a handy clashfinder to help you decide which artists you want to catch in each time slot, and where you might run into trouble if two of your favourites clash.
In my case, the big clash this year is Cape Cub and Tom Joshua, two of my favourite local bands. While I’ve seen them both live several times, it’s going to be pretty hard to choose between them.
Thanks for that Twisterella!
And for musicians: join the Unconference
To show how serious they are about supporting their artists, each year the organisers also put on an Unconference at Teesside University ahead of the festival to give aspiring musicians the chance to meet with industry professionals and get advice on building a career.
This year sees the likes of Vic Galloway from BBC Radio 6 Music and Ross Lewis, the tour manager for James Bay taking part.
Twisterella Festival takes place on Saturday 7 October from 1pm. Venues include University of Teesside Students’ Union, Westgarth Social Club, The Townhouse and TSOne. You can find out more about Twisterella Festival from their website, or buy tickets online at See Tickets (£15).
Get yourself there.