Right. I'm gonna try this again as I'm convinced it's a good idea that'll take off any second.
Basically I'm keen to use the resources and knowledge of DiSers to turn this thread into a brilliant resource for DiSers in bands (or students who want to go and see bands) of where gigs happen at different universities across the country, who puts them on and and how to approach them.
If you're
a) a student
or
b) in a band are able to contribute please do so below:
If people contribute to this I think it could be excellent:
Thanks!
Paul
re-posting from the other thread
When I was a student at Birmingham Uni I started a festival with some friends, 'Vale Festival' - it started off fairly small but we built it up so that it now attracts 4,000 students. It also raises £30,000 for charity each year (and this increases annually). If you are based in the Midlands/anywhere within 100 miles of Brum it's a great festival to play - guaranteed crowds, 3 or 4 different live stages to play (including one stage that is the same size as the jazz world stage at glastonbury).
check out www.myspace.com/festivale for more info/bookings etc.
Also - for gigs at Birmingham Uni - it's quite difficult to get on bills at the uni itself cos it doesn't really put bands on apart from cunts like East 17 and Mika. You are better off trying venues like the Bristol Pear (i'll find a number for it) or TC's.
I'm at Durham
there really isn't a music scene here at all, or at best, it's small and upcoming.
DSU don't put on any gigs, and when they do, it's either A) Pendulum or B) washed up punk bands looking for some more money.
And apart from that, you'd be best asking Fishtank. It's an awesome little venue, I'm always in there. They put on gigs all the time, I'd reckon you could get in touch with Kate from fishtank via http://www.myspace.com/fishtankdurham , if only to ask for more advice on who to contact.
As for promoters in Durham, well it's really only Dot45, who can be found at http://www.myspace.com/dot45musicpromotion. The Pony Club Soundsystem sometimes put on gigs, they're at http://www.myspace.com/theponyclubsoundsystem .
Oh, and finally, you can ask the Alternative Music Society at Durham University - I've been involved with them for a good few years now, and they're always looking for bands to play. So they can be emailed at alt-music.society@durham.ac.uk
Give it a shot. Durham's a pretty quiet place, we don't get much going on round here.
But thanks for starting this, it could be very useful, as I was thinking about touring myself
RB xx
Leicester
Leicester Uni basically only plays mainstream and have their own promoters, basically they only put on a gig if they know itz gonna fill up. The scene has got much better in terms of how many bookings there has been but there has also been a pile of tosh there too (namely Scouting for Girls, Pendulum etc). NME tour was there.
Man you would want to contact is Rob Marchand who is part of the SU - rm134(at)leicester(dot)ac(dot)uk
On June 12th (Thursday) I'm organising a charity gig in Leicester's firebug bar, 100 peeps, and a few signed and unsigned bands plus a DJ set, let me know if you are interested in playing, we reimburse travel costs, what kinda music yours is etc - nice myspace jag link.
Durham you say?
I live there too, and have put on some gigs in the past few years, mainly at fishtank but a couple at the DSU. I was going to post something pretty much simliar to what's written above, there is hardly anything in Durham at all!
Any bands that want putting on here can get in touch with me if they like and i'll see if i can do anything for you, depends on if i have time/can get a venue etc etc though so no promises.
berksy, ever go see a band called Santiago? That was my old band before we split up, played a fair bit in durham.
As in, People of ?
Yeah, I've heard of you, but alas never got to see you - my friend always went on about how good you were.
The lack of anything in Durham is really a shame. But to be honest, students don't come to Durham for the night life. They come because they got rejected from Oxbridge. Fact.
I'm in my final year now, and it seemed at the time like there was always something going on. But now, hardly anything. Fishtank is still going strong though, and long may it do so. Just wish it was a little bit bigger.
Whoops,
Nope, it's just santiago, isn't it? Sorry. Like the tunes on MySpace though :)
Hey no problem,
Just we played a few student nights at the dsu and some colleges at some point yet never met the people that booked us, wondered if you were anything to do with that. Obviously not, but nice to know there's someone else from the nothingness of Durham on here!
No Durham music scene
in our eyes, but Steve Lamaq and Huw Stephens certainly think there is - both of them have features on the Durham "Scene" next week - 28th and 30th April... I think it's the colt 45s that have managed to get some of that sorted, so good on them for doing that, they are certainly good people indeed.
Haha
That's going to be feature on the Dot45 'Planet Durham' compilation album of bands from County Durham. I'm on said compilation actually (Man is Slapped), so give it a listen :D
Really?
Cool stuff, may have to buy a copy next time i see keith! Will listen out on the radio for you too next week haha ;-)
Durham promoters
http://www.myspace.com/abraxaspromotions
&
http://www.myspace.com/finelinepromotions
Goldsmiths - Repost
Not sure what the situation is with Goldsmiths Union is at the moment so your best bet for nights down that way are the Amersham Arms and New Cross Inn. Noise and neon are two good watchwords for a lot of the nights which tend toward the more DiS-friendly booking-wise.
The Amersham got taken over by the people who run the Lock Tavern last year and have had a big impact on the area - small shows from big bands, new shiny soundsystem, better booking/promoter policy, etc. Capacity is about 400-odd. Check out www.amersham-arms.co.uk for current line-up but good nights include: Big in Japan (www.big-in-japan.co.uk), No Pain in Pop (myspace.com/nopaininpop) and Walk The Night (Myspace.com/walkthenightclub).
New Cross Inn is smaller (150/200?) and a bit more beaten-up, but great atmosphere when full and the crowd is bouncing around no feet from the stage. Usually provide drums and bass amp as well, which can be useful to out-of-towners. Again, their Myspace (myspace.com/newcrossinn) has a list of the current promoters, amongst whom are Shoot Low They're Riding Shetlands (myspace.com/shootlowtheyreridingshetlands), What Scene? (myspace.com/whatscenepromotions), Modern Love (myspace.com/this_is_modernlove) and South Eats London (myspace.com/southeatslondon), which I help run and you can drop me a note if you're interested in playing.
There are some smaller venues around - Birds Nest, Deptford Arms, Montague Arms - which also have various fun and goodness taking place.
also in South East London
The Fox and Firkin is legendary www.thebluelightdistrict.com put on some of the gigs
The Birds Nest in Deptford has a fantastic and really friendly open mike night on a monday and gig nights too http://www.myspace.com/deptfordbirdsnest (it's just around the corner from the musicomplex rehearsal studio which can be handy)
Forgot
2bob do most of the rest of the gigs at the Fox www.myspace.com/twobobmusic
Royal Holloway University of London
a 35minute train ride from london, we're attempting to kick off a fantastic music scene.
my friends and i have started putting on gigs under the name LOVE TO MAKE NOISE
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=19996819768
if you want to play join the group and contact us!
we'll cover all genres from dirty rock and roll, noise, electro or anything else that is good. DJs too would be lovely.
x
Bournemouth
Ibar
Sixty Million Postcards
Those are probably the two ultimate student venues in Boutnemouth
Winchester
myself and a mate put on nites at the winchester school of art....and then theres the other nites that go on there.
a nice little 200 capacity venue.
you can contact us at www.myspace.com/sticksstonesxylophones
hull
gigs for the month of april in hull uni were scouting for girls and joe lean and the jing jang jong.
then the holloways in may.
so, yeah. i'd give the place a wide berth if you're in a band or looking to see a band, for the most part they're content just raking in the cash off their pikey club nights.
basically the best venue in the place by far is the adelphi (http://www.theadelphi.com) but there are loads of different people putting gigs on there so i have no idea who'd be best to contact about playing the place - ringing the number on the website couldn't hurt i suppose
there's also lamp (http://www.thelamp.net/) and welly (http://www.giveitsomewelly.com) a great bar and club respectively which have some decent gigs every so often - probably about 75% of them are put on by or somehow associated with under the influence (http://www.myspace.com/undertheinfluencehull) so you could do worse than getting in touch with them. they usually book at least semi-well-known bands but i'm sure smaller acts could bag a support slot or something.
erm
just to clarify when i said "give the place a wide berth", by "the place" i meant the uni not hull itself. but then when i said "best venue in the place" i did actually mean best venue in hull.
shut up, it's late :(
University tour of
Drowned in Sound forum bands?