NEWS BLAST #23 [5/2/13]

Welcome to the first NEWS BLAST of 2013. HMV might well be going the same way as Blockbusters, Comet, Jessops, Borders, Ethel Austin, Woolworths, and that pub at the bottom of the road, but Liverpool Acoustic is still here and still providing the very best blast of music news snippets you’ll find anywhere at the cultured end of the M62.

• THEY SAY YOU WANT A NEW REVOLUTION – New Revolution Music Group is looking for lots of rock, metal, hardcore, pop-punk, and indie bands for March to July at Manchester’s Retro Bar and Dry Live. At the bottom of the list, all the way down in August, is a request for rock/acoustic bands, so if you fit the bill then follow this link and send them the info they’re looking for.

• PRACCY, PRACCY, CHEAP, CHEAP – Tarbock Village Hall is a charity run venue situated between Huyton and Halewood that’s offering itself as a practice space for local bands at a storming £7.50 per hour. Contact them on facebook here.

• SALFORD MUSIC FESTIVAL – Salford Music Festival is due to take place from 26th to 29th September 2013 and yes, you guessed it, they’re looking for bands and musicians to take part. Most of the events are free and run by volunteers so there’s no fees for the artists, but you will be provided with food and drink, lovely promotion, and access to a new audience. Check out the Artist Application page here.

• STERLING STUFF – Sterling Sounds is a new artist management agency and event promoter based near Ormskirk. They have their very own stage at Methusala Festival 2013 taking place at Rock & River Outdoor Pursuits in Mawdesley, Lancashire from 23rd to 25th August, and they’re asking bands and musicians to contact them via their facebook page if they’re interested.

• FERNSTOCK FUN – Fernstock Festival is taking place at The Ferndale Lodge, Liverpool Road, Waterloo from 3pm to late on Saturday 30th March 2013, and they’re looking for bands and musicians who’d like to get involved. Simply send a demo (or a link to where you can be listened to online) along with a short biography to fernstockfestival@gmail.com to arrive no later than Friday 22nd February. Check out their facebook page for more info.

• ANYTHING UKE CAN DO (HALTON CAN DO TOO) – You’ll all be pleased to know that the inaugural meeting of the Grateful Fred Ukulele Orchestra was a huge success. If Formby is too far, and you just happen to live towards the southern end of the Liverpool Acoustic patch you might be interested to know that Halton Borough Council is starting HUB – the Halton Ukulele Band. It starts on Thursday 29th February at 7pm at The Brindley and costs £3. To book a place, or for more information, contact The Brindley on 0151 907 8360

• HUNGRY FOR A CHALLENGE? – Some of you may well have been seen The Hunger Games competition run recently at The Zanzibar by local top bloke Greedy Jesus. They had so much fun that they’re running The Hunger Games 2 – Acoustic Edition, and are looking for acoustic bands and acts to take part. There are five heats taking place across the five Sundays in March with the final ‘Death Match’ (cripes!) on 28th April. You need a 20 minute set of original material and will be judged on songs, originality, stage presence, musicianship, and social networking/promotion. The lovely prize is two days recording in Parr Street Studios. Full conditions, plus how to enter (closing date 17th February) can be found on the facebook event page here. Good luck, and try not to get blood on the instruments.

• MULTI-COLOURED GIG SWAP – Here’s a new facebook group set up to encourage collaboration and gig swapping with bands and musicians across the country. There’s a section for acoustic acts if anyone is interested. Details here.

• CAMBRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER – Cambridge Folk Festival is by far the biggest and highest profile folk festival in the UK, and Hope Street Music (no connection with our own Hope Street) will be co-programming The Den at this year’s festival. Read all about it, and how to apply, via their soundcloud dropbox page.

• HERE’S TO YOU, MR ROBINSON – What do local band Bird, and singer songwriters Chris Selman and Thom Morecroft all have in common? That’s right, you guessed it! They were all featured on BBC 6 Music’s Tom Robinson’s final ‘Introducing Mixtape’ of the year on 31st December 2012. The show featured artists who had been played during the year and, according to the astute Mr Robinson, “if there’s any justice in the world, a good many of these songwriters and bands will break through to a wider audience in 2013.” Unfortunately the show is no longer available to download, but you can still read the shownotes here.

• WIR’ALL IN THIS TOGETHER – Caroline England has been asked to put together a CD of original songs from Wirral singer songwriters and bands to raise money for Claire House Children’s Hospice. If you are interested in having your music considered then contact Caroline via her facebook page.

• GUARDIANS OF NEW MUSIC – The Guardian has launched a new series focusing on unsigned bands and is asking for your music. A feature in a national newspaper and international website? Yes please! All you need to do is send a brief bio and a link to a song on Soundcloud. Crossing your fingers may or may not help. The form you need is here.

• GIT TO IT – The closing date for submitting your four tracks to the GIT Awards 2013 is 28th February. There’s £1,000 to the winner from a shortlist of 12. Email your tracks to getintothis@gmail.com – details of judges and the award night on 19th April can be found here. Excited? Hell, yeah!

• FIVE STAR ADVICE (AND A BIT) – Those wonderful people over at Sentric Music have produced another top notch blog post with advice for musicians. This time it’s ‘Five and a bit things bands should probably start doing in 2013‘ and it’s well worth a read. Check it out here.