Whether you started at Durham last week or three years ago, you’ll probably be well aware by now that everybody’s favourite bubble is, by the very nature of a bubble, pretty damn small. A fortnight of fun but hazy club nights later you may well find yourself longing to experience something a little bit different, particularly if your iPod isn’t filled with, well, Rihanna, David Guetta and Example. This is where Durham’s relatively elusive live music scene comes into play. There’s a live music scene in Durham?! Why yes there is, to be unearthed right here, right now, before your very eyes.
Last year’s student-run Vane Tempest Sessions continue to bring the best up and coming folk/indie acts from around the UK to Durham. This year their intimate setting will host the welcome return of Dry the River and a variety of artists who you should definitely catch while you can. After last year's Athlete show some more big gigs are in the pipeline too!
A promising new Thursday gig night is to be launched at Fishtank. According to its founder Tudor Skinner, ‘One More Tune!’ will feature “an eclectic range of acts, running from the ethereal folk of Bridie Jackson, through the up-and-coming Sunderland indie-sters So What Robot, to the deranged experimental noise of Waheela”.
Fishtank, appropriately named for its location above Stanton’s fish’n’chips shop on Neville Street, has a unique atmosphere that marks it out from the more typically ‘Durham’ drinking establishments. With ambient lighting, regular acoustic sets and its very own indie disco ‘Grammar’, there’s a character to the place that is well worth checking out.
A Deer For Your Lamb sessions, run by Shaun Atherton and his independent live music promotion team, showcase an array of intimate, unplugged shows from artists who would normally sell out much larger venues. Shaun commented to Palatinate, “We’ve got some really amazing people coming through, some of whom you’d rarely ever see playing a show in the North East. There’s such a wealth of interesting music happening right now and it does go a little underappreciated. I get a kick from watching people come out of shows with that ‘yes, that was amazing’ look on their faces. I think live music is probably the closest thing we have in our culture to a shared spiritual experience. I always feel on a high for days after seeing a good show”.
Returning this Friday after a successful appearance last year, Edinburgh’s highly regarded Withered Hand will play an intimate gig at Alington House on the Bailey. Other forthcoming acts include David Dondero at Head of Steam who is signed to Bright Eyes’ label, and The Shivers, an experimental rock band from New York previously compared to Lou Reed.
With the most extensive line-up of shows A Deer For Your Lamb have ever had lined up in such a short period of time (see their Facebook page for more information), it would be foolish not to see a gig for yourself. If you’re a live music fan, disappointment really does not look likely.
However, it’s not all about the folk here in Durham, just as North Road’s Live Lounge is not merely a nightclub popular on Saturdays. As its name suggests, the venue often plays host to bands from all over the country with their past repertoire including Funeral for a Friend, Gallows and Twin Atlantic. The popular Itchy Feet nights held at Live Lounge showcase a unique blend of 50s rock’n’roll, funk, swing and soul and have started to present live music, with Will and the People playing an upbeat set last year.
Moving on to those who take a more active approach to music and are keen to make themselves heard in Durham (you know, the ones who can actually play the guitar that sits in your bedroom looking pretty). With regular gigs, open mic nights and a music-orientated quiz every Wednesday, The Angel Inn in Crossgate has built up quite a reputation as an alternative rock pub. The proof is in the jukebox. Osbourne’s, next door to Klute, also hosts an open mic night every Sunday that will cure even the worst Saturday night hangover. Well, maybe not the very worst, but they try.
Let us not forget that many, if not all colleges organise live music nights to coax their talent out of hiding and into the Durham spotlight. Van Mildert’s free annual festival, Jam by the Lake, always proves a fun day of music post-exams, whilst many colleges have an Arts Week of sorts during which students’ music-making is celebrated.
The Alternative Music Society aims to bring Durham’s developing live music scene to the attention of students by organising their own gigs, as well as providing listings to events in both Durham and the rest of the North East. Socials include the popular Mixtape Swap Socials which aim to broaden attendees’ musical horizons whilst they enjoy drinks with like-minded people. They try to co-ordinate people going to the same gig further afield so that cheaper transport can be arranged, as well as offering discounts to events based around Durham for only a £3/year membership fee.
Speaking to Alex Appleton, president of the society, it became clear that the main reason many Durham students fail to attend local music events is simply because they are unaware that they exist. Alex commented on how “regular live events in Fishtank, Head of Steam, Live Lounge and Alington House as well as DJ nights have started to become really well attended in the last year”. When asked his own honest opinion on our current live music climate, he described Durham as having “a DIY and alternative music scene that belies the small size of the city- you just have to look for it and you’ll find it”.
The entertainment hub of Newcastle with venues including the O2 Academy, Riverside and The Cluny is but fifteen minutes away on the train, but this is no reason for Durham to remain eternally locked in its shadow. Live music relies on a supportive audience, so instead of moaning about the apparent lack of a music scene, why not get involved and help the existing one grow into something bigger and better? It’s what we make of it after all.
Link to Palatinate: http://www.palatinate.org.uk/?p=15747
Link to Palatinate: http://www.palatinate.org.uk/?p=15747
