Live and Unlocked: Four nights of live music at Cardiff Castle to support grassroots venues
Four nights of live music, curated by Cardiff’s grassroots music venues, will take place at Cardiff Castle over the August bank holiday weekend, as part of a Cardiff Council plan developed with Cardiff Music Board, to support live music and put culture at the heart of the city’s recovery from Covid-19.
Three acts will perform each night, and independent venues Clwb Ifor Bach, Porters, Fuel, and The Moon, will curate the music, sell the tickets, retain all ticket income, and pay the musicians involved, providing much needed support for an industry that has been hit hard by the strict public health guidelines needed to control the spread of Covid-19.
Panic Shack
Starting on Friday 27thAugust, will be an opening night of music programmed by Clwb Ifor Bach, featuring local bands Panic Shack, Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard and the Bug Club.
Porters will programme Saturday night, presenting Yasmine & the Euphoria, Year of the Dog and more.
Fuel takes Sunday night, with their line-up including Those Damn Crows, and more. The Moon will bring the Bank Holiday weekend to a close on Monday with Afro Cluster, celebrating the launch of their new album, The Allergies (DJ set), Niques, DJ Trishna Jaikara, plus host Prendy.
Tickets and more information will be available on the individual venue websites or social media from Wednesday July 28, including details of the acts added to those listed above.
The ‘Live and Unlocked’ sessions aim to give musicians a stage to perform, and provide a safe environment that inspires public confidence in returning to live events after 17 challenging months.
The events will offer both seating and standing areas for the gig-goers to choose from. As a condition of entry all attendees will be required to present a negative Lateral Flow Test (taken within the previous 24 hours). Photo ID and track and trace information will also be required.
Leader of Cardiff Council, and Chair of Cardiff Music Board, Cllr Huw Thomas, said: “Live music venues and musicians have had to deal with huge challenges throughout the course of the pandemic. Even now, as restrictions are relaxed, some challenges remain, but our hope is that by staging this series of events at the Castle, we can support the industry and the people who work in it, and importantly, bring some joy back to the city.
“The last 17 months have been a time when music has perhaps been needed more than ever, so it’s been particularly poignant not to be able to see it performed live in public. I’ve said before that music is a national utility for the soul that requires investment, but it’s more than that, it’s one of the things that make life worth living.
“We want music and culture to be at the heart of Cardiff’s recovery from Covid-19 and I’m delighted that we can now start making that happen, with four nights of live music celebrating the talent and diversity of Cardiff’s music scene.”
Cabinet Member for Culture, Leisure and Sport, Cllr Peter Bradbury, said: “We’ve been waiting a long time for the restart of live music in Cardiff. Before the pandemic we set out a bold ambition for Cardiff to become an internationally recognised Music City. Now is the time to reset and start the hard work of making that ambition a reality.”
The full line-up reflects the diverse range of exciting music being made and performed in the city, with the aim of re-igniting the love of live music in Cardiff.
Guto Brychan, Chief Executive of Clwb Ifor Bach, said: “We’re really excited to have the opportunity to stage a night as part of the Live and Unlocked sessions at Cardiff Castle. It’s been 17 long months since we last staged a live event and the chance to promote great bands in front of an audience in such an iconic setting will be amazing.”