Tuesday 30 April 2024

The Beat-Herder Festival 2024 - Tickets Warning


The Beat-Herder Festival have today announced that this year's festival will be more "bijou" than recent years and "on a scale reminiscent of the early days". Even though the capacity is being reduced, the organisers have said "the advertised line up will remain, and so will most of the venues". In fact they say they won't be cutting corners, they'll be adding new ones and "bringing an intimate event with a thicker later of Beat-Herder love spread right to the edges".

The smaller event means that tickets will be more limited, and considering that the festival has sold out more often than not in previous years, Beat-Herder HQ have warned that this year's tickets will sell out in advance!

For me The Beat-Herder Festival has always been about the coming together of the clans. With the northern rave spirit at it's heart, it's the time of the year where I catch up with friends from all over the North West as we share some moments in the fields, lost in the music, hearing some great local DJs, see some ace live acts, and genuinely spending some time with a community of like minded people as we escape from the wrongness of the world that we live in. 

It's the ethos that the rave scene was built on, capturing that feeling of love, peace and unity, that Beat-Herder have always done so well.

I have seen the festival grow year on year since the first time I went in 2007. I still remember that initial feeling of excitement as the realisation sunk in that I'd been invited along to this amazing free spirited party just up the road from my house and that it was a proper festival organised and run by lovely people. I'd been asked to come along by the Deane twins and their friends (the Trash crew) made me feel so welcome. Over the course of weekend I was messaging my friends to tell them about it and encouraging them to come and see for themselves what a great place Beatherdershire was (naturally this was in between all the dancing I was doing).

The following year as soon as I set foot back on site that euphoric feeling returned. "This is what society should be like" I thought. Even now, 17 years later, I still get that feeling when I think about Beat-Herder.

What they do is all about the quintessential DIY vibe and personal touches. Everything is done at grass roots level and it's the amount of love that gets put into the festival year on year that makes Beat-Herder what it is. It comes as no surprise that they have just won Festival Of The Year in the Northern Music Awards.

Today's news that they are going back to their roots with a reduced capacity reminiscent of the early days is not a bad thing to hear. Last year's Thursday opening night where only a few stages were open and capacity was limited captured that intimate early days vibe and I personally thought it was ace. The highlight for me being BCUC in Trash Manor.

This year's line up already has more than enough well known DJs and acts to keep most people happy - Leftfield, Orbital, Robert Hood // Floorplan, Crazy P, Mr. Scruff, Aroop Roy, MC Kwasi, Unabombers, Ruf Dug, Greg Wilson, Dave Angel, James Holroyd, PBR Streetgang, DJ Woody, Zed Bias, The Wailers, Shy FX, Sean Johnston, Denis Sulta, East End Dubs, High Contrast, Adelphi Music Factory, Erol Alkan, Eris Drew, Fabio and Grooverider, Paul Woolford (Special Request), Darius Syrossian, Dub Pistols, K-Klass, Prince Fatty to name a few, plus Paige Tomlinson, Grace Garcia, DJ Emma, Lovefoxy, Shaka Loves You, Gina Breeze, and Disco Tits are well worth checking on the breakthrough side of things. 

And that's just the highlights I picked out from the first wave of acts that have been announced. Even if there is a slightly pared back amount of venues compared to the 20 or so of recent years, I expect the content will be on point and I have no doubt this year will be another great festival to remember and cherish for years to come.

So if you have not already got your tickets and we're thinking about going to Beat-Herder this year, now is the time to act! Head to beatherder.ticketline.co.uk to make like Spike Lee and do the right thing.

Herd Em Up!

Tuesday 2 April 2024

"Somewhere in Detroit": Underground Resistance, Submerge, Techno and the Detroit Way


Somewhere in Detroit is a new short film about Detroit’s greatest musical collective since Motown, the cooperative and record label dubbed Submerge and UR (Underground Resistance).

This mini-documentary reveals intimate conversations, providing unique insights into the tight-knit co-op at the center of Detroit techno—the creators, pioneers, and futurists who embody the spirit of the genre.

 
Roland Articles has also published an in-depth story, “Underground Resistance, Submerge, and the Detroit Way,” featuring voices from the documentary expanding on its themes with exclusive anecdotes.

Read the story here:






Friday 1 March 2024

The Beat-Herder Festival 2024 - Phase 1 Line Up Announced


The Beat-Herder Festival Phase 1 of the line up for 2024 is here!

The initial line up features internationally acclaimed bands, legendary festival acts, world-renowned DJs, Breakthrough artists & absolute party starters from just a handful of the usual 20+ stages.

17 years in, the festival now runs from Thursday to Sunday in the beautiful North West based setting that we call Beat-Herdershire.

Herd Em Up!

Wednesday 9 August 2023

Mr Scruff & Rob Luis Discuss DJing

Mr Scruff chats with Rob Luis from Tru Thoughts about DJing in this great interview that is packed full of sound advice based on the vast experience they have gained over the last 30+ years...


Wednesday 14 June 2023

The Beat-Herder Festival 2023 - The Factory Line Up Announced


The Beat-Herder Festival have announced the line up for The Factory - "where you clock in and never clock out. The monotony of the machines may have gone but the beats and energy still remain."

Of the 21 stages on offer, this is the one where classic house and the early days of rave meets the current sound of nu disco and indie dance.

You can catch me playing 2 sets on the Saturday night. Expect Chicago style House and Disco heat all the way, giving a nod to the DJs and producers that laid the foundations of House music as we know it.

Set times: 21:45 – 22:30 then 23:15 – 00:00


Herd Em Up!

Thursday 8 June 2023

The Beat-Herder Festival 2023 - Trash Manor Line Up Announced


The Beat-Herder Festival have announced the line up for Trash Manor - "Home of rebels, punks and pioneers, in our very own courtyard of Chaos. So come all you Ravers and Rockers, you Misfits and Wierdos."

With Flamin' horses, pole dancing robots, and an eclectic music policy of live Jazz meets Techno via Punk, Dub, Disco, Funk, Soul, Reggae, House, Boogie, Breaks, Basslines, Dubstep, UK Garage - the list goes on...

Trash Manor is pulled together by the most stylish of crews you'll find in yonder fields.  Grab your flat cap and bike chain necklace and get ready to storm the manor!

You can catch me playing on the Thursday night. Expect the unexpected as the music policy of this stage means anything can come out of the bag.

Set times: 19:00 - 20:15

Herd Em Up!

Wednesday 17 May 2023

The Beat-Herder Festival 2023 - Thursday Line Up Announced



The Beat-Herder Festival have announced the full line-up for the Thursday.

The opening night is always a super special time with excitement and energy levels at max as people bounce into the fields for their first evening of love.

Taking us back to the early days of the petite and unique festival, just 7 of the 21 stages will be open and capacity is limited to keep things nice and intimate.

TOIL TREES
LF SYSTEM, Eats Everything, Hannah Laing, K-Klass [djset] & Aroop Roy

TRASH MANOR
BCUC LIVE, Paul Dig Deep, Chris Holt, Pilani, Kenneth Kaos, The Trash Manor Family

SMOKY TENTACLES
Dr Syntax LIVE, James Lyons, Four to One - 421 Collective, Head Tentacle

PLUS all the venues on The Street in the woods
The Church
The Garage
Hotel California
The Barn

There are a limited number of the 4 Day Tier 3 Tickets remaining so get yourself sorted sharpish if you want to party for the full weekend and save some money.

Herd Em Up!