By Jolene Rae-Walsh –
Here’s your lineup of what’s happening during May 2023 at some of the best music venues in Huddersfield. Get your tickets now to ensure you don’t miss out!
Northern Quarter
State of Satta
State of Satta is a 7-piece Reggae band based in Leeds inspired by the sounds of UK Reggae and Cuban music. State of Satta carries on the lineage of bands like Gentleman’s Dub Club, Fat Freddy’s Drop and UB40, amongst many other dub influences.
In their two years together, they have toured the UK with many sold-out shows, played with Mungo’s HiFi, supported touring bands such as Dub Pistols and Zion Train, and shared festival main stages with Madness and The Wailers!
Influences include The Skatalites, Fat Freddy’s Drop, Nubiyan Twist, Gentleman’s Dub Club, Buena Vista Social Club, Backbeat Soundsystem, The Skints, Bob Marley & The Wailers, Dub Inc, The Specials.
Friday 5th May, 7.30 pm-11 pm
Tickets £7
A Different Thread
The Americana band make their Huddersfield debut with an early evening of live music at Northern Quarter.
A Different Thread is a transatlantic band fronted by Alicia Best from Durham, North Carolina, and Robert Jackson from the Midlands of England.
The two met busking in Ireland in 2016 and have been on the road ever since, touring and creating original music together.
Pulling from their roots, they weave elements of 70s Folk Revival, Country, and Appalachian Blues into a timeless blend of Americana.
Sunday 14th May, 5 pm-11 pm
Tickets £10
COLLECTIVE SESSIONS PRESENTS: ADENiCO // ROB BRADLEY // YOUS
A night of great performances and conscious content to raise your vibrations and lift your spirits.
Performances from ADENiCO, ROB BRADLEY, & YOUS.
Hosted by SARALA SOUL
Saturday, 20th May, Doors 7 pm – 11 pm
Split Lips with support from Handsome Liars
Heavy metal, punk 4-piece SPLIT LIPS are coming to Northern Quarter with support from HANDSOME LIARS!
Expect heavy riffs, pounding drums and a good time.
Saturday 27th May 2023, 7.30 pm
Tickets £6 Adv / £7 Otd
14+ w/adult
Open Mic Night
Free Entry
Every Thursday from 7.30 pm
Smile Bar and Venue (Cashless Venue)
Love Music Hate Racism CRISIS MUSIC TOUR
Live Music, DJs, Speakers, and Spoken Word:
MARK EG, DJ POCO (Uptown Funk), PAT FULGONI BLUES EXPERIENCE, 2 HOT (the Specials Tribute band), DON GONZO, DJ CITY SKANK (POWAH), BOXTELES, TONIA VICTORIA, ADENICO, DUCKLIN CURLS, NADIA AMINI, TRAY TRONIC, LENNIE & HIS BAND.
Compare Blazin Fyah. Plus, live graffiti from FRESH KIDS.
Friday 5th May, Doors 7 pm-2 am.
Tickets £6 + BF in aid of Enough Is Enough and Love Music Hate Racism
Eltonesque
A 5-Piece Band Celebrating the Songs of Elton John. Supported by Adam Larner, a solo artist playing a range of sing-along classics
Saturday 6th May, Doors open at 7pm. Acts start between 8 pm and 9pm
Tickets £15 + booking fee
Halifax Soul Crew Presents Huddersfield Soul All Dayer
Northern Soul, Tamla Motown & Modern Soul
A day of Northern Soul with DJs Mark Summerscales & Adrian Moore, plus guest DJs Mark I’Anson & from Manchester, Steve McCarthy
Saturday 13th May, 2:00pm-Midnight
Tickets £10 + booking fee
Huddersfield Blues Club
Monthly events at Smile Bar, free entry.
20FT SQUID BLUES BAND
Sheffield band playing upbeat, irreverent blues. They combine elements of the 1950s Chicago style with some of the more wayward aspects of 1960s blues explosion.
Fast-paced, vibrant blues with eye-popping harmonica, thundering bass, intricate beats, choice guitar and a lot of feel + support from MICHAEL DAVE (USA). “Born and raised in California and has played acoustic and electric guitar/with vocals around the world with well-known musicians for many years.”
Thursday, 11th May, Doors 8 pm.
Railway Inn, Marsden
Sunday Blues Train
In partnership with the mighty Huddersfield Blues Club, Sunday Blues Train is an exciting new blues drop-in set to delight local blues fans
Right opposite Marsden Train Station, for all those travelling blues fans, it’s just in time for the end of the engineering works!
Sundays from 7th May, from 4 pm.
7th May. DC BLUES (launch)
5-piece York blues juggernaut DC Blues impressed at Huddersfield Blues Club, fresh from dates at Colne Blues Festival and the Great British Rock & Blues Festival.
Two of the band (Paul Winn & Ben Darwin) are multi-award nominated Blues Radio Broadcasters and the York Blues Festival organisers.
May 14th: DANA ALI BAND
American soul blues singer from Atlanta who crossed the waters to the UK with her bass player Dave Hewitt (of Babe Ruth fame).
They have co-written and recorded songs with producers in Nashville, USA and London, U.K.
The live band also features Martin Chung on guitar and Marc Layton-Bennett on drums.
21st May: FLOCK OF THREE
Much loved local blues band: “funky rocky bluesy power trio from Huddersfield playing a variation of styles of music including songs from the following artists: Stevie Ray Vaughan, Robben Ford, John Mayer, Robin Trower, Cream, Hendrix, Bill Withers, Ray Charles, Chris Duarte, Allman Bros, BB King and plenty of others.”
28th May. PAT FULGONI BLUES EXPERIENCE
Top notch 5-piece blues band already with European blues festival dates under their belts and equally at home in UK clubs, venues and festivals.
“I was completely blown away because he can sing, really sing. Ridiculously well” (Blues Matters UK).
The Brick Works
Karaoke Sundays!
Get your singing voice ready! If you’re shy, then grab a friend!
Every Sunday from 6 pm
Rhythm Piano
The Midnight Cocktail Edition
Afrobeats, Amapiano, Bashment & Reggae
Saturday 6th May, 10 pm-4am £10 entry
Can’t Keep A Good Man Down Part 3
Hosted by Kitty
DJ’s on the night: DJ Escobar, DJ A1, Silla, DJ Hamlet, & Special Guests.
Bringing you the best of Bashment, R&B, & Amapiano.
ID Required: Over 21’s
Saturday 13th May, 9 pm-4 am.
Tickets £10
Small Seeds
Open Mic Night (BYOB)
Free Entry Every Tuesday
Doors 8 pm, Start 8.30 pm
Head of Steam
Open Mic Night
Every Tuesday from 7 pm
Free drink for every performer.
Jazz Night
Every Wednesday from 8.30 pm
Harveys Bar, Westgate
Love Music
Live Music every Friday and Saturday from 8 pm. Free Entry.
Liam Kershaw
Acoustic soul singer-songwriter.
Saturday 20th May, 8 pm. Free Entry
Holmfirth Picturedrome
Red Hot Chilli Pipers
Celebrating 20+ years as the most famous bagpipe band in the world ever!
There has never been anything quite like The Red Hot Chilli Pipers, from their formation in 2002 and a cameo appearance at T in the Park in 2004 with the Darkness to opening the main stage in their own right in 2014.
The past 20+ years have seen the Red Hot Chilli Pipers become the most famous bagpipe band ever! Bagpipes with attitude, drums with a Scottish accent and a show that carries its health warning.
The band’s achievements have reached incredible heights with their ground-breaking fusion of traditional Scottish music and rock/pop Anthems which they proudly call “Bagrock”.
The Red Hot Chilli Pipers are a genuinely unique experience.
Saturday 6th May, Doors 7:30 pm
Advance Tickets – £29 Door Tickets – £31
UK Foo Fighters
This World-Famous tribute band ‘UK Foo Fighters’ takes you on a journey spanning 25 years of music from the now legendary band ‘Foo Fighters’ and their charismatic leader, Dave Grohl.
He was featured in Classic Rock, Rolling Stone, Kerrang, NME, Q, MOJO and Planet Rock magazines. ‘UK Foo Fighters’ have built an incredible reputation over the last 12 years, heralded by Dave Grohl himself and celebrated as ‘THE’ tribute to the Foo’s in a 2017 BBC documentary called ‘UK Foo Fighters – My Hero’, placing them firmly amongst tribute’s elite.
They nail the authentic vibe of a Foo’s live experience, all performed to the closest detail, making it a truly unmissable show for any rock music fan.
Saturday 13th May, Doors 7.30 pm
Advance Tickets – £18 Door Tickets – £20
Inspiral Carpets
Legendary Manchester outfit, Inspiral Carpets, reunite for their first tour in 8 years, treating Holmfirth to all the hits and more.
Thursday 25th May, Doors 7.30 pm
Advance Tickets – £25 Door Tickets – £27
Lawrence Batley Theatre
Dinky Disco
Gather your mini movers and shakers for a daytime dance party for little ravers and their sleep-deprived chaperones!
At Dinky Disco, our resident DJ spins tracks specially chosen to be enjoyed by little tapping toes and get big people grooving (sorry, no ‘Baby Shark‘ here!)
Take part in some simple dance activities we led, or bust your moves with lights, glow sticks and other sensory toys in a fun, club-like atmosphere.
Fri 19th May 2023, 11 am-12pm
Tickets: 1 Adult & 1 Child £7. Additional Adult or Child £5
Kate Rusby
Hailed as the “First Lady of Folk” and a Mercury Music Prize to her name, Kate Rusby has forged an impressive 30-year, headlining career.
A folk singer at heart, she’s taken the genre to new heights, appealing beyond the folk scene and her Yorkshire roots, headlining in the UK and internationally, performing with other big names in music across genres. She has several TV, radio and film credits to her name, as well as her record company and festival.
2023 brings to a close a year of celebrating 30 years in the business with a new album, ‘30: Happy Returns’ featuring guests: Richard Hawley, KT Tunstall and Ladysmith Black Mambazo, to name a few. This follows the success of her 2020 Top 10 charting covers album ‘Hand Me Down’.
She performs, joined on stage by her band, each a virtuoso in their own right, including her husband and producer Damien O’ Kane.
Wednesday 24th May, 7.30 pm-9.50 pm tickets £30
The County
Soul Pie
Soul Pie plays a fiery mix of soul, funk and blues, with a few surprises. Help yourself to a generous slice of Soul Pie – made with quality local ingredients, best served hot and enjoyed with friends!
Saturday 13th May, 8 pm till 10 pm
Huddersfield Ukrainian Club
Coronation Celebration
Strange & Charm: Indie Blues, Rock Covers & Originals.
Top Hats: Alt Rock Originals.
Acoustimosh: Acoustic Rock Covers.
Jenna & Jamie: Acoustic Pop & Rock Covers.
Sunday 7th May, 5 pm-9 pm.
Tickets are £5, or you pay at the door.
Under 16’s free.
The Parish
Spear of Destiny
Set to mark forty years since their formation this year, Spear of Destiny has been stirring with their punk-influenced power-rock since 1983.
Emerging from the wreckage of iconic post-punk band Theatre Of Hate, the original duo — Kirk Brandon and Stan Stammers — named themselves after the weapon used by Roman centurion Longinus as he pierced the body of Jesus as he hung on the cross.
Thursday 11th May, Doors 7.30 pm
Tickets £20 + booking fee
The SoapGirls, Love Potion 2023 Tour
The Sound is Alternative, Rock Punk Post Grunge with Pop sensibilities. The SoapGirls, like their music, are raw, bold, innovative and thoroughly trend-setting.
Thursday 18th May, Doors 7.30 pm
Tickets £10 + booking fee
Queens Bar (Imperial Arcade)
Karaoke Night
Every Wednesday from 8pm
Boy & Barrell
Karaoke Night
Every Wednesday night til late
Holmfirth Festival of Folk
Various Venues around Holmfirth
Friday 5th May to Sunday 7th May
The Old Bridge (Holmfirth)
Band of Jays
Saturday 6th May, 3pm
