A NEW venue is hoping to shake up the Warrington music scene with more opportunities for emerging bands and artists.

Live Bar in Barbauld Street is aiming to host gigs every weekend and make live music more accessible – for both audiences and musicians.

The aim is to fill the gap between very small venues where bands go when they are just starting out and bigger spaces like Parr Hall for established acts.

Events manager Charlotte Davies said: "I love what the likes of The Lounge do for smaller bands but obviously we have a slightly larger capacity which means we can try to bring touring acts and those bands that are just about on the cusp of real success to the town.

Warrington Guardian:

"We want to be able to help these bands break into the big time while bringing a really diverse line-up of acts to the town to show what kind of music is out there.

"What I love about venues like ours is that you can pay £6 to see three bands and walk away having had a great night and knowing that you’ve found three new bands to listen to.

"People can spend £6 on a drink in some places and we just want to show people that you can support live music and have a great night out for under a tenner. Music should be accessible to all.

"The Parr Hall is great too but some bands just aren’t ready to fill a venue of that capacity yet, so we’ve got the perfect place for them to play. We’d love to be able to help bands progress from playing venues like Live Bar to headlining the likes of the Parr Hall.

"If we can put a crowd full of people onto an exciting new band then I know we’ve done the job right. I’ve been working in the music industry since I was 15 and supporting new music is all I’ve ever wanted to do, so to be able to bring new music to a town I love is a dream."

Live Bar, in Rusgan House where Rag and Bone, has capacity for 250 gig goers or 400 for club nights. The aim is to have live bands every Friday and Saturday and more if there is demand.

Charlotte, a former Lymm High student, added: "Warrington has a really rich history of live music. My parents and other people I’ve spoken to, out and about, have told me tales of seeing the likes of Blur, The Fall, The Rolling Stones and even Aretha Franklin in Warrington over the years.

"For one reason or another our music venues disappeared and the demand was lost. With big cities like Liverpool and Manchester only a train ride away and with bands focussing on playing there I suppose we just lost the reputation.

"But like any other town or city we’re a town full of music fans and it’s only right that people are able to catch new and upcoming live music on a regular basis without actually having to leave the town. People often dismiss the town as being boring, but we’re only viewed that way as we’ve not had the same opportunities as other locations. We’ve got a really strong team together at Live – we’re all music obsessives and if there’s a new band that excites us we’re onto them straight away.

"I saw a post on Facebook that said that your favourite band started as a local band at one point, so it’s important to support them from the start.

Warrington Guardian:

"We want people to be able to say: 'I saw that band at Live Bar, they were amazing', when they’re headlining festivals and arenas.

"It’s so important to encourage creativity and music as it brings people together and hopefully we'll even be able to encourage people from the town to pick up a musical instrument and start their own band.

"Live music is such a euphoric experience and there’s often nothing better than reminiscing over an amazing gig with your mates. We also have Neighbourhood Weekender and RivFest in our town now so people are becoming more aware of Warrington and what we can do.

"But on the other hand we have just lost Old Town House which was doing amazing things for the live music scene so we want to be able to continue what they had and show that bands can still come and play here."

UPCOMING GIGS

DANTEVILLES are the next band to grace the stage at Live Bar.

The Manchester alternative pop band have been praised by the likes of NME and will be joined by Stanleys, The AV Club and Muddy Elephant tonight, Saturday.

Word has quickly spread about the Barbauld Street bar since the opening night with Warrington band Filthy Tricks.

Charlotte Davies, events manager, said: “Our opening night was pretty incredible.

“We had Filthy Tricks headlining the show and they were celebrating the release of their new single so there was a real buzz in the audience and on stage.

“Sky Valley Mistress, who were supporting them, were absolutely mindblowing and we’ve got them coming back in July. They’re really not ones to miss.

“That whole night reaffirmed our feeling that we’re doing something that the town has needed for a long time.

“I’m really excited for some of the shows we’ve got lined up too. Witch Fever on June 1 will be unreal – they’re an unforgettable live act from Manchester.”

  • May 11 – Dantevilles, Stanleys, The AV Club, Muddy Elephant
  • May 18 – Kula Bay, The Attic Doctors, La Scala, Rob Scotney
  • May 25 – Jeremiah Ferrari
  • June 1 – Witch Fever, Gravves, Crawlers
  • June 7 – Average Joe
  • June 8 – Red Light Effect, Woman You Stole
  • June 21 – Spilt, Serratone, The Lotts, Hollow Vandals
  • July 26 – The Bright Black
  • July 27 – Sky Valley Mistress