Hide and Seek Festival

• 9th May 2008

The Hide and Seek Festival is committed to narrowing the gap between new, developing and upcoming independent bands and their representatives, and professionals from the music industry, by providing a platform which will promote the sharing of skills, knowledge and expertise.

The line-up for the 30th and 31st May for Manchester's Dry Bar is below, along with a little something about the headliners.

Headling stage one on Friday 30th May are, Silhouette Behind The Gun. Influenced by early punk rock, mixed with original manc indie and rock, Silhouette Behind the Gun are bringing back the good old days, when Green Day were good, and Oasis were just some lads from Burnage. This is Punk Rock with a twist, hard hitting and nothing like what you'd expect.

Over on stage two will be The Reveres, a five piece Manchester indie rock band. Stating a wide range of influences the band also effortlessly brings together strong melodies and poetic lyrics to create a unique sound.

Saturday 31st May sees Syd Bozko headling stage one. A band to watch out for, after only playing a hand full of gigs the band entered and went on to win the YGG Irish National festival. Recently the band also got their first airplay on XFM Manchester with Clint Boon. After being holed up in the studio during April Syd Bozko are now back with “some more Manchester music for the world to hear…”

Kong, a three piece punk band from Manchester who’ve managed to grace the pages of the NME. Whilst also having BBC radio one’s Dan Carter feature them on his rock show will be headlining stage two on the 31st May.

The full line-up is as follows…

Friday 30th May – Stage One
7:30- Tin Pot Dictators
8:40- Uranium Lake
9:50- Brandon Steep
11:00- Little Volcanoes
12:10- Silhouette behind The Gun

Friday 30th May – Stage Two

8:05- Hans Island
9:15- Jacs Creation
10:25- The Antix
11:35- The Reveres

Friday 30th May – Stage Three
7.45pm – The Ice Band
8.30pm – Vanir
9.15pm – Napoleon III
10pm – Seaside Riot
10.45pm – Friends Of The Bride
11.30pm – Seven Miles Out

Saturday 31st May – Stage One

7:30- Contact Mo
8:40- Russian Dolls
9:50- Onions
11:00- Tea For One
12:10- Syd Bozko

Saturday 31st May – Stage Two

8:05- League Liege
9:15- The shameless
10:25- Hideaways
11:35- Kong

Saturday 31st May – Stage Three
7.45pm – The Furs
8.30pm – Stop The Blackout
9.15pm – Rivers
10pm – The Uncomfortables
10.45pm – The Hazy Janes
11.30pm – Shadow Call

To find out a little more about the aims of the Hide and seek Festival read on…

The music industry covers many business types and models, and it is difficult, if somewhat confusing, for unsigned bands to find the direction which is right for them in order to fulfil their goals/aspirations. It must also be understood that many bands, when starting out, manage themselves and self release their music, or they have friends/family members managing them who have to try and find their feet in a very competitive and what, at times, feels like a closed-shop market.

The music industry is filled with many myths – for example about how bands should progress; what they should be doing to attract the attention of professionals who may assist in furthering their career; how they should best package their image and music – the list is endless and it is no surprise that many bands eventually give up.

The purpose of the seminar programme at the Hide and Seek Festival is to demystify the music industry, and to put a face to the industry i.e. the businesses and their models. It is set out to enable unsigned bands and those seeking advice and tips for development access to industry professionals.

By bringing together professionals from all backgrounds, including record labels, music lawyers, digital distribution companies, publishing and management companies, media, industry bodies etc, the Hide and Seek Festival are making essential advice and industry information readily available to those whom need it the most, thereby nurturing grassroots talent and aiding in the building of sustainable careers.

The aim of these seminars is to REVEAL THE FACE OF THE MUSIC INDUSTRY. No longer should this information remain hidden behind a smoke screen of jargon: the Hide and Seek organisers are seeking it out so that others may benefit from it, therefore making an effective contribution to the development of emerging talent.

A career in the music industry is filled with extreme highs and lows, and one which can take many years to nurture without any financial gain. These seminars will show unsigned independent bands and their representatives how to get their foot in the door of the industry whilst making effective use of all the resources currently available to them.