Northants venues get ready for Independent Venue Week gigs

The annual celebration of live music takes place in the last week of January at venues across the UK and will run from Monday, January 27 until Sunday, February 2.

There will be 15 gigs across the town during the week – including two this weekend ahead of the official start of IVW.

In Northampton, The Black Prince in Abington Square and The Lab in Charles Street will be putting on gigs throughout the week.

The Garibaldi in Bailiff Street is one of 23 venues across the UK which will be hosting IVW gigs for the first time. More than 200 venues are expected to take part nationally.

Phil Moore, venue manager at The Black Prince said: “The concept of Independent Venue Week is well established at this point, both nationally and in Northampton.

“For me it's about having a week-long celebration of what we do, with a few surprises thrown in.

“Some touring acts and some local stunners with as much diversity on display as we can conjure.

“Our theme for 2025 is ‘Eight Gigs A Week’ as we're running shows Sunday to Sunday.

“We've gone big, or we may as well have gone home. We've rounded up all the musical boats we could find and pushed them out as far as they could go.

“I wanted your classic indie and noisy rock bands to sit tidily alongside old proggers and Mancunian chamber-pop and for no one to blink an eye.”

At The Black Prince, there will be headline gigs by The Emerald Dawn, The Bug Club, Scott Lavene, The Clause, Heavy Lungs, Avalanche Party, Pavilion and Caoilfhionn Rose.

At the Garibaldi, there will be gigs by Trip Westerns, Bryony Williams, Floral Image, Cucamaras and Shrimp Eyes.

The Lab has so far announced a headline gig by The Miki Berenyi Trio, Lydia Lunch and Human Leather.

Mr Moore added: “We get a lot of publicity off the back of the initiative and I know folk often want to be a part of it, so choose their favourite artist or two and make the effort to come along.

“It also challenges us to imagine a world in which we could offer music every night of the week.

“Obviously, that's impossible to achieve even for big city venues, but nevertheless it's nice to have a week-long festival of great talent on display within our walls that we can shout about.

“The staff at The Black prince also love being able to show off what we can do.”

In recent years, acts and artists including Working Men’s Club, Andy Bell, Pale Blue Eyes, Steve Mason and Opus Kink have all played gigs in the county as part of Independent Venue Week.

Talking about the challenges of running a live music venue in 2025, Mr Moore said: “I think everyone knows how tricky the pub and live music worlds are to make work – look at the recent closure of The King Billy.

“Please remember to not take these spaces for granted. We serve the public which means we need you.

“Buy advance tickets where you can, share the events you like the look of among your friends, and keep coming back please.”

Last year, YolanDa Brown was unveiled as Artist Ambassador for Independent Venue Week 2025.

The acclaimed saxophonist will play a special show, celebrating the music of Bob Marley, at her Soul Mama venue in London.

A former Chair of leading music charity Youth Music, YolanDa was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of East London and became an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Northern College of Music.

She said: “Independent venues are and will always remain important to the music ecosystem.

“They are the heartbeat of the live experience, not just for artists but for audiences as well.

“Within these intimate spaces, countless stories are told - some songs and performances may never transcend the walls, yet they leave a lasting mark, offering hope, joy, inspiration, and sometimes even tears.”

Last year, more than 200 venues took part in Independent Venue Week, hosting more than 800 events.

Claire Mera-Nelson from Arts Council England added: “Independent venues - and the people that run them - are vital to the UK's music scene.

“It's in these dynamic spaces that many artists find their first audiences, share their passion with fans and develop their creative skill.

“Arts Council England is proud to be a lead funding partner of Independent Venue Week and I look forward to an exciting event in 2025.”

Tickets for gigs at The Black Prince are on sale now at https://www.theblackprincenn.com/events

More details about gigs at The Garibaldi are available at https://pickynew.com and The Lab at https://thelabnorthampton.club

Tickets for The Miki Berenyi Trio are available via https://wegottickets.com/event/634930

For more information about IVW25 visit www.independentvenueweek.com

The following gigs will take place in Northampton as part of IVW25:

Saturday, January 26, Trip Westerns + Mantis, The Garibaldi

Sunday, January 26, The Emerald Dawn + Pearl Handed Revolver, The Black Prince

Monday, January 27, The Bug Club + John Myrtle + Chargr, The Black Prince

Tuesday, January 28, Scott Lavene + Bill Fever + Lily One The Green, The Black Prince

Wednesday, January 29, The Clause + The Barratts, The Black Prince

Wednesday, January 29, The Miki Berenyi Trio + Night Swimming, The Lab

Thursday, January 30, Heavy Lungs + The Silver Lines, Death Of Summer, The Black Prince

Friday, January 31, Floral Image + Ratatouille’s Revenge + The Gonzo Experimental Band, The Garibaldi

Friday, January 31, Avalanche Party + Idle Palms + Latent Dream, The Black Prince

Saturday, February 1, Human Leather + Shrykull + Merrin + Human Interference + Hideous Crawling Abomination, The Lab

Saturday, February 1, Pavilion + Century City + The Moonshines, The Black Prince

Saturday, February 1, All-Day Racket 2 with Cucamaras + Bones Ate Arfa + Honeybadger, Headswitcher + Spill + Oral Habit + Kitchen Lover + Skelta, The Garibaldi

Sunday, February 2, Caoilfhionn Rose + Harrison Hood + Quincey May Brown, The Black Prince

Sunday, February 2, Shrimp Eyes + The Vandervalls, The Garibaldi

Sunday, February 2, Lydia Lunch & Marc Hurtado + Venus Fly Trap, The Lab