A Hidden Alternative World of Music

Access the article in the University of Chester’s Student News Magazine here: https://emailassets.chester.ac.uk/Student%20News%20Spring%202019_WEB.pdf

A Hidden World of Alternative Music 

Music is an important part of life with nightclubs, pubs and music venues in and around Chester keeping the love of music alive, particularly for students. Chester is placed in a near-perfect location with easy access to Manchester and Liverpool – esteemed cities of music. Did you know there is a strong alternative music scene in the area? Hidden from the mainstream media a wealth of alternative music can be found on your doorstep.

Manchester and Liverpool are highly significant for the alternative music scenes. Everything from alternative rock through to progressive metal is accessible in these diverse Northern cities. Chester itself hosts a small alternative music scene with venues The Live Rooms, The Saddle Inn, Alexander’s Live and Telford’s Warehouse all home to music events of all genres. The Cellar bar even hosts the Goth night: Last Rites. These events can be hard to locate if you don’t know where to look. Searching for events on social media is often a good place to start. For example, the majority of information for the Last Rites events is posted in their Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1451782145129971/. And, for those familiar with Rosies nightclub, they host two rock events: Shock, which takes place once a fortnight and Grind, which is on the last Tuesday of every month. The University’s Rock Society frequently attend these events at Rosies, so why not join them? It’s a great opportunity to try out these events and make friends with like-minded music fans.

Easily accessible by train, Manchester is a great place to go with a vast number of venues. Well-known venues such as Manchester Arena, Manchester Academy, O2 Apollo and the O2 Ritz host gigs of all genres – there is something rather pleasing in the knowledge that symphonic metal bands can be seen at the same venue as the latest new pop release. There are an infinite number of smaller venues hidden amongst the city’s skyscrapers. Satan’s Hollow is a must for any Gothic horror fans – the venue’s walls are designed to look like brimstone and a giant Satan watches over all audiences. Other smaller stages such as Gorilla, The Deaf Institute and The Ruby Lounge are just a mere sample of popular venues. With so many venues hosting events every single night, there will always be new music and new bands to discover.

Why not check out alternative bands from Chester? Acoustic trio the Jarvis Brothers can be found performing around the city and at University events. Check their Facebook page for details of their performances: https://www.facebook.com/JarvisBrothers/. For heavier music fans, hard rock trio Nights Tribunal and progressive metal band White Mammoth can be found performing in venues around Chester, such as The Live Rooms, The Saddle Inn and in Liverpool.

With this world hidden beneath the mainstream media, it is easy to miss events tailored to the alternative genres. However, there is far more going on out there than many realise and with the assistance of social media it is getting easier to discover the hidden world of alternative music.