The show will see electronica and psychedelia band Maftin top the bill
The first night of a tour designed to support the country’s grassroots live music venues will take place in Hull with tickets costing less than a pint. Keeping Music Live will stage an all afternoon and evening event at The New Adelphi Club on De Grey Street this Saturday, starring city three-piece Maftin who will bring their mix of electronica and psychedelia to the stage.
Behind the event is Yorkshire-based WaterBear the College of Music and Music Venue Trust (MVT) who are staging the national campaign in an effort to stem the decline of grassroots venues across the country. According to a 2024 report from MVT, 125 grassroots venues closed, at an average of two every week.
Industry experts say the spaces are being lost to rising costs, noise complaints and a lack of industry support. The Keeping Music Live campaign is a response to those issues and its tour, which launches in Hull and runs through to November 1, will see gigs at venues in Manchester, London and other cities with support from Love Music Hate Racism and Save Our Scene.
Hull’s Maftin will be joined by WaterBear artists Good Damage, Sheffield’s Mother’s Day, Bradford’s Polite Bureaux and Hull neighbours Rothco, Wench and Emitter. Other acts are due to be announced soon for the event which kicks off at 1pm and costs just £1 entry, with funds raising going towards the Music Venue Trust.
A number of tickets will be distributed by Tickets for Good, and will go to NHS staff, teachers, charity workers, volunteers and people impacted by the cost of living crisis. The group sets out to make live events more accessible in the face of rising costs. In addition, Fightback Lager will be sold on the night with donations from each pint going towards MVT.
Greg Archer, careers and industry manager, WaterBear Sheffield, said: “If venues disappear, so do the opportunities for bands, crew, the whole circuit. This is our ecosystem too – we’ve been working with local venues for years—putting on shows, helping them stay open, and giving students a proper understanding of what the industry really looks like. We’re proud to continue that with so many industry partnerships and support for emerging artists on the ‘Keeping Music Live tour.”
WaterBear is said to have built strong links within the Hull music community with its students having performed alongside local artists in the city’s grassroots venues. Brad Widdowson, part of Sheffield band Sundress and a WaterBear student, said: “We’re playing festivals next year, but without smaller venues we’d never have been ready. You learn by doing. You make mistakes. You grow. You can’t skip that part.”
Students of WaterBear perform midweek shows at local venues in Sheffield and Brighton in an effort to draw customers at otherwise quieter times. The college provides financial support by covering entry costs and sometimes bar spend.
WaterBear points to The New Adelphi Club’s as a renowned grassroots venue that has hosted acts since the early 1980s. The former three-bedroom house has seen performances from now major bands such as Oasis, Green Day and Radiohead.
Bruce John Dickinson, WaterBear co-founder, added: “These venues aren’t just buildings—they’re launchpads. Go to the gig. Buy a ticket. Stand at the front. These places are everything for emerging artists, playing gigs, learning to handle a crowd, and making your name.”