LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY: Gigslutz top 10 must see acts

Next month Sound City is taking over Liverpool’s Bramley-Moore Dock for an unmissable weekend of live music from the 22nd to the 24th of May.

The Vaccines bring their indie-rock catalog to the main stage on Friday night, whilst The Flaming Lips take Saturday’s headline slot and Belle and Sebastian close proceedings on the Sunday. Adding to the monster trio of headliners, they’ll be joined on the main stage by the likes of Everything Everything, Spector, The Thurston Moore Band, The Cribs and Gaz Coombes to name a few.

The annual conference begins on Thursday 21st May with highlights including The Flaming Lips’ Wayne Coyne as a keynote speaker, Viv Albertine In Conversation and various panels including debates on streaming and the rise of the cyber generation.

There’s hundreds of bands to catch across the weekend, but here’s 10 who should be top of your ones to watch list:

Peace: Birmingham’s biggest export of late spent the first 3 months of this year touring relentlessly around Britain and Europe’s best small venues, including a three night run at the beautiful (and soon to be closed) Kazimier. They’ve released one of the best albums of 2015 and they’ll be headlining the Baltic Stage on Sunday night.

Blossoms: Stockport’s newest and finest export are building a loyal following on the Manchester scene and beyond. Formed in 2013, in the last year they’ve bagged a host of support slots for the likes of The Courteeners and opened for The Charlatans at Manchester’s Albert Hall. Their psyche-pop is infectious.

The Vryll Society: Described as ‘the space rockers of the future’ this Liverpool 5-piece will need no introduction when they take to the main stage at Sound City. There’s no shortage of psychedelia at this years festival but the likes of The Vryll Society and Blossoms will do it best.

Liverpool Soul City: Not a band, but the North’s best bunch of DJs will be spinning the best in 60s Soul, Motown, Rhythm & Blues and Funk. The Howling Rhythm lads are joined by Good Vibrations and Funk Off DJs and are bringing the party to Tim Peaks Diner, as part of Saturday night’s ‘Liverpool Soul City’. There’ll be live horns, Northern Soul dance classes and feel good vibes ’til 3am.

We took to the stage with the Howling Rhythm Brass Section last night and it was incredible

Posted by Elliot Hutchinson on Sunday, October 19, 2014

John McCullagh & The Escorts: Starting out as an acoustic solo artist, John McCullagh released his first album aged 15. Now he’s a bit older, he’s gone electric and he’s joined by his top band, The Escorts. Signed to Alan McGee’s 359 Music, the second album ‘New Born Cry’ is produced by John Power and released May 4th.

The Gramotones: The Gramotones are Manchester’s finest band in years. Their songs are expertly crafted and they’ve supported the likes of Tim Burgess and Paul Weller. If you see one band at Sound City, make it these guys.

Psyence: After an unreal set at Sound City 2014, Stoke on Trent’s finest are back to melt your face off with their heavy psych alt-rock. They’ve received masses of praise for their previous live sets and been tipped as “the best live band” in years by The Charlatans Martin Blunt.

Raglans: Back touring UK supporting their friends The Strypes, the Dublin based Raglans stop off at Sound City with their delightfully upbeat indie-rock. They released their brilliant debut album last year and have an even more promising future ahead.

The Clameens: It seems it’s not only SOAK causing a stir from the Derry music scene, as teen quartet The Clameens begin to make their mark as ones to watch. It’s early days but these guys are a promising indie-rock outfit who can’t go wrong with their set of catchy tunes.

The Mispers: A ‘misper’ is a police term for a missing person, a term adopted by this London based quintet who were formed in London after Joey and Jack had spent a year on the road busking in Australia. They’re known for their infectious gigs and throwing their Missing Til Monday parties. They have sold out a string of London headline shows and were noticed early on by Zane Lowe. The Mispers bring their exciting alt-rock to the festival on the Sunday.