Dani Larkin is a songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist currently based in Belfast. Her debut album, Notes For A Maiden Warrior (2021), received widespread critical acclaim and catapulted Larkin to the international stage with performances at SXSW and WOMEX as well as tours with Snow Patrol, Lisa O'Neill, Glen Hansard, and Rufus Wainright. Larkin has since collaborated with the Ulster Orchestra and RT Concert Orchestra and released Walking With Natives (2023) which saw her tour Australia, Korea, Finland, Canada, Ireland, the UK and a run of sold out shows at the Irish Arts Centre NYC. With television appearances on BBC 1, Virgin Media Ireland's Fanning At Whelans, Canada's CTV, alongside radio performances on BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour and RT Radio 1, Larkin has accompanied her songwriting prowess with insights into story and song taking the listener on a pathway to the beyond. With a profound performance at the RT Folk Awards coupled with her tours in Europe, Australia, Asia and North America, Larkin has been heralded as a must-see live performer on the national and international stage. Described as a beguiling and powerful, songwriter and virtuoso guitarist (Songlines Magazine) Larkins live performances enrapture audiences within a seamlessly woven narrative within carefully considered sonic landscape.

Even before you get to the music there’s plenty to pique one’s interest with The Leisure Society. Main-man Nick Hemming began his career in shoegaze band The Telescopes and shared a further outfit with Paddy Considine and Shane Meadows. They’ve had two consecutive Ivor Novello nominations for Best Song Musically and Lyrically, and have enjoyed the endorsement of everyone from Guy Garvey to Brian Eno. Many people are aware of Duke Special's platinum album ‘Songs From The Deep Forest’, and the hit song ‘Freewheel’, but many may be surprised by the cultural breadth of his other work. His creative talents have seen him involved in projects as diverse as writing the theme tune for the Irish Sesame Street to writing the music for and appearing in Deborah Warner’s critically acclaimed 2009 production of Bertolt Brecht’s ‘Mother Courage and Her Children’ at London’s National Theatre.

DHP presents Haggard Cat plus support.

A natural storyteller, Ben de la Cours visceral songwriting grabs you by the heart and doesnt let go. Weaving evocative stories of desperate characters with his signature Americanoir sound, de la Cour shines a glaring light on the human condition. His latest release, New Roses, received from MOJO and was named Album of the Month. While Bens previous album Sweet Anhedonia felt like the American heartland witnessed through the window of a car going 80mph (American Songwriter), New Roses feels like being stuffed into the trunk and driven into an imploding star. The record is a singular and personal vision, with de la Cour playing nearly every instrument and delivering his strongest vocal performance yet. The result is a razor-sharp album full of what he calls night songs haunting, impactful songs that feel like the witching hour. In a collection of songs filled with juxtaposition and duality, de la Cour balances doom and optimism, seeking out kernels of hope in the darkness.

Carpool Tunnel is a San Francisco-based indie rock band made up of Ben Koppenjan (vocals, guitar), Kalani Faith (bass, vocals), and Michael Reed “Junior” (drums, background vocals). Known for their tight musicianship and emotionally honest songwriting, the band brings a dynamic blend of driving rhythms, melodic hooks, and raw, lived-in storytelling. Their chemistry-rooted in years of playing, writing, and growing together-gives Carpool Tunnel a sound that feels both unmistakably modern and grounded in the spirit of Bay Area indie rock. Presented by Sneaks Events. This is an 18+ event

Formed in 2020 in Dearborn, Michigan, Prostitute is an experimental post-punk and Arab rock band. Born out of the isolation of the COVID-19 lockdown, the band’s debut album, Attempted Martyr, was written in the midst of global and personal turmoil, capturing the zeitgeist of a world unraveling. A loose concept record, it chronicles the rise and fall of a doomed zealot whose pursuit of holy vengeance spirals into a psychotic orgy of violence, greed, and lust. The band was initially formed by Moe Kazra who enlisted childhood friends Andrew Kaster and Dylan Zaranski, with Ross Babinski and Bret Wall later completing the lineup. Together, they self-funded the album, working with legendary engineer Chris Koltay to shape a sound that's both abrasive and hypnotic-an unrelenting blend of warped guitars, primitive basslines, frenzied drumming, and corrosive synthesizers, interwoven with samples from diverse cultures, ranging from African to Middle Eastern and East Asian influences. Tracks like “All Hail” (inspired by the 1977 Hanafi Siege of Washington D.C.) immerses listeners in a volatile, hostage-like environment. "Judge" channels Milton's Satan in a chilling rallying cry, while “Body Meat” grapples with religious desperation and the tenuous boundary between faith and madness. Khachab and Kaster’s lyrics have been described by Pitchfork as "disturbingly poetic" with the ability to "lacerate with image alone." Crude sloganeering and scenes of horrific violence are juxtaposed with literary allusion and Islamic symbolism, creating what the band calls a "theatricalization of terrorism." Through this lens, they examine and critique the xenophobic stereotypes targeted at Arabs, distorting them into grotesque caricatures. Over the past four years, Prostitute has established a reputation for their punishing, high-energy performances. The band’s live shows, described as “dangerous” and “volatile”, finds Moe delivering politically charged sermons atop a deafening bacchanal of sound. In 2023, Prostitute performed at the re-opening of the iconic UFO Bar in Detroit, followed by a series of benefit concerts for Palestine, Lebanon, and Sudan. These performances solidified their growing presence, leading to invites to play at No Rest Fest and New Colossus Festival. As Prostitute continues work on their sophomore album, they are delving deeper into electronic and Arabic dance influences, drawing inspiration from the ongoing conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon. Their sound continues to evolve, with new tracks incorporating dabke rhythms, Arabesque melodicism, and industrial synth textures, all while retaining the same anarchic energy that defines their unique sound. Brudenell Presents. This is a 14+ event (Under 18s to be accompanied by an adult)

Uncompromising low end violence. Fast, abrasive and nihilistic.

2025 has been some year for Felix with his band Divorce, which won rave reviews, awards nominations, toured the length and breadth of the UK, debuted in Europe and North America, and landed on major festival mainstages. At various junctures during this whirlwind year though, Felix was snatching moments away in isolation, pressing forward with a writing process that describes as “incredibly DIY” and “kind of naive.” Each song was written in one day, recorded the next, and left largely untouched until the album was handed over to Richie Kennedy (Interpol, The Last Dinner Party) for mixing. Charting lost love, dread, grief and anger, ‘Book of Churches’ was about breaking some of his own creative rules, trusting his own singular voice, and committing to “the raw contents of my brain.” The result is a timeless minimalism in the tradition of folk singer-songwriters like Nick Drake and Fionn Regan, or Leonard Cohen.

LA based Twisted Noise Rock Quartet

The Sheffield fourpiece create a monster with their reincarnation of grunge-laced psychedelia, which comes alive through the distorted noise of buzzsaw guitars. Raw, spooky and soul-scrapingly powerful, don’t stand too close to the amps.

Sam Grassie is a Scottish fingerstyle guitarist and songwriter, gaining a reputation on the circuit for dynamic sets that traverse traditional folk, acoustic blues and American primitive. Off the back of his debut EP “Sandwood” Grassie has toured with Ryley Walker, Naima Bock & Daisy Rickman, and is set to release his debut album this spring. Presented by Gotobeat. This is an 18+ event

Jesse Sykes and The Sweet Hereafter is the result of an enduring musical alchemy between singer-songwriter Jesse Sykes and guitarist Phil Wandscher, which began in Seattle, Washington in 2001. Blending folk, blues, orchestral pop and various psychedelic stylings, their sound culminates in what the New York Times has described as 'spellbound music, rapt in fatalism and sorrow. Known for her dusky, otherworldly vocals and lyrics that touch on the metaphysical, she was once described by MAGNET as being less like a performer and more like a sage and whether the sonic setting is one of doomy distortion or fragile finger picking, Sykes remains a truly unique vocalist whose dusky voice is capable of imparting a transcendent, almost spiritual quality to almost any tune it touches. The band has released five critically acclaimed albums; Reckless Burning (2002), Oh, My Girl (2005) and Like, Love, Lust and the Open Halls of the Soul (2007), while their fourth album Marble Son (2011) was released through Thirty Tigers in Nashville, on their own US imprint (Station Grey). Most Recently they have released, Forever, Ive Been Being Born, UNCUT magazine has featured it as Americana Record Of The Month calling it rapturous psyche-folk melancholia. Prior to his work with Jesse Sykes, Phil Wandscher help co-found the influential alt- country band Whiskeytown with Ryan Adams, in which he appears on the groups first three records, co-writing some of the bands most beloved songs, most notably songs on Stranger's Almanac, which many say was also arguably the band's most beloved album. Jesse Sykes also plays in a band with guitarist and Grammy winning songwriter Dave Alvin (a project called the The Third Mind, on Yep Roc Records,) alongside members of Camper Van Beethoven, Counting Crows and Richard Thompson's band.

Skinner is Aaron Corcoran, based in Dublin, who writes, records and produces songs about growing up and overcoming a dirt-flecked 21st century existence. The DNA of no wave and post-punk acts like The B52s, James Chance and the Contortions and ESG through to alt-rock touchstones Pixies and Morphine com-bined with an talent for grunge-nodding self-production and pockets of elevated in-strumentation is oozing from Skinner’s music. Debut album New Wave Vaudeville, released January 2025 on Faction Records, references the New Wave Vaudeville music variety freak show that took place at the 57 Club in New York from 1978 to 1983. The club was known for its free-form art shows, a debaucherous wild riposte to creeping commerciality of modern culture of the time, an era that perfectly reflects the rambunctious nature Skinner has brought to this new collection. Presented by JOY. This is an 18+ event

Every band worth its salt has a member who worked in a record store. In METZ, the fearless noise rock trio who released five full-length albums on Sub Pop between 2012 and 2024, it was singer and guitarist Alex Edkins. Slinging indie rock and hardcore records in his hometown record store while attending university, Edkins became an ardent student of rock 'n' roll; from the psychedelic 1960s to the DIY 1990s and beyond. The new Weird Nightmare album, Hoopla, mixes and matches these wide-ranging influences in fun, exhilarating combinations, showcasing his sophisticated musical mind. Bursting to life with hooks and earworms. Co-produced by Edkins and Spoon's Jim Eno at Seth Manchester's Machines With Magnets in Providence, RI. Edkins expands Weird Nightmare's dimensions to new heights, gilding the direct emotions of his straightforward songwriting with musical textures such as piano, bells, and castanets, giving these well-wrought tunes a shiny luster. Following the previously released single "Forever Elsewhere," which Stereogum called "... an undeniably infectious power-pop anthem", Weird Nightmare has shared an official video for their new song, "Might See You There," which was directed by CC Mulligan. Edkins shares about the track: "'Might See You There' is about going back to visit my hometown and being flooded with teenage nostalgia. Small-town boredom and isolation almost feel like a gift in today's highly connected world. I feel fortunate for that time spent idly, down in the basement, learning the entire Rancid 'Let's Go' album on guitar with my friends. I find it easy to romanticise that time in my life, even though I was, without question, a disgruntled kid who badly wanted to escape my surroundings and see the world. "I was listening to a lot of the Irish bands The Undertones and Protex while writing this one, and I think there is a fair bit of their influence. Just the simplicity and big bar chords mostly. Seth Manchester and I were very into the idea of adding piano and bells to the outro, akin to the Phil Spector-produced 'End of the Century' album by The Ramones. The great Julianna Riolino sings with me on the choruses, too!" Age restriction: 14+ / U16s accompanied by an adult

Flooding is an American rock band from Lawrence, Kansas. They have released 2 full length albums, and 2 EPs.

FORM Presents Case oats \+ Special Guests Baseball caps and horsetails, porch swings and “all else that fails”-these are the lyrical stomping grounds of Case Oats, the group led by Casey Walker and Spencer Tweedy. Transplanted from Missouri to Chicago, Walker has a knack for getting to the “gooey heart” of relationships and experience, of bringing a city-dwelling life back down to earth. With an unadorned delivery and an unflinching eye, Walker relates songs about moving on, about growing up in the Midwest, and about loyalty to desperately flawed people and gratitude for pain, for the way things end up. Case Oats’ yet-to-be-announced debut album is a well-defined, inviting labor of love. Light on pastiche and heavy on intention, their arrangements, backed by a group of longtime collaborators, put Case Oats on a continuum of porch-sitting, familiar songwriters. Presented by FORM. This is an 18+ event.

DHP & FOOTSTEPS FESTIVAL Presents Charlie houston Presented by DHP & FOOTSTEPS FESTIVAL. 14+ (under 16s to be accompanied by an adult).

Once Upon A Leeds, 1981. The March Violets strum their first riff and scrawl their first set list. Their impressive post-punk legacy stretches from 1980s BBC John Peel Sessions, indie chart success Radiant Boys EP, Grooving in Green, Snake Dance and Turn to the Sky (featured in the John Hughes movies, Some Kind of Wonderful), all the way to the 21st century reunion, headlining festivals across Europe & the USA and storming Record Store Day 2021 with sell-out double album Big Soul Kiss. And now, for the first time The March Violets are releasing their full back catalogue, with worldwide distribution via Jungle Records. Founder-members Rosie Garland (performer, poet and author) and Tom Ashton (guitarist, producer and studio owner) are joined by William Faith (musician and vocalist with Faith & the Muse, Conflict and the Bellwether Syndicate). They are excited to be back in the studio and recording their new album set for release in the summer of 2023 and also planning live dates in support of this and their back catalogue releases. They are joined by the mighty Rose Of Avalanche, one of Leeds' finest bands and purveyors of such beauties as L.A Rain, Always There etc.

Deaf Club is a savage sound bath dripping with sardonicism: a blastbeat-centric hardcore punk assault channeling crust, thrash, and grind (un)sensibilities. Justin Pearson, Brian Amalfitano, Scott Osment, and Collin Peter Smith, approach music as an opportunity to confront our collective sicknesses.

The London duo play their first intimate headline joined by friends on stage. This is an 18+ event

PISS is a noisy, genre-bending 4-piece punk band from Vancouver B.C. The band combines music, poetry, sound collage, performance art, and various mediums of visual art to address complex themes that blur the line between personal and political. Presented by JOY. 14+ event. Under 18's to be accompanied by adult

Lili Refrain is a multi-instrumentalist, composer and performer based in Rome, Italy. Her solo project was founded in 2007. She uses electric guitar, vocals, percussions and synthesizers, overlapping them in real time through loop stations. The atmosphere she evokes cover a wide swath of sonic territory that combines minimalist, folk, psychedelic, blues, metal, lyrical opera textures, without using any computer or pre-recorded tracks. Her songs are embedded with ritualistic energies and her live performances are a visceral and cathartic experience that lead the listener through an unforgettable mesmerising act. Since the release of her 5th album "MANA" (Subsound Records - 2022), Lili Refrain landed on the stages of the most prestigious European festivals such as Roadburn, Hellfest, Desertfest, Inferno and many more, revealing herself as the rising star of archetypal rituality. Between 2022 and 2023 she toured Europe and the UK as an opening act first with Heilung, then with the legendary The Cult and then ended the year with "40 years tour" of Death Cult. Lili Refrain is a multi-instrumentalist, composer and performer based in Rome, Italy. Her solo project was founded in 2007. She uses electric guitar, vocals, percussions and synthesizers, overlapping them in real time through loop stations. The atmosphere she evokes cover a wide swath of sonic territory that combines minimalist, folk, psychedelic, blues, metal, lyrical opera textures, without using any computer or pre-recorded tracks. Her songs are embedded with ritualistic energies and her live performances are a visceral and cathartic experience that lead the listener through an unforgettable mesmerising act. Brudenell Presents... This is an 14+ with adult, 18+ without event

Alex Rex are a 4-piece ghost rock band from Glasgow. Masterminded by Alex Neilson (Trembling Bells/ Bonnie "Prince" Billy/ Shirley Collins), the band are made up by Rory Haye (BMX Bandits), Georgia Seddon (Incredible String Band) and Victor Herrero (Josephine Foster). They will perform songs of love, loss and loathing from their new album Paradise (out now on Neolithic Recordings).

San Francisco-based sludge-metal band Kowloon Walled City. Named after a 2.7 hectacre former slum city in Hong Kong; I've just spent the past half an hour down a Wikipedia hole looking into its history and wow, I'd recommend giving it a Google. So interesting. Anyway, the band are great and they're going to be great live. Support comes from Town Portal, Wren and MOTHER. See you there. This is a 14+ event. Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult.

Graham Jonson, also known as Quickly, Quickly, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. Based in Portland, Oregon, he originally created instrumental beats on SoundCloud.

Goo are an indie rock band from Keighley, West Yorkshire, UK. They have toured the UK and mainland Europe behind three releases: 'Chomp' EP in 2023, and two singles 'You're In Mono' and 'Tiny Dinosaur That Only I Can See' in 2024. Presented by Psychedelia. This is an 16+ event

Nebraska-based singer-songwriter whose music blends intimate storytelling, poetic lyricism, and warm acoustic arrangements.

Real Farmer is a Dutch (post-)punk band from Groningen, known for an energetic, gritty, and DIY-focused sound.

British-Greek singer, songwriter and producer.

Presented by Futuresound. This is an 16+ event

Ragingly bright post-punk quartet Ringlets emerged from Aotearoa’s musical ether in 2021; carving out space with their distinct blend of delicate wit, grit and evident sonic technicality. With a highly durable, machine-tested rhythm section and two of Auckland’s leading lyrical & melodic consultants, Ringlets have been fast-building a solid reputation. Catching the eye of former Pitchfork editor Chris Ott, Autumn 2023 saw the band release their eponymous debut under Ott’s label Mutual Skies. Produced by De Stevens (Office Dog, Erny Belle) and the band themselves, the 10-track album is a sporadic and riotous introduction to this exciting musical offering. Cut to the year 2025, and few post-punk records from Aotearoa would have been more anticipated this year than the band's sophomore offering The Lord Is My German Shepherd (Time for Walkies), which saw the four-piece return to The Lab with Olly Harmer and usher in Michael Logie (The Mint Chicks) to produce alongside. Mixed later at Abbey Road Studios by Isaac Keating, the result is a collection of songs more cohesive and controlled - yet constantly changing and re-composing itself, totally deserving of the ‘Flying Nun Records’ alumni position it’s earned them. Presented by JOY.. This is an 18+ event

DHP & FOOTSTEPS FESTIVAL Presents : Office dog Presented by DHP FAMILY & FOOTSTEPS FESTIVAL. This is an 18+ event

London singer-songwriter.

American folk/roots pop singer-songwriter Josh Rouse.

It’s been a long road, but Baltimore’s Have Mercy know how to keep it life-affirming. Threading the needle of making deeply confessional music without making a voyeur of the listener, they have honed a fully realised, grown-up brand of emo across five albums and numerous DIY tours of the States. Their debut album The Earth Pushed Back, was released by Topshelf Records all the way back in May 2013. The album was well received by critics and fans alike, and in 2014, Have Mercy signed with vaunted indie Hopeless Records, which released their second LP, Place of Our Own, later that year. Working with producers Paul Leavitt (All Time Low) and Brian McTernan (Thrice), Swindle and a rotating crew recorded the band’s Hopeless follow-up, Make the Best of It, which was released in early 2017. Have Mercy returned with The Love Life in 2019, which charted Swindle’s tumultuous personal life over the previous three years. In 2023 they released the stunning NUMB, which as frontman Brian Swindle puts it was “influenced by my sobriety, new marriage, and repairing/disconnecting from relationships with people”. It’s the sound of a band with two feet firmly on the ground, perfectly braced for some very big feelings indeed.

Raised on the music of the Smokey Mountains, Joshua Ray Walker took a precarious path back to traditional country music. One forged by musical exploration and life experiences that most his age have not yet endured. He has played his songs on stages all across Texas and beyond, enthralling listeners with his brand of melodic, character-driven writing which puts a new spin on traditional story-telling country. Once the best-kept secret of Dallas' music scene, Joshua Ray Walker catapulted himself into the international spotlight with his 2019 debut, Wish You Were Here. An album of character-driven songwriting and golden-era Texas twang, Wish You Were Here didn't just nod to the larger-than-life troubadours who'd inspired Walker's craft it brought him into their ranks, too, adding Walker's name to the shortlist of songwriters worthy of carrying the torches of Guy Clark, John Prine, and Blaze Foley.

Crosstown Presents... Billy Fuller (Beak>) Presented by Crosstown Concerts. This is an 18+ event