Festival-goers will be able to continue to party long after a music event’s main stage closes thanks to free gigs being staged in town centre venues.
The Sonic Boom Festival takes place in Burton upon Trent on Saturday, 12 September with artists including Pale Waves, The Lilacs and The Leagues of Rebelz set to appear on the main stage in Market Place between 12pm and 8pm.
Hosted this year by BBC Radio 6 Music’s Chris Hawkins, the open-air festival returning for a third year. It attracts thousands of people and was recently highlighted in a government report as an example of the power of grassroots music in action.
Organisers East Staffordshire Borough Council and Sonic Boom Music CIC have now confirmed the return of the popular festival’s Aftershock gigs, which will see multiple town centre venues open their doors for their own free events on the night of the festival.
Every Aftershock gig has been curated with a different promoter or partner to ensure no two sound the same, spanning indie, rock, electronica, folk and club music, with every act playing original material.
A live BBC Introducing East Midlands broadcast will be hosted by Dean Jackson at The Campus at Burton & South Derbyshire College, while The Brewhouse’s Rock Bar will host Joseph Hooligan, Floodhounds and tealdeer, presented with Riffriot Promotions.
The party at Burton Caribbean Association’s Barrel Stage will run until 1am and feature Mollie Ralph and Death of the High Street, hosted by The Herron Brothers.
Burton Library will host King of Wands, Lilly Sphire and James Glew, presented with Circularity.org, while Rose Melba and Matt Kel can be found at Abbey Arcade.
Chris Baldwin, co-founder and director of Sonic Boom Music CIC, said: “Sonic Boom is a celebration of everything Burton has to offer.
“When the main stage closes, the Aftershock begins, with venues across the town opening their doors, all free and all original music.
“That’s what makes Sonic Boom special: the whole town is the venue, and the town is making it possible together.”
During the day, the Burton Albion FC ‘Brewers Stage’, backed by a new partnership with the football club, runs at the Market Hall from 1.30pm to 7pm.
Local and regional talent performing there includes Andrea Kenny, Ashton Spiby-Wood, Stacey Lynn, Dear Lily and Carl North. Burton’s custom t-shirt shop Podsmith will also be printing official festival merchandise live on site.
Councillor Paul Walker, cabinet member for tourism and cultural development at East Staffordshire Borough Council, added: “Events like this bring real footfall into our town centre, give local businesses a welcome boost and put Burton on the map as a place to enjoy live music.
“It’s a great example of what we can achieve when the council, organisers and the community all work together.”
