Exposed Magazine July 2018

2018 july

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35 17: norse code For this month’s Exposed VS feature, we took on the hardened warriors from Valhalla Sheffield at a spot of axe-lobbing.

26: ROLL the CREDITS And that’s a wrap!

Exposed’s Doc/Fest correspondent gives us the lowdown on what was one of the most successful instalments of the flagship film festival to date.

no-shows Phil Turner (MD) phil@exposedmagazine.co.uk

Nick Hallam (Sales Director) nick@exposedmagazine.co.uk

Sarah Koriba (Accounts) accounts@exposedmagazine.co.uk

35: Tramlines: the big 1-0

the headliner

The city’s biggest annual music bash turns the ripe age of 10 years this month, t’owd lad. We look back on the story so far and what can be expected at this month’s festivities.

Joe Food (Editor) joe@exposedmagazine.co.uk

propping up the bill Marc Barker (Design) marc@exposedmagazine.co.uk

stuck in the mud paul stimpson (web editor) paul@exposedmagazine.co.uk leo burrell (nightlife editor) leo@exposedmagazine.co.uk

56: Steel city represent Spanning a range of genres such as hip-hop, rap, grime, jazz, soul and more in-between, Sheff artists Otis Mensah and Matic Mouth shine a light on the city’s thriving underground music scene.

78: TOO HOT TO TROT Much-loved rock & roll duo Hot Soles are back with a shedload of fresh material. We caught up with the rambunctious duo to find out what’s new.

support acts Mark Perkins, Kerre Chen, Heather Paterson, julian crockford, megan harvey, aaron jackson, Will fisher, Thomas Fay, caitlin shentall

17

78

the business stuff Exposed is published monthly

by Blind Mice Media Ltd Unit 1b 2 kelham square kelham riverside Sheffield s3 8sd The views contained herein are not necessarily those of Blind Mice Media Ltd and while every effort is made to ensure information throughout Exposed is correct, changes prior to distribution may take place which can affect the accuracy of copy, therefore Blind Mice Media Ltd cannot take responsibility for contributors’ views or specific entertainment listings.

11: UPFRONT 30: IN SESH 70: FOOD & DRINK 75: THINGS TO DO 78: MUSIC 84: COMEDY 85: LGBT+ 92: FILM 95: CULTURE

Featured Articles:

18: atom detailing 69: Arnold & Co 89: Classic camper co. www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 9

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A Class Act Celebrated Sheffield artist Pete McKee will bring This Class Works, his first exhibition in two years, to 92 Burton Road this month. Taking place 14-29 July, a new collection of work will celebrate and explore Britain’s working class featuring collaborations with a number of artists, filmmakers and photographers including actress Maxine Peake and Reverend and the Makers frontman Jon McClure .

www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 11

Sensory Overload

Š Helena Dolby, Sheffield Doc/Fest Â

A Sheffield Doc/Fest attendee tries out one of the VR headsets at the popular Alternate Realities exhibition last month. Hosted at Trafalgar Warehouse, a wide range of interactive installations allowed participants to immerse themselves in a diverse range of stories and topics from nuclear war to a one-on-one chat with Sir David Attenborough.

12 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

support st luke’s and win vip milburn tickets After reforming in 2016 with four sell-out gigs at Sheffield’s O2 Academy and a long-awaited third LP, Milburn are sadly going on another hiatus after their upcoming Tramlines set. It will be the last chance to see them live for some time, so with that in mind, the band will be offering one lucky fan the chance to win a pair of side-stage passes for their Main Stage gig in Hillsborough Park on Friday 20 July, plus a chance to meet the band beforehand, all courtesy of St Luke’s charity raffle.

The lads have teamed up with the local hospice which has been providing invaluable care for people in Sheffield with terminal illnesses since 1971.

Entries cost £3 and you can donate multiple times (up to 20 entries) to be in with a chance of winning. The more you enter, the more money gets raised for St Luke’s. And if

you don’t manage to bag the main prize, runners-up will be able to win some exclusive signed Milburn memorabilia instead.

Spreading the word about the raffle, frontman Joe Carnall said: “You’ll have the chance to stand at the side of the stage for our final gig and watch it all unfold live – it’s a pretty amazing experience, let me tell you!”

Entries will close at 23.59 on Tuesday 17 July and winners drawn the following day.

To enter the raffle, head to stlukeslotterysheffield.org.uk/milburn where you can also find Ts & Cs.

www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 13

In Dev Chippy - “Nowt wrong with having mushy peas and curry sauce together. It’s about time you grew up, love.”

Fez Club Relaunches

Photo: Lanty Zhang studio

If you’re a local nightlife lover and can cast your mind back nearly three years, then you should remember Fez, one of the most popular late-night clubs in town. We were distraught when they closed the doors for the last time back in 2015, consequently leaving a huge hole in the Sheff nightlife scene. Well, it’s been a bloody long wait but last month it was announced that the venue would be making a triumphant return.

The old Fez, which was located at Charter Row, was always a hit with partygoers and saw some of the biggest names in house music grace the decks, such as Patrick Topping, Green Velvet and many more.

They’ve announced their re-launch for the weekend of 20-21 July. With a new city centre location, Fez is sure to draw in the crowds and with fresh state-of-the-art sound and lighting systems, the big nights look set to return.

The launch party is already set to be a busy one and there’s been plenty of interest surrounding the Facebook event from both students and locals. Earlybird tickets are just a fiver for two raves, so no excuses not to head on down and shake yo thang.

Blue Planet II – Live In Concert Heads to Sheffield Following the monumental success of the BAFTA award-winning BBC One television series Blue Planet II, Sheffielders will soon have the chance to reimmerse themselves into one of the best nature series ever made – this time aided by a live performance from a full symphony orchestra.

The shows will project stunning visuals from the series on a 200 square metre 4K Ultra HD LED screen. This live adaptation designed for big stages will include the original immersive music score by Han Zimmer-led composer collective Bleeding Fingers Music, as the audience are taken on a journey from icy polar seas to pulsating coral reefs, from the luminous deep sea to enormous kelp forests.

The 13-date UK tour arrives at Sheffield’s FlyDSA Arena on 28 March 2019 and tickets are now available to purchase online at blueplanet2live.co.uk.

Thai street food bar to open in Kelham Island You may have heard by now that Kelham Kitchen & Wine Bar is expanding. The bar which specialises in artisan food and drink is opening up Graffiti, a Thai street food bar, in the space vacated by the Bhaji Shop.

Owner Ruth Atkinson told Exposed: “We wanted to bring diversity to Kelham and offer something different. We’d tried such good Thai food in Manchester and Leeds and thought we needed to bring that to Sheffield!”

Graffiti will host a separate menu to Kelham Wine Bar, serving Thai street food including steamed buns, katsu chicken, noodles and dim sum dumplings, but will share the same relaxed vibe. In terms of booze, Grafiti is keeping it local with Abbeydale Brewery supplying the beer in keeping with the theme of the Kelham Island area.

Graffiti at 2A-2B, Ball Street opens its doors to the public on 6 July. www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 15

Gypsy Rose Salon, 327 Abbeydale Road, S7 1FS. 0114 438 5827 gypsyrosebeautysalon@gmail.com Gypsy. Rose Beauty Salon

valhalla Sheffield Have you ever nurtured the need to lob a hand-axe at a piece of wood with a target on it?

Has your inner Viking ever thrown a strop at the disappointing lack of chopper-flinging antics in your life?

No worries, muckers, the gang at Valhalla might have just the thing for you...

Words: Joe ‘brain-biter’ Food

The humble wood-chopper is one of the oldest tools known to man. Its earliest forms can be traced back 1.6 million years to the Neolithic Area, where our Homo ergaster ancestors would use stone-built hand-axes for various practical tasks such as digging, splitting wood and chopping up scran. Naturally, it didn’t take long until they became popular weapons of choice for inter-clan scraps; but it wasn’t until the 5th century that the Germanic tribes – most notably the Franks – decided that lobbing them at each other could spice things up a bit on the battlefield. Carrying throwing-axes quickly became “a thing” for The Franks – uncomplicated, versatile and ideal for nailing a Goth or Roman fighter from distance.

The Vikings also loved an axe. Like, proper went potty for them. They’d have a wide variety of types used for both combat and domestic purposes, and today, if you’re feeling a bit of stress or just fancy toning up the lats a bit, you can make like Odin and unleash your inner Norseman at Valhalla Sheffield – the city’s first indoor axe-throwing venue. After a particularly demanding working day, Team Axeposed (that’s your boy, Will and Leo) decided to challenge Team Valhalla (that’s Andy, Simon and Kev) to a few rounds so we could escape the drudgery of the office and let off some serious steam.

“Right, the boring stuff first,” said Luke, who was looking after us for the day / making sure we left with all limbs intact. “No walking forwards while the axes are being thrown, maintain a firm grip on the bottom of the handle and let me know if the head becomes loose. Other than that, it’s basically like darts – but with axes.” He finished speaking, turned around and while showing us the correct technique – keep it straight, bring over the shoulder, release when arm is parallel to the ground and aim for one rotation – propelled

an axe into the wooden target board with a satisfying thud. He made it look pretty natural, with his Norse-like beard and tribal tattoos adding extra authenticity, but it took Team Axeposed a good few attempts to start hitting the target consistently and stop sending our hatchets cascading into the roof or protective cage of the throwing alley.

I’ll tell you what, though: when you did achieve that perfect rotation and resulting connection with the target board, it didn’t half feel good. For a couple of minutes I’d feel like I could give Eric Bloodaxe himself a fair scrap, until a poor followup throw would strip away any fleeting bravado and had your stung warrior here returning to the team corner with muttered apologies. The first round, which involved clocking up the highest points on the boards with a throw each, saw Team Valhalla scrape a narrow 9-10 victory – though Leo, son of Olaf, notably managed the first bull of the day. Next up, a game of ‘Protect the Royals’ saw us aiming to split various cards in exchange for points which, after what had to be a record-breaking round length due to some truly woeful efforts, saw Team Exposed level the scores after a fine lob from our Will.

Finally, the tie-breaker would be a simple game of axe-darts. Starting with a specific number, each team member would work their way down to zero without going bust (we frequently did just that). After plenty of huffing, puffing and under breath Nordic curses (“May you choke on Odin’s missing eye!”), Kev checked out in impressive style to finally put us to the sword, erm, axe. Balls.

Results Exposed: 31 Challengers: 42 Draws: 3 www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 17

18 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

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Sheffield is the perfect place for us – www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 19

PHOTOS: BEN FREWIN. BTF PHOTOGRAPGHY. INSTAGRAM: BTF.PHOTOGRAPHY

How did it all start?

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20 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

Bill Stephenson Roger Mayne Archive

Bill Stephenson

back on the block

Another significant milestone in the ongoing redvelopment at Park Hill , S1 Artspace will mark the opening of its new gallery with an exhibition providing an indepth look at the past, present and future of the historic estate.

Roger Mayne Archive

Bill Stephenson

After relocating to larger premises based in a renovated garage block, the artist-led organisation and project space will open its doors this month with an exhibition documenting the lives of residents living on the estate and nearby Hyde Park complex from the early-60s through to the late-80s.

Love Among the Ruins: A Romance of the Near Future will feature a collection of archival photography and film from social documentarians Roger Mayne and Bill Stephenson, whose work focused on the first Park Hill community from 1961-65 and the final remaining residents of its sister building Hyde Park in 1988.

There will be rare documents and previously unseen material from Mayne and Stephenson’s 1988 ‘Streets in the Sky’ exhibition, which provided an insight into the strong sense of community felt throughout the area and the residents relationship with the architecture, while 1965 landmark BBC Park Hill documentary ‘The Fortress’ will also be shown.

Love Among the Ruins will largely reflect on the ideals etched into the estates’ distinctive brutalist architecture, the deterioration suffered as the decades passed by, changing attitudes towards social housing, and the next phases in the evolution of an often controversial building so deeply embedded in Sheffield culture.

The exhibition will open 20 July – 15 September. For further information or any enquiries, please contact laura@s1artspace.org / +44 (0)114 275 6131 / s1artspace.org www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 21

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Aaron Jackson pays tribute to Brendan Ingle, the legendary boxing trainer whose Wincobank gym produced six world champions and provided vital sanctuary for countless other young men in Sheffield.

To some, especially those who never saw what deindustrialisation, deskilling and a coordinated policy of deliberate Governmental neglect did to the north’s inner cities, suggesting that Brendan Ingle should be anointed a patron saint of Sheffield is akin to heresy. The idea that learning to fight can teach self-discipline and self-reliance while giving purpose and hope is one some people simply cannot understand.

He should be, though. Over five decades at the world-famous Wincobank Gym where kids and champions train together, Brendan Ingle did more for Sheffield’s young men singlehandedly than any amount of political initiatives.

Up at 4am for an eight-mile run before a twelvehour shift as a blacksmith striker, Brendan Ingle knew about hard work. He saw the tensions rising as the factories started closing and communities started to fracture and snarl at each other. Asked by a local vicar to get involved in community work to help the local lads blow off steam, boxing was what he knew so boxing was what Ingle offered at St. Thomas’s Church Hall. This wasn’t strapping the mauleys on and letting kids batter each other. This wasn’t cauliflower ears and broken noses. Brendan Ingle taught the sweet science: hit and don’t get hit. You could tell a Wincobank boxer. They had a

certain swagger. They were slick, confident, cocksure and elusive. Think of Naz before he got as wide as he is tall. Think of Errol Graham, unbeaten as a middleweight for ten years and avoided by everyone in his division. Think more recently of Junior Witter and Kell Brook. Think matadors with gloves, hands by their sides, swaying, slipping, sliding, humiliating seasoned pros with a wink and a grin. All of that started with Brendan Ingle’s lines on the floor at St. Thomas’s.

Boxers know that in life, as in the ring, you win and lose. That’s why learning to box is good for anyone. It teaches you to take the rough with the smooth. It teaches you to be comfortable in your own skin and with who you are. It teaches you that if you work hard, and do your best, no matter what the outcome, you’ll always know that you did everything you could. In a world of lazy entitlement and quick fixes, these are valuable lessons. In a Sheffield ripped apart as a matter of policy, this wisdom was priceless.

And it was dispensed with relentless twinkling positivity by St. Brendan, who told Naz ‘it’s no

Boxers know that in life, as in the ring, you win and lose. That’s why learning to box is good for anyone. It teaches you to take the rough with the smooth. good being a good Muslim on a Friday if you’re a bastard the rest of the week – just as it’s no good being a good Christian on a Sunday if you’re a bastard the rest of the week too.’

With hard work comes belief. With belief comes courage. With courage comes self-reliance. Virtues to live by. Tools to face the world with.

Brendan Ingle’s legacy will live on, carried by his sons Dominic and John, both respected trainers in their own right. The Wincobank gym is worldfamous, a production line of champions. But the values that made it world-famous weren’t pugilistic.

They were the basic ones of civility, courtesy, and humility. Even at the end of his days, Ingle would still pick up the litter in the local churchyard. Why? he was once asked.

‘I live here,’ he replied. ‘Why wouldn’t I?’ His life is a tribute to what you can achieve if you concentrate on what actually matters. www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 23

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Taking a pause to dab away a nostalgic tear or two, Mark Perkins reflects on the highlights from the 21st instalment of Sheffield’s flagship film festival.

Just as I sat down to write my thoughts on this year’s Doc/Fest, I read this on Twitter…. “missing #sheffield (heart symbol) where everybody calls you sweetheart, and anything you need is a breezy walk away (smiley face) we’ll definitely be back” … and it reflects what I heard time and time again in the last week – people just love coming to Sheffield for our very own international film festival. This year was the 25th incarnation of Doc/Fest; now regarded as one of the best film events in the world. Almost all the venues are within the centre of the city, which is unique among film festivals, and gives the delegates a feeling of being at an actual festival, and just as importantly, lets them fall in love with the Steel City itself.

Documentaries are now mainstream entertainment. Everyone has a story to tell, whether it be profound and moving, or small and personal. The magic and the appeal of these films lies in the variety of ways that skilled filmmakers present them to the audience.

I’ve learned over the years that the slightest of stories can be made totally unforgettable in skilled hands. Some stories are so big that it’s not easy for one person’s film to tell the whole truth. ‘Grenfell’, the closing film of the week, was an exhausting, horrifying and incredibly upsetting experience. The fire is now beginning to be seen as a tragedy which was so easy to predict, but one where the voices of protest were ignored for years. Watching the film is one thing, but what Doc/Fest often offers in addition is a Q&A with the makers and sometimes even the protagonists of the films.

That was the case here, and the words and conversations which took place after the film were even more upsetting and emotional than the film itself.

The Alternate Reality strand of Doc/Fest has expanded in recent years, recognising that there are now more ways than projected film to tell a story. Put on a VR headset and you can be immersed in the story, even be part of it, and that’s what went on this year in the iconic Trafalgar Warehouse. The place itself has stories to tell, and it was the perfect place to discover alternate worlds. Between films I called in there several times, and most memorably sat down with a virtual David Attenborough. He handed me a selection of precious museum exhibits, which I was able to pick up and examine, or so it appeared. The technology behind this is 26 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

becoming more sophisticated every year, and it’s a credit to the vision of the Doc/Fest team that they are highlighting this form of storytelling. And it was all free, open to anyone to go in and have a look.

The film ‘Laila at the Bridge’ should come with a warning about the effect it will have on anyone who sees it. It tells the story of Laila Haidari, and her fight to rescue heroin addicts, many of whom have nowhere to go, apart from under a bridge in Kabul. She herself survived being a child bride, and now, freed from this form of slavery she works tirelessly, fighting against corruption, drugdealers and other sinister forces, to help people that the rest of the city has abandoned. One scene, where a mother gives her infant child heroin to calm it down, made the entire audience gasp and was extremely difficult to watch. It’s a scene the director said at the Q&A afterwards just happened in front of her, and she had to record it. It’s also a scene which I imagine you will never see if it is ever shown on TV, but I’d still encourage you to see this film if you really want to understand the problems drug cause. Truly shocking, but then again – that’s what Doc/Fest is all about.

Gaika is a Warp Records artist. That alone will inform most people about what they can expect to hear while watching a film to which he added a soundtrack. I’d booked my ticket ages ago and had overlooked the fact that he was adding music to the film ‘Black Mother’, which I’d already seen a few days previously. My failure to read the programme was actually a bit of serendipity, as I was possibly one of only a few people to see both versions, and so was ideally placed to see if his soundtrack added to the film or not. The result was even more captivating than before. The film itself is a tapestry of sounds and images, sometimes related, sometimes less so, which combine to create

an impression of this part of the Caribbean which is totally beguiling. The ambient dub of Gaika’s music was never less than hypnotic and seemed took the images to another level.

The festival actually started for me just prior to the opening film, as I had landed myself a part in the remake of ‘Threads’; the seminal post nuclear apocalypse TV drama, filmed in Sheffield during the mid-eighties. The director of the remake, Richard DiDomenici, has a growing reputation for no-budget remakes of scenes from classic films, all set in the original locations. He picked three iconic scenes, and then asked us to drink at the Notty in Broomhill, protest on the steps of the City Hall and run around The Moor in a panic as a mushroom cloud appeared over Sheffield.

Richard was forced to use a close-up of a real mushroom in his version. As an added bonus, the production crew had managed to find three people who featured in the original.

The parents, who previously clutched their 18-month old baby and ran past Woolies on The Moor, tried to recreate the scene. As their daughter is somewhat older now, they made a valiant attempt, which made an amusing story when a hastily edited film was shown to an audience in The Leadmill on the Saturday night. Search online for ‘Threads:Redux’ if you want to watch it.

So, Doc/Fest, you came, caught me up in your web of stories and six days later left me exhausted but happy to have been there for the ride. There’s so much I haven’t even mentioned which was part of this incredible six-day festival. Do yourself a favour if you missed out this year – make sure you see at least one thing next year. Some of the events are free, and all of them are interesting. www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 27

u n e M w e N r Check out ou

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West One Plaza, Sheffield, S1 4JB

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It’s impossible not to feel the love when Steve Edwards is in the room.

Whether you’re listening to the artist’s deep, soulful vocals on some of the biggest house tracks of the 21st century or he’s greeting you at a Nether Edge café with a keen handshake and embrace, the warmth and positivity that emanates from the man is alluringly infectious. I’d assume, realistically, that he does have bad days, but on the number of occasions I’ve dealt with him over the years, be it through previous projects such as Steve ‘Papa’ Edwards and The Big Strong Love or simply crossing paths at a local studio, he’s never been anything short of a true gentleman: polite, accommodating with his time and refreshingly honest. It’s worth mentioning this because sometimes, when faced with the oft-grunted, monosyllabic replies of bands and artists clinging onto a toocool-for-school image (or maybe just entirely uninspired by the interviewer at hand), music journalism can feel depressingly like a “proper job”. But it’s the conversations with interesting characters like Steve which you go into knowing that you’re likely to leave with a new perspective, some fresh knowledge, or at least having had a bloody good chinwag.

He’s in good company today, too, being flanked by writer and saxophonist Michael Somerset Ward, a former member of Sheffield post-punk outfit Clock DVA and frequent collaborator with the likes of Crooked Man, Richard Hawley and I Monster, whose back-catalogue of writing credits include worldwide hits for Alison Moyet and Take That. Sitting opposite Mick is Philippe Clegg, a talented young bassist and producer who Steve has christened “Ninja” – he doesn’t really explain why – who I’m told plays a pivotal role in the musical journey the trio recently embarked on.

Introductions over, now to what brings us here, the journey alluded to. I’m sat with three members of Universal Tree, a project which originally started as a studio-based group back in 2016 but what is now quickly www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 31

becoming something of a live force to be reckoned with. “Imagine a modern-day Sly & The Family Stone,” says Steve. “There’s a soulful 70s familiarity about the sound, but with contemporary flows and beats. In its infancy, it was more about ‘good times’ music; however, it soon transformed into a lyrically harder-edged approach.”

A meeting between Steve, Mick and third co-founder Richard Barratt [DJ Parrot, Sweet Exorcist, Crooked Man] at Bragazzis cafe, Abbeydale Road, set the scene for a conversation about creating soul-based songs with a focus on beats, rhythms and lyrics.

Universal Tree was born, originally with the view of just making an album, but upon seeing how well the formula worked, Steve was keen on bringing in friends and taking the band on the road.

“It had to be friends, no session players allowed.

I also wanted to bring my love of hip-hop into the live show, which really just increases the excitement and energy of it all. It was about getting the right blend of the people who represent our ethos – ‘anti-hate, pro-love for the people’ – and with Phil, Joe, Matic Mouth, Nic, Rachel, Romi and Mr Somerset I think we’ve done just that.”

Delving behind the lyrics on their upcoming album, Rooted & Booted, songs often packaged with joyous, swelling rhythms and mellow beats are often layered with darker, more pertinent themes. The easy-flowing ‘Clean Up’ deals with the perils of drug addiction and consequent damage done to the soul; ‘How Did We Get to This?’ is an unabashed two fingers to the state of things: war, corruption, fascism, protectionism, greed – the job lot; whereas ‘Promise of the Sun’ tells the story of a refugee escaping ISIS, coming to the UK and finding further hardship in our post-Brexit nation.

It’s funny how fate so regularly intervenes in music and causes new creative paths to be forged. Mick, the man behind the lyrics, tells of how a personal experience caused him to take stock and start bringing bigger topics into the fold. “It all started off with a dancey/retro feel, but it was through spending time in hospital that I became inspired to talk about more important issues: Trump, the refugee crisis, war, the state of the world today. It’s a protest album – it’s a plea for a better day.”

With such a vast wealth of musical experience behind the likes of Mick and Steve, it suffices to say they both have the ability to recognise a solid, well-structured body of music when they hear one. And when Mick speaks about Rooted & Booted as a “world-class record”, it doesn’t seem be a throwaway comment: it’s said with a genuine hint of excitement. The signs so far are looking positive, with the mixture of established nous alongside raw, youthful talent creating an exciting concoction which has seen a series of rousing live shows resulting in flash mobs, encores and a hefty dose of feel-good vibes.

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It’s this blissful interconnectivity with live audiences which is touted as the band’s key pièce de résistance, and something that Sheffield audiences have arguably been starved of. As most people know, it’s a city seldom short of indie moshpits, but a case could be made for a deficit in diverse comings together celebrating a range of genres and preaching a one love message. “We’re bringing people in,” Steve claims. “We don’t want people to ever feel like we’re simply playing to them, as they’re all just as much a part of it as we are. That’s the whole idea behind the name: a Universal Tree for everyone to come and gather under.”

And when it comes to musical gatherings, they don’t tend to come much bigger for Sheffield than at the Tramlines main stage, where the band will be playing on the Sunday and, in Steve’s words, “Spreading the love to thousands”. While this article is being written they’re gearing up for a Picture House Social gig featuring Sheffield hip-hop artists Otis Mensah and Franz Von, while the album is complete with a 2018 release date and you’ll soon have an exclusive live session video on its way from Exposed to enjoy.

With a busy few months ahead, there’s a

palatable sense of enthusiasm amongst the trio about the opportunity of bringing something truly fresh to the Steel City’s music scene, with Mick taking the opportunity to provide some well-timed parting words.

“Even though it’s a bit different, this is actually as Sheffield as it gets. It’s rebellious, innovative and inclusive. There’s a message here and we’d really like people to get onboard with it.”

Exposed In Session

An exclusive online gig from some of the city’s finest musical exports, filmed live every month Watch the session online at: www.exposedmagazine.co.uk In session produced by: Joseph Food @JosephFood Filmed & directed by: Tristan Ayling – www. rentonproductions.co.uk Recorded & mixed by: Paul ‘Tufty’ Tuffs

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When we started Tramlines way back in 2009, nobody thought we would get this far. We had no idea that this project would be so well supported and so immediately successful and it’s a fantastic honour to celebrate the tenth edition of the festival with our biggest event to date.

Our aim has always been to put Sheffield on a pedestal, to bring people in from afar and provide a platform with which to celebrate the Sheffield music scene and I think we’ve achieved this year on year. We have faced challenges and many changes along the way but we’ve come through it all intact and stronger for it.

I have hundreds of personal highlights from past events, but it’s seeing thousands of people dancing and enjoying themselves to the acts we’ve worked hard to book that always brings a smile to my face. I can’t wait to do this again in Hillsborough Park for Tramlines 2018.

Big thanks to the people of Sheffield who participate in the festival in many different ways; we couldn’t have done it without you.

Sarah Nulty, festival director

Tramlines 2018: What’s New? As well as the big relocation to Hillsborough Park, with four stages and a fresh capacity of 40,000, here’s a list of some other fresh announcements for this year.

Comedy Stage Live comedy will be on offer for the first time in the festival’s history.

The line-up includes headliner Henning Wehn, Sheffield’s own fictional singer-songwriter John Shuttleworth, “Britain’s only goth, lesbian, transsexual comedian” Bethany Black, Canadian and Mock the Week star Tom Stade, and Edinburgh Comedy Award winner Tom Wrigglesworth.

The Library Stage Focusing on emerging talent, this new stage has a stellar line-up including Rae Morris, Black Honey and Flamingods.

Expansion of Into the Trees This sheltered area will be offering family entertainment throughout the day, including a pop-up cinema, circus skills and crafts. By night there’ll be an exciting bill of DJs to keep the party going.

The Leadmill Stage The legendary local venue will be getting its own stage this year, with local ledge Jon McClure curating Sunday’s line-up.

Apply to Play A new scheme announced this year gave emerging artists the chance to apply to play the festival. The chosen acts were Imi, Kadija Kamara, Little Grace, Polo, Saint Petersburg, The Golden Age of TV and Universal Tree. Look out for them across the four stages.

Local traders There’ll be a stronger emphasis on showcasing local traders at the festival this year. Organisers have hand-picked a variety of quality food and ale stalls (keep an eye out for the official Tramlines brew) to satisfy every possible craving going.

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Do you remember the first time?

2009

People from all over the UK flock to Sheffield city centre for the first Tramlines. Some huge Sheffield artists lent their support to the festival including Arctic Monkeys’ Matt Helders, who flew in from recording in the States to help with the launch. Artists are announced for the first Tramlines instalment, including Reverend and the Makers, Toddla T, Just Jack, Pixie Lott, Example and Little Boots. The XX perform at The Harley a month before their self-titled LP drops to universal acclaim. Figures reveal 35,000 people attend the festival over the weekend.

2010

Tramlines announce it will be expanding the festival to include new venues, including Sheffield University’s Octagon Centre, Tudor Square, The Leadmill, O2 Academy Sheffield and Winter Gardens. Acts are announced for the second instalment of Tramlines, including Echo and the Bunnymen, Mystery Jets, Simian Mobile Disco DJ set, Professor Green, Tinchy Stryder, The Hoosiers, Toddla T and Annie Mac. In total, 250 artists appear across the event’s many stages. The Buskers Bus is launched, featuring acoustic sets from breaking artists while transporting festivalgoers from one venue to another. The attendance of the festival almost doubles with 65,000 people attending.

2011

The hugely popular Folk Forest area is launched. Acts announced for the third edition of Tramlines include Ash, Olly Murs, Pixie Lott, The Futureheads, and Heaven 17. Under The Stars join the Tramlines party, organising a large event for adults with learning difficulties. The festival wins ‘Best Local Event’ at the Exposed Awards and ‘Best Metropolitan Festival’ at the UK Festival Awards.

2012

Alt-J, already on course for global stardom, play for free in The Bowery. The likes of Roots Manuva, We Are Scientists, Ms Dynamite, Julio Bashmore, and Spector all play the festival. 95,000 people attend over the weekend. The Leadmill host ‘Tramlines People’s Choice’, where eight bands compete for an opening slot on the Tramlines main stage. Blue Lip Feel win.

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2013

Tramlines announce they plan to get over 700 acts for 2013’s festival. Catfish and the Bottlemen bring down the house (and a disco ball) at a packed Soyo. The Selecter hit the main stage and lead the crowd into a mass skank.

2014

Hip-hop royalty Public Enemy join fellow headliners Katy B, The Cribs and Annie Mac on the main stage. Sister Sledge lead the crowd in a disco singalong a sunny Saturday evening. Tramlines’ first wedding proposal takes place! She says yes.

2015

Tramlines announce that the main stage will move to the much larger Ponderosa Park. Wu-Tang Clan, Basement Jaxx, The Charlatans, Buzzcocks and Sugarhill Gang are announced as main acts. The Exposed In Session Stage, which showcased the best of local talent, is announced on Devonshire Green.

2016

Dizzee Rascal tops a diverse line-up including Kelis, Catfish and the Bottlemen and Jurassic 5. Funk legend George Clinton brings seamless party grooves to the main stage. Spanish rockers Hinds play with borrowed instruments after having their gear stolen a few days before the show.

2017

The official festival becomes an exclusively outdoor event, with the Devonshire Green stage making a return. The Libertines, Metronomy and All Saints are announced as festival headliners. A petition is launched to make the Monday after Tramlines a bank holiday. It fails.

2018

Organisers plan a major celebration of the festival’s 10th year. Tramlines changes main location to Hillsborough Park, moving it out of the city centre for the first time. Headliners announced include Stereophonics, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds and Craig David’s TS5.

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It’s been more than 20 years since Stereophonics burst onto the British soundscape with Word Gets Around, a record as energetic as it is measured, featuring classic songs like ‘More Life in a Tramp’s Vest’ and ‘A Thousand Trees’.

It’s in tracks such as ‘Traffic’, however, that the band showcased their ability to craft vivid vignettes out of the highs and lows of the quotidian and build them into anthemic tracks that today remain full of the gusto that so obviously drives the group. It is with such astute observation and canny writing skills that Stereophonics began, and continue, to garner respect among new fans while satisfying their loyal fanbase - all without going stale, two decades into their career.

Their latest album, Scream Above the Sounds, is expressive of a band who have found fresh artistic freedom by unlinking themselves from a thirdparty record label, instead opting to cultivate their classic sound under the auspices of their own management. The album, which completes a trilogy of consecutive records produced under such a strategy, definitely benefits from this decision - it is layered, inspired by various genres, and innovates upon their tried and tested ‘Phonics sound that millions have grown to recognise and love.

Do you have fond memories of that early part of your career?

Yes, it was really exciting! We’d been a band for nearly five years, and we were really adamant that we would make a success of it. It fell into place very quickly over a period of six months, the wheel’s started turning and before we knew it we were doing demos in the studio for various labels and next there was an album. It just took off from there really!

So you were really confident of the material you had?

Yeah, we weren’t playing the same game as everybody else. There were lots of Britpop bands around who we kept bumping into. But I think we had something a little different, a little bit more of an arty sound. We were listening to lots of American music as we were growing up, lots of Pearl Jam and things like that. Loads of stuff from our brother’s and sister’s record collections, which was a little bit of anything and everything; Beatles, Stones, rhythm and blues, soul music, whatever we thought sounded good. That’s where we got the confidence. But also, from playing pubs and clubs in Wales, who really would kick you out after a few songs if they didn’t like what they heard!

I imagine those pubs were full of fairly straight-talking people. Do you still enjoy touring as much as you did?

If anything, we’re enjoying it more now! We’ve got our experience; we’ve learnt to take it as it is. When you’re young, you’re vulnerable to the vices around you… I think we got lost in a lot of years of hedonism at the time, but now we’re having the time of our lives.

What do you think has been key to your repeated success and longevity within an industry that has changed so much since you started out? Bands seem to come and go at and alarming rate these days.

We’ve always tried to show a different side to the band with each album. If it sounds too much like something we’ve done before, or if it sounds too much like somebody else, we won’t use those songs. We’re highly critical of what we make. We make sure we get the best out of each other, but at the same time it’s about what pleases us rather than what pleases anybody else.

I’ve caught you at a few festivals over the years and I am, like many others, always impressed by your live performances. Do you take particular pride in your live sound?

Straight from the beginning of the band, we always wanted to perform the songs exactly how they sounded on the album, and we don’t tend to shy away from performing live - it’s the heart of the band. When we go out on the road we always want to do the best we can. There’s nothing better than having a great audience in front of you, and that’s what we’ve been feeding off in the last 10-15 years.

It’s now more than 20 years since Stereophonics released their seminal debut album Word Gets Around. Joseph Tryner talks to bassist, Richard Jones about the early days, keeping things fresh and the Sheff Music scene...

Talking of live highlights, what are some of your fondest memories or proudest moments?

In the early days we played with The Who, we did four or five Stones shows, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Bowie’s last tour around 2003. That was brilliant!

Meeting these people who have inspired you so much, and yet can be so down to earth, they can teach you so much, they’re great to watch and learn from. At the same time, we learn things from new bands as much as established ones, we like to have a look around at festivals. There’s so much camaraderie in live music and you can always learn something new.

I know that your recent work has been established on your own record label. What are the benefits to that for you? Also, your recent album is very varied in its sound. Is that a result of less restriction?

I think having your own label gives you freedom - you’re not constrained by release dates or contracts. The industry has changed so much though, and how people are releasing music is changing week by week. The next step for us is to think seriously whether we are going to release traditional albums, or doing what others are doing now by releasing a few songs every few months.

A lot of artists don’t release physical copies anymore; they don’t necessarily need a big record deal with all these technical platforms. You don’t really need distribution anymore.

Its ever-changing, but for us we like releases in the classical sense. Record labels have gotta’ change the way they deal with bands now.

Despite that freedom, it hasn’t slowed your band’s output down - there has been a ‘Phonics album nearly every two years since your debut - is that intentional or just how the muse falls?

I think it’s habitual really. When you’re not touring, you’re working on new things or just experimenting with new things. Before you know it, you find yourself back in the studio making a new album! Perhaps that might change over the course of the next two years…

So, next month you’re playing at Tramlines in Sheffield, after a less exotic stop in Milan. Do you have any fond memories of performing here?

We’ve always had a good craic in Sheffield! I think our fondest memory would be playing the Leadmill years ago. We invited a couple of kids up on stage, and all of a sudden the whole audience was up on the stage! That was probably around 1998. Sheffield is hard-working town, and hard workers usually play hard too, they certainly have a good time, so we always like playing places like that.

Sheffield has a lively and youthful music scene, with lots of pedigree to boot, what advice would you give to these up-and-coming groups?

I think the best advice is not to follow any fads, if you can find your own selves then stick to it, ‘cos trends come and go, and you can end up going away with scenes that fall out of fashion. You’ve got to forge your own path, and it’s important to stick with it.

Stereophonics headline the main stage at Tramlines on Saturday 21 July. Head over to Tramlines.org.uk for more information.

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rae morris The first record I ever bought

A Boyzone one. I can’t remember exactly which one it was. I got it at Woolworths in Blackpool town centre, walked out of the shop with it proudly in my hands, immediately dropped it and smashed the cover! I’m still devastated.

The first gig I ever went to

S Club 7 at what was the MEN Arena. I was ten-years-old.

The first song I ever performed live

I sang a duet of ‘Part of Your World’ from The Little Mermaid in a school assembly with my classmate Jess Harwood.

One song I wish I wrote

‘She’s Always a Woman’ by Billy Joel.

One song I wish was never made

‘Lady in Red’ by Chris De Burgh reminds me of all the grown-up parties I had to go along to with my Mum and Dad when I was a kid. It’s such a dreary, smarmy song and by the point it started playing adults would start smooching and dancing. I remember it making me squirm with embarrassment and I’d want to go home.

I first fell in love with music when

I used to dance around the living room with my mum to a Harry Connick Jr live concert VHS we had. She’d also sing So Long, Farewell from The Sound of Music to me when I was still sleeping in a cot. I swear I can remember trying to sing along with her but now that I think of it, I probably would have been too young.

A song I can’t get out of my head at the minute

The new Clean Bandit song is always in my head. It’s just the chopped up instrumental chorus bit, which is kind of annoying because it’s basically just a series of my own madeup noises going round and round.

A record which reminds me of a specific time and place

Feist’s The Reminder was one of the first albums I really loved and listened to on repeat. It was around the time I was leaving high school and going to sixth form college. I’d take the bus for an hour each direction every day and pretty much only listen to that. It was an emotionally significant time for me.

Music allows me to

Wake up every day with a feeling of excitement and wonder.

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Rae Morris will play the all-new Library Stage in Hillsborough Park at Tramlines

MUSIC – COMMUNITY – CHARITY Ticket On The Day Adult £20, Over 65 £15, Under 16 £5

Advanced Ticket (Available until 3rd August)

Adult £17.50, Over 65 £12, Under 16 £5

All Adult and over 65 tickets include one FREE ticket for child aged 8-15! Under 8‘s always free! www.dronfest.co.uk | info@dronfest.co.uk | 07770 584287

#Dronfest www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 41

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Stephen MacKay catches up with drum ‘n’ bass don Ed Keeley AKA Friction ahead of the post-Tramlines party at the O2 Academy.

We’re looking forward to catching you at one of the official Tramlines afterparties this month. What can we expect?

Thanks. I’m really excited to be back in Sheffield at the O2 for this!

Expect loads of music from my debut album, lots of other big tunes and plenty of energy. Sheffield is always such a great place to play and definitely one of my favourite cities in the UK. Your debut album is due for release in early September with first single ‘Dancing’ ft. JP Cooper released last month. Can you shed some light on why you wanted to produce an album and how you’ve found it?

I was always primarily a DJ and although I had made tracks like ‘Back To Your Roots Remix’, ‘Robocop’, ‘Overtime’, etc, over the years, I really wanted to take my production forward; to develop my engineering skills and work with more vocalists. And that’s how Connections came about.

It’s been quite a long journey but I’m very pleased with the results!

There’s plenty of collabs on there, with some new vocalists too. How do you decide who you want to work with? And how do you find them?

I’ve got a great team around me and sometimes I might find a vocalist and say, “Hey, can you link me up with this person?” Or they might come to me and ask, “Have you heard of this person? Do you want to do a session together?” I’m very lucky to be in that position to be honest.

Next year is going to be the 15th birthday of your label Shogun Audio – congrats! With over 130 releases it’s definitely up there as the most celebrated in the scene. Can you give us a bit of an insight into the journey you’ve been on personally and how it’s evolved?

I can’t believe how quickly 15 years has gone. I’ve got so much love for the label and the way it has evolved over the years has been amazing.

And now with Elevate Records sitting alongside us, we’re covering all angles of the drum ‘n’ bass scene!

So: a new album, legendary record label, plenty of DJ sets – what else have you got going on?

Just more music really. I made the decision about nine months ago to call time on my BBC Radio 1 show, which was a very tough call to make but I needed to have more time to focus on my studio time. I’ve got my bass house alias, FineArt, rolling nicely now too, alongside a very busy tour schedule – so a holiday is definitely needed!

I have to say seeing you play a two-hour, three-deck vinyl set at Tuesday Club in 2011 was, to this day, one of the best sets I’ve seen.

Can you talk us through how your sets have developed from the vinyl days and how you’ve used new technology to entertain the partygoers?

Thanks for that. I’ve had some wonderful times at the Tuesday Club over the years. I loved playing vinyl but it got to the point where I had to adjust things to the digital ages. I now play off four CDJs connected by USB, which gives me full range to keep my options open while playing a set.

And what about drum ‘n’ bass as a whole? It’s already diversified so much in that time! How do you see it changing in the next few years?

Drum ‘n’ bass is always moving and showcasing many different styles – that’s what makes it so special. You never know what’s around the corner though, so I’m interested to see!

Friction plays the Tramlines afterparty at 02 Academy with the TTC crew and other guests. Tickets available from academymusicgroup.com. www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 43

Weekend Warriors Sheff’s nightlife scene always fires up around Tramlines weekend, and this year it’s no different.

The official afterparties are looking killer, with headliners from all over the dance scene getting pulled in, and the Fringe at Tramlines is packed full of interesting bookings. Check out this conclusive guide to the weekend’s late-night sessions. Choose your destinations wisely, young Padawan…

OFFICIAL PARTIES THURSDAY 19TH Official Tramlines Pre-Party: Club Tropicana – The Leadmill

FRIDAY 20TH The Tuesday Club: Friction, Dimension, Hazard, Champion, DJ Q – O2 Academy The official Tramlines parties kick off with an outrageous line-up of drum’n’bass, grime and bassline’s biggest names down at Tuesday Club’s O2 shindig. Heading up the bill is Shogun Audio’s Friction, whose influence over both mainstream and underground drum’n’bass has been second to none for more than 15 years.

TNK: Denis Sulta, Brame & Hamo – The Night Kitchen One of house music’s most exciting newcomers, Denis Sulta, is famed for his no-nonsense sets which take no prisoners. The Scot is joined by exciting Irish duo Brame & Hamo, who’ve had support from Bicep, Laurent Garnier and Maceo Plex.

Official Tramlines After-Party: Gaga – The Leadmill SATURDAY 21ST Le Freak: Horse Meat Disco, Plump DJs – Foundry Saturday night sees the launch of new disco night Le Freak, and who better to kick things off than the UK’s kings of all things funky, HMD. A Tramlines favourite, their LGBT nights in London have been going for over 15 years and their rep is reaching a career high, with the release of their Essential Mix late last year cementing their crown.

Bluewave: Artful Dodger, DJ Luck & MC Neat, So Solid Crew – O2 Academy Official Tramlines After-Party: Sonic – The Leadmill 44 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

Official Tramlines Festival Afterparties 2018

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Tramlines festival through the years Sheffield Music City

Sheffield Music City

Matt Helders // Jon McClure // Toddla T present Tramlines

24th - 26th July // A free music festival across Sheffield

20 venues // four outdoor stage // featuring

Reverend & the Makers // The La’s Little Boots // Pixie Lott // Rolo Tomassi

Matt Helders // Toddla T // DJ Zinc // Kid Acne

Rodney P // The Chapman Family // Detroit Social Club The Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster // The Yeah Yous

Matt Helders, John McClure and Toddla T present

Tramlines

Free music festival

22 - 26 July

20 venues, 1 outdoor stage

Johnny Foreigner // Maps // Errors // The XX // Slow Club Skint and Demoralised // // Martelo // UMSD // Lords of Flatbush Man like Me // Skeletons & the Empty Pockets // Richard H Kirk

Banjo or Freakout // Oneman // Invasion // Chips for the Poor MPHO // Jamie Finlay // Kidkanevil // Navvy // Laura J Martin Futurecop! // I Monster // Dead World Leaders // Shake Aletti

Backhanded Compliments // Pygmy Globetrotters // Munch Munch The Crookes // Cafe Racer // Nat Johnson // Orange 38 // Kalenko // Elephant Keys

Reverend and the Makers // Little Boots // The La’s // The Rascals Toddla T // Errors // Martello // Jonny Foreigner // and loads more

www.sheffieldmusiccity.co.uk // www.tramlines.org

www.sheffieldmusiccity.co.uk // www.tramlines.org

Joe Carnall and the Book Club // obLONG // The Violet May // The Yell

Pistola Kicks // La Folie // King Capisce // Riddimtion // Dubcentral // R8 Records // Plus loads more

46 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

The best of the Sheffield scene representing on the official Tramlines stages this year.

Bang Bang Romeo - Main Stage, Saturday The Donny trio have been making waves for a good few years now, and with the last year being one to remember for the band after signing a global record deal, it’s safe to say things are looking promising for soul rock three-piece. Lead singer Anastasia Walker has the stage presence and vocal talents to command the biggest of arenas.

SHEAFS - Leadmill Stage, sunday An energetic five-piece released debut single Punchline in 2015, which garnered some favourable reviews - one in particular from this very magazine - “An entertaining throwback to the gritty, chaotic guitar rock of the mid2000s” - and three years later the band is set to wreak havoc on the UK festival scene with a sound that’s bigger and better than ever.

Everly Pregnant Brothers – Main Stage, Saturday 5

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This Sheffield super-group, which includes local legends like Pete McKee and Big Shaun, is synonymous with Tramlines. They’ve graduated from the bog roof at Fat Cat to the Main Stage at Hillsborough Park. Expect classics like ‘No Oven No Pie’, ‘Chip Pan’ and ‘Rovrum’.

Trust us, it’s a reyt laugh.

Wulfman Fury – Leadmill Stage, Saturday

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A self-dubbed garage rock band, Wulfman Fury are fairly new to the Sheffield scene but they’ve made quite an impression since their formation in 2017 with slick and well-produced tracks like ‘Getaway’ and ‘Nightsweats’. Check out our Exposed session with ‘em ere: tinyurl.com/yb8wp6fz

High Hazels – Leadmill Stage, Sunday Named after a Sheffield park, High Hazels are a shoegazy guitar pop band which would go down an absolute treat on a Sunday afternoon. For fans of Elbow, Fleet Foxes and Radiohead, expect sumptuous dream pop, leafy melodies and some arm swaying.

The Seamonsters – T’Other Stage, Sunday

Credits 1: We are Scientists 2: Dizzee Rascal // Simon Butler 3: Tramline crowd 4: Basement Jaxx // Simon Butler 5: Pixie Lott // Robin Byles 6: The Libertines // John Heyes 7: No // Dan Sumption 8: Drenge // Dan Sumption 9: Primal Scream // John Heyes 10: Ms Dynamite

For fans of Pulp, Black Honey and Alvvays, this indie band’s forte is dreamy dancefloor fillers. Self-described as an indie glitter band, the six-piece are inspired by 80s pop and a care-free attitude which translates into their often fun and breezy tunes. www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 47

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BeerCentralLtd @beercentralltd 48 www.exposedmagazine.co.uk |

A SPECIAL EDITION BOTTLE OF HENDERSON’S RELISH IS ON SALE CELEBRATING 10 YEARS OF TRAMLINES AND RAISING MONEY FOR A SHEFFIELD FOODBANK

The limited bottle of Henderson’s will be available in independent retailers and on the official website (www.hendersonsrelish.com) from Monday 2nd July. All profits will be donated to the Sheffield S6 Foodbank.

The local charity, based at St Thomas’ Church on Gilpin Street, provides emergency food and support to referred people in crisis. It serves more than 5,000 and uses 70 tonnes of food every year across four locations in Sheffield. Part of a city and nationwide network of foodbanks, supported by The Trussell Trust, it works to combat poverty and hunger.

Henry Henderson blended the first batch of his famous Relish in 1885. 130 years later it’s still made in Sheffield to a secret recipe - a blend including tamarinds, cayenne peppers, vinegar, garlic and cloves. Gerrit splashed on pies, stews, fish and chips for a fuller, richer flavour.

Facebook: HendersonsRelishSheffield // Twitter: @HendoRelish // Instagram: @ hendersonsrelish

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To honour the tenth edition of Tramlines Festival we have teamed up with the organisers to celebrate the best way we know‌by making beer! This one is light and easy drinking but still stacked full of hops. It’s also Vegan so will be naturally hazy! Available in cask, keg and can from all your favourite watering holes and bottle shops

Now available to buy online

Abbeydalebrewery.co.uk Our full range of cans are now available online along with all of our amazing merchandise www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 51

While the official bash will be taking place in Hillsborough Park, over in the city centre there’s a jam-packed line up of tantalising events to keep yer entertained all weekend.

Organised by Sheffield City Council and Sheffield BID, The Fringe at Tramlines will bring live music, theatre and film screenings to the city during the weekend.

Devonshire Green will be taken over by The Fringe Stage, which will feature a Saturday line-up curated

by Sheffield’s Papa Al, whilst Sunday will see Live Core Events bring an array of young and upcoming talent.

Papa Al said: “After nine great years in the Peace Gardens we’ve moved up to the dizzy heights of Devonshire Green. My Saturday programme will feature a mostly Sheffield based line-up with a distinctly global flavour. Performing on the day will be rappers, dancers and some fantastic bands. There’s so much exciting music being created

in Sheffield and it’s not just indie bands, I can’t wait to see the stage in full effect in July.”

Besides The Fringe Stage, bars and music venues across the city have signed up to be part of The Fringe at Tramlines, bringing the best in local and up-and-coming live sounds to festival-goers for free.

Diane Jarvis, Sheffield BID manager, said: “The Fringe at Tramlines is showcasing Sheffield musicians and giving local, upcoming acts a platform to reach new audiences.

With line-ups featuring bands which take inspiration from around the world, The Fringe is a celebration of Sheffield as a diverse, welcoming and vibrant city.”

Before you get to any venues, Sheff ’s best buskers will line the

route from the train station, offering a sweet soundtrack on your journey to the heart of the city.

The Fringe at Tramlines has stepped up to ensure the city centre will remain as lively as ever over the weekend. The entire city will be pulsating with an assortment of live music, showcasing Sheffield’s varied and exciting music scene in all its glory.

It’s not just music

With an aim to provide something for everyone this year, beyond its live music offerings there will be a variety of entertainment filling each corner of the city over the weekend.

If you have young’uns to entertain, head over to the Peace Gardens for a weekend full of popular family-

friendly films. Grease, Moana and Hairspray form part of a crowdpleasing schedule, all being shown on the big screen.

Between each film, the Peace Gardens will be transformed into an open-air street theatre, including a street performance of The Boulders – a fusion of dance, parkour and bouldering presented

by Professor Vanessa Toulmin from the University of Sheffield.

Even the trip between venues will no doubt involve countless stops along the way, with popular city centre social areas such as Devonshire Street and Barker’s Pool set to be packed as some of the country’s top circus and street performers come along to join the party and draw in the crowds.

The Fringe at Tramlines programme is OUT NOW and details pretty much every event over the weekend... but in the meantime, here are a few of our faves!

Self Esteem @ Picture House Social, Friday 23:30 Rebecca Lucy Taylor AKA Self Esteem is one half of Slow Club flying solo. She’s curated a line-up of some of the country’s most exciting alternative artists, and she’ll be finishing the night off with a powerful synth-pop

show.

Jungle Lion @ Devonshire Green, Saturday 20:30 These Sheffield Ska giants will be bringing some skanking mania to The Fringe at Tramlines. Boasting six horns and five vocals, you’re guaranteed to be dancing through their entire set.

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Big Shaun Presents The Women of 7 Hills @ Fat Cat, Saturday from 13:00 After a sold-out show on International Women’s Day, this allday event will feature a selection of Sheffieldbased female artists, in aid of the Eilish’s

Cancer Treatment Fund.

Pet Deaths @ Picture House Social, Saturday 22:00 Featuring an ex-member of much-loved Sheffield group Hey Sholay, This London duo’s spellbinding celestial folk makes for an atmospheric and

gripping live show.

Heads Off @ Shakespeares, Saturday 23:10 If you fancy having your head blown off, catch Heads Off taking over Shakespeares on Saturday. With menacing bass riffs and catchy political punk tunes, their energetic live shows

are not to be missed.

Before Breakfast @ Great Gatsby, Sunday 22:30 This local indie-pop quartet combines ethereal harmonies and poignant, yearning narratives.

Their Sunday evening slot will be the perfect soothing end to the weekend.

THURSDAY 19TH

La Rumba: Groove Assassin – The Harley After a killer year of bookings with Romare, Adesse Versions and Krywald & Farrer, La Rumba return to the Harley with another huge name, this time in the shape of Defected and Ministry of Sound star Groove Assassin, whose residency at Cafe Del Mar has seen him play alongside the biggest names in house music.

Common Ground – Theatre Deli Community-based charity night Common Ground started in March this year. With no set times and all local DJs, the nights are a mesh of eclectic yet inclusive sounds, and have a really positive atmosphere, thanks to the fact that both the door money and bar profits go to charity. Expect everything from world music to jungle.

The Hidden Junction – Plot 22 FRIDAY 20TH

PPG: DJ Bone, Resom – The Harley Pretty Pretty Good’s party with Resom on the Sunday night of Tramlines last year is the stuff of legend, as was their third birthday with Bone. They bring both back for a techno double-header with two of Detroit and Berlin’s finest vinyl aficionados.

Fez Re-opening Party – Fez Club Remember Fez Club? Well, it’s back… Your favourite after-hours techhouse establishment is returning, following the closing of their Charter Square premises above Replica back in 2015 - and what a weekend for it!

They’re staying tight-lipped about the line-up, but we’re sure the residents will be back and the reunion energy will be through the roof.

Displace presents Virus Recordings Takeover: Ed Rush & Optical, Optiv & BTK – Hope Works Sheffield All Stars Weekender – Southbank Warehouse The Hempolics, Solar Love Society Yellow Arch Studios Moomin – Bungalows & Bears Applebum – Queens Social Club The Wub Club – Plot 22 Trubble Comes Home – The Audacious Art Experiment SATURDAY 21ST

Toddla T‘s Steezey Wonderland – Drop Dead TNK’s Saturday night sees Sheffield legend Toddla bring back his new night which he’s taken to London and Ibiza – the last one in here saw Coco, Roska and DJ Q bring the party, so expect big names at this one!

Muzik: L&F Projekt – Code Warehouse Muzik residents L&F Projekt have had a huge year, with the release of their debut track ‘Keep Dancin’ rising up the Beatport tech-house charts to #24. This Tramlines they hit Code Warehouse for a mammoth 8-hour ‘Open to Close’ set, expect quite a few your favourite Muzik anthems!

Octa Octa (Live) – Hope Works Lo Shea brings New York-based Octa Octa’s famed live set to Hope Works, alongside a host of local talent. With sets at Robert Johnson, Berghain and Sonar Festival in 2017, as well as the acclaimed Where Are We Going? album, she’s established herself as one of the most interesting acts in house music.

Roots: Deep Medi (TBA) – The Harley Jamlines: David Rodigan, Stylo G, Tippa Irie – Area TNK x Tekkers x Displace: Safety in Numbers, Andy H, Special Guest, much more – The Night Kitchen NLR’s Tramlines Free Party – BAL Fashions Mr. Bongo, Ishmael Ensemble, The Soul Professor – Yellow Arch Studios O’Flynn – Bungalows & Bears Trojan Explosion: Solar Love Society (Live) – O2 Academy Fez Re-opening Party – Fez Club Sheffield All Stars Weekender – Southbank Warehouse Plot 22 Presents – Plot 22 Trubble Comes Home – The Audacious Art Experiment SoulJam – Queens Social Club The Charged Garden Party – Dam House SUNDAY 22nd

PPG: DJ Python/DJ Wey, Daisy Moon – The Harley Don’t Flop: Retaliation – Yellow Arch Studios Doomlines – Plot 22 www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 53

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Photo: Georgina Martin/Instagram @georgina__martin

Shining a light on Sheffield’s thriving underground music scene with artists Otis Mensah and Matic Mouth.

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Photo: Lewis Evens

Otis Mensah

As a teenager growing up in Sheffield, it was natural that I dabbled in the art of writing bars and participating in the British music culture of grime in any way that I could. This was the case for most of my friends, as we sought out a creative outlet. From writing 16s on the back of schoolbooks to clashes in the schoolyard, at 13-years-old me and my friends were most certainly not listening to indie bands but being enthralled by the words of Kano, Ghetts & Boy Better Know.

This art gave us a voice and, for me, a sense of belonging that eventually ran its course. At around the age of 16, I had made a personal observation that participating in this music came with a certain level of pretence, feeling like I had to measure up to something I simply wasn’t. Not to be dramatic, but I felt I was experiencing an identity crisis by realising I couldn’t actually relate to the overarching feeling I thought embodied my favourite music.

Although coming to appreciate and respect grime and everything it means for UK music, youth culture and now popular culture, at the time I felt a certain sense of bitterness towards music in this country; I felt there was no representation of the art I wanted to speak for me. Being a child of the internet generation, I began to discover worlds of music for myself. I soon found home and confidence in atypical artists like Kid Cudi, Tyler the Creator and Childish Gambino who breathed out a certain counterculture. I felt their music encapsulated my state of existence: being vulnerable, honest and open about not belonging, loneliness, and in doing so not fitting the mould of ‘masculinity’. However, what I had found was something foreign, and in recent years, as my genre tastes expanded, I began to excite myself with the music from fellow experimental hip-hop artists, soul and jazz musicians who shelter under the same cultural umbrella as British artists appealing to bubbling underground music scenes in the UK. Sheffield has always been renowned for its rich musical heritage and culture; from bands like Pulp to Arctic Monkeys and so much more – but what about artists participating in and inspired by black music culture? I’ve witnessed profound artists left out of the conversation by wider mainstream blogs and publications, and ever since being what I thought it meant to be a grime emcee as a teen I’ve wondered why. The term ‘urban’ gets thrown around a lot among industry conversation but I feel more often than not it’s misused and lazily bunches together grime, hip-hop, soul and jazz-infused acts to share one glimmer of the limelight. I believe every artist deserves respect and recognition within their own genre, sub-genre, culture and context. It’s time we shed light on the artists inspired by and representing black music and culture who are, quite literally, right up your street.

The term ‘urban’ gets thrown around a lot among industry conversation but I feel more often than not it’s misused and lazily bunches together Grime, Hip-Hop, Soul and Jazz-infused acts

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‘Gospel without religion’ – Meet Afro-fusion

Photo: GRIT MULTIMEDIA /Instagram: GritMultimedia

innovators Franz Von & KOG

Interview: Otis Mensah Photo: Grit Multimedia I’m aware that often genre barriers and categorizing music is redundant when it comes to creating art; but if you were to encapsulate your sound how would you describe yourselves?

FV: We work with multi-genre musicians so we don’t want to be boxed in; it’s hard to slot us into a category but the main influences are reggae, hip-hop, roots and rap.

KOG: It’s based on energy, free sound, world music and being eclectic. We believe everything is rhythm and it’s afro-fusion because the fundamentals are taken from Africa. We take it back to basics, the building blocks – which is Afro – then we fuse it with lyrics, performance and music. It’s that kind of paradigm where we find ourselves, using music as a tool.

I feel that spirituality and integrity are concepts that permeate throughout your music and how you both function as artists. Tell me about the role these values play when creating and your art.

FV: It’s self-expression and everything we put in our music is who we are, it’s what’s happening every day. Being brought up in a third-world country, going to church there was a lot of spirituality, that’s where a lot of the music started. After growing up and having kids you always want to leave something positive and something that you’re not ashamed of, music that your kids can listen to. I think that permeates through to the audience.

KOG: I took the moral aspects from church, it pumps morality

into you. I’m never ashamed that my mum made me go to church as a sort of punishment, I learnt music there. Like Franz said, fatherhood is everything to us, and the way we go about our music is all for the kids. We don’t have to pretend in our lyrics.

I feel that often faith gets pulled down in the shadow of systematic religion, people take away from faith what is actually important. I think it can teach values.

FV: Yeah! And we do believe in an

colour, you can’t quantify. Most of the players in ZONGO MUSIC are from different ethnic backgrounds.

FV: It’s a true form, it’s freedom, and that’s one of the main messages in our music. We’re all artists, we’re on the same level, we’re going to come and put on a show for the audience – that’s the most important thing to us.

You’re both individually and collaboratively at the forefront of the scene, but do you ever feel left out of the conversation? Is there a bias towards guitar bands?

FV: Most definitely. I feel like we get left out a lot of the conversations.

KOG: The guitar bands outweigh us and it’s readily accessible. There are pubs that would rather have a threepiece, it’s easy, it’s simple. We’re in our home, Sheffield, but we’re not ‘home-grown’, so people associate the music and us to African music: “Because they’re hip-hop artists, they’re rap artists, so we can’t really…’

But I think there’s a bigger picture to it – even people like Mim Suleiman are left out! They all know and see what we do but why won’t they talk about it? But we’ll just do our thing to put food on the table and pump inspiration into our kids like, ‘Daddy plays the cowbell and travels all over the world!’ Full-time musicians!

FV: It’s as if the media outlets are already geared towards indie bands, like a wheel that’s already in motion and it’s not easy to get on that wheel.

I think we deserve a mention in any

“after Growing up and having kids you always want to leave something positive and something that you’re not ashamed of, something that your kids can listen to.” indefinite energy created through music, performance and interactions with people. It does relate with religion and spirituality in a way, but it’s just pure energy from what you’re doing. Energy can’t just stay in one place: you’ve got to give it out to get it back.

Tell me about your vision for ZONGO MUSIC. FV: It’s not a label, it’s not a booking agent, it’s a collective and cooperative – a platform for everyone to come together and push each other because together we can go further than as individuals.

KOG: Our main focus is to cut out cultural appropriation and misappropriation. I believe anybody can play any music they want, I don’t believe in racial lines – music has no

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publication who mentions music in Sheffield, the same as everyone else.

But I do feel like it’s slowly shifting.

Playing with you both and witnessing your live show, which is so high-octane, energized and inclusive, I feel a real sense of love there. Tell me about the creative process behind it all.

FV: A lot of the time it’s actually freestyle because it’s a different audience every time. We establish a connection and work with that, but the music itself has levels and a dynamic to it, so I think that comes across. The message is to change a mindset rather than constantly addressing the problems.

KOG: We try to make the building blocks of the whole tune African, point it to our roots, and I think that brings a different kind of energy and connection to the audience; then we fuse it with mainstream reggae, grime and hip-hop.

You’ve just got back from playing live in Ghana, Malta and Australia.

What else do you have coming up?

FV: My EP ‘Escapism’ is out and I’m writing the next project, we’ve got the ‘ZONGO BRIGADE’ album coming out, some videos shot already and plan on doing a listening party.

KOG: We’ve got a few European trips; we’re playing in France, Sweden, Holland and Spain. Just inspiring people to do what they want as long as they’re not infringing on anybody’s rights. If it’s positive, it’s cool, man, so do what makes you happy – freedom!

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‘Conquering oppression with Poetry and Humour in Soul’ – Steve Edwards of Universal Tree

Marc Barker // Instagram @marcabarkerphotography

You’ve got a distinct voice and stand out by creating thought-provoking, action-inspiring soul-music; it brings to mind Curtis Mayfield, Marvin Gaye, Sly & the Family Stone. Do you think this is missing in today’s music?

SE: Totally. In soul music, yes. I’m careful when I think about how we’re described. I put psychedelic soul because on record we’ve got some weird trippy sounds but there’s also an existential, soulful tip that’s always questioning and live we’ve got Hip-Hop, Funk and Blaxploitation; – I want to make sure that’s there so people are under no illusion, we are definitely coming from a certain point of view as a band and we’re pushing that envelope.

Tell me more about blaxploitation and what it means to you?

SE: Growing up in the 70s, the first things I saw on TV with black actors were blaxploitation movies like

Cleopatra Jones, Shaft & SuperFly. Yeah, fair enough, they were parodies of pimps and the like, but they were actually heroes of those pieces and the music was to die for. As a kid, I looked at that and thought it was empowering: the black actor is the star. The reason I’m happy to use that term is because of the whole idea of black culture taking it back, taking some power back, and being able to curate something that was from a black perspective, for every kind of people.

Does the Sheffield scene favour indie bands over artists inspired by black music culture?

SE: Yes. That’s simple, it just does. It’s not even a criticism; it just is and if it walks like a duck, it’s a duck.

Being someone who’s reached incredible heights that transcend genres, have you ever been labelled ‘urban’ and if so, does that term come with limitations?

Photo: GRIT MULTIMEDIA /Instagram: GritMultimedia

Interview: Otis Mensah Photo: Grit Multimedia

SE: The success I’ve had has been in house and dance music, which is a spin-off, if you like, from a branch of urban music. I started in house during the early 90s, going out to clubs, and early Chicago house was black music – so if urban equals black then, yeah.

I feel that rock bands get to be more understood within a genre-specific context. You’ve got psych rock, prog rock, punk rock, indie rock, classic rock, but often black artists get bunched all together under one term: ‘urban’. Childish Gambino said “White kids get to wear whatever hat they want, but when it comes to black kids, one size fits all.”

SE: You know my alter-ego, my moniker, if you like, is ‘Northern Black’. It started as a song because I was writing about my upbringing and parents who came from Jamaica in the 50s as part of the Windrush Generation. My dad was miner and my mum was a nurse. I’m not from south London, I’m from Yorkshire and I thought ‘Northern Black’ was a strong term. So, writing that song with the lyrics “My daddy came ashore about 58, tried knocking on doors he couldn’t get a break” – that was the truth. It’s about being proud of my roots and culture; I’m a black man who’s proud of it and I’m singing and writing about it. I put my money where my mouth is, I’m not hiding from anyone.

I’ve kind of been a black artist that’s done something quite colloquial, so

for some people hearing me it’s like: “What did he just say then? The black dude with the dreads. ‘Int he nice, him! He’s just like us!” Well, you know what? I am just like you because I’m a human being.

You made a conscious decision for Universal Tree to be diverse, stripping it back to this idea of humanity. I feel you’ve got a certain optimism for humanity?

SE: Absolutely, my glass is half-full … it’s still only at half, but half-full.

I recently watched a video of you playing ‘How Did We Get To This?’ with the crowd wholeheartedly participating; it felt antiestablishment and unifying.

SE: Lennon once said “You’ve got to sugar the pill” – because if you beat people over the head with a message they stop listening. Give them a sweet melody to get their heads nodding and they’ll listen to the words. Universal Tree is like a family tree, like humanity that went around the world at the beginning of time. It started with Africa, which is another unpalatable truth for people – the first man was a black man. The ethos is love and resistance, pro-love and anti-hate; of the people, for the people. If anti-establishment means keeping the status quo, then we are anti-establishment. We’re pro-love for everyone, equality, and it’s a positive message – but as artists, we feel obligated to talk about the things that are palapably wrong.

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Andy Nicholson // Instagram @twogoldteeth.co.uk

After joining forces with fellow Sheffield lad Toddla T, Coco has been flying the flag for northern grime on a wider level for a few years now – with a slew of red-hot singles receiving national airplay and appearances at festivals across the globe cementing him as a force to be reckoned within the scene.

Interview: Matic Mouth Photograph: Andy Nicholson

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Matic Mouth caught up with the MC ahead of a much-anticipated homecoming show at underground music venue Plot 22, organised to promote the release of the artist’s debut EP ‘No Rehearsal’.

You’re currently living in London and have returned up north for the release party. You’ve always kept a close eye on the local activity and artists based in Sheffield, too. After being away for some time and experiencing things from a different standpoint, is there any knowledge you can pass on to upcoming musicians on ways in which you think they may be able to improve and progress their careers?

At the moment it’s looking very good, man.

Obviously I come to Sheffield every so often to try and play my part, it’s not a place that I can forget easily, so I always try to stay in touch with the artists here and everywhere I go I’ll be screaming about Sheffield. I think a big part of it all is networking; don’t be afraid to go to places like London, and I’m not saying it’s an ultimatum thing, but it’s thriving and other people are out here in the same positions actively looking to network with others. A lot of music stems from there and it’s the capital, so there’s always going to be opportunities arising.

Another thing: make sure your body of work is cared for, don’t just be slapping out too much for the sake of it. One thing Toddla always told me was to make sure people digest what you’re doing and can easily stay up to date. When you’re dashing out bare tracks it can sometimes confuse listeners, as they don’t know what’s new and what’s old. So, show your work attention and be professional because there’s no rush, you know what I’m saying? You’ve always got to develop as an artist and if you’ve got to wait two to three months to get something right, then do that – because there’s a level out there right now and a bar that man have got to hit.

How did you come across Plot 22? Did you know about them already?

It was through a friend I reached out to in Sheffield, and he told me he had some friends that had started a new thing that I think initially worked with or for charities, I’m not 100% sure, but I liked what I heard about the direction they want to go in. They’re not just about events: they want to do more with the community, but at the same time try to be a sort of creative hub for artists in and around Sheffield. These types of places are good for the scene, people can feel like they belong in a place like that. It used to be the old Castle Market, as we know, but there’s some refurbishment happening in the area and they’re trying to bring it all to life. I heard it’s just these guys doing it alone so I just wanted to help and be involved in any way really; it seemed only natural to have the release party there, bring more positivity to what’s happening.

It’s good to see these empty spaces being

Sounds of the Underground Mike Thompson of Exchange Street venue Plot 22 on how they’re here to support the city’s innovative DIY community.

used for creative uses, as we have so many unused buildings and hopefully will see more things like this. How were your experiences in finding studios and creative spaces in Sheffield? Was it easy? Difficult? You’re also a producer yourself, so can I guess and say that you started at home?

Yeah, the producer thing started at home, just being alone and having the time and love for music. I had a mini studio there – well, I say studio, but it was my laptop and speakers which I used to make beats with all the time. In terms of recording, in the early stages I used to go to the studio with Youth Camp and NoXcuse.

Seven [NoXcuse] had a place which we used to go and record at. After that, when I broke off and started doing the Remz & Coco thing, that was just at Remz’s yard, and that’s when the DIY thing really came into it. It was around these times that I started understanding a need for quality in the music and the recordings, so I started going to Bok Bok Studios with a guy called Titch. There was never really an issue in getting a studio for me; there was always somewhere we could go to express ourselves and put it down on a track, and again the networking helped me a lot back then.

Tell us about the motives behind the EP. We saw you smash single after single out: ‘Big Bou Yah’, ‘Big N Serious’, ‘Waters Run Deep’ featuring Shola Ama & Deep Green, ‘Ova Here’ featuring Protoje. There was a great level of consistency right up to the EP. Was this just the natural order of things?

Yeah man. I mean, if you’ve followed my journey from when I linked up with Toddla you will have seen I’ve done the whole single thing, and there was quite a bit of direction in regards to doing all that – there were reasons why we dropped certain tracks or whatever.

Off the back of that, instead of just giving it in doses, it’s now about letting me give the people a collection of good tracks that I’ve spent some time on and are worthy of an EP and the response has been good.

And you’ve got videos for ‘Tellin Em’ and ‘Gimme The Mic’ out now. Give us some background on these tracks.

‘Telling Em’ was produced and shot by Manakin [MNKN], someone I’ve worked with for years and I feel we always get something special when we work together. The other is produced by me but shot by J.Mal from out of London. Big up J.Mal, still.

Where can people find you for those that want to hear more of Coco? And what’s to come from you in the near future?

The people can find me on all the socials through the handle @TheCocoUK. Connect with me, talk to me, let’s get things popping.

“I come to Sheffield every so often to try and play my part, it’s not a place that I can forget easily, so I always try to stay in touch with the artists here and everywhere I go I’ll be screaming about Sheffield.”

Instagram @connor_matheson_photography

Interview: Matic Mouth

For the people who don’t know who you are already, tell us what Plot 22 is and who’s behind it?

Plot 22 is a multi-purpose creative space. It’s a former retail unit tucked away in the old Castle Market district of Sheffield. After being put onto the space through CADs, it’s now the home of our community business, RiteTrax, which is ran by myself, Adam Seymour, Dalton Kershaw and Joe Gaughan. It’s also home to over five creative spaces and an intimate events space that has already played host some of the city’s most exciting DIY events in recent years.

The old Castle Market could be seen as an unusual part of the city centre for a venue. How did it come to be?

To be fair, we didn’t have much of a say in the location but we did fall in love with the space. We think the demolition only made it more bleak and mysterious, so in a way it’s the perfect spot for something experimental and creative like Plot 22. After going back and forth with several agencies we finally had a viewing for a space with CADs. As soon as we saw the place our immediate thoughts were that it was big, but that it was affordable and exciting. With the regeneration money getting pumped into the area and the old market site getting redeveloped, we’re well placed to help bring positive change to an important but unloved part of the city.

Now, to get this whole thing going has not been easy. I’ve heard that you’ve run into a few hurdles along the way?

We’ve had some ongoing battles with the council around licensing. It’s been a strange one because we’ve been working with the council to deliver events in public spaces but we’ve also seen them objecting to some of our events at Plot 22. We spent the best part of four hours sat in the Town Hall with the licensing committee and officers from Environmental Health and Night Time Enforcement Team. After quite a tense exchange we were able to convince the committee to let our events go ahead. We drew on the support of the regeneration team in the council and highlighted the impact we’ve had on the local music scene. We think that there has been a deliberate effort made to make the whole process of establishing an urban / underground music venue and hub more difficult than necessary. Having said that, we’ve received support from the local hotel owners and have been working closely with the regeneration team in the council to improve Exchange Street and negate problems with the local residents.

What’s the future direction for Plot 22?

The direction of our future will largely be decided by which artists and individuals come through our doors. However, we’ve got plans to expand everything we do. That means more focus on music, video production and a record label. We want to get a full premises license so we can host more diverse events on a regular basis and start cultivating a real underground hub. We also want to use the space to hold workshops and open it up as a place that the local people can have a stake in.

Facebook: Plot22Sheffield // plot22sheffield@gmail.com // Ritetrax.co.uk // ritetrax@gmail.com

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6-A-Side

With the buzz of the World Cup still in the air, here are six key Sheffield players working within different areas of music creativity and delivering the results.

ARTIST

SCUMFAM Scumfam is up-north’s number 1 collective in urban music. Consisting of eight MCs and a DJ, they cover wide ranges of music but are best known for making grime, bassline and rap. Since 2012, they have performed to crowds of over 10,000 and are continuing to perform up and down the UK. In that time Scumfam have also had coverage from various leading urban platforms such as SBTV, Lord of the Mics, BBC 1Xtra, Kiss FM & many more.

Twitter: @TheSCUMFAM DJ

DJ Skillz (Project AllOut Records Owner) Skillz has been pioneering grime & UK garage from the very beginning. His DJ sets are known to fully go off with the highest of energy, or as he would say, “full Of LENGERZ”. In 2011, Skillz set up Sheffield’s leading independent grime and bass label ‘Project Allout Records’. You can catch the PAR show on www. ukmondo.com, Sundays, 8-10PM. Twitter: @skillzyboy PRODUCER

Palize

Another highly talented Sheffield producer who is part of the Unit 3 collective and features weekly on UK Mondo Radio. He has been making 130-140bpm garage and UK bass productions for two years under his alias, whilst working closely with K Dot and other members of the Sheffield collective ScumFam. After his first international booking and playing alongside K Dot during his UK Tour, Palizé has really made a stamp in the scene - putting out releases on various labels and defining his own sound by implementing the older elements and influences which took bassline off the ground the first time around. He’s integrated those sounds into the new era of bassline which is taking over clubs across the country – especially the north!

Twitter: @PalizeMusic

Andy Nicholson // Instagram @twogoldteeth.co.uk

Feature: Matic Mouth

PHOTOGRAPHY

Andy Nicholson / Two Gold Teeth Photography As a photographer, he’s developed a stunning portfolio of work, all with a trademark eye for detail. From gritty, raw urban shots to beautiful, serene images of nature to simple yet striking portraits, Andy has developed a unique approach to shooting his subject.

With a superb appreciation for the microscopic details in any given moment, he can turn a fleeting second into a remarkable and powerful image. Having worked with fashion brands such as SABBC and Bailey of Sheffield, and artists such as Toddla T and various grime MCs and musicians, he can turn his attention to everything from stunning product shots to unique portraiture.

Instagram: @twogoldteeth

ENTERTAINMENT

Northside Media

Northside Media TV is a creative media business based in Sheff, a collective of hugely passionate and dedicated arts and culture lovers. Their mission is to share, inspire and nurture creativity up north.

They’re passionate about finding and developing new talent, offering artist management services alongside a fully-equipped music studio and on-hand music engineers at their headquarters based a stone’s-throw from the city centre in Attercliffe. They can also provide all accompanying visuals thanks to their talented videographer.

Northside are working closely with local artists to encourage development and place an emphasis on quality control to ensure they’re producing the best possible music for your ears.

Twitter: @nsmediauk // northsidemediatv.co.uk

VIDEO

Oliver Brian In 2013, Oliver Brian Productions was established by Will Oliver Fidler & Gary Brian Scaife. Both being freelance filmmakers, they came together to form a video production company. Since then, Oliver Brian Productions has gone onto produce over 500 videos, with numerous satisfied clients and winning multiple awards.

A small talented team that keep pushing the limits on every project, they pride themselves on always delivering the client’s expectations - working on all-size budgets from start-ups to multi-national companies. Recent clients include Debenhams, Annie Mac, Atlantic Records, Redbull and Sony Music UK, and their music videos have been premiered on channels such as VICE, SBTV and Complex UK. info@oliverbrian.co.uk Instagram: @oliverbrianproductions

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Listen Up!

matic Rounds up some of the biggest tracks coming out of the Sheff scene today the perfect concoction of sounds for reminiscent and retrospective street stories. Samuel Lox on the hook comes through to round it off nicely. @EthanRYanUK / @ KaseTheStranger

Better Place Deep Green

A homage to the city of Sheffield.

You may have seen Deep Green smashing his Fire In The Booth freestyle on Charlie Sloth’s Radio 1Xtra show. On this track Green vividly paints a picture of a better place to be alive in, combined with a thoughtful yearning to live better and longer. @DeepGreen89

Where I’m From K Dot & Milks

Binoculars LDizz

After raising his own bar with the full-length mixtape ‘21:00’, LDizz has returned with a line of sure-fire singles. The latest is a tale of intoxication over an Ethan Ryan production, with the promising young artist describing wavey interactions with a woman.

Twitter: @LDizzUK

Sanctified Otis Mensah

An honest, open-hearted pledge over a floaty guitar sample and lazy drums. On a side note, be sure to hunt down his ‘Computers Outside’ EP. @OtisMensah

Tellin Em Coco

Loose biographical barring from Coco describing his journey of becoming an MC. Taken from his new EP ‘No Rehearsal’ and produced

by Manakin, be sure to check out the video on YouTube too. @TheCocoUK / @MNKN_1st

Young Kings Ethan Ryan (Producer) Ft. Kase & Samuel Lox

A track off the ‘Mood Swings’ EP, which was entirely produced by Ethan Ryan. With Kase on the vocal side of things, the producer crafts

Down Smiley

The first single from Smiley’s newlyreleased EP ‘Netflix & Smil’. Inspired by the early sounds of grime, Smiley rings off over an Andy Nicholson banger. A lyrical warning for all MCs that this guy is not here to play games. @SmileySFD / @AndyNicholson_

Another homage to the hometown.

K Dot and fellow ScumFam member Milks fly the flag high for the city while at the same time detailing the perils that come with an MC on the grind, trying to keep heads above water and in the game. @KDotScumFam

Listen to the full playlist by scanning the QR code or heading to tinyurl.com/ y96snpss do the solo thing in the form of his EP ‘Escapism’. This track shows Franz’s state of mind as he walks the tightrope of sanity and mental breakdown. Accompanied by Steve Edwards, ‘Falling’ is Franz Von at his best. @FranzVon / @ UKSTEVEEDWARDS

A Mutual Feeling Jackie Moonbather Over a subtle, funky groove Jackie Moonbather positively opens his heart up to a companion about where he’s coming from. blancmangelounge.bandcamp.com

Jail Love AK

On another Palizé production it’s ScumFam soldier AK with ‘Jail Love’.

A vivid story between two people trying to navigate their way through life, with one half of the equation being locked behind bars, it’s a detailed account that unfortunately way too many people are facing these days. @AKScumFam

Seeds Katie Pham & The Moonbathers

A sultry guitar riff, bass and a funky beat. Katie Pham gently courts the track, questioning all things as she tries to navigate through life as a soul-searching wanderer. @KatiePham

The Game K Cotterell Ft. K Dot Concoction Milks x Palizé (Producer)

Known for being a lyrical beast and wordsmith, Milks is back with ‘Concoction’. Palizé puts together a plate of hip-hop caviar for Milks to do what he does best. By weaving in and out a world of words beginning with Con-, he’s able to keep up some incredible form from beginning to end. Search for his and Palize’s latest collaborative mixtape ‘Late Nights & Lay Ins’ afterwards. @MilksMusic / @PalizeMusic

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In the name of GMF Music, K Cotterell continues to build and represent his brand by consistently dropping high quality music and videos. ‘The Game’ is a journey into the world of GMF.

Look For Me Nashe XX

Forever on form and showing growth, Nashe XX’s latest offering is a solid track that provides the perfect companion for his soft and smooth vocals. @wakeupmrx

Kannan x Medley Falling Franz Von Ft. Steve Edwards

After previously performing and recording with KOG & The Zongo Brigade, Franz Von breaks off to

Over a dancehall-soca inspired beat, Kannan & Medley combine to create a guaranteed club hit for the ladies. @kannanrvltn @MedleyArtist

saturday 21st july 2018 FREE ENTRY 10.30PM START

CONTINUE THE FESTIVAL WITH LIVE PERFORMANCES FROM

2 MINUTE WALK FROM HILLSBOROUGH PARK Penistone Road, HILLSBOROUGH, Sheffield S6 2DE owlertonstadium.co.uk / 0114 234 3074

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hawesandcurtis.co.uk

Summer Sale - Statement Shirts from ÂŁ19.95 Please visit us at Meadowhall Shopping Centre, Sheffield.

Ground floor between House of Fraser and Debenhams (Lower Park Lane).

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Spotlight on

Arnold & Co.

Something for the weekend, Sir?

Arnold & Co. is a one-stop men’s store where you can get a fresh trim, various grooming services, a brand new outfit, and enjoy a beer while you’re at it!

Downstairs, its heritage barbershop will take bookings – and walk-ins, if you don’t mind waiting a bit longer – for haircuts, beard trims, full traditional wet shaves, facial waxing, and any other aspect of barbering you could think of.

Head barber Adam Mir told Exposed: “Alex and his business partner approached me about setting up an all-encompassing men’s store back in November – a laid-back, friendly place where you could get yourself completely sorted for the weekend in the space of a few hours. I’ve been in the trade for 15 years and a load of clients have followed me here, so business is good and we’re looking at getting a third barber in now.”

Stroll upstairs and you’ll meet Alex Mir in the menswear store, stocked with a wide variety of carefully selected artisan brands from old classics such as John Smedley and Nigel Cabourn to Japanese denim pioneers such as Big John and Stevenson Overall Co. and many more in-between. Also on offer is Forge Denim, a Sheffield clothing brand created by Alex and Richard Mappin with a focus on ethicallysourced, well-made garments built to last.

“We’re not about disposable fashion; we encourage people to buy a bit less but buy quality – it’s better for the environment and simply looks better,” Alex told Exposed. “We hand-pick our brands and the stuff we sell will last for decades. Providing the utmost in terms of value is hugely important to us. The idea here is people can come in with one outfit or look and leave with a completely fresh one – brand new clothes and a fresh haircut to match.”

You can browse the latest stock and book appointments online at arnoldandco.store www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 69

In Association with

Vegan bakery to open in Sharrow Vale

FirePit Rocks One of West Street’s most recognisable restaurants is doubling down on its commitment to establish the best American-inspired gastronomic pleasures in Sheffield.

A popular haunt for many hungry city centre denizens, the FirePit has been well-established since opening in May of last year. However, after more than a year of loyal service to authentic American taste, and tweaking this experience to perfection, FirePit Rocks is now going all in with a bold and appealing shift in emphasis. Manager Tom Lord said: “Picture your stereotypical American dive bar with baseball on the TV, rock ‘n’ roll on the jukebox, and buckets of beer on the table. That’s our vibe, your friendly neighbourhood dive bar.”

The very casual drop-in bar/restaurant will be complimented by live American sports, re-runs of classic football, hockey matches and TV. There will also be the addition of an in-house classic games console to keep you entertained.

Tom is committed to bringing his experience and passion for American food and drinks to the freshly idealised Firepit, and bets his bottom dollar that they will offer the “best wings in Sheffield” come 13 July.

If you’re fixin’ to get a flavour of the beers, cocktails and foods to be served from your friendly, US-inspired dive-bar, have a look on their website (firepitbbq.co.uk) or get yourself with their opening day in just over two weeks’ time.

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A brand new vegan and gluten-free cake shop, Baked by Pearl Bakery, is set to open in Sharrow Vale in autumn.

Speaking to Exposed, owner Sarah Shooter said: “It’s all vegan and gluten free. Cakes, donuts, milkshakes – anything bad for you, basically!”

Discussing the vegan scene, Sarah talks about why she’s expanding her brand into a café. “A woman came up to me at the Nether Edge market recently and asked me to make a donut for her daughter. She told me she had an egg allergy and that she’d never had a donut before – things like that make me so happy!”

Baked by Pearl Bakery will open in autumn on Hickmott Road. Head over to facebook.com/ pearlbakeryuk or more information.

New craft beer pub to open in Nether Edge Hop heads of S7 and beyond, a craft beer and real ale bar is coming to Nether Edge at the beginning of July.

Brewer & Hop Ltd, which will be ran by husband and wife team Lauren and Dom, will open at the Dalbury Hotel next month in the leafy suburb of Nether Edge, just a stone’s throw away from Abbeydale Road.

The menu will offer a selection of craft beers, ales, cocktails and a large variety of gins for those who prefer spirits. Draught lager and cider will be available from Sheffield Brewery Company and Sentinel Brewery.

Check out tinyurl.com/y8whtx5o to keep up to date with the upcoming launch.

Sean Clarke, head honcho at the Moor Market’s Beer Central, showcases his craft brewery of the month and recommends some of their finest tipples.

In Association with

The Tickled Trout 33 Valley Rd, Barlow, Dronfield S18 7SL Phone:0114 289 1111 // www.tickledtroutbarlow.com

wild beer co.

The Place

The Tickled Trout in Barlow is the kind of restaurant you’ll kick yourself for not visiting sooner. Chef/owner Chris Mapp (whose culinary heritage includes working for Marcus Wareing and Gordon Ramsay) took over a run-down pub four years ago and spent a lot of money to turn it into something rather special.

It’s casual enough to be able to enjoy a pizza or a few pints but also has a menu (and in particular a specials board) that allows Chris to flex his gastronomic muscles properly. It’s light and airy but with enough ‘zones’ so you can sit somewhere different each time and get a slightly different experience.

The Food

It’s pretty special. This was my third visit so I’d already tried their signature dish, The Tickled Trout, which is a piece of Cornish sea trout, delicately cooked and flavoured with watercress, almonds and a smoked mash. So instead, on Chris’ recommendation, I went for pan-fried halibut, served with a short rib bon bon and a red cabbage and raspberry ketchup. Yum. The halibut was wonderfully delicate, so it took the bon bon and the ketchup to bring the punch, but boy did they deliver. And it’s all presented so beautifully too, on crockery that compliments the dish, and in portions that don’t mean you need to stop for a breather half way through. My other half was equally mesmerised by her côte de porc, which had a moreish potato rosti to keep it company and a pretty zingy celeriac remoulade on the side.

It’s clear Chris and his sous chef Jack understand what it takes to give classic flavours with that added wow factor.

Before that I’d snuck down an almost velvet duck liver parfait, supremely accompanied by super-sweet ginger and suitably sharp pickles to make for a perfectly balanced mouthful.

We wolfed down a tarte tatin for dessert between us, which Chris told me was the same recipe from his Petrus days under Marcus Wareing, so it had to be a bit special. It was sweet, perfectly caramelised and came with both ice cream and clotted cream for those of you who can’t decide which one works best.

The Verdict

If you think Barlow is too far to go for great food, you’re wrong. It’s probably no more than 25 minutes from the centre of Sheffield and a lot less if you live somewhere in the south west of the city. The food here is sublime. If you want to go casual, you can, with a full pizza menu, a couple of burgers and a Derbyshire pie all regulars on the menu; but for me, it’s really a place to push the boat out. Why? Because if you let it, this particular trout will tickle you pink.

Don’t you just love this time of year? Spring in all its glory with Summer beginning to take centre stage. The trees are green, the fields are showing off their crops and the outdoor life is calling to us all: BBQs, beer gardens and long walks to the pub await us. Whenever we think of the outdoor life here at Beer Central, one UK brewery always springs to mind. It’s a brewery that uses its surroundings and locality more than any other brewery we can think of – the aptly named Wild Beer Co. Back in 2012, Brett Ellis and Andrew Cooper got together to open Wild Beer Co and from the very first day their ethos has been to brew and drink in a ‘wildly different’ way. Brett and Andrew share a passion for wild fermentation and barrel-ageing to create beers with depth, complexity and startling flavours. It’s no exaggeration to say they’ve shaped the direction of this type of brewing in the UK over recent years and have influenced a wide range of fellow brewers with ideas and award-winning beers. Their success isn’t just limited to the UK though; with exports to more than 20 countries worldwide, Wild Beer Co carries its influence across the globe and its beers are loved for their quality and originality.

Based down in the Somerset countryside, the brewery is a true farmhouse operation and its humble beginnings progressed quickly towards a stunningly successful crowdfunding campaign in March 2017. Raising £1.75 million from around 2,000 investors, they are developing a new £10 million brewing facility in Shepton Mallet that will also be home to bars and a restaurant. The restaurant will be a vital cog in their success, as their beers are influenced and complimented by foods of all kinds – something emphasised at their outstanding food and beer evening during Sheff BeerWeek 2018.

Wild Brew Co is different. The beers are unique and they truly stand out from the crowd. Here are three suggestions from us, search them out for a wildly different experience.

Sleeping Limes 330ML Bottle 4.6% ABV Using long-time fave Sleeping Lemons as inspiration, this beer throws a Mexican twist at a traditional German style Gose. Clean, crisp with tangy lime sourness…Can you taste it already?

Millionaire 330ML Bottle 4.7% ABV On cask this is Beer Central’s favourite stout below 5%. This is a salted caramel chocolate milk stout, a real dessert beer that balances a range of contrasting flavours perfectly.

Wineybeest 750ML Bottle 11% ABV Take the mighty Wildebeest, (a coffee, cocoa and vanilla imperial stout) and age it for a year in tart burgundy pinot noir wine barrels. The endgame is Wineybeest – a decadent stout with a hint of acidity and fruit.

Beer Central Ltd

The Moor Market, S1 4PF Telephone: 0114 2755990 facebook.com/BeerCentralLtd www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 71

Zeer goede Curreh Très bon Curreh Foarte bun Curreh Muy buen Curreh Curreh molto buono Reyt Good Curreh™ Baie goeie kerrie Oso ona Curreh Velmi dobrá kari Πολύ Καλή Vrlo dobro Curreh Mycket bra Curreh Очень хороший карри

Inspired by India. Made in Sheffield.

Ashoka. Established 1967.

Reserve online. www.ashoka1967.com 72 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

33 Valley Rd Barlow Dronfield S18 7SL www.tickledtroutbarlow.com W dine@tickledtroutbarlow.com @ 0114 289 1111 T

to read more about us, turn to page 71!!

NEW SUMMER MENU

OUT NOW

DELICIOUS LUNCHES SEASONAL SPECIALS SUPERB SUNDAY ROASTS Extensive wine, gin and real ale selection. www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 73

FRI 20

6.00PM - 8.00PM / MONTUNO

SAT 21

1.00PM - 2.30PM / LOS LADS 3.00PM - 4.30PM / DIZZY CLUB 5.00PM - 6.00PM / UNIVERSIAL TREE ft STEVE EDWARDS 6.30PM - 8.00PM / LEOPOLD SQUARE’S FUNK & SOUL EXTRAVAGANZA

SUN 22 1.00PM - 2.30PM / STEEL CITY SOUL 3.00PM - 4.30PM / ACOUSTIC ANGELS 5.00PM - 6.00PM / RYAN TAYLOR 6.30PM - 8.00PM / VELOCITY BROWN & THE HOTRODS

@LeopoldSquareSheffield 74 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

www.leopoldsquare.com

@LeopoldSquare

Top Picks

Crazy Cat Carnival Plug // 14 July // £11- £22.40 A celebration of all things feline, the Crazy Cat Carnival heads to Plug for a day of fun for cat lovers and enthusiasts. There will be special cat-themed cocktails, speaker panels from some of the leading professionals within the cat-care industry, and a marketplace for cat-assorted goodies. the-plug.com The Rum Festival Trafalgar Warehouse // 27-28 July // From £8.40 From the seasoned connoisseurs to those trying rum for the first time, the Rum Festival’s 100-strong selection of rums has got everybody covered this month. The festival will also feature live entertainment, dancing, talks from rum industry experts and bloggers and tasty street food. therumfestival.co.uk 1940s Weekend and Vintage Fayre Kelham Island Museum // 15 July // Free Live music, Homefront re-enactments, vintage vehicles and antique stalls – this has got the lot!

Don’t forget the Sunday Afternoon Tea Dance… simt.co.uk Dog Show (in support of Autism Life Dogs Greenscene Garden Centre // 8 July // Free Steve’s Dog Training presents a charity dog show and family fun day in support of Autism Dogs UK. Punters can enter their dog into one of ten categories for the chance to win prizes. The event will also have food stalls, face painting, a bouncy castle and other fun and games for the whole family to enjoy. autismlifedogs.com Canalside Night Market Southbank Warehouse // 28 July // Free Canalside is a monthly street food market offering a carefully selected group of street food traders.

Expect award-winning snap to cater for every taste alongside drinks, live music, DJs and artists. southbank-warehouse.co.uk

Sharrow Festival Returns The annual celebration of community and cultural diversity turns the ripe age of 21 this year, returning to Mount Pleasant Park with its biggest bash yet.

The festival is always a popular family day out, with a chance to enjoy a varied line-up of live music, street food and the opportunity to take part in a number of activities – but what’s on this year?

Here are a few things not to be missed at this year’s festival.

This year FURD is back with its inflatable football pitch. With the World Cup in full swing, it’s a good chance to show off your skills and have a kick about with your mates.

A Legal Graffiti Area: Fancy yourself as the next Banksy? Head down to see this outdoor art piece and try your hand with the spray paint. This activity will highlight Sheffield’s urban art scene and offer a chance to try your hand at the skilled art form.

Street Food Galore: You’ll be spoilt for choice with a selection of cuisines including Mexican, Thai, Caribbean and wood fired pizzas. There is something for everybody, and if you can’t choose? Try a bit of everything, and share each dish with your friends or family.

Sheffield Live Stage: With a curated selection of DJs, spoken word and dance performances.

If you want to see something a little bit different, head down to this stage to catch a glimpse of some of Sheffield’s most talented DJs and artists.

Visit one of the Festivals’ partnering venues for a drink and a chance to see yet more live music. This year with four partners, catering to all music tastes there are plenty of options for a little after party close by. Head down to the venues below to see the following.

The Beer Engine (Cemetery Rd, S11 8FJ) Disco Funk from The Soul Trap and Superfly.

The Albion (London Rd, S2 4LE) Headcharge v Junglist Alliance.

The Clubhouse (London Rd, S2 4LA) Live reggae.

The Cremorne (London Rd, S24LH) A number of bands including Velcro Teddy Bears and The Strays.

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Top Picks

The Antics: An Evening of Improvised Comedy Montgomery Studio // 7 July // £6 Award-winning, Sheffield based comedy troupe perform entirely improvised scenes and songs using crowd suggestions. Following several sold out shows in 2017, The Antics show returns to The Montgomery Studio for another night jam packed full of improvised and immersive hilarity. sheffieldtheatres.co.uk Beaker’s Place Fringe Preview DINA // 19 July // £6.35 Only Lucky Dogs presents a preview of its Edinburgh Fringe show. Beaker is the meticulous owner of an illegal body disposal service in the cellar of his pub. Deeply affected by the recent demise of his cat, Paul, Beaker

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decides to take his own life – but at the crucial moment, he receives one last urgent delivery.

Anxious to complete his own departure, Beaker is shocked when the bag begins to move… dinavenue.com

One O’Clock From the House Sheffield Library Theatre // 5 July // £12.50 There’s nothing like a good old family comedy.

Set in the 80s, Miriam thinks all of her wishes have come true when she reads her father’s will but…not all is as it seems. Frank Vickery reminds us about how complicated families can be in this heart-warming and hilarious play. facebook.com/LibraryTheatreSheffield Big Lou/ Dan Nightingale/Rich Wilson/George Rigden Leadmill Comedy Club // 4 July // £6 Another stellar line-up at Leadmill’s monthly comedy club. Featuring two of Lancashire’s finest in Big Lou (pictured) and Dan Nightingale, an award-winning comic in Rich Wilson and emerging talent George Rigden who combines music and stand-up.

Leadmill.co.uk

liVe at tHe GreEn RoOm Friday July 20th The Fever Club 7pm

John DHaLi (and full band) 8pm

PLAyING OwT Tramlines sesh spesh 9pm to 2am SAT July 21th Stewis Olfo 2pm The Laterals 3pm Creeping Heat 4pm CaRmOon 5pm Jordon The Ego 6pm Twenty EiGhth CLub 7pm Fie Fie Fie 8pm IdLe ROsS 9pm

MOD FOR IT Tramlines sesh spesh 10pm to 2am

Sun July 22nd Stewis Olfo 2pm

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www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 77

Sheffield’s favourite rambunctious rock ‘n’ roll duo Hot Soles are back with the promise of tunes and the usual stellar live shows, as Will J. Fisher found out last month.

78 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

Three years on from the release of their catchy, balls-to-the-wall debut single ‘Glorious Blunder’, it should please any fans of Sheffieldforged rock ‘n’ roll to know that The Hot Soles are back on the road with a whole heap of new material including their latest release ‘Hangin’ Loose’. After sitting down with the chaps – that’s Kieran Wardle (vocals/guitar) and Richard Birkin (drummer) – for a catch-up brew at Kelham Island’s Grind Café, it becomes apparent that their eight-year experience as a band has taught them a thing or two about any post-release nerves.

“We used to stress about a lot of stuff, but now we just think you’ve gotta’ take it easy, you know? Always be sure to have a laugh! And that’s kinda the basis for the track,” says Richard of new single ‘Hangin’ Loose’. “Hangin’ loose and full of juice, that’s what we live by.”

However, far from just hanging about, there’s been an abundance of hard graft in the studio over the last three years aiming to nail down

“I hate to watch bands playing around trying to make the sound perfect. We’ve played gigs when you can hardly hear owt, but bands make mistakes all the time, and you’ve just gotta’ deal with it.” the industrious live sound which has made them one of highest-rated – and certainly one of the most enjoyable – bands on the Sheffield scene. It’s a sound they derived from listening to blues, rock and soul – “Or let’s go with Motown garage,” suggests Richard – one which they’ve spent a fair chunk of the last couple of years recording and perfecting with David Glover in Tesla Studios, who they claim has managed to get the best out of them.

“We’ve got enough songs recorded for an album now, and we’re just gauging when it’s best to release tracks – it’s all

killer no filler and we want our music to display exactly where we stand right now.”

In the midst of their ‘Great. Great. Everything is Great Tour’ of northern England is where the pair are currently stood. And over the years the lads have certainly earned their touring stripes.

They’ve played a number of gigs and festivals across Europe, bagged support slots for the likes of Franz Ferdinand and the 1975, plus putting on a show for hometown audiences at a number of memorable local gigs – and in Sheffield you don’t get much bigger than the Tramlines main stage, which they tore a new one with gusto a

few years back.

“It might have been the third Tramlines Festival, and we were set to play Leadmill that night anyway but we got a call during the day saying, ‘Do you fancy playing the main stage?” recalls Richard. “It’s the best way to pick up fans: people are out and want to see something, and they will happily take a gamble. That’s what you want as a band, that’s the beauty of it and how you make a lot of new fans. If Noel Gallagher pulls out we are ready to step into his shoes – we’ll wait by the phone!”

Apparently, there is no secret to putting on spectacular live shows, as Kieran explains it’s simply a matter of keeping it real: “I hate to watch bands playing around trying to make the sound perfect. We’ve played gigs when you can hardly hear owt, but bands make mistakes all the time, and you’ve just gotta’ deal with it.

There are times where we change up sections and just jam, which is good and keeps it exciting. We’ve been restricted in the studio for a while and it’s nice now to be able to judge the crowd and just play.

Excitingly, we’ll soon be hearing the fruits of their studio hibernation with another release imminent and an EP scheduled for autumn. And those itching for a bit more of the explosive, ramshackle energy displayed at a Hot Soles gig will not been disappointed. As Richard says: “It’s not a matter of being perfect.

It’s more about capturing a moment in time for us. We want the record to sound like our live shows, not the other way around. You could say it’s all about the soul – or the sole – and not the sound.”

The Hot Soles continue their tour through July and August, including their set at Picture House Social on the 22nd July as part of the Neighbourhood Tramlines Fringe. www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 79

A quickie with…

heavy lids

Heavy Lids guitarist Harry Gold, vocalist Maria Vegro and drummer Micah Leon nipped down to Exposed HQ for a chat about debut single ‘Neon Grafitti’, dream pop and being part of the Sheffield music scene.

You’ve built your identity around being a dream pop band.

What drew you to that aesthetic?

HG: It’s something I’ve been into for a long time and I guess, without realizing, it has really worked to our advantage on the Sheffield scene. We’re the only dream pop band in Sheffield that we know of. We’ve always had people coming up to us and saying that our sound is pretty unique, which is obviously a good thing.

But do you worry about being pigeon-holed?

HG: A lot of dream pop bands just try and hide behind reverb and delay. They hide the fact they can’t write songs behind all of these effects. We always focus on the songwriting.

ML: The live performance is really important for us. It’s really hard to do those effects live because you can spend so much time in the studio adding effects and layers that it just becomes impossible to replicate live.

What makes Sheffield such an important place for you?

HG: Yeah, I just think Sheffield has just got a really independent vibe to it. It’s got its own thing going on. Sheffield sort of exists in its own bubble.

How do you feel about taking Heavy Lids outside of Sheffield?

MV: It might be a bit daunting but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. We want to push ourselves and will go for it!

Heavy Lids’ debut single, Neon Grafiti, is out now.

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80 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

Top Picks

THE Folk Forest Endcliffe Park // 21-22 July // £33 The Folk Forest returns to Tramlines weekend, boasting five stages of live music and entertainment including a special Concerteenies stage for 0-3 year olds. Acts confirmed for the forest escapade include Nubiyan Twist ft K.O.G, Portico Quartet (pictured) and Sam Amidon. www.thefolkforest.net The Hunna Plug // 17 July // £35 Following their rise to prominence in 2016 and two sold out album tours, The Hunna return to Sheffield as one of the UK’s most indemand bands. Expect their trademark indie-pop sound, an electric performance and good vibes. the-plug.com Roxy Reunion O2 Academy // 7 July // £11.25 Relive the glory days of the Roxy Disco with a night of 80s pop music at Sheffield’s O2 Academy. Proceeds from the event go to Cancer Research UK. Academymusicgroup.com/O2AcademySheffield ROAM Record Junkee // 17 July // £10 Eastbourne’s pop punk troubadours stop by the Steel City on their UK tour to reap havoc, hell and chaos at Earl Street’s Record Junkee venue. www.recordjunkee.co.uk Cora Pearl Café Totem // 5 July // £5 It’s a hometown show for Sheffield indie rock band Cora Pearl, whose live reputation is as good as it gets. Energetic, raw and genuinely good song writers, this could be one of those “I was there” moments for a band set for stardom. www.cafetotem.com

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www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 81

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Can’t wait until December? Here’s who’s playing at your favourite local alternative music venue this month.

Jonah Matranga and Friends

Corporation has recently announced the line-up for their much-loved annual all-dayer Winter Rocks Festival, featuring another stellar line-up of alternative acts.

Taking place on the first Saturday of December, the event will feature mighty ragga-punk hybrid Skindred, UK hard rockers Stone Broken and shit-kicking rock and roll aficianados Wayward Sons on headline duties.

An equally fine, wide-ranging selection of bands will also be joining the bill including Hell’s Addiction, Doomsday Outlaw, Lowdrive, Liberty Lies, Red Spektor. Over on the second stage, Gorilla Riot, The Black Hands, Steal The City, The Idol Dead, and Deltanaut have been confirmed so far.

Winter Rocks Festival is on the 1st December.

Tickets are priced at £30, grab yours from corporation.org.uk.

7 July//£10 After a career spanning more than two decades, Jonah Matranga continues to be one of the most prolific artists on the circuit. This year, he’s hitting the road to celebrate Far’s seminal 1998 album Water and Solutions.

Physcostick 9 July//£12

21 July//£10 London punk rock band head to Sheffield for a night of unadulterated anarchy. Breathe the movement. Smell the movement. BE THE MOVEMENT. Or something like that.

Barrier 27 July//£8 Heavy metal four-piece from Chicago.

Expect tunes like ‘Behind Closed Doors’ to shake the foundations. Support comes from five piece Glasgow band Lotus Eater.

Dirt Box Disco

Chicago funny rockers Psychostick stop by the Steel City on their 2018 European tour.

Self-described as comedic metal, this band are reaching for Tenacious D’s crown of musical LOLs.

Conflict

28 July//£10 Garage rock band from the Midlands, Dirt Box Disco are touring the UK in support of 6th studio album Immortals.

Palm Reader 28 July//£7 Criminally underrated with a top live reputation, Palm Reader recently released Braille, widely touted as their best album to date. www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 83

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Sun 1 Jul Sheffield Action for Trans Health Meeting & Letter Writing to Trans Prisoners SHU Owen Building Room 920 sheffieldact4transhealth.wordpress.com Thu 5 -Thu 12 Jul Everybody’s Talking About Jamie 5 Jul Cineworld Sheffield cineworld.co.uk 5-12 Jul Showroom Cinema showroomworkstation.org.uk Fri 6 Jul SAYiT’s Black Pride Hallam Hubs sayit.org.uk

We’ve hit the sunny month of July, which means one thing in Sheffield – it’s Pride month! Celebrated around the globe to mark the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall Riots, we now have a full month of events celebrating the advances made in the campaign for equality. If you feel inspired to get involved in some activism, you can head to Action for Trans Health’s monthly meeting on 1 July (open to anyone whose gender identity isn’t wholly the same as the one they were assigned at birth) to get involved in planning campaigns and organisation for upcoming events.

Stick around afterwards for their Letter Writing to Trans Prisoners group (open to all – allies welcome).

Sheffield’s own award-winning hit musical Everybody’s talking about Jamie is screening at Cineworld (5 July) and Showroom (5-12 July).

Inspired by a true story, Jamie New is sixteen and lives on a council estate where he doesn’t quite fit in.

Supported by his loving mum and surrounded by his friends, Jamie overcomes prejudice, beats the bullies and steps out of the darkness into the spotlight.

Kicking off the festival season, we have the latest addition to the Pride calendar with Sheffield’s first ever Black Pride event hosted by SAYiT at The Hallam Hubs on Friday 6 July. Inspired by UK Black Pride, which is now in its 14th year, the concept is to create a safe space where LGBT+ people of colour could be proud within their identities. Black Pride does something that Pride does not: it focuses on the intersections within a person’s identity. Being part of the BAMER (Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic and Refugee) community, as well as questioning your sexuality or identity, can sometimes be difficult, as you straddle the two communities, at times burying a part of your identity in order to fit in. BAMER people continue to face the double discrimination of homophobia, biphobia, or transphobia with racism.

While the focus on this event is on celebrating BAMER LGBT+ people, all allies are welcome.

On 14 July, LGBT Sheffield’s Pinknic event returns to the Peace Gardens with their free family event.

Compered by Anna Kissed, there will be a variety of stalls and music from the likes of Stevie Moore, Patricia Lynne, INAVIBE. DJ Gail and Wardyo and more – including their infamous dog show. Head to the Malin Bridge Inn afterwards where their beer garden will be taken over for Drag Queens in The Garden. The Glitter Queens will also be in attendance to ensure you look fabulously sparkly for the event.

Pride Sheffield bring the month to a close on Saturday 28 July, starting with the Pride March setting off from Pear Street (next to Champs) at midday. Get your banners at the ready, have your voice heard and support your local groups and campaigns at what is expected to be the city’s biggest ever LGBT+ protest march. The main event takes place on Endcliffe Park, 1-7pm, with live music, drinks, community area and marketplace.

The official Pride after party returns to Proud at Sheffield Students Union with Pride-themed cocktails and giveaways. Keeping the Pride spirit alive & your feet moving till the early hours with 2 rooms of music to suit every taste - Pop, Disco, Dance & those ever-important requests! Also don’t forget to pop into Bar One beforehand, where a free karaoke session will be running from 7pm! Grab yourself some food & drink, have a singalong then head up to Proud!

If you fancy something different then Mango Disco and Fruit N Juice are joining forces for one night only at BAL Fashions for Mango Juice: The unofficial queer pride party – a celebration of diversity, a chance to dance the night away amongst divas, dykes and drag queens alike. All proceeds will go to Lesbian Asylum Support Sheffield, a group providing essential services to LGBTQ refugees in Sheffield. Downstairs in the Pride Is A Protest room, there will be a photo exhibition from LASS, refugee kitchen and wall of dreams.

That’s your lot for this month, have a fantastic pride, love and rainbows,

Sat 14 Jul Pinknic Peace Gardens sheffieldpinknic.co.uk Drag Queens In The Garden Malin Bridge Inn facebook.com/MalinBridgeInnPage Sat 28 Jul Pride Sheffield Pride Sheffield March & Festival Ecclesall Road / Endcliffe Park pridesheffield.org Proud – Pride Sheffield Official Afterparty Foundry, Sheffield Students’ Union facebook.com/proudsheffield Mango Juice: The unofficial Queer Pride Party BAL Fashions facebook.com/fruitnjuicesheff

www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 85

students play for free before 7pm on weekdays

86 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

It’s the most wonderful time of year, a magical season of childlike wonder, chock-full of surprises and joy.

I’m talking, of course, about the annual E3 gaming convention.

It’s a week that captures the imagination of every gaming fanatic, as they cling onto the hope that their dream title will be shown on the industry’s biggest stage. But with a large slew of press conferences and announcements to keep track of, it’s pretty easy to get overwhelmed by it all. But fear not, Sheffield gaming community, we’ve got your back and have broken down some of this year’s biggest reveals wrapped into a neat little bundle. Merry E3mas, you lot!

Words: Nathan Warby

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Nintendo’s beloved brawler series has been one of the biggest absences from the Switch’s library since its release last year. But after finally being teased back in March, we got an in-depth look into the new game at the Japanese companies press-conference – and it’s the stuff of gaming dreams. Every single character featured in the series’ 19-year history will be featured in Ultimate, bringing in fan favourites from some of the most popular franchises the industry has to offer: Mario, Pokemon, Metal Gear and Final Fantasy, to name but a few. All of the characters are brought to life with their own specific move set, with little touches that pay homage to source material. Put simply, this is the biggest video game crossover in history.

Release date: December 17th

Fallout 76

Halo: Infinite

Elder Scrolls 6

Devil May Cry 5

Although we got a reveal trailer shortly before the convention, it wasn’t until Bethesda’s live showcase that we really got into the nittygritty and found out what on earth this game actually is. While it may not have turned out to be the New Vegas-style spin-off that people were craving, the newest entry in the post-apocalyptic franchise looks interesting nonetheless. Abandoning the usual single-player focused formula adopted in previous titles, Fallout 76 is a multiplayer action RPG set in New Virginia. You assume control of a survivor of Vault 76, one of the earliest vaults to be opened in Fallout lore, and are tasked with rebuilding the new world ravaged by nuclear war.

Sounds rad.

Release date: November 14th.

Microsoft marquee first-party title is making a triumphant return.

After the lukewarm reception 2015’s Halo 5: Guardians, 343 Games are rightly taking their time with this one, stating in an interview that the sequel is still some way off.

The last entry encountered some criticism due to the campaigns shift of focus away from the irreplaceable Master Chief, in favour splitting our time between the Spartan and Agent Locke. Infinite looks to be addressing this concern, with the trailer portraying Chief as the centrepiece for the new adventure.

The developers seem keen on a big revamp of the Halo series, in fact, the team are working on slightly new art-style which take inspiration from classic Halo games and modernises them for the newer platforms. Unfortunately, the reveal trailer didn’t show any gameplay, but

Another entry for Bethesda, their second marquee property has finally unveiled the next instalment - albeit with a vague and ominous teaser trailer. In fact, the only thing that was officially confirmed was the title, quashing rumours that the hugely successful Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim was getting a direct sequel set in the same region. But the lack of concrete details won’t stop the endless speculation and analysing of the 37-second-long trailer.

No release date as of yet

Fans have been pining for a true follow-up to DMC 4 since 2008, and now Capcom have delivered.

The iconic hack-and-slash sequel promises to ramp up the insanely fast combat alongside an equally intense story in which you once again play as Nero, a demon hunter and nephew to the series’ main protagonist Dante. Don’t fret though, the silver-haired favourite will return in some capacity as we catch a glimpse of him towards the end of the reveal trailer. Details about the games plot are scarce, but we do know that the story takes place in Red Grave City and sees Nero lose his powers thanks to an accident which removes his arm (AKA the Devil Trigger).

DMC 5 has a tentative release date of spring 2019.

www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 87

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#JonasHotel 88 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

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Ride in

Style

As the summer holidays approach, many families will be preparing to set off on camping holidays as a fun and cheap alternative to expensive holidays abroad. However, if you’re scared off by the prospect of struggling with tent poles or the unpredictable weather, The Classic Camper Company have got you covered, offering up a camping experience with a difference.

The family-run business based in Derbyshire specialise in campervan hire with their vintage VW Campervan Billy Blue available to rent; perfect for exploring the Peak District or further afar. They believe that a Classic Camper holiday is a unique experience to be treasured and will take great care to ensure that your break is a memorable one.

Billy Blue is a classic 1973 VW, complete with a bodywork restoration, new engine, a full interior refurbishment in blue and white vinyl, plus a fitted kitchenette diner with SMEV twin hob and sink unit with a small fridge to keep drinks chilled. There’s plenty of space available to fit in your own bedding, bags, blankets, additional buddy seat and removable bunk bed allowing for plenty of extra storage if required. The Classic Camper Company offer a range of packages from day and overnight hire to weekly hire, as well as other extras such as camping chairs, tables and a sun canopy.

Billy Blue is available for wedding, prom and event hire, allowing you to turn up to your celebration in style. They also provide chauffeur-driven packages tailored to suit your needs; just tell them what colours and decorations you would like and they’ll be more than happy to help you get on the road.

For more information, contact The Classic Camper Company at enquiries@theclassiccampercompany.co.uk www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 89

90 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

Park Hill Urban CX Saturday 28th July

The outdoors scene this month is all about being on two wheels, as a trio of cycling events head to Sheffield covering everything from family-friendly cruising to razzing through courses built around listed buildings.

Bringing fast-paced riding and daredevil cyclo-cross to Sheffield’s iconic Park Hill complex, Urban CX returns with its multi-disciplinary event suitable for a wide range of ages and abilities.

With a number of adult and child categories on offer, as well as refreshments and a friendly festival-style atmosphere, it’s an enjoyable day out for both riders and spectators while offering stunning panoramics of the city centre.

Racing will take place 10.30am-6pm.

Head to sheffieldurbancx.co.uk for more info.

Steel Valley Ride

Saturday 14th July

Sunday 15th July

Taking place on 14 July, this 31mile challenge cuts through the stunning landscape of the Dark Peak beginning at Stocksbridge before heading across Cut Gate, Derwent Edge and some of the less-known bridleways around Strines. Funds raised from the £20 entry fee will go towards the Steel Valley Project’s push to improve the environment for people and wildlife in the Upper Don Area. Another charity being supported will be the British Mountaineering Council’s ‘Mend Our Mountains’ campaign, which raises money to repair walking paths in the UK’s national parks.

The streets of Sheffield will be closed for a street festival and a free 5K ride for cyclists of all ages. Featuring music, food and drink, fun and games, demos, giveaways, activities, challenges, face painting – it’s all happening and completely free to participate in!

Register at letsride.co.uk

In association with

steelvalleyride.wordpress.com

HSBC Let’s Ride Sheffield

MOVING THROUGH THE GEARS Adam Simmonite, events manager at Urban CX, on why Sheffield is the perfect location for adventurous cycling events How did the idea for Sheffieldbased urban cyclo-cross come about?

I’ve always lived in Sheffield and I’m proud of my city. I’ve cycled most of my life and I’ve never felt the need to move away. It’s been an exciting five years or so in Sheffield for regeneration, with areas like Kelham Island and Park Hill looking particularly exciting, so we wanted to highlight these areas of regeneration to show that cycling doesn’t just have to be in the peaks; it can also be urban. Cobbled, industrial places are particularly exciting places for courses, and Sheffield has a few of those.

So what can spectators expect from Sheffield Urban CX: Round 2?

For starters, they can expect to see some fast-paced racing. It will begin at the old Scottish Queen, where the S1 Artspace was based, and the races last around half an hour around Park Hill. We’ll be starting with the juniors in the morning, that’s the 6-11s at 10am, followed by 12-16s at midday, then onto the adult races in the afternoon. Obviously, there’s

also the new South Street Kitchen for people to visit for a bite to eat so there’ll be plenty to do and watch on the day.

Why do you think cycling and CX has really taken off in Sheffield?

Well Sheffield isn’t called the Outdoor City for no reason. The events which we run aim to change people’s perception of the city.

Sometimes people’s opinions of Park Hill flats, for example, can be a little negative, so we want to help show that it’s a space that the people of Sheffield can be proud of and create a new ethos of community for that area. We’ve stuck with local sponsors like J E James Cycles, so the events have a real local feel to them. We were shocked but also

so grateful to be nominated for an Exposed Award – it was great to be recognised by readers in the city.

What would you like to see in the future for cyclo-cross in Sheffield?

Kelham Island and Park Hill have been ticked off the list, but is there anywhere else you’d like to host a race?

It’s down to practicalities of course but we’re looking to do some shorter events, with some urban hill climbs.

I want to discuss planning a course somewhere in the city centre. We’re also looking at working in some training courses in the run up to the events to build cyclists skills before races. We just want cycling to draw in new people and for it to be as diverse as possible.

www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 91

The Making of a Murderer My Friend Dahmer, the latest film from Marc Meyers, delves into the difficult adolescence of infamous US serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer.

But what are the difficulties in making a film which attempts to offer some explanation to the carrying out of evil?

Following its UK release last month, Anna Stopford spoke to the writer-director about what first drew him to this dark tale and the controversy courted in re-telling it.

How did you first come across Dahmer, and when did you know you wanted to make a film about him?

Well, we all knew about Dahmer. I remember when it was in the news, he was known as the Milwaukee cannibal. I knew vaguely about him and the details of his murders but I wasn’t an expert. However, I thought an interesting concept for a film would be a portrait of a serial killer as a young boy; I wanted to use James Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, using its structure as a guideline for a fictional story. Myself and my wife, who is my producing partner, thought that naturalistic graphic novels, ones not about superheroes or fantasies but about everyday America, would be a great place to find source material. The storytelling is often very subversive in graphic novels, which I thought would be great to base a film on. Then a publisher in New York gave me an advanced copy of John Backderf ’s graphic novel My Friend Dahmer and I read it that day, reached out to him, and we started talking.

It’s interesting that the film is inspired by a 92 | www.exposedmagazine.co.uk

graphic novel, as they are stylistically very different mediums. How much impact did the comic have on the translation across to film?

After I had written the script, I had to start storyboarding the film. So, whenever there was an overlap between my adaptation and the original text, I would collage panels from the graphic novel into my storyboards, so I knew when I was on set I was carrying the visual spirit of the book with me. That way, when I was making the film, I could try and find some of those images which were known in the book and show them in the camera angles or the visuals in the film. I knew the book had a following, and that those fans of the book wanted to see what they love on screen.

It’s a different medium, so you can’t give them everything, but I tried to be respectful of the film’s origin.

As the film is based on a real serial killer, it obviously touches on a sensitive topic, and there have been some critical responses claiming the film sensationalises Jeffrey Dahmer.

You can always anticipate that there’s going to be a dialogue about it. So, I felt if I can just be as honest to the book and the real story as

possible, I’ve done my job. It’s the forces within him, and around him – his friends, family and neighbours – which I wanted to capture and portray. I didn’t want the movie to give a diagnosis, because it’s not my job to make you say ‘that’s the moment he snapped’. It’s just capturing a gradual decline of a kid, who is wired wrong, losing his sanity, and the people around him missing the signs.

Personally, I felt that although the negligent childhood was portrayed, the film stopped well short of any pity for Dahmer.

If I had made Dahmer a hero, that would be sensationalising, but I don’t think there were any moments where you watch the film and aspire to be him. The sensationalism is almost a comment saying ‘how dare you write a story about a serial killer?’, as though we should wipe that clean from our history. Sometimes the role of art is to make us understand ourselves, which includes those edges of our psyche where Dahmer lived. I don’t think that any art should be evaluated in terms of whether this is something that should be made or not. Any art can be made and put out into the universe to see if it finds an audience. People should tell the stories that they want to tell, and you just hope they tell it well.

Were you at all anxious about the reaction while you were making the film?

I was pretty comfortable because I was sharing the film in the edit room every couple of weeks with a small group of people so I was always reminded of the audience perception. I also knew what I was walking into, because the book preceded this and had already blazed that path. The one thing that we were always holding onto is that we didn’t want the movie to be in any way flippant, because behind this there are seventeen families that are forever hurt by the loss of a loved one. In no way is this movie forgiving what Dahmer did, or an excuse

for the violence he did later in life. It just offers a perspective on the making of that man.

What did you want audiences to get from this film?

Firstly, it was a fascinating subject matter.

Secondly, it’s a cautionary tale about how a troubled young kid slips through the cracks, and his friends, family, and teachers all missed the signs. That feels like it continues to be relevant today, as troubled young, generally white, males go on to do harmful things, and everyone misses the signs and didn’t stop it. So here’s a unique window into a kid, as his sanity is slipping. I felt that was very culturally relevant and fascinating. My hope is that people watch it, and not only are they entertained, but that they come away with a more empathetic heart towards the oddballs in their high school or their neighbourhood and look at them with more empathy. Noone asked him ‘How are you doing? Do you want to talk?’ he was in his own world, until he became a monster. If he had received more love, maybe he would have found another way to put his dark proclivities into something other than violence against other human beings.

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Top Picks

Permanent Dreams: Films of Ingmar Bergman Showroom Cinema // 1- 19 July // £9 per screening Join the Showroom Cinema in celebrating the centenary of the birth of visionary filmmaker Ingmar Bergman. The Showroom will be bringing a selection of films handpicked from the BFI’s mammoth retrospective to the big screen. These include a mix of his most famous and universally adored titles, alongside some that have rarely been seen in cinemas. showroomworkstation.org.uk Halfway Between: Stories of the Steel City Theatre Deli // 6 July// Pay as you feel Taking inspiration from the people and places in Sheffield, Halfway Between is a monologue-led performance which explores the humans of the Steel City and how events in the city have shaped them theatredeli.co.uk Summer Craft Fayre Tapton Hall // 5 August // Free Displaying the work of some of Sheffield’s most exciting creatives, this fair has plenty of activities to get stuck into. If that isn’t your bag, Tapton Hall is also hosting its monthly Sunday lunch club on the same day. Result! taptonhall.com Funky Clay Fish The Art House Sheffield // 7 July// £15 Esteemed ceramic artist Angie Hardwick knows her stuff. So much so that she’s hosting her own children’s art workshop at the Art House Sheffield this month where kids can learn how to sculpt clay and roll whilst creating their own funky fish sculptures. arthousesheffield.co.uk Buried: A New Musical Theatre Deli // 26 July // £8.89 Winner of the Cameron Mackintosh Award 2018, the NSDF Edinburgh Award and The Stage Pick of the Fringe 2017, Buried: A New Musical comes to Theatre Deli with a sizeable reputation. When Rose and Harry meet on a date, they discover something extraordinary - they’re both serial killers.

Buried is an unconventional love story, a tale of friendship found where you’d least expect it. theatredeli.co.uk

For Your Information Actor Sule Rimi on Love and Information, Caryl Churchill’s deliberately disorienting play on how we consume knowledge and technology in the modern age.

With almost 60 scenes split into seven sections and over 100 characters being portrayed by only a handful of actors – just how demanding of a task is it to perform in this play?

It’s definitely been a challenging role for me. What’s interesting about the play is that Caryl Churchill wrote it so that no character is assigned any dialogue. None of the characters are gendered or even named, so anyone can play anyone. You’re literally just working off the words Churchill has put on the page with hardly any stage direction or other cues, and this gives you a great amount of freedom as an actor, but it’s also quite a challenge. It’s definitely the most costume changes I’ve ever had in a role!

One of the most interesting features of the play is that the scenes can be rearranged in a different order. Do you think audiences will respond differently based on how the scenes are ordered on the night?

It’s difficult to say as we’ve not actually performed in front of a proper audience yet. But I believe that all art is open to interpretation, and Love and Information reflects that perfectly. For instance, there’s a scene where a character tells a secret but the audience never actually finds out what that secret is. Myself and my co-actor have about 15-20 interpretations of what it could be, so when you think about how an audience is going to interpret it, there are literally limitless possibilities.

So, the overriding message centres on how we consume and use information via technology and how that impacts the ways we communicate?

Yeah, that’s a fair assessment. I think the play is about the quality of information and how you can’t necessarily believe everything you hear. You watch the news today and you don’t know what is real or fake. I read Orwell’s 1984 a few years ago and it’s just frightening how accurate it is with regards to the media today. It’s crazy because Orwell was saying all these things in the 1940s, yet it literally still reflects the way we consume information today. You hear all this stuff about fake news and alternative truths – it’s all there in 1984. I’d say it is also about finding love in the modern world, if that doesn’t sound too cheesy to print.

As an actor, do you gravitate to roles in plays which send a particular message?

Definitely. People are feeling more and more disaffected in today’s society and the news is just all doom and gloom. My work offers a medium through which these issues can be discussed. It’s not necessarily a case of enlightening people, but trying to raise awareness instead. This play is meant to encourage people to think about what information they’re consuming: to do otherwise is just to distract people or give them an escape from the real issues at hand.

Studio Theatre // 29th June – 14th July // sheffieldtheatres.co.uk www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 95

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Words: Joseph Food On the morning of April 24, 1932, roughly 500 men and women met in the small village of Hayfield before heading towards Kinder Scout, the highest point in the Peak District. Once at the top of the mountain, they enjoyed a celebratory meetup with a separate contingent of walkers from Sheffield before the groups headed back down together. It might be hard to believe today, but this seemingly innocuous act of comradeship was in fact a defiant breach of law due to large swathes of the moorlands being owned by the upper gentry.

Backed by a series of Inclosure Acts which allowed common land to be easily secured by the wealthy, vast open spaces would be used for occasional grouse hunts and gamekeepers employed to keep the lower classes consigned to a small selection of easily congested footpaths.

The event was a pre-planned, politically motivated protest against class discrimination and later became known as the ‘Mass Tresspass’. During the march, demonstrators sang the ‘Red Flag’ and engaged in hand-to-hand scuffles with wardens and police attempting to keep the group away from restricted areas. Upon their return to Hayfield, five men were arrested (six detained overall), charged with riotous assembly and some later received jail sentences ranging from two to six months. Such heavy-handed treatment caused outrage amongst a wider section of society, exposing the greed of wealthy landowners and highlighting the injustice of land ownership laws at the time.

To celebrate the 85th year anniversary of this momentous occasion, one which lit the touchpaper for decades of ‘right to roam’ activism in the UK, Sheffield-based filmmaker Jordan Carroll was commissioned by WellRed Films to make a documentary on the social and cultural significance of the protest. We spoke with Jordan to find out more about that fateful day on the moors and its continuing legacy today.

How did you first get involved in making this film?

I contacted WellRed Films, a left-wing film company who’ve covered the tree-felling in Sheffield and other important social issues such as fracking. As a filmmaker, I’ve always wanted to use my skillset to help make change or at least do something for the better. The guy who runs Well Red Films, Alan, an ex-journalist from Canada, had the idea to do a film on the Kinder Scout trespass. That’s how it began.

Being based in Sheffield, in such close proximity to the Peak District, I suppose there’s a local affiliation with the story too?

I always try to visualise a film before deciding

whether I’d like to take it on, so when Alan told me about the Mass Trespass I could see it quite clearly as I’m often going out to the Peaks to hike. And even though we didn’t have footage of the actual event, it was all about graphic matching it; I knew I could recreate it and give people something visual.

It stood out to me because people look at the early30s as a very boring time – grey, cold, factories, no money, the Great Depression. But, despite all of this, loads of dudes would often go out to the Peaks on a Sunday and have the time of their lives. There’s a really famous quote that the ramblers used to say: “I’m a slave on Monday but a free man on Sunday.”

It was their form of entertainment.

So rambling was basically a cheap, easily accessible form of leisure for the working classes?

It was cheap. We touch upon it a lot in the documentary. Back then, you could get a tram to the Peaks for barely nothing, and it’d cost nothing

“The Mass Trespass has been described as one the most important events of civil disobedience in the history of this country” to walk out if you wished to do so.

This was an inherently class-based struggle.

What in particular sparked the more organised forms of resistance amongst ramblers?

It started from the 18th century with a thing called the Inclosure Act, which saw the Crown confiscating land across the country and redistributing it to favoured landowners. So the Peaks initially, hundreds of years ago, were just free land. This meant it became a very classdivided subject. After the act was passed, people were still allowed out into the Peaks, but only on extremely strict footpaths. The problem was that factory workers would have to work Saturdays, so everyone in Manchester and Sheffield had the same idea to go out on a Sunday. The small designated footpaths would be full of people, all looking for some escapism from the factories.

What we see today is people going to the peaks and

wanting to go the top: it’s a challenge, it’s fun, it’s rewarding. They weren’t allowed to do that back then. The closed areas were purely reserved for the grouse hunting that rich people used to do.

They’d only do it five or six times a year but they’d hire gamekeepers armed with sticks to keep the working classes off the moors. That caused scuffles and fights, and that’s what started a mass trespass.

Without modern forms of communication how did they get hundreds together in one place?

The idea of doing a mass trespass was to publicise it and make a big deal. They had a press officer, started flyering, basically did everything to get to the news out there and show their resistance.

Police ended up arresting some of them. When the men were prosecuted for walking on the moors, people from different areas really started to come together and realised that the consequences – for merely walking across some moors – were hugely unfair. It made it a bit more real; people with jobs and families were going to prison for this, and lot of others could relate to them. They were essentially sat in a cell because they walked on a hill, which is just crazy.

That tends to be the trigger for most largescale change: when the Establishment deals harshly with the original protesters it makes others sit up and pay attention.

Benny Rothman, who was the leader, and five others were arrested. There was a prejudice against them from the start because they were related to communist groups, which was hugely vilified in those days. The jury used it as an argument against them, but the whole thing was already so biased since it was made up from the same landowners keeping them off the moors. A new law was passed in the 50s, certain unrestricted areas were introduced, but it wasn’t until the 2000 actual law, the Right to Roam Act, was passed. Most of the original trespassers were dead. by then.

Why is the story behind Kinder Scout Mass Protest so important?

People now take open access for granted; they know it’s public land, it’s ours, we have the right to be there. But the reality is others fought for that freedom over 80 years ago. The overriding message that comes with the film is still hugely relevant, a message of effective protest. The Trespass is an example of how we can still conduct productive protest now. That’s why in the film we’ve referenced the tree-felling that’s happening in Sheffield at the moment, and the wider anti-fracking movement that’s happening in the country. These issues are affecting green public spaces. It’s about encouraging people that if they did it effectively in the 1930s, it can certainly be done now. @jordcarrollfilm // @wellredfilms www.exposedmagazine.co.uk | 97

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Bryan Eccleshall

A studio-holder at Bloc Studios on Arundel Street, Bryan recently completed a practice-led PhD at Sheffield Hallam University. His research was concerned with using terms emerging from linguistic translation to understand the making of visual art. The images above are from his recent show ‘Digital Rain’, a collection of collages made on Photoshop which refer to the ongoing refugee crisis and other significant world events. The source material was expanded to include 70s science fiction, classical, biblical stories, and art history – resulting in bewildering scenes which present today’s big events as narratives which have been playing out for centuries. bryaneccleshall.wordpress.com //@eccleshall1965

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thAnk you!

trAmlineS Fringe @ the FAt CAt Fri 20th July

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Our monthly round-up of all things webby, social and generally searched for, so you dont have to...

to the boozer!

It’s 30 degrees at the time of writing. With that said, one never knows where the wind blows, does one? Our Exposed weatherman, however, has assured us that it’s officially going to be “well hot” for the next few weeks so when this mag does makes its way to your very hands, you’ll know which mighty fine Sheffield beer gardens to visit. tinyurl.com/yde8kyut

Theatre review: Jersey Boys From New Jersey to the Steel City, Jersey Boys tells the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons’ journey from the mean streets of Brooklyn, to pop superstardom. Our theatre reviewer Paul Szabo was there to take it all in.

Interview: Melé 2017 saw this young lad off the Wirral go from an underground bass-music hero to a heavyweight house titan. Shortly before his set at Parklife festival, we caught up with the Scouse house master for a quick chinwag.

New kids on’t block Since the turn of the year, barely a week has passed without a new establishment springing up somewhere around the city. We’ve put together a handy guide to the new kids on the block. It’s online.

Look.

Bringing Jamie Home Warp Films and Film4 recently announced a project to turn award-winning musical Everybody’s Talking About Jamie into a feature film. Now a casting call has been made for locals to join the project with applications closing on 22 July.

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