Feature article: Leicester at the Surface festival 20011

Leicester acts taking part in the 2011 festival.

Follow the Nottingham results of Surface Festival

23rd November

Next years festival

The 2012 season of Surface Festival is already looking to be the biggest year on record. With over 9,000 applications from bands and musicians from all over the UK and Europe already registered, and still 2 more months until the Festival begins, industry hype surrounding the event is spreading. New partnerships with major industry bodies, such as Music Week, Monkey Week Festival and Access to Music, and a brand new European tour open to ALL bands involved Surface Festival will make this year's event the best yet.

In 2012 Surface Festival will be hosting over 600 shows across major cities in the UK and Europe as well as Barcelona, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, Nottingham, Oxford, Swansea, Cardiff, Bristol and London.

The International Showcase will take place at the internationally recognized 02 complex in Londo, at which the best bands of the Festival will play in front of an invited industry panel. This year the panel will consist of Jools Holland, John Brookes (The Charlatans), and Alex Baker (Kerrang Radio).

Information is availble from the Surface web site

Surrender The Coast are playing The Central, 310 Huntingdon Street Nottingham, United Kingdom, NG1 3LH on Thursday 10th March.

Re:session are playing on Friday 11th March at The Central, 310 Huntingdon Street Nottingham, United Kingdom, NG1 3LH - qualified for the next round on 11th March

Panda youth are played their audition on 20th March but failed to qualfy. However Dirty Jack and The James Lewis band did quality on the same night.

Evangeline qualified on Thursday 24th March.

The Furies qualified on Friday 25th March.

These bands go through to stage 2

24th March

2012 will be the first year for Surface Festival in Germany and already the excitement and expectation is hitting overload. In 2011 the Festival expanded to Spain due to phenomenal demand from bands and artists there. With huge demand from Germany as well, the Festival is now expanding further in 2012. German Area Manager, Frank Przybilla, states: "Germany has a huge array of unsigned and independent bands and artists, many of which are of great quality. There is a wealth of talent out there and I am excited about which new and exciting bands I will discover at the German Surface Festival. I am really looking forward to the live shows in 2012.

1st February

Yes, today is the kick-off for Surface Festival 2011! From today onwards bands and artists of all kinds of genres, backgrounds and abilities will be performing across the UK and Europe with the aim to make it to the International Showcase at the world-renowned O2-complex in London. The best bands/artists of the Festival will receive prizes worth over £100,000.

Having received over 15,000 applications for this year's Festival expectations are higher than ever. Leon Van Den Broecke, UK manager for Surface Festival, who has been involved in vetting applications, is extremely excited: "The quality of bands this year is better than ever. Everyone is very enthusiastic and excited to get started; I'm confident we will see lots of fantastic bands emerge in this year's Festival."

30th November 2010

Everything is ready to go! 2011 will be the first year for the Surface Festival abroad and it´s already hitting records. Over 1000 applications from independent and unsigned bands and artists from all over Spain have already been received, but only 300 can be chosen to play.

Over the last five years Surface Festival has grown into the UK's biggest Festival for independent and unsigned music. Due to phenomenal demand from Spain the Festival is now expanding to Barcelona in 2011. Loads of Spanish collaborators are offering their support and a number of companies from the Spanish music scene have shown interest, such as Mondo Sonoro, Musikaze and the Monkey Week Festival, to name a few. Things couldn't be looking better for independent and unsigned bands in Spain!

Surface Festival events won't be starting in Barcelona until February 2011, but excitement surrounding all aspects of it is already growing. Pablo Molinero Martínez, the Spanish Area Manager states: "We have received applications from a wide variety of bands and I am impressed by the quality of many of them. Barcelona is a beautiful, global city and Spain's most popular tourist destination; we have a host of brilliant bands. Spanish press and media are confirmed to assist the Festival all the way through. I am really looking forward to the live shows in 2011."

There will be seven different venues in Barcelona where events will be held, running from Feb 2011 until Sept 2011. The International Final will be at the O2 in London, where the best Spanish bands will get the chance to showcase their talent alongside the best British bands of the Surface Festival.

Surface Unsigned - the UK's biggest competition for unsigned bands draws to its close with the national finals at the Millennium Dome on 25th September.

The 2011 season of the Surface Festival is already looking to be the biggest year on record. With over 8,000 applications from bands and musicians from all over the UK and Europe already registered, and still 3 more months until the Festival begins, industry hype surrounding the Surface Festival is spreading.

In 2011 the Surface Festival will be doing 500 shows across 14 cities in the UK and Europe.  Showcases will take place in London, Portsmouth, Bristol, Cardiff, Swansea, Birmingham, Nottingham, Oxford, Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle, Glasgow, Barcelona and Budapest. Local industry guests are invited to shows in each area. The International Showcase takes place at the internationally recognized 02 complex in London , at which the best bands of the Festival perform in front of an invited industry panel.

Alex Baker from the Kerrang Radio Unsigned Show , who sits on the panel, explains: " The Surface Festival gives bands a genuine opportunity to get their music in front of people in the industry that can help further their careers. The prizes offered for the winning band and runners up are just fantastic and the experience all the bands gain from playing larger venues is priceless ."

A host of industry guests are listed on the Surface Festival website. Names include Jon Brookes from The Charlatans, Warner Music, Weekender Records and MAS records to name a few.

Steve Stoker from 2010 band Twister describes his experience: "I would like to say that Twister have found the Festival this year as the highlight of their band career so far. We have been able to play at the some of best venues across the country and worked and met with some great people from the Industry."

Jon Brookes from The Charlatans, who has been involved in the Festival from its beginnings, recently stated in his blog: "Surface continues to act like a giant music magnet finding exciting ground breaking new acts. It re-energizes the inner cities searching out new talent. The prizes and industry weight of the various associate sponsors shows the level at which this festival is now held in the industry."

With some amazing venues booked for 2011, including the O2 in London, globally well-renowned sponsors giving the event credibility, and more prizes than ever on offer, this is an event not to be missed.

For further info and to apply to the Surface Festival see www.surfacefestival.com

In 2011 the Surface Festival will be organising over 500 shows across 14 cities in the UK and Europe. Shows will take place in London, Portsmouth, Bristol, Cardiff, Swansea, Birmingham, Nottingham, Oxford, Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle, Glasgow, Barcelona and Budapest.

The climax of the Festival will culminate with 21 bands playing the IndigO2 at the O2 Complex - a venue which has seen acts such as Jools Holland, Timbaland, Joss Stone and Estelle to name a few. Dominic Nicholls, music photographer, explains “Surface gives bands the chance to play the type of venues that most bands only dream of when they've 'made it' - add to the expertise Surface offers in terms of lighting and sound management, PR and exposure and you're looking at an opportunity that's too good to miss

The main focus of a band should be live performance. The sweaty, loud and beer saturated venues across Britain are where bands are born

This aspect that the Surface Festival is focused on keeping alive. Other venues Surface will be using include the O2 Academy Main stage in Birmingham and Bristol, the Dome in London, the Manchester Academy and Oxford Academy. Nights are set out by genre providing opportunities for bands and artists to gain exposure from new audiences, sell merchandise, promote networking opportunities and attract new fans. For a list of testimonials from bands that have played the Surface Festival check the website.

The Surface Festival works in association with 24 international sponsors that cover all bases for a band. Marshall Amplification are extremely excited to be working with the Surface Festival for 2011. This event is truly inspiring for all involved - Marshall Amplification. For a further list of sponsors see the website.

With a prize pot of £100,000 including a slot at Sziget Festival 2011, bands and artists get the opportunity to progress further in the music industry. The prizes offered for the winning band and runners up are just fantastic and the experience all the bands gain from playing larger venues is priceless - Alex Baker; Kerrang Radio Unsigned show.

The Surface Festival Committee consists of a panel of music industry representatives who will have the privilege of seeing the very best acts from around the UK and Europe that will appear at the National Showcase at the O2. Judge Alex Baker says that the show this year was very hard to judge; amazing stage shows, amazing songs, amazing bands.

Congratulations to Great Imitation who blew everyone's minds, a much deserved win! Surface Festival takes bands at grass roots level and brings them through a journey culminating in an industry showcase. The quality of the sponsors, judges and management lends colossal credibility to this event and should be a breath of fresh air to all bands and artists in the UK.

In an uncertain time, where longevity and sustainability is rare in today's music industry the Surface Festival can be exemplified as a solid force for good, offering some amazing opportunities to bands.

Working together with key industry bodies and organizations is paramount to developing a model that is fair for everyone: the promoters, the venues, the fans and most importantly the bands taking part and the experience and value they get from playing the live shows.

The Surface Festival was a fantastic experience for us, an unforgettable journey through many rounds at different venues. The ultimate prize and ultimate goal was to perform at the IndigO2. The chance to play at this incredible venue gave you a real sense of achievement and a wonderful feeling that will stay with us for a long time. The Surface crew were helpful, friendly and always very supportive which made the whole experience just that little bit better.

Other pages you might like

Who from Leicester took part in Surface 2010 and how did they do. See our coverage of last year's festival.

Leicester festivals

List of all known Leicester bands

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