Bradford’s Threadfest is back for its fifth year. The independent art and music festival, set up via the University of Bradford and taking place across multiple venues, is set for the Bank Holiday weekend of May 27-29.
The event has a reputation for bringing together the strangest musical bedfellows (last year’s weekend contained, amongst others, Finnish prog-metallers, Yorkshire folkies and Italian free jazz artists) and this initial line-up is no exception.
Post-punk heavyweights The Nightingales will be performing off the back of an American tour and ATP gig at the Stewart Lee-curated event. Polish-born, Glasgow based artist Ela Orleans will also be bringing her darkly beautiful electro-pop to the occasion, ahead of her new Dante’s Inferno-inspired double album Circles Of Upper And Lower Hell. Then there’s legendary Kenyan folk singer Ogoya Nengo & The Dodo Women’s Group, fascinating Japanese one-man-band ICHI with his variety of home-made instruments and BBC 6 Music darlings Cowtown.
On top of that, there’s new wave hip-hop funkers Ravioli Me Away, the Bradford Scratch Orchestra, intriguing alt-comedian Ted Chippington and much more.
Threadfest curator and producer of visual arts and music for University of Bradford Andy Abbott said: “This year Threadfest will be highlighting the inclusive and participatory nature of the not-for-profit and DIY arts and music scenes with an exciting array of events across a variety of venues. Not only are there acts from all over the world playing a diverse range of musical styles, but many events directly address the challenges around who is represented and how, whether that concerns age, race, class, gender, sexuality or ability.”
Venues occupied by the festival include Gallery II at the University of Bradford, Bradford Playhouse, Delius Arts & Cultural Centre, Fuse Art Space and The 1 In 12 Club. For more information head here.
