Weekend ‘jam’ packed with music

This bank holiday weekend will see more than 150 live acts, from 20 countries turn Liverpool’s Sefton Park in to the FREE music mecca of the North West!

Liverpool International Music Festival’s Summer Jam kicks off on Fiday and will take over Sefton Park – meaning one night and three fantastic days of free live music for the whole family to enjoy.

The park will play host to five different music areas:

  • Central Stage – different themes each day will see a variety of popular acts perform.
  • The International Emerging Sounds Stage – playing host to artists from around the globe who are making names for themselves with their creative and individual approach to music which is earning them deserved world-wide recognition. 
  • The It’s Liverpool Stage – will showcase the next musical trailblazers to come from Liverpool, as well as celebrate the legends of the city’s music scene. Programmers include BBC Radio Merseyside, Dave Pichilingi from Liverpool Sound City, Bido Lito, Peter Guy and Kevin McManus.
  • The LIMF Academy will showcase fifteen of the region’s hottest up and coming young acts.
  • The LIMF Bandstand programmed by Mellowtone will see bands, soloist and choirs of all ages and genres perform.

Highlights of each day:

Friday (22 August) – Event opens at 6pm – 9.30pm

Ian Broudie
Ian Broudie joins RLPO

The evening sees the start of the free, family element of the festival with the highly anticipated performance of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. Starting at approximately 7.30pm, they will then be joined by respected Liverpool musicians Ian Broudie and The Lightning Seeds. This special concert will be hosted and broadcast by Classic FM.

Saturday (23 August) – 12noon-6pm

Central Stage will be all about the British Invasion with a stellar line-up of some of the world’s best tribute bands. All you Need is Love (The Beatles), Rocks Off (Rolling Stones) and Who’s Next (The Who) are just some of the popular acts taking to the stage

Throughout the rest of the park Stylo G, Bird, Jus Now, Science of the Lamps and Swindle will bring their eclectic mix of music to festival-goers.  Sophia Ben-Yousef, who scooped the title of LIMF One to Watch in 2013, will show just why she took that accolade when she takes to the Bandstand.

In the evening the Palm House will house ‘You Are Here’ which brings together musicians from the triple entente – the UK, France and Russia in what promises to be a night of boundary-crossing brilliance. This event is ticketed, and costs just £5. Tickets can be bought on the LIMF website.

Sunday (24 August) – 12noon -6pm

With the theme of World Music taking over Central Stage, the likes of Shaggy, Kid Creole, Goldie and BBC Radio 1Xtra’s DJ Robbo Ranx are on the line-up.

Throughout the rest of the park cutting edge artists such as Vancouver Sleep Clinic, By the Sea, Taylor Fowlis, Full Crate x Mar and Kate Tempest will entertain crowds.

Monday (25 August) – 12noon -7pm

Foxes - Mktg Use Photo hi res
Foxes set to wow crowds

Juice FM will bring a pop edge to Central Stage. DJ Fresh will headline the stage with what he describes as ‘future jungle’. Foxes will play tracks from her top 5 album, electro-girl group Neon Jungle, Lemar, The Hoosiers and local favourites Tea Street Band will perform. There will also be a very special homecoming for Grammy nominated artist Marsha Ambrosius who is certain to be a show stopper with her amazing vocals.

The It’s Liverpool Stage takes on the ‘legends’ mantle and The Farm, John Power, Clinic and Ian Prowse and Amsterdam are expected to get a very warm Liverpool welcome.  And on the International Emerging Sounds Stage Rustie and Evian Christ, who both have a big Liverpool fan-base, will perform.

The details of the full line-up can be found at www.limfestival.com/limfsummerjam. A brochure can also be downloaded from the site which gives performance times and travel advice.

LIMF Music Curator, Yaw Owusu, said: “We’ve already had a fantastic start to this year’s LIMF with the success of MTV and there’s a huge amount of anticipation around the events still to come.

“Following last year, we always knew Sefton Park would pull in the crowds and there is a level of expectation in terms of what festival-goers want to see.

“It’s clichéd but there really will be something for everyone. I’m massively proud of the eclectic mix we’ve got going on – from the world-famous names, current chart toppers and some unsigned talent who will hopefully generate a whole new fan base for themselves after their performances.

“And it’s important to remember LIMF doesn’t end after the bank holiday – there will be the magical collaboration of Sense of Sound with an ensemble of beatboxers at The Everyman, a live exhibition called Minor Characters at the Kazimier, Club MTV and a huge BET Music Matters event at the East Village Arts Club.

“It’s safe to say, Liverpool is the place to be for music lovers this August.”

Full information on everything LIMF related can be found at http://www.limfestival.com/ or follow @limfestival on Twitter or Liverpool International Music Festival on Facebook.

The site also includes a Festival Rules section which advises festival-goers that glass of any kind is not allowed on site, along with other items including barbeques, air horns and fireworks. The FAQ section also advises there is no parking available around the park, and visitors should use public transport.

Liverpool Waterfront