“The Stirrer is delighted to give you first news of a fantastic new one-day festival coming to Birmingham this summer, featuring an admirably eclectic array of bands, from 90’s indie heroes Inspiral Carpets to local jazz-hop star Soweto Kinch to Afro pioneers Osibisa.
There’ll be four stages for the all-dayer, with free admission between noon and 6pm, with a £20 charge for the evening – terrific value when you look at who’ll be there…
As well as the Inspirals, The Under The Arches stage features Aussie electronic beats sensations THE PRESETS; Canadian glo-sticks electro groove nu rave outfit DANDI WIND; Newcastle’s feedback swamped incendiary indie guitar finest KUBICHEK!; and Birmingham’s eclectic eccentric exponents of the weird and wonderful MISTY’S BIG ADVENTURE.
In the Rooty Pool, Soweto will be joined by another local legend STEVE GIBBONS; rising stars BENJAMIN AND THE SIRENS; and the full vocal glory of the BIRMINGHAM COMMUNITY GOSPEL CHOIR.
Blimey. And that’s without mentioning MISTY’S BIG ADVENTURE and the DHOLBLASTERS.
Just what we need for a great summer in the city. Let us also tip you the wink that the first 500 tickets are a fiver off at £15. Go on, what are you waiting for???
(Rootsville Midsummer Festival, Saturday June 30. Custard Factory, Digbeth, Birmingham. Midday-6pm Free. 6pm-6am. www.rootsvillefestival.com)” The Stirrer
“Looks like a damn good show you got lined up there, The Destroyers should be headliners!” Brumcast
“Rootsville - wierder than glastonbury, and probably less muddy” - Birmingham, its not Shit
The announcement of Rootsville adds another big festival to Birmingham’s music calendar and it appears to have come from the grassroots rather than some city initiative. Not that there’s anything wrong with the latter but the former warms my heart.
Also notable is the wide, and I mean wide, range of genres on show covering, well, almost everything it seems. Have a scroll down this press release and see what’s missing.
The ticket pricing is interesting. The event runs from noon on Saturday June 30th until 6am the following morning but the first six hours are free (with families encouraged). After that it’s £20.
It takes place at the Custard Factory across four venues - the usual Medicine Bar and Lakeside Stage along with the Rooty Pool (presumably next to Rooty Frooty who are organising the event, hence the name) and the new Under The Arches which I’m guessing means the railway arches on Gibb St which, the last time I looked, were being used as a dumping yard.
More news as it emerges from the Rootsville site which has feeds, comments and everything or, if you’re that way inclined, their MySpace. There’s also a flyer you’re encouraged to spread about the place.
