THE GEORGE SHORT STAGE @ CUMBERLAND ARMS
SUNDAY 7th JUNE
Cumberland Arms is programmed alongside Sonic Futures
This stage is named after George Short. In September 1933 a 3,000 strong crowd, organised by George Short and his wife Phyllis,
prevented the British Union of Fascist’s National Propaganda Officer from speaking at Stockton’s Market Cross.
The ensuing conflict became known as the Battle of Stockton, the first major anti-fascist action in Britain.
FURTHER ARTISTS TBA
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SHADY NASTY
"full of menacing reverb and deadpan spoken-word delivery." - Stereogum
"characteristically eclectic in style, combining the gritty hip-hop and post-punk elements the band have been melding since their formation in 2015." - NME
"corrosive" - The FADER
“Jittery and tense blasts of sketchy rock that sounds like kids born in the late 90s have discovered some early Helmet or Mark of Cain records. This is good rowdy stuff.”- VICE
Eora/Sydney’s Shady Nasty tour their EP CLUBSMOKE. The forthcoming EP is a meditation on vlogging, gymming, clubbing and clout. Both ecstasy and emptiness are felt through sonic and visual homages to EDM, influencers and luxury brands in their harbour city home. As the blur between the group’s online and offline worlds intensifies, so too does their relationship to these accelerated cultures. As entranced as it is disconnected, CLUBSMOKE remains inseparable from the hyper-stimulating worlds it seeks to address.With backgrounds in jazz and classical music, Shady Nasty subvert expectations. Inspired by the likes of Show Me The Body, King Krule, Iceage, Low Life and Mount Kimbie, the Sydney trio play an energetic and weirdo breed of punk that skirts the boundaries of the genre.
Their art offers an accelerated vision of the online colliding with their personal lives. Coupled with a raucous live show, the trio create a compelling world at the boundaries of alternative punk and contemporary hip-hop: modding cars, gymming, family, digital obsessions and making ends meet.
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WEDNESDAY FLOWERS
The Wednesday Flowers are a rising all-girl indie rock band making waves in the UK’s alternative music scene. Originating from the North East, Stockton-on-Tees, this genre-defying five piece fuses elements of ethereal gothic rock, indie and grunge shoegaze to create a sound that is both nostalgic and refreshingly original.
Formed through a shared love of music and live performance, The Wednesday Flowers quickly gained attention for their bold songwriting and captivating stage presence. Their debut single, "Love Me," is a striking introduction to their musical abilities: a darkly melodic anthem that balances emotions of love, yearning and wanting.Live shows are at the heart of their identity. The band has built a loyal following with dynamic performances at local venues like The Grove, KU Bar and made their festival debut at Kendal Calling. Their sets seamlessly blend original tracks such as “Suffocating” and “Falling Behind” with inventive covers of Paramore, and crowd favourites like their version of “Talk” by Beabadoobee
With a sound that refuses to be boxed in and a growing presence on the UK indie circuit, The Wednesday Flowers are impossible to ignore; they're not just a band to watch, they’re a band to remember.
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STEVIE WHAT?
He forgot his name, but remembered the package holidays.
Stevie What? was a travel agent. Then he fell through a wormhole. Now he sells package holidays on the planet of Pokitaru.
This theatrical psych-pop show is a surreal retelling of Stevies wormhole experience: a HR nightmare turned cosmic awakening. Blending live music, video, and deadpan storytelling, the show follows one mans attempts to navigate memory loss, low-budget metaphysics, and corporate dress codes. -
NORTHERN HOSPITALITY
Northern Hospitality are a riotous fusion of punk energy, anthemic choruses, and heavy, hook-laden guitars. Each track hits like a rallying cry, with raw emotion and electrifying spirit pulsing through every note — both in the studio and on stage.
After a few thunderous years carving out their sound, Northern Hospitality have emerged as one of the North East’s most exciting and acclaimed live acts. Following a standout debut at Kendal Calling, they’ve since shared stages with Pete Doherty, Kaiser Chiefs, Feeder and Tom Meighan, cementing their place among the UK’s rising rock powerhouses.
Fronted by the charismatic Gaz Price and backed by the powerhouse lineup of Georgia Smith (drums), Nico Mouissie (bass), and Sean McCloskey (lead guitar), the band are showing no signs of slowing down. With momentum building fast, Northern Hospitality are poised to take the nation by storm
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GLAD TOWN GHOST
Dale Husband aka Glad Town Ghost channels a sound usually found deep in the Appalachian foothills, as he crafts subtle layers of musical ideas out of some sweet and savvy storytelling built around the provincial northernisms and post-industrial landscapes of his native East Cleveland.
Dale’s style is steeped in American folk for fans of Jackson C Frank and Cormac McCarthy, perpetuated by his solo concept album The Endless Heavy Sleep in 2020.
Glad Town Ghost sees Dale return to his finger picking roots, ‘melancholic by nature and hopeful by design.’ Described as campfire indie folk and heralded by the likes of NARC. Magazine, NE Volume and BBC Introducing. Glad Town Ghost’s These Witching Hours and Dreamsong, TS10 EPs are forged in a charmingly understated way, often as bleak as they are empowering with an underlying positivity that only comes from fatherhood as Dale ponders a future for his young daughter the only way he can, with exquisitely crafted topical folk."