A Fresher’s Take on the Leeds Music Scene

Helen Tytherleigh Student Contributor, University of Leeds

Hannah Shariatmadari Student Contributor, University of Leeds

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Leeds chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

Leeds’ music scene: it’s vibrant, intense and overflowing with events, gigs, club nights and open mics that cover just about every genre you can think of. And that’s just Leeds city centre, I haven’t even got started on the university.

Fresher’s week is one of the busiest weeks of the year for every university city in the country. In Leeds alone, thousands of students descend upon the city “about to have the time of their lives” as Leeds University Union (LUU) assures us. (http://www.leedsuniversityunion.org.uk/)

During the week, the amount of flyers that got thrust into our hands was pretty overwhelming. There were hundreds of leaflets advertising events ranging from wine nights to snowboarding socials. They’re in my bags, pockets and everywhere in my room!

Personally, I come from a village in deepest, darkest Devon, where my local city is pretty small and there isn’t much going on. Leeds, on the other hand, is a complete contrast. As you can see from the flyers, there are multiple events and gigs every night. On one hand, there could be too much to choose from, but on the other it means you’ve always got somewhere to go. Whether you want to dance, skank, mosh, jump or just simply sit, enjoy a drink and listen to some live music, there is something for you. What more could a Fresher want?
I arrived on the Wednesday before Freshers, a few days earlier than the majority of students, in order to get my bearings and adjust to Leeds before the madness of the following week. On the Thursday night with a handful of friends I headed to the Union to check it out for the first time.

If you haven’t already been down into the depths of the Union there’s three clubs: Stylus, Pulse and Mine. We went along to Stylus for the launch of the Union’s new PA and to watch a few bands. This had nothing to do with the fact that they were offering free food…

My friends and I seemed to be the only ones there who weren’t in a band, related to the band or friends with members of one of the bands. However, despite the small crowd, it turned out we’d stumbled upon a lovely evening of great music.

Kicking off was Gary Stewart, accompanied by his backing band (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLNcP4MtxmE). The whole thing was very Mumford & Sons style, with one member who seemed to switch between guitar, accordion and ukele with each song. Following him were Arthur Rigby and the Baskervilles (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V00nMYSzeY0) – more Kings of Leon-esque and complete with a keyboard and brass section that added a great twist. Then ending the evening were Ellen and the Escapades with her gorgeous voice and playing their folky, pop rock. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ve90tzP1OuY)

So what music societies are on offer for us students? As you’ll have hopefully seen from the Freshers’ Fair, there are tonnes of them to get involved with. From Punk to Opera, Classical to Soul, Folk to Dubstep and Rock to Afro-Brazilian drumming, LUU has got it all pretty much covered!

I managed to speak to nearly all of the music societies at the Freshers’ Fair and loved how enthusiastic their representatives were. Rock Soc. were thrusting big red signs into people’s faces asking “Do you like Rock music?” Honeydrum One-Collective Samba Soc, on the other hand, were dressed up in really funky colourful outfits, which ensured they stood out from the crowd.

Going from stand to stand and fighting my way through the sea of people I posed the same question to each society: “What have you got going on for Freshers?”

Well, their answers and event lists could go on for pages, but instead here’s a taster:

The biggest society is Leeds University Union Music Society (LUUMS) which seems to be mainly for students studying music but offers choirs and orchestras for everyone to get involved with, regardless of whether you are doing a music degree or not.

Then there’s Folk Soc. who will be holding ceilidhs (pronounced ‘kaylees’ for those of us unfamiliar with Gaelic) and open mic sessions in Old Bar where you can bring along an instrument and have a jam with likeminded folksy people. Then again, if that’s not your thing, why not try out some Afro-Brazilian rhythm drumming with the Honeydrum One-Collective Samba Soc. – it sounds amazing and is definitely one to give a go.
Then you’ve got Rock Soc. putting on Two Smokin’ Barrels for metal/rock/punk fans and on the other end of the scale: BPM – for all electronic music lovers, covering genres such as house, funk, breaks, electro, techno, dubstep, drum and bass, hip hop and basically anything with a big bassline. They can offer you loads of discounts on club nights in Leeds, and they even offer DJ lessons.

Others you can get involved with are Jazz & Blues, Goth, Band Soc., Spoken Word, A Cappella Singers, Revelation Rock gospel choir, Punk & Ska and lots more.

One little gem I did find and particularly like was the Union Music Library. For under a tenner you can borrow a limitless amount of CDs and LPs from their collection of nearly 8000. How good is that?
There’s certainly not a shortage of things to do and places to go to in Leeds and the Union alone has so much to offer. However, I feel like I’ve only scratched the surface and there’s so much more to discover. Being a Fresher is certainly going to be a lot of fun and I can’t wait to get involved with everything and have “the time of my life”.

A Fresher’s Take on the Leeds Music Scene

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