COOL AS LEICESTER

Music fans, we’re here with your weekly Leicester music guide featuring news and interviews from across the local scene.

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NEWS

Cool As Leicester launches new What’s On guide

It’s about to get a lot easier to keep on top of where to go and what to do in Leicester and Leicestershire. This week we’ve launched our new What’s On guide which is your new go to guide packed with event listings across your favourite venues. Keep it bookmarked at www.coolasleicester.co.uk/whatson.

Miss Bowie – The Shed
Friday 2 July

Miss Bowie aim to do justice to the genius of David Bowie’s music through authentic and heartfelt performances of their interpretations of his songs, at the same time paying homage to the original versions. TICKETS.

After months of lockdown it’s been a long wait for some real life events. This month Rockstar Promotions are hosting the Sit Down Social at Athena, as finally we get back to enjoying live music, entertainment and fun. We caught up with organiser, Martin, to find out more about it. 

How would you describe the upcoming Sit Down Social events?

I would say these events will give people the opportunity to experience that ‘big night out’ feeling during this stage of the lockdown restrictions easing, with some really fun themes and fantastic music and entertainment. At 536 capacity, I think the atmosphere at these events will be amongst the very best people can experience anywhere in the UK at present.

What can people expect from the entertainment on the night?

At the ABBA vs Queen event, our DJ’s will be playing the biggest ABBA & Queen hits all night long, with a few other classics from that era. At the Electric 80’s event, our DJ’s will be playing music from right across the 80’s, so expect everything from Michael Jackson to Whitney Houston, through to Bon Jovi and Earth Wind & Fire.

There will also be a spectacular stage show with festival level sound and lighting, visuals, as well as dancers/performers themed towards each night.

Plus there will be party packs on each table to help keep people entertained!

How different is it planning events like this to the usual live entertainment?

To be honest it has been very different, although what we’ve tried to do is take the best elements from our usual large scale club night/live music events that we think will work well in a seated environment, and then add fill in the gaps to ensure that we give people a fantastic night out. During the autumn last year when these kinds of events were allowed to happen, myself and my team toured the UK visiting a number of this type of event, and tried to understand what worked well (and what didn’t), so we are confident that we have put together something that will be really exciting for the people of Leicester.

How hard has it been to adapt to the changing times?

It has been tough. I’ve been running this business since I left University in 2007, and putting on large scale events has been pretty much all we’ve known, so for that to stop almost overnight was a big shock. But after the initial period of reflection, we’ve actually done some really cool stuff in the last 14 months, so for example we’ve delivered virtual club night events for Leicester University and consistently had around 1500 students watching and engaging with those each week, which I never would have imagined would work! And we are really excited about the project we are launching at Athena and think this type of event could be here to stay as part of our business even when all restrictions are lifted.

The events are being held at Athena, what is it about Athena as a venue that really stands out?

First and foremost it’s a beautiful art deco venue, and has incredible sound and lighting. I think it’s the nature and layout of the venue that really lends itself to these events though. It’s big stage and tiered layout means that we can put on a really spectacular show, and everyone can have a great view whilst being seated at their table. Also the size of the venue helps, as given we can get 536 people in to the events it’s enough to create a brilliant atmosphere. The management at the venue also pride themselves on providing a fantastic experience, so we know that people will receive excellent customer service at the events.    

Who would you say the events are aimed at?

I think the events we are running on Saturday nights have a broad appeal, and that’s very deliberate. Obviously there will be people that love ABBA/Queen or 80’s music, so for those people the nights will be brilliant! But we have deliberately picked those themes because they transcend most generations, and the music is fun and upbeat and provides a great backdrop for people to have their first big night out after such a long time without them! Plus the fact we have such spectacular sound, lighting and visuals, as well as themed dancers/performers, will really give the events that concert/performance feel that we know people have really been missing.

We are also running some midweek events that are aimed solely at students, and they are similar in the sense that we are trying to provide them with the opportunity to socialise with their friends on a ‘big night out’, which they have all been really missing.

Where can people find out more and buy tickets?

People can see find full event information and buy tickets from our Sit Down Social ticket site, which can be found at http://sitdownsocial.com/athena

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WEEKLY PLAYLIST

Each week we bring you a selection of favourite local acts to give you a flavour of the incredible range of upcoming talent.

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