MML - Middlesbrough Music Live - Best Ever!

3rd April 2009

Categories: Middlesbrough Arts

The 10th Middlesbrough Music Live has been hailed as the 'best ever' after record crowds of almost 50,000 people flocked to Middlesbrough Town Centre this year (Sunday 7 June).

Top names including The Zutons, Noah & The Whale, Frank Turner and South London rapper Master Shortie were among over 100 acts who played at what both The Sunday Times and Daily Telegraph had already described as one of the 'top 100' festivals of the summer.

Organised by Middlesbrough Council in partnership with local promoters Ten Feet Tall, MML is now firmly established as one of the freshest and best-respected free festivals in the country.

Speaking as Middlesbrough still buzzed into the night, Graham Ramsay of Ten Feet Tall said: "This has been the best Music Live we've ever had! To see almost 50,000 people here today has just been phenomenal.

"The atmosphere has just been amazing. The audience have been smiling, jumping around and having fun all day. As an event organiser you can't ask for more.

"It's been great that we've been able to put some of the best and freshest new acts around in front of people, and they've all been given a great Boro response.

"All the stages have been packed to capacity virtually all day, even the weather's been kind, and there's just been a great feeling to everything. We've had an absolutely fantastic day."

Judith Croft, Festival and Events Manager with Middlesbrough Council, said: "That was a wonderful way to celebrate our 10th anniversary. It's the biggest crowd we've ever had, the largest number of stages and, with the Warm-Up events we did in the lead-up to the big day, it's just been the best Music Live we've had so far. Planning for next year starts here!

Middlesbrough Music Live 2009 Line-Up

The Zutons have been confirmed. The 10th anniversary of Middlesbrough Music Live (MML) on June 7, 2009 will be better than ever. See the rest of the line-up here. (All times approximate and subject to change.) For info on the warm-up events leading to Middlesbrough Music Live click here

Click on artists' names below to check out the music.

Middlesbrough Music Live
Main Events: Sunday 7 June 2009

The Love Middlesbrough Main Stage
[Centre Square]
All Ages

08.45pm The Zutons (photo right)
07.35pm The Sunshine Underground
06.25pm Ebony Bones
05.20pm Master Shortie
04.00pm Zion, Bob Marley Tribute
03.00pm Raygun
02.00pm Vagabond
01.00pm Will & The People
12noon General Fiasco

Gates Open 11.30am

Evening Gazette Sounds Stage
[Town Hall - Main Auditorium]
Ages 14+

09.15pm The Rumble Strips
08.15pm Golden Silvers
07.15pm Tommy Sparks
06.15pm The Qemists
05.20pm The Chapman Family
04.25pm Dan Black
03.30pm The Black Box Revelation
02.35pm Screaming Lights
01.45pm Sound Of Guns
01.00pm Official Secrets Act
12.15pm Be Quiet. Shout Loud!

Sumo Rock Stage
[Town Hall Courtyard]
All Ages

09.10pm Frank Turner
08.10pm The Ghost Of A Thousand
07.10pm Future Of The Left
06.10pm Dinosaur Pile-Up
05.15pm Twin Atlantic
04.20pm Heaven's Basement
03.25pm Pulled Apart By Horses
02.30pm Your Demise
01.35pm Turbowolf
12.45pm Saving Aimee
12noon Such Great Heights

Ten Feet Tall Stage
[The Empire - Main Room]
Ages 18+

10.00pm Metropolis Aftershow Party
08.40pm Noah and the Whale
07.30pm Bombay Bicycle Club
06.20pm Detroit Social Club
05.10pm stornoway
04.00pm Wallis Bird
02.55pm The Panics
01.50pm Skint & Demoralised
12.45pm White Belt Yellow Tag
12noon Das Wanderlust

Harry Houdini Stage
[The Empire - First Floor]
Ages 18+

08.10pm Stay Tuned for Details
07.00pm The Black Box Revelation
05.50pm Gold Teeth
05.20pm Billy The Kid (Solo Acoustic)
04.40pm The Brute Chorus
03.30pm Me My Head
02.25pm The Space Agency
01.20pm Kovak

Cosmos Club
[Upstairs in The Central]
Ages 18+

09.15pm Bear Hands
08.10pm Babel
07.10pm Goldheart Assembly
06.10pm Beth Jeans Houghton (photo right)
05.10pm Pete Greenwood
04.10pm Georgia Seddon + Special Guest
03.25pm Sal Paradise
02.40pm Timothy James Oxnard
01.55pm The Acrobatic Society
01.00pm The Woven Project

Homegrown Outdoor
[Outside The Empire]
All Ages

09.30pm The Hitchers (photo right)
08.30pm Our Secret Sins
07.30pm Lifeless
06.30pm This City Romance
05.30pm Jezzle
04.30pm The Reverse
03.30pm 3 Foot Ninja
02.30pm Idiot Savant
01.30pm Seething Floors
12.30pm Said The Gramophone

Homegrown Indoor
[Pacific Bar]
Ages 14+

09.00pm Pellethead (photo right)
08.00pm The Scarlet Desire
07.00pm Emmy Shot A Unicorn
06.00pm Four Mile Drive
05.00pm Slip
04.00pm Russell & The Wolves
03.00pm Electric Nightmares
02.00pm Jimmy Bullet & The Baby Shakers
01.00pm Anchor Fast Anchor

Bands in the Crypt
[Town Hall Crypt]
Ages 18+

04.00pm Maybe Myrtle Tyrtle
02.30pm Ska-Boom!

The Hairy Lemon
All Ages

06.00pm The Beer Pigs
05.00pm Elvis Tribute [Niall Southall]
04.00pm Frantic Sound Collective Part #2
03.00pm Frantic Sound Collective Part #1
02.00pm Lovesick Cowboys - Hank Williams Tribute

Braziliant! 3.0
mima Gardens
All Ages

Brazilian BBQ washed down with caipirihnas.
01.00pm-02.00pm Carnival Costume Workshop for Kids
02.00pm-03.00pm DJ Cliffy DJ Set
03.00pm-04.15pm D. Vyzor DJ Set
04.15pm-06.00pm Lady Jane Bongo DJ set
06.00pm-08.00pm DJ Cliffy DJ Set
08.00pm-09.00pm Human Factor DJ Set - Brazilian Drum 'N' Bass
10.00pm-Late A Braziliant After-Party will be held at Uncle Alberts

Open Mic
[Square 1]
Ages 14+

If you fancy displaying your hidden talents (music / comedy / magic / whatever) to the wider world then email charlotte@tenfeettall.co.uk to book your anything goes, 10-minute slot.

Map of the sites

Useful Links

Middlesbrough Music Live official website

Middlesbrough Music Live on myspace

Middlesbrough Music Live Facebook Group

Middlesbrough Music Live on Twitter

Middlesbrough Music Live at the Gazette including VIP competition

Middlesbrough Music Live on Last.fm

Middlesbrough Music Live Competition at Visit Tees Valley

Middlesbrough Music Live at BBC Tees with photos from previous years

The Zutons Headliners for 'Best Ever' MML

Top indie faves The Zutons have been confirmed as headliners for the 10th anniversary of Middlesbrough Music Live on Sunday 7 June.

With three top-ten albums and a string of top 40 singles including You Will You Won't, Valerie and Always Right Behind You, the Liverpool based band have received mountains of critical acclaim - including Mercury Prize nominations - and have stormed major music festivals all over the world.

Graham Ramsay of Ten Feet Tall said: "We're chuffed to bits to have The Zutons confirmed for our 10th anniversary. They're the perfect headliner for us - one of those bands who can pull out hit after hit, and appeal to people right across the board. A ton of great pop songs, and a great live show...what more do you need?"

Homegrown Line-ups Announced

Local legends Pellethead and The Hitchers head the line-ups announced forMiddlesbrough Music Live's dedicated 'Homegrown' stages.

Festival organisers say this year will see the best local band line-up since MML began, after an astonishing 200 local bands applied for the 18 places that were up for grabs this year.

And this year sees a welcome 10th anniversary return for Pellethead, who have great memories of playing the first MML a decade ago.

Alan Morrison, guitar/vocalist with Pellethead said: "We had a gig to remember when we played the first Middlesbrough Music Live all those years ago. Since then, we've played all around the world - the USA, Czech Republic and tons of other places - but we still love Boro the best. We're really proud to play Middlesbrough Music Live again this year and hopefully it'll be just as storming as it was back in 2000!"

Announcing the local band line-ups, Henry Carden from Ten Feet Tall said: "We had almost 200 bands submit myspace links and demo CDs, so with less than 20 slots available, it was very difficult to curate the line up.

"We spent literally days listening to every single band who got in touch and we're over the moon with how the line up has come together. It's the best and most eclectic local band line-up we've ever had.

"We've got rap, we've got indie, we've got metal, we've got punk, we've got bands in their 40s and we've got bands who've not yet done their GCSEs!

"I know we say this every year, but we could have done with an extra hundred slots available to us because the quality of the new bands who got in touch totally blew us away!"

Cllr David Budd, Executive Member for Regeneration & Economic Development, said: "It never surprises us just how many great bands we have on our own doorsteps. Local bands play a big part in MML, and it's great that so many will be playing again this year."

Two local MML bands will play German festival; Two German bands coming here

Two of the local bands playing at Middlesbrough Music Live this year will have a chance to play at one of Germany's best respected music festivals in front of over 12,000 people later this summer!

And now MML organisers are looking for ideas on how to give two German bands a taste of home when they arrive in Boro for MML on Sunday June 7.

The exchange gig is a repeat of last year's successful link-up with the Olgas Rock Festival in Middlesbrough's twin town of Oberhausen, when Teesside bands Be Quiet Shout Loud and Das Wanderlust played at Olgas Rock after impressing their German counterparts.

Now; two Oberhausen based rock bands - Seething Floors andEmmy Shot a Unicorn - will be playing alongside 18 Teesside bands on two dedicated 'Homegrown' stages at MML, and will be helping choose the two local bands to visit Germany in August.

Phil Saunders from promoters Ten Feet Tall said: "Our two local bands were really well looked after in Germany last year, and we're looking to give the German bands a huge welcome in return. So if there's anyone specialising in German food, art, culture, you name it, then give us a shout and we'll do our best to get everyone linked up for a great weekend." Email phil@tenfeettall.co.uk to get involved making the bands feel at home.

Middlesbrough Music Live One of UK's "Top 100 Festivals"

Organised by Middlesbrough Council in partnership with local promotersTen Feet Tall, MML is now firmly established as one of the freshest and best-respected free festivals in the country. This year MML was chosen as one of The Daily Telegraph's 'best 100 music festivals' of this summer.

This year's event will again take place in the heart of Middlesbrough Town Centre, and feature ten indoor and outdoor stages with a great mix of emerging local, national and international acts.

Concentrating on the finest new talent has previously seen bands like The Kaiser Chiefs, Keane and Razorlight all play MML just as they were breaking through to huge chart success.

Record crowds are expected at this year's festival, which attracted over 47,000 people last year despite less-than-kind weather conditions.

Judith Croft from Middlesbrough Council's event's team comments: "What really sets Music Live apart is the fact that all the stages are only a few minutes walk from each other, and this creates an enormous buzz right across the site, with tens of thousands of music fans constantly on the move from one stage to the next, all on the look-out for their new favourite band.

"The fact that this is so firmly an urban festival, and that our town centre can boast such a great range of different sites and venues really helps to set Middlesbrough Music Live apart from virtually every other music festival in the country.

"We've got a few surprises up our sleeve this year too, and we're all looking forward to this year's event more than ever before!"

It's not just the bands chosen to play who'll benefit from this year's MML. A dedicated local band website is set to be launched before the festival, with details and info on all the local bands who applied to play this year.

Music Live makes National News Again

Middlesbrough Music Live is making national news again after being chosen as one of The Sunday Times 'top 100 music festivals' of the summer.

The news comes hot on the heels of a similar recommendation in The Daily Telegraph's 'top 100 festival guide' last month - and landed just as MML is preparing to celebrate it's 10th anniversary this year with The Warm Up, its very first Festival Fringe.

The Sunday Times, like The Telegraph, picked out MML as one of this year's highlights alongside legendary events including Glastonbury, the Isle of Wight, T in the Park, Womad, and Reading/Leeds Festivals - some of which have weekend tickets costing up to £180!

Now, brand new for 2009, The Warm Up features three action-packed days of music, comedy, street gigs and more, as MML spills out into venues and outdoor sites across the town on Thurs 4, Fri 5 and Sat 6 June - all before the Big Day itself on Sunday 7 June.

Describing The Warm Up, Graham Ramsay of Ten Feet Tall, said: "We literally ran out of space and time on the day itself to fit everything in, so we threw open an invitation to venues across the town to host some top-notch warm-up gigs running up to the Big Day.

"And we've been delighted with the response. We've got an international choir at mima; Live at the Apollo comedian Russell Kane at the Town Hall Crypt; some cracking local band showcases at the Princess Alice, Uncle Alberts and the Warehouse; the launch of a super-cool club night for under-18's at The Empire; acoustic magic at the magnificent central Reference Library, and bags more.

"We've also got bands and street performers popping up all over, so keep your eyes and ears peeled if you're out and about in Middlesbrough on the Thursday, Friday and Saturday. You never know what surprises might be in store. We can't wait."

Cllr David Budd, Middlesbrough Council's Executive Member for Regeneration & Economic Development, said: "Once again, great news for Middlesbrough. To be highlighted by two major national newspapers like this shows that MML has built a great reputation over the years as one of the best festivals around, and The Warm Up in the days leading up to the main event on June 7 will add even more to the festival atmosphere."

Organised by Middlesbrough Council in partnership with local promoters Ten Feet Tall, MML is now firmly established as one of the freshest and best-respected free festivals in the country, with audience figures regularly reaching over 45,000 people.

Big crowds are expected again for this year's 10th anniversary event on Sunday June 7, with acts including The Zutons, Frank Turner, Noah And The Whale and the Rumble Strips amongst those set to appear.

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