With a number of the UK’s biggest and most impressive venues in our patch, we Midlanders are guaranteed a chance to see some of the music industry’s brightest stars as they tour the country. Our grass-roots music scene is super-cool, too. Here’s a selection of gigs worth grabbing a ticket for over the next few weeks...  

ANASTACIA

Large-lunged pop icon Anastacia returns, complete with a fistful of hits and happy to  let her music do the talking. 

With a startlingly distinctive voice that could shatter glass through its sheer force, she contrives to be both inspiring and uplifting without descending into trite and hackneyed cliche. 

Her Wolverhampton show forms part of a short tour to celebrate the quarter-century anniversary of her critically acclaimed debut album, Not That Kind. 

The Civic at The Halls Wolverhampton, Wednesday 23 September

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MARILLION

They’ve been going strong for more than 40 years now, and given that they’re visiting the second city with a collection of new songs to perform, it’s fair to say that Marillion remain in impressively rude health. 
One of the UK’s most dynamic live bands, the boys maybe don’t tour as much as some other groups, but when they do, they’re well worth the ticket price.

“If it was practical and made financial sense to play everywhere, we would,” they explain. “The spirit is willing. The reality is more complicated... Touring takes us away from writing, recording and our families. We have to remain alive, and sane, so schedules have to be sustainable as well as practical. We’re not as young as we used to be...”

Symphony Hall, Birmingham, Wednesday 23 September

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THE DUNWELLS

Leeds-based indie-folk-pop favourites The Dunwells have been ploughing their musical furrow since the noughties, earning themselves a reputation for being reliable purveyors of strong vocals, powerful melodies and heartfelt lyrics. 

Featuring brothers Joseph (vocals) and David Dunwell (guitar, vocals), along with friends Adam Taylor (drums, vocals) and Rob Clayton (bass, vocals), the quartet have supported some major names in the music industry, including Mumford & Sons, Tom Jones, Scouting For Girls and Bryan Adams.

LOOP, Shrewsbury, Thursday 24 September

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JILL SCOTT

Residency-style performances, placing live-band instrumentation at the heart of the experience, are very much the name of the game for Jill Scott on this latest tour. 
The three-time Grammy Award-winning neo-soul star is visiting Birmingham in support of her exuberant latest album, To Whom This May Concern - her first in more than a decade. Her Midlands stop-off comes as part of an extensive world tour.  

O2 Academy, Birmingham, Tuesday 29 September

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GRACE PETRIE

Long-hailed the folk scene’s funniest lesbian, Grace Petrie has spent much of her career writing protest songs. “I sing a lot of shouty songs about politics, and obviously in this current climate, I don’t have a lack of things to write about. I’m a socialist, feminist, political singer really, so it’s all lefty stuff. I’m a proud queer artist as well, and that’s quite a big part of what I write and sing about. It’s definitely not for the faint-hearted!” 

Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry, Wednesday 30 September

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CRAIG CHARLES

Coronation Street, Red Dwarf and Robot Wars - not to mention successful DJing and writing careers - have ensured Craig Charles is pretty well known to the great British public. His music career started in 1980, playing keyboards and bass, and providing vocals, for the rock band Watt 4. 

In more recent times he’s toured far and wide with his hugely popular Funk & Soul Club, playing a mixture of tracks which have usually been covered and remixed by current leading bands and DJs. 
This month’s Coventry Cathedral event includes a 90-minute set from Craig himself. 

Coventry Cathedral, Friday 2 October

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THE ORB

One of electronic music’s most influential acts, The Orb created a psychedelic sound which sat well with clubbers who were ‘coming down’ from drug-induced highs. Now heading towards their 40th anniversary and having survived plenty of personnel changes - Alex Paterson has been the only permanent member - the boys are here making a rare live appearance to present what promises to be a memorable evening of ambient, dub, and deep electronic sound. 

Expect all the hits, from the iconic Little Fluffy Clouds to the chart-busting Toxygene.     

The Buttermarket, Shrewsbury, Saturday 3 October

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LES AMAZONES D'AFRIQUE

Powerhouse West African collective Les Amazones d’Afrique visit Warwick Arts Centre as part of the venue’s African Soul Rebels series. The initiative is described by its producers, Music Beyond Mainstream, as a celebration of fearless artists who reshape tradition, challenge borders, and put rhythm at the centre of resistance and joy.

And Les Amazones d’Afrique certainly do all of that. Creating music which fuses ancient roots with urgent, future-facing sounds, they deliver a message of strength, unity and change... The five-piece group (three singers and two musicians) are joined for their Coventry gig by babatoni player Gasper Nali and balafon virtuoso N’Famad Kouyaté.   

Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry, Tuesday 6 October

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IAN PROWSE & AMSTERDAM

Previously the frontman of indie cult band Pele, guitarist and singer-songwriter Ian Prowse formed Liverpool band Amsterdam back in 1999, creating a sound that’s been described as ‘rock & roll with a dash of celtic soul’. The six-piece are visiting Birmingham mid-month as part of their No Names tour.

Hare & Hounds, Birmingham, Saturday 10 October

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ELLES BAILEY

Seventeen childhood days spent battling pneumonia with a life-saving tube down her throat left Elles Bailey with a voice so husky you’d imagine she smoked 60 a day. 

Elles’ output sees her bringing a contemporary edge to rootsy blues, country, and soulful rock, and doing so to a standard which has seen her bagging numerous prestigious awards... 

Support for Elles’ Lichfield gig comes from Nashville-based singer-songwriter Jackie Bristow, and for her Shrewsbury show from Americana and country artist Demi Marriner.

Lichfield Guildhall, Saturday 10 October; Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury, Sunday 18 October

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AZIZ IBRAHIM

Virtuoso guitarist, session musician and one-time Stone Roses member Aziz Ibrahim is finally releasing his long-lost debut album, some 25 years after it was first recorded. Lahore To Longsight - named to reflect his father’s journey from Pakistan to the Manchester suburb of Aziz’s birth - is a musical melting pot he describes as ‘Asian blues’. Now restored and remastered, the album, which features star contributors including the Roses’ Reni and Mani, Paul Weller, Talvin Singh, and Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce of The Smiths, will get its first public airing at a limited number of showcase dates, making this gig a real must-see event

The Tin at The Coal Vaults, Coventry, Saturday 10 October; Artisan Tap, Stoke-on-Trent, Thursday 15 October; The Feathers Inn, Lichfield, Thursday 29 October; The Asylum, Birmingham, Friday 6 November

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AMON AMARTH

This month ‘unleashing the wrath of Odin’ in the form of their 13th studio album, The Allfather Awakens, Sweden’s Viking-metal titans Amon Amarth are getting behind the new release with a UK tour that includes this West Midlands stop-off. 

The boys are joined for the evening by fellow Swedish melodic death metal bands Orbit Culture and Soilwork. 

The Civic at The Halls Wolverhampton, Sunday 11 October

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ETANA

The first obvious sign that Etana was a sparkling new star in the musical firmament came with her breakout anthem Wrong Address - after which she shone even more brightly with Grammy-nominated albums Reggae Forever (2018) and Pamoja (2021). Imaginatively blending soul, dancehall, reggae and R&B, she visits Birmingham as part of her The Strong One tour. 

The Jam House, Birmingham, Wednesday 14 October

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A DIFFERENT THREAD

A winning blend of British folk-rock and North Carolina alt-country is the mouthwatering dish being served up by A Different Thread when they pay a mid-month visit to the Midlands. 

Core members Robert Jackson, from Lichfield, and North Carolina native Alicia Best met while busking on the same street in Galway 10 years ago. They decided to collaborate - and the rest, as they say, is history. 
The duo are promising a gig built around hair-raising vocal harmonies, intricate guitar, soulful fiddle and playful harmonica, not to mention Alicia’s distinctive suitcase drum-kit. Support on the night comes from folk-singing, guitar-shredding clog dancers Nastee Chapel.

Marrs Bar, Worcester, Thursday 15 October

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THE UNDERCOVER HIPPY

If Steel Pulse, Kate Tempest and The Sleaford Mods were to have a love child, muses Tom Robinson, it would surely turn out to be drum & bass MC turned singer-songwriter Billy Rowan, aka The Undercover Hippy.  

Billy produces music that combines powerful, political and humorous messages with infectious reggae rhythms and intelligent lyrics.

LOOP, Shrewsbury, Friday 16 October

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ELVANA

A tribute act like no other, Elvana sees Elvis Presley fronting 1990s rock royalty Nirvana, presenting a concert in which the magnificently talented performers tear through the latter’s catalogue of hits ‘whilst splicing-in grunged-up sections of the King of Rock & Roll’s finest moments’.  

So... if you’re searching for a somewhat bizarre, engagingly colourful and altogether splendidly ridiculous experience with which to brighten up the dark autumn nights, we respectfully suggest that this mindbending evening of fun and frivolity might be the very gig you’re looking for.

hmv Empire, Coventry, Saturday 17 October

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SOUL II SOUL

Kickstarted by Jazzie B in 1988, Soul II Soul stormed the charts the following year with Keep On Movin’ and the Grammy Award-winning Back To Life (However Do You Want Me). They picked up a second Grammy in the same year for African Dance.  

The breakthrough followed in the wake of initial success as a sound system, playing records at house and street parties. 

Real game-changers in British black music and youth culture, the group has featured a changing roster of musicians across the years but remains very much in touch with the sound-system mentality that brought such spectacular early-days success.

Symphony Hall, Birmingham, Monday 19 October

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DURAN DURAN

The legendary ‘Brummie’ boys are back on the road, heading for the city of their origin as part of their first full UK arena tour in three years. It’s more than four decades since the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees exploded onto the music scene, racking up record sales in the blink of an eye with hits like Rio, Hungry Like The Wolf, Girls On Film and Ordinary World. They’ve even got a Bond theme to their name: 1985’s A View To A Kill. 

Still making a massive impact globally after all these years, the boys added to their success story back in the spring with Free To Love, a critically acclaimed single featuring Nile Rodgers... Don’t miss this comparatively rare opportunity to see one of the greatest-ever live bands in action on home turf.

Utilita Arena Birmingham, Tuesday 20 October

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FAT FREDDY'S DROP

New Zealand-originated Fat Freddy’s Drop are bringing their euphoric and diaphragm-wrecking music to Birmingham as part of a tour to celebrate the 21st anniversary of their first studio album, Based On A True Story. Originally a jam band formed in the late 1990s by musicians from other Wellington-based groups, Freddy’s produce a sound which, to a certain degree at least, defies categorisation, being characterised as any combination of dub, reggae, soul, jazz, rhythm & blues and techno.

The autumn tour marks the first shows since their talismanic founding member, Chris Ta’aloga Faiumu (aka DJ MU aka Fitchie), passed away suddenly in July of last year. 

O2 Academy, Birmingham, Thursday 22 October

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CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIEW

For anyone not in the know, during the 1960s and early 70s, Creedence Clearwater Revival were widely considered to be one of America’s greatest rock bands, headlining the legendary Woodstock Festival in 1969. Although they split up more than half a century ago, their music has emphatically stood the test of time, and is here brilliantly recreated by these talented tribute artists. 

Walsall Arena, Thursday 22 October; Huntingdon Hall, Worcester, Fri 23 October

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THE CORAL

Influential five-piece The Coral came to the fore in the early noughties with a self-titled debut album that brilliantly combined psychedelia with dub, disco groove with pop, and ragtime with Egyptian reggae. Now, almost a quarter of a century later, they’re heading out on their first headline UK tour in almost three years, visiting the second city in support of acclaimed 13th album 388.

O2 Institute, Birmingham, Saturday 24 October

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PEATBOG FAERIES

Although mainly influenced by traditional Celtic music, the Peatbog Faeries create a sound that also embodies numerous other styles and influences, including electronica, folk, rock and jazz. Well established on the circuit, having formed some 35 years ago, the ensemble’s music brings together a blend of programmed effects with traditional Celtic arrangements played on bagpipes, fiddles and whistles. 
The Faeries visit the Midlands mid-month as part of a UK-wide tour.

Malvern Cube, Friday 30 October

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CHANTEL MCGREGOR

Blues-rock musician Chantel McGregor was once told by a major label that she had “a great voice, but girls don’t play guitar like that!” Ignoring their view, she enrolled at the Leeds College of Music and became the first student in the college’s history to achieve a 100% pass mark at BTEC, with 18 distinctions.
She’s since released three studio albums of new material, including debut offering Like No Other and last year’s The Healing.

Temperance, Leamington Spa, Sunday 6 December