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...  

N'FAMADY KOUYATÉ

N’famady Kouyate’s instrument of choice is the balafon - a traditional wooden xylophone sacred to West African culture - and he’s extremely good at playing it! Producing a sound that’s been likened to ‘unfettered joy’, the Guinea-born, Cardiff-based master musician creates arrangements that fuse Mandingue African with western jazz, pop, indie and funk influences. A rising star who last year won the Glastonbury Emerging Talent Competition, N’famady is playing the Guildhall as part of an autumn tour.  

Lichfield Guildhall, Friday 6 September

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LAZY HABITS

Gritty yet soulful songs are genre-bending band Lazy Habits’ stock-in-trade. Creating a potent blend of contemporary and classic, they beautifully marry orchestral strains with heavy hip-hop drums and brooding bass lines. The band’s Bilston gig forms part of a short tour they’re undertaking in support of their new EP.  

The Robin, Bilston, Wednesday 11 September

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TEXAS

“My big dream from the start was to write good songs that would stand the test of time,” says Sharleen Spitteri, lead singer of Scottish band Texas. In partnership with ex-Altered Images veteran Johnny McElhone, Sharleen has certainly been living her dream, releasing 10 studio albums and selling more than 40 million albums worldwide. 
Boasting strong and carefully crafted songs, a stunning live presence, and a sense of originality and sheer joy, the band this month appear in Birmingham as part of their Very Best Of 1989 - 2023 tour. KT Tunstall offers support.

Utilita Arena Birmingham, Friday 13 September

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DEADLETTER

The darker side of existence is thoroughly explored via the vehement post-punk sound of Deadletter, a Yorkshire band who’ve now relocated to South London. 
Playing music which has been described as channelling the droll fury of Gang Of Four and the lopsided rhythms of Talking Heads, the talented six-piece have been touring like there’s no tomorrow over the last couple of years. They’re stopping off in Coventry this month in support of their debut album, Hysterical Strength.

Coventry Central Library, Saturday 14 September 

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MEGSON

Since releasing first album On The Side in 2004, husband-and-wife team Stu and Debbie Hanna have gone on to develop an enviable reputation on the English folk-music circuit. Hailed as fresh and innovative (a description which is hardly surprising, given that Debbie is classically trained and Stu’s a former punk!), the multi-award-winning duo specialise in self-composed melodies which bring together intimate harmony singing and multi-instrumental acoustic playing. 

Newhampton Arts Centre, Wolverhampton, Saturday 14 September

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MARC ALMOND

Although he’s extremely well established as a solo artist, the elfin Marc Almond probably remains best known for his Soft Cell collaborations - particularly 1981’s Tainted Love - with the far more anonymous-looking Dave Ball. 
Living life to excess brought the Soft Cell days to an end, but they’re now back in the saddle and writing new material. 
Marc is flying solo in Birmingham this month, though, visiting the city in support of his latest album, I’m Not Anyone.

Symphony Hall, Birmingham, Monday 16 September

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MIM GREY

When it comes to superstar endorsements, Mim Grey is surely leading the way. Sir Paul McCartney is a devoted admirer, while Sir Tom Jones has declared her his favourite singer. Michael Ball’s been effusive in his praise too, hailing her “the most beautiful voice to come out of the UK in a very long time”. 
A talented performer who’s comfortable making music using guitar, piano and percussion, Mim visits Leamington in support of third studio album The Garden Of Me.  

Temperance, Leamington Spa, Monday 16 September

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LLOYD COLE

One-time lead singer with The Commotions, with whom he released three albums in the 1980s, singer-songwriter Lloyd Cole has also enjoyed plenty of solo success. 
“I’m excited to still be finding new methods, new perspectives, new sounds,” he says, prior to this month’s return to the cathedral with two sets - one solo and one with a full electric band. “The album may be nearing commercial death, but my career has been in that state for almost 30 years, and here we are still; and I still want to make albums. I still want to be heard.” 

Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury, Wednesday 18 September

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INDIA ELECTRIC COMPANY

Traditional instruments, folk melodies and subtle electronic influences are beautifully combined in the output of India Electric Company, two extraordinary musicians from the West Country whose breathtaking talent has seen them described as true folk-music pioneers. The pair play Coventry in support of their third studio album, Pomegranate, released earlier in the year.

The Tin Music & Arts, Coventry, Thursday 19 September

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KID CONGO AND THE PINK MONKEY BIRDS

Living legend Kid Congo Powers co-founded The Gun Club and played guitar for The Cramps and Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. Now, he’s yet again teaming up with The Pink Monkey Birds for a gig at Birmingham’s iconic Hare & Hounds pub in Kings Heath.
“I think the Pink Monkey Birds conjures up all the best aspects of primal rock’n’roll,” Kid Congo told the Sydney Morning Herald. “Lyrically, I’m speaking in images, and from a very skewed viewpoint, whatever the subject may be. I still have the passion and the incentive to make music that’s different, but still within the confines of a punk rock language which people will know and understand.”  

Hare & Hounds, Birmingham, Saturday 21 September

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YOT CLUB

Daydreamy, sun-blasted Polaroid-pop is the music of preference for Ryan Kaiser’s alter ego, Yot Club. The Brooklyn-based indie sensation came to prominence in 2019 when his song YKWIM? created a splash on TikTok and made him rethink his plan to play music just as a hobby. 
He’s touring to Birmingham this month in support of his second full-length album, Rufus. “The album’s not meant to serve as an eloquent story where there’s characters and side characters and betrayal and heartbreak,” he says. “It’s just 13 separate episodes that restart and don’t necessarily match each other, but I wanted to give it a character to wrap it all together.”   

O2 Institute, Birmingham, Tuesday 24 September

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BEVERLEY KNIGHT

Beverley Knight returns to her home town to perform a concert in celebration of turning 50. Beverley’s long been labelled the UK’s Queen of Soul - and with her influences including the likes of Sam Cooke and Aretha Franklin, it’s easy to see why. 
The Civic Hall concert forms part of a tour which has followed on from the release last autumn of The Fifth Chapter, her first new studio album in seven years.

Civic Hall at The Halls Wolverhampton, Tuesday 24 September

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ASTRID WILLIAMSON

Classically trained pianist Astrid Williamson has been going solo for the better part of 30 years, having previously found fame as the frontperson of Scottish trio Goya Dress. Boasting a distinctive and beautifully haunting voice, she visits Birmingham as part of a short autumn tour.  

Kitchen Garden Cafe, Birmingham, Wednesday 25 September

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TERRORVISION

Spawned back in the 1980s from the remnants of glam rockers Spoilt Brats, Terrorvision busted their proverbial guts on the touring circuit and played support slots for long-time heroes The Ramones and Motorhead. They finally found their place in the sun in the early 1990s with breakthrough album How To Make Friends And Influence People. If you love sledgehammer singalong hits and shameless live-rock thrills, this smash-hit band from Bradford deliver in spades. They visit Wolverhampton in support of new album We Are Not Robots, a 37-minute riot of shiny pop hooks and in-yer-face hard rock.

KK’s Steel Mill, Wolverhampton, Thursday 26 September

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MARSEILLE

They may be called Marseille, but this high-energy indie rock band actually hail from, er, Derby! 
Describing their sound as combining ‘the baggy era’ of the 90s Madchester scene, the soundscapes of Shoegaze and a hint of 60s psychedelic jangle pop, the quintet have been hitting all the right notes with their output for the last couple of years. Along the way they’ve chalked up a host of attention-grabbing songs, including Brightest Star, Monkey In The Middle and Freedom. 
The boys are stopping off in Birmingham this month as part of a short autumn tour. 

Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham, Friday 27 September

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ROBINSON-STONE

Worcestershire singer-songwriter Clifford T Ward would have been 80 this year. Diagnosed in his early 40s with multiple sclerosis and passing away from pneumonia at the age of 57, the Stourport-on-Severn-born musician was best known for his 1973 album Home Thoughts and hit singles Gaye and Scullery. In homage to him, Celtic folk and vintage Americana sibling trio Robinson-Stone are performing this special concert of his music. Expect not only the hits but fan favourites and hidden gems.

Huntingdon Hall, Worcester, Saturday 28 September

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THE SELECTER

Coventry-based 2 Tone ska revival band The Selecter formed back in 1979. Fronted by the iconic Pauline Black, they’re best known for their politically connected and controversial lyrics.
“It’s a way of being,” explains Pauline, “a way of life and a way of identifying yourself. 2 Tone unified all those different groups, and we can still do that. We can go anywhere, and that’s the beauty of 2 Tone. It’s the hybrid nature of it that makes everything possible.”

hmv Empire, Coventry, Saturday 28 September

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A DIFFERENT THREAD

Transatlantic duo A Different Thread (Robert Jackson is from Lichfield, Alicia Best hails from North Carolina in the US) met while busking on the streets of Galway and have since garnered widespread praise for their hair-raising vocal harmonies, intricate guitar, soulful fiddle and playful harmonica. Writing songs that delve into themes of change, counter culture and travel, they’re joined in Worcester by double bassist Mike Seal for a show that promises a unique blend of folk, blues and Americana.  

Marrs Bar, Worcester, Sunday 29 September

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SKIDS

Green Day and Manic Street Preachers are among the bands whose influences include Skids, the legendary Scottish punk rockers who rose to stardom in the late 1970s and scored a still-loved hit with 1979 single Into The Valley. 

Following an initial five years together, Skids went their separate ways for the next quarter century, re-forming in 2007 to celebrate their 30th anniversary. 

Another lengthy hiatus then followed, before the landmark of their 40th birthday once again brought them back together - at which point they even released a new album; their first since 1981!

The Crossing, Birmingham, Saturday 16 November

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EMBRACE

After building a following through their EP releases, Yorkshire rockers Embrace went straight to number one in the UK albums chart with their 1998 debut offering, The Good Will Out. They’ve since enjoyed a colourful career, bagging themselves further number one albums and even being chosen to record an official England World Cup song (2006’s World At Your Feet). 

The boys stop off in Coventry this month to perform a warm-up gig in preparation for a summer of festivals and an autumn tour.

O2 Institute, Birmingaham, Saturday 30 November

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THE AMY WINEHOUSE BAND

Amy Winehouse’s friend, long-term musical director & bass player Dale Davis here leads the late singer’s original band in a ‘joyful and emotional’ celebration of her songbook. 

Fronted by vocalist Bronte Shandé and coming complete with on-screen visuals and unique footage, the show is being promoted (and not without good reason) as ‘the only completely authentic reimagining of the Amy Winehouse sound’.

Birmingham Town Hall, Wednesday 18 December

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