Johnson’s revised rules will see hospitality and night-time venues closing at 11pm, with last orders to be taken at 10pm. Set to commence from Wednesday, December 2nd, Johnson’s new rules show almost no consideration towards the survival of the night time industry.

Night Time Industry Association Michael Kill released a public statement sharing his worries surrounding the new government restrictions. Kill stated “This announcement by the Government has led us to believe that they are intentionally aiming to collapse our sector…Every town and city across the UK stands to lose valued and much-loved venues.  This will be another stab in the heart of our town and city centres.”

Live music and independent venues, integral parts of British culture, are at stake, Kill warns. Kill argued that “We stand to lose the cultural institutions and amazing workforce of professionals that the UK are renowned for globally. Our clubs, bars, venues, security, freelancers, staff, managers, DJ’s and many more will lose their livelihoods and continue to suffer financial hardship without Government intervention.”

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Kill went on to directly question the Prime Minister’s lack of support for the live music sector. Kill said: “I make a direct appeal to the Prime Minister –what are you doing to save the lives and livelihoods of the many businesses and workers within the night-time economy, businesses that have been closed since March and are continuing to suffer? 

Kill rightly pointed out that “they have staff and freelancers that will lose their jobs irrespective of furlough because the businesses won’t survive.” Kill concluded the statement with: “What do you say to that Prime Minister, I hope you are sleeping well at night because thousands within our sector are struggling to sleep, in fear of their future.”

In a survey taken of 400 UK businesses, the NTIA found that 75.6% of establishments confirmed that they will be closed by Christmas indefinitely. Additionally, 73% of them said they have made workers redundant since the pandemic began.

 

 

 

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Whilst larger night clubs, such as London’s iconic Fabric, were aided by the government following the £1.5b Cultural Recovery Fund, countless others, which the government labelled as “culturally insignificant”, have been ignored.

In response to the Night Time Industry Association, a government spokesperson from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport said today: “Pubs, clubs and grassroots venues are the heartbeats of our vibrant night-time economy and we are continuing to work closely with the Night-Time Industries Association and medical experts to develop advice and guidance so that nightclubs can reopen when it’s safe to do so.”

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Meanwhile, the Music Venue Trust has launched a brand new preservation campaign towards 30 UK Grassroots venues on the edge of permanent extinction. The MVT’s new #SaveThe30 campaign is vital in protecting beloved venues such as London’s Lexington or Halifax’s The Lantern.

Music Venue Trust CEO Mark Davyd stated: “If we don’t act to save them right now, we do expect a large number of them to be permanently closed – it’s as simple as that. Unless a significant movement is made in the next four weeks, we should expect them to start closing in the middle of December.”

More information about donating to the Music Venue Trust can be found here.

A nod to their beloved hometown, Blossoms recruited the bright young voices from Stockport’s very own  Junior Voices Choir. Rich Turvey and James Skelly, commonly known as frontman of indie band The Coral, both put their producer hats on and lent their talents to the record. 

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Our brand new double A side release ‘Christmas Eve (Soul Purpose)’ / ’It’s Going To Be A Cold Winter’ is out now! Featuring the Stockport Junior Voices choir, you can listen, download & pre-order a very limited edition 7” vinyl version now from the link in our bio. ‘Christmas Eve (Soul Purpose)’ was produced by James Skelly & @richturvey and recorded @parrstreetstudios, Liverpool & Hitsville, SK. ’It’s Going To Be A Cold Winter’ was produced by ourselves at ‘Hitsville SK’. The brilliant single artwork was designed by @thecoralband’s @Ian_Skelly_Music.

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Skelly displayed his artistic prowess, as the In The Morning singer was responsible for designing the festive cover art. Blossoms recorded the Double A-Side between Stockport’s Hitsville and Parr Street Studios in Liverpool, where Turvey resides as a legendary producer. 

Blossoms’ limited edition, 7-inch vinyl will arrive on December 10th, well into the Christmas season. Ironically, Blossoms actually wrote the tracks months in advance, “back in the summer” on the hottest day of the year. 

Blossoms took to Instagram to announce the digital release of It’s Going to be a Cold Winter and Christmas Eve/Soul Purpose. The Charlamagne hitmakers shared some throwback shots of the band, with It’s Going to be a Cold Winter playing festively in the background.

With the post gathering over 9000 views and likes in just two hours, Blossoms fans were clearly excited at the arrival of not one, but two Blossoms songs.  The Mancunian quintet also shared both It’s Going to be a Cold Winter and Christmas Eve/Soul Purpose on Youtube today. Both tracks can be listened to in full here.

In other news, music lovers will have even more to look forward to, as Blossoms have confirmed that they will go on a European and UK tour in 2021. Blossoms will start their tour at the Rotonde Botanique in Brussels on February 18th, 2021, before hitting world class venues in France, Netherlands and Germany. 

Blossoms will begin the UK iteration of their tour in Lincoln, playing a set at the The Engine Shed on March 17th, 2021 and then visiting Leeds, London and Manchester. The group will conclude their 2021 tour with a show at Glasgow’s TRNSMT Festival on July 9th. More information regarding ticket purchases for Blossoms’ 2021 Europe and UK tour can be found here.

Christmas Eve/Soul Purpose and It’s Going to be a Cold Winter are out now. The confirmed dates for Blossoms’ UK iteration of their 2021 tour are as follows:

17/03/2021 – The Engine Shed – Lincoln
19/03 – Victoria Hall – Stoke on Trent
20/03 – O2 Academy – Leicester
21/03 – Cambridge Junction
23/03 – O2 Academy – Newcastle
24/03 – O2 Academy – Glasgow
26/03 – Bonus Arena – Kingston Upon Hull
27/03 – O2 Academy – Leeds
29/03 – O2 Kentish Town – London
02/04 – O2 Academy – Birmingham
03/04 – Arena – Manchester
25/05 – Keepmoat Stadium – Doncaster
31/05 – St Mary’s Stadium – Southampton
02/06 – Carrow Road Stadium – Norwich
08/06 – The Falkirk Stadium – Falkirk
12/06 – Old Trafford Cricket Ground – Manchester
09/07 – TRNSMT Festival – Glasgow