The live performances will take place starting from 19th July 2021 within Grassroots music venues alongside the Music Venues Alliance, 19th July also marks the date in which the Government has issued for Grassroots music venues to fully reopen. The scheme’s tour entitled ‘The National Lottery’s Revive Live Tour’ boasts a roster of talented artists and promises over 300 live performances. The array of other music artists joining the pair on their crusade include English singer-songwriter James Arthur, Mahalia, 27-year-old singer Sam Fender and Irish post-punk band Fontaines DC. All artists involved in the ‘Revive Live’ scheme will be working alongside Music Venue Trust and the National Lottery. Both organisations founded the campaign to bring back lost revenue and to support new artists, musicians and the nation’s live music scene.

The National Lottery injected a sizeable donation of £1 million into the scheme which will cover all touring and production costs occurred during the tour and further events. The donation also means that with upfront costs already paid, the grassroots live music industry can start promoting and producing tours and live shows. Along with the donation to the scheme, the organisation is also offering 30,000 tickets for lottery and scratchcard players to win. The 30,000 tickets up to win will make up half of the tickets available, the other half will be on sale to the public.

Nigel Railton, the Chief Executive of National Lottery, part of the Camelot Group has spoken on the organisation’s excitement to be working with the Music Venue Trust within the scheme. “The National Lottery is very excited to be working with Music Venue Trust in what we believe is a truly ground-breaking initiative. The last year has been incredibly challenging for many industries and we hope The National Lottery’s Revive Live Tour will help kick start the return of grassroots live music. With every ticket having a built in plus-one, we hope The National Lottery can bring friends back together this summer to once again share the experiences we’ve all missed, while thanking players for the amazing things they make happen just by buying a ticket.”

Sir Tom Jones will be performing for a limited audience of 800 at one of the three performance spaces within the Cambridge Junction. Ran’n’Bone Man will play for an even smaller crowd of 250 ticket holders, the gig will take place in Kent. The venue, Tunbridge Wells Forum, is famed within the county as the performance space was once a public toilet.

The ‘Sex Bomb’ singer has spoken on how proud he is to be part of the scheme and the importance of the campaign. He also talks about how grassroots venues are a key part of a new artist’s career and states the importance of support for such venues. “Musicians can record in their bedrooms, but they can’t learn to perform in public without a place to play, without that, there is no way you can communicate directly to people. It’ll be tough to hone your skills and you’ll never have the thrill of feeling their feedback. Without a grassroots music venue, the neighbourhood won’t have a place where people can come together to discover and support a new talent”. So, support your local pub, club, gym or church or wherever someone has the guts to bring in some entertainment, it makes all the difference both to budding artists and the community, I’m delighted to be able to perform a special show as part of The National Lottery’s Revive Live Tour and to be celebrating the return of live music.”

Mark Dayvd, the CEO of Music Venue Trust has also provided the following statement concerning the new campaign. “It’s so important to get artists and crew back out and working, to get our grassroots music venues back up and running, and to get friends, families and communities back together enjoying live music. Grassroots music venues play a crucial role in the development of British music, nurturing local talent, providing a platform for artists to build their careers and develop their music and their performance skills, These venues also play a vital role in the cultural and economic vibrancy of any village, town or city. The National Lottery’s Revive Live Tour is a fantastic initiative which will kickstart the return of great events across the country. We can’t wait to get started!”

The Music Venue Trust has been combating the negative effects in which COVID-19 has held over live music and the industry itself since March 2020. They aim to safely reopen all venues using various campaigns and schemes. Their most successful campaign was # Save Our Venues, which saw support and money given to help infuse revenue and business into Grassroots venues. Now with the new scheme, tour of live performances and #ReviveLive, the trust is on a mission to bring live music back.

The Boys Of The Better Land hitmakers shared the exciting news of their latest release to their official Instagram page today. Featuring a blue-themed montage of the band and Televised Mind blaring in the background, Fontaines D.C took the time to show their appreciation for their fans during the making of A Hero’s Death, declaring that “Writing this record last year meant everything to us, the support you’ve shown us since it’s announcement means just as much.” Receiving over 10,000 likes, the post was met with excitement from the band’s ever-growing fan base. 

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Our second album ‘A Hero’s Death’ is out today. Writing this record last year meant everything to us, the support you’ve shown us since it’s announcement means just as much. We want to give a special thank you to everyone at @partisanrecords & of course Dan Carey. Not to forget those who manage to still put up with us on a daily basis: Trevor Dietz, Emma Greengrass, Sara Stokes & Ian McAndrew. And thank you to Nick Launay and Adam Greenspan for helping us figure this record out. Go raibh maith agaibh. Grian, Deego, Curley, Tom, and Carlos. X Buy or stream our new album now, link in bio.

A post shared by Fontaines D.C. (@fontainesband) on Jul 31, 2020 at 1:00am PDT

A Hero’s Death begins with a gritty, gloomy guitar riff. From the opening bars, we know we are in for a treat. The dooming guitar and percussion loom steadily into I Don’t Belong, a track tinged with 1990’s punk. As the record progresses, the haunting song You Said contains intense lyrics like “You said/You been on the brink so slow down”, the Irish five-piece are not ones to shy away from the use of visceral lyricism. Instead, they revel in it.

This self-assured moxie within A Hero’s Death is one of the reasons that Fontaines D.C is taking the post-punk world by storm. When asked about the meaning behind the lyrics of I Don’t Belong, lead vocalist Grian Chatten meditated “I think I’m very susceptible to people-pleasing. I often end interactions feeling kind of dirty because I’ve forced myself into saying things I don’t believe, or into acting happy or energetic or whatever. That sickness kind of built up and this tune came out of that.”

A Hero’s Death certainly showcases the band’s broad sonic range. Within an eleven-track record, we are pulled between the emotive track No, to the aggressively charged A Televised Mind, to A Lucid Dream, the songs remaining profoundly different yet equally as enticing to the listener. Tracks Love Is The Main Thing and Oh Such A Spring convey a softer edge to the band, along with their aptitude as storytellers. When describing the powerful album title, guitarist Carlos O’Connell said “It has that Shakespearean drama about it”

With fans already eager to see Fontaines D.C perform their new album, the live iterations of A Hero’s Death won’t be until next year, unfortunately. Along with countless other artists who have responsibly adhered to health guidelines in recent months, Fontaines D.C pushed back their planned European and UK tour to 2021. A Hero’s Death tour will now commence March 2021.