It's Independent Venues Week (IVW) - an annual seven-day celebration of independent music and arts venues, and the people that own, run and work in them.
As an avid music lover, I have to admit that some of my favourite gigs have been in smaller venues.
The setting is more intimate, you feel way closer to your favourite acts, and the drinks tend to be cheaper too! Local venues are the backbone of the music scene, and where all your favourite acts started out. After all, everyone has to begin somewhere.
East Anglia is home to some great music venues that have hosted some wonderful acts – many of whom have gone on to have amazing chart-topping careers, spanning all decades and genres.
Here are just a few of the biggest and most iconic acts who have graced our region’s smaller stages.
Ed Sheeran, The Steamboat, Ipswich, 2014
Kicking off this list is, unsurprisingly, Suffolk’s pride and joy Ed Sheeran. The boy from Fram’ has gone on to do amazing things since his big break in 2011 – but he’s never been one to forget his roots.
The singer-songwriter is now one of the most recognisable and biggest-selling artists of our time, but he’ll often pop back to give the people of Suffolk a show. While his four-night stint at Chantry Park was one for the history books, you can’t forget his 100-person show at Ipswich’s The Steamboat back in 2014.
The gig was part of a one-day tour which took place in Ipswich, London, and Dublin – with tickets selling out in mere minutes. The show’s location was kept under wraps, and only revealed shortly before.
Prior to taking to the stage, the Suffolk native walked the length of the queue, and posed for photos and signed autographs for his loyal followers.
Ed took to the stage of the Waterfront-based pub on May 5, and played an acoustic set to promote his X album which was released June that year. He played a five-song set, belting out You Need Me, I Don’t Need You; Take It Back; One; The A Team; and Sing.
Nirvana, Norwich Arts Centre, Norwich, 1989
Grunge pioneers Nirvana stopped off at Norwich Arts Centre on October 30, 1989, as part of the band’s Heavier Than Heaven European tour alongside fellow Seattle rockers Tad.
Speaking to the Eastern Daily Press in 2019, Nick Stone, director of Starfish Design in Norwich, who was working at the venue’s bar at the time, said: "Retrospectively 25 years on almost to the day it's still quite nice to know you were present at the stuttering birth of a new squalling brat.
"Nirvana was a good example of quite busy, but not so bad that we were stuck behind the bar all night washing glasses and filling them again in exchange for people's hard earned cash. The bar staff used to always routinely argue about who got to see which band. I won and got the headline, Tad. Andy lost and got Nirvana.
"He lasted one song and came back saying he didn't like them especially, so I put on my ready to be cynical hat and went in and stayed long enough to watch them do Mr Moustache which was the only song I actually knew and was particularly bothered about.
"At the end of the night from somewhere some copies of 'Bleach', the first album, magically appeared and were handed out to a few of us which was nice, I still have mine and it is one of the first albums my eldest daughter liked."
Other songs on the setlist included Scoff, Big Cheese, and Negative Creep.
And this tour preceded the release of Nevermind – so Smells Like Teen Spirit didn’t make an appearance (and was probably still in its rawest form, written down in Cobain’s notebook before it was recorded in 1991).
Muse, The Waterfront, Norwich, 1999
I can’t talk about iconic rock bands playing in Norwich without giving a shout out to Muse. One of my favourite bands of all time, the Teignmouth trio played at The Waterfront on February 22, 1999, as part of a small tour in their formative years.
However, I sadly can’t find a setlist on either Setlist.fm or the band’s fan wiki page. And I was only four at the time, so wouldn’t have been able to go even if I wanted to. But I can imagine it would’ve featured songs from their debut album Showbiz which was released September that same year – so it’s safe to assume songs like Muscle Museum, Cave, and Sunburn would’ve been played.
Other nearby venues they performed at during that stint included Colchester Art Centre, Cambridge Junction, and Ipswich’s Corn Exchange.
Status Quo, The Railway, Ipswich, 1999
We can’t mention The Railway in Ipswich without looking back at undoubtedly its biggest gig over the years – Status Quo back in 1999.
The British rockers – who have been together since 1962 – stopped off in Suffolk as part of their aptly-named Pub Tour.
Tabloid newspaper The Sun held a competition where pubs could enter to host the iconic band – and over 10,000 pubs entered. The Railway was one of the lucky winners, and hosted Status Quo for one night only on April 10.
The show’s setlist included hits such as The Way It Goes, Under The Influence, and Rockin’ All Over The World.
Wheatus, The Railway, Ipswich, 2013
American rock band Wheatus stopped off on their 2013 UK tour to put on a show for the people of Ipswich a decade ago, taking to the stage of local watering hole The Railway.
The New York natives played the Foxhall Road venue on October 6, 2013, and treated their fans to an 11-set song, which included covers of Erasure’s A Little Respect, One Direction’s What Makes You Beautiful, Green Day’s Basket Case, and of course their chart-topping favourite Teenage Dirtbag.
Coldplay, Norwich Arts Centre, Norwich, 2000
Following the release of their debut album Parachutes, Coldplay embarked upon an impressive two-year global tour that spanned across 199 dates. Talk about diving in head first.
The London rockers played Norwich not just once, but twice – first on April 3, 2000, and again a few months later on July 31.
Songs on the setlist included Yellow, Trouble, We Never Change, and High Speed.
Mumford & Sons, The Apex, Bury St Edmunds, 2012
Indie-folk rockers Mumford & Sons got their start in 2007 after forming in London – and have since catapulted to stardom, becoming a household name and radio favourite.
With four albums under their belt, the band have since gone on to win Brit Awards, an Ivor Novello Award, as well as receive a coveted Mercury Prize nomination and more Grammy nods than you could shake a stick at.
But in 2012, they stopped over in Bury St Edmunds to play at The Apex to put on one hell of a show at the 500-capacity venue as part of their Sigh No More tour.
Tickets for the gig cost £10 and were limited to four per person. For fans not lucky enough to bag themselves a ticket, the band were kind enough to arrange a big screen in front of the venue, showing a simultaneous broadcast of the gig as it happened on June 4.
Songs on the setlist included Roll Away Your Stone, Little Lion Man, Awake My Soul, Dust Bowl Dance, and The Cave.
In the subsequent years since their Bury St Edmunds show, the band have gone on to headline Suffolk’s Latitude Festival, as well as play some of the world’s biggest festivals such as Glastonbury, Coachella, Bonnaroo, and Reading & Leeds.
Did you attend any of these shows? If so, do you have any setlists or merch from them? Or did you go to a show that you think deserves a mention? Get in touch with danielle.lett@newsquest.co.uk to share your photos and experiences.
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