The last weekend in March sees the return of Liverpool’s music and arts festival Threshold V. Held in various venues in the up-and-coming Baltic Triangle area of the city, the festival showcases musical talent, as well as having a strong arts and performance content. Musically, it is a good place to catch some of excellent bands for the princely sum of £20, which is pretty good for a three day festival. Here are some of the bands making up the plethora of talent on offer:
The Mono LPs
With their new single ‘Emilia’ making Classic Rock’s singles of the week next to the likes of Muse, The Mono LPs are getting more of the attention they deserve. With a Masked Ball styled single release planned for May to coincide with the release of the afore-mentioned single, this spring is going to be busy for this sizzling Liverpool band. So if you like a bit of rock cello, check them out. They are my must-see band for the festival.
Go Fiasco
With new single ‘Heaven’ due to be released on March 30th, Threshold could be viewed as a bit of a launch gig for the band. With endorsements from both Alan McGee and BBC Introducing Sheffield, Go Fiasco already have friends in high places. Featuring atmospheric vocals and fine Indie guitars, ‘Heaven’ is well worth a listen.
Kids on Bridges
This band, who put me a little in mind of some of the more recent offering from Peace, have a new album ‘Kidology’ due for release this year. They are headlining the District stage during Threshold and are sure to be quite a crowd pleaser.
Seprona
With their single ‘Only Pretend’ recently completed at Parr St Studios, this Liverpool band are ones to watch. At the lighter end of the rock spectrum, this band exhibit the quality and professionalism to pull together a quality sound.
CuT
CuT’s Ramones-style punk has been featured on BBC6 Music. Check out their tongue-in-cheek mobility scooter fuelled video for ‘Let’s Go’ released last year. I hope to catch these during the festival. If they are as good live as they are on YouTube, I’m on a winner.
Baltic States
Although not really the sort of music I listen to, Baltic States are about to hit the big time. With their ambient beats and dream like vocals, the single ‘Kontrol’ is likely to be a club classic.
Broken 3 Ways
The retro Ska-punk vibe of Broken 3 Ways provides a break from the more usual festival fare. A crowd pleaser if ever there was one, this band are probably worth catching even if it is not really your sort of thing, just to experience the energy they put out live.
If I had time I could go on and on about the new, raw talent due to be on show at Threshold V. I have only touched on what is on offer musically. Add to that the theatre, art, dance and DJ sets on offer and you can see that £20 a ticket is a real bargain and a fine way to sample the festival season before diving into the larger events later in the year. Liverpool is renowned for nurturing musical talent. Threshold V can only be seen as a testament to that fact.