Sheffield in our opinion is one of, if not the greatest music city in the UK and arguably the world! Sure Manchester has produced a list of amazing bands as long as the Manchester Ship Canal, but the thing that is so attractive about Sheffield is how wide the spectrum is. For instance we are talking about a city that has produced The Human League and Def Leppard, Reverend and The Makers and Richard Hawley. All very different from one another. There is literally something for everyone.
Probably the most popular band from the South-Yorkshire city today would be the all conquering Arctic Monkeys. In recent years Arctic Monkeys have been something of a pioneering figure of what every unsigned act aspires to be. They seemingly, overnight, went from a few lads playing to the locals in The Grapes to headlining the Sheffield o2 Academy and being the most sought after band in the world back in January 2006. Having established themselves as one of the best British bands of their generation, the band have released four albums, one of which you can read about here. The band are currently planning their fifth release which is expected next year. Despite their travelling and living in other places, the band continue to be proud of their South-Yorkshire roots. You can see our five favourite Arctic Monkeys tracks here.
Another reason why we think Sheffield can be regarded as one of, if not the greatest music city in the world is the formation of Britpop legends, Pulp. Despite not garnering much attention until their fourth full length release ‘His ‘n’ Hers’ and having released the unmistakeable indie anthem ‘Common People’ from 1995 ‘Different Class’ the band have since become one of the most easily recognisable icons of British music. Since then, the band have released two albums, in our opinion their best in ‘The Is Hardcore’ and then later releasing ‘We Love Life’ before taking a hiatus and reforming to great acclaim last year. The band have recently confirmed their first show in Sheffield since the reform which will take place on 8th December at Sheffield Motorpoint Arena. You can see our five favourite Pulp tracks here.
Sheffield has spawned some excellent musical talent and it is worth mentioning Reverend and The Makers. They may not be to everyones taste but here at The View From The Music, we believe that they don’t get the acclaim they deserve! Check out what we thought of their latest album here.
The future also looks very bight for the Sheffield music scene following the arrival of the Dead Sons and the Wet Nuns. The former being made up of two members of the popular naughties band Milburn and have recently recorded their much anticipated debut album which is perhaps set for release early next year.
We picked our four favourite Sheffield acts, VOTE for your favourite here!
Our next ‘Music City’ feature will take a look at what Manchester has to offer.
The View From The Music.xx
Arctic Monkeys image courtesy of NME.com
Pulp image courtesy of southyorkshiretimes.co.uk