Preview: Arboretum Sunsets - Homegrown

Taking place in the beautiful surroundings of Nottingham’s Arboretum park, DHP Family will be running the event as part of their Arboretum Sunsets summer series, and at Homegrown we can expect relaxed sets on the bandstand from 12-9pm in conjunction with BBC Introducing. 

The first Homegrown all-dayer, which debuted last year to huge success, earned a nomination for the Live Music Innovation (Event Series) Award for the Music Week Awards 2021. 

With such an amazing line-up, we got to know some of the acts, and found out what they are most excited about… 

Headlining the event is the infectious indie-synth pop three piece Deco. Blurring the line between timeless eighties synth-pop and contemporary discernment, they create undeniable bops with a bite. Think Duran Duran and George Michael meeting Dua Lipa and The Weeknd over sambuca shots. 

Deco said, “We can't wait to come home and headline this amazing day of music at Nottingham Arboretum. Nottingham is where we started the band so it's always special to come back and play live.”

Joel Baker, the Nottingham native, is a Radio 1 play-listed artist, drawing inspiration from Bob Dylan and J Dilla. An artist who is never comfortable with treading water in the status quo, Joel is often boxed as un-boxable. A former Parliamentary speech writer, Joel left the House Of Commons to pursue music after spamming music bosses with his first demo tape in Parliamentary envelopes. After being discovered by Fearne Cotton and Zane Lowe, Joel has become a hotly tipped one-to-watch.

Joel said, “I'm most looking forward to playing live music again in my hometown. Seeing familiar faces in the crowd I haven't seen in eighteen months. I'm looking forward to catching the sets of new local artists I haven't seen perform before, and connecting with people in real life - instead of over Instagram! I can't wait to perform some new songs, and plenty of old ones too.” 

Georgia Copeland and Nadia Latoya met in Nottingham as teenagers while both performing at a local community arts centre. Bonding as individual artists in their own right, over time they formed a firm friendship built on encouragement and support for one another. Coming together as a multifaceted harmonic force, the pair embody contrast and compliment, ebb and flow, balance. 

Georgia and Nadia said, “We would say we’re most looking forward to doing a festival in our hometown as it will be our first as MELONYX. We’re also excited at being accompanied by the highly talented Ainsley Johns on keys, for a laidback acoustic vibe, which is a nice change of pace to our usual set up. Last but not least, we’re looking forward to sharing some tracks from our new EP Black Elixir with the lovely Homegrown audience - we really hope they enjoy our offering.”

Singer/songwriter Drew Thomas leads the charge of DIY indie musicians making waves on the unsigned circuit through hard work and powerful song-writing. Taking inspiration from the likes of Bon Iver, Fleetwood Mac and Sam Fender, Drew’s knack for writing arena sized choruses and nostalgic lyrics steals the listeners attention immediately, merging passionate vocals and emotional soundscapes with a darker twist; spilling tales of rejection, broken relationships and addiction.

Drew said, “I’m so so so pumped to be playing Home Grown this year! It’s been too long since we have all been able to come together for live music. I’ve spent the past year writing my second EP so I can’t wait to play some of my new songs live for the first time. See you all there.”

Indie-folk four piece Catmilk will bring A. Milne and friends soothing vocals, warm guitar tones and building choruses. This will follow their debut release of their single Horror Movie Weather, which came out in May. 

With a voice described as "beyond her years", Betsey's big, powerhouse vocals leave everyone feeling emotionally moved. Betsey's empowering aura is unforgettable and shines through her music through her great storytelling and raw, jazzy tone.

Betsey said, “I can’t wait to perform to an audience again and simply party on stage. All songs are close to my heart and fill me with so much joy. We all deserve to celebrate, simply for getting through this past year. So bring on Homegrown where we can all sing together.”

Using complex vocal harmonies accompanied with jazz inspired chords, Vona Vella deliver meaningful lyrics written for the listener to find their own interpretation. After recently joining a new label, they're excited to be back playing live shows with their band, and stripping back to their acoustic roots.

Vona Vella said, “I would say we're mostly excited to experiment with new songs. As we're soon releasing new music, it's interesting to see what songs go down the best with the audience. Most of our songs are pretty fresh, so naturally they come out different every time haha. We're hoping to get a live video from our performance so that's always something to look forward to. It's also great to play alongside some great musicians we've never met before.”

The Crying Violets open the event. Combining soulful warmth and daydream-esque melodies, they are an indie-pop trio producing tunes perfect for sunny Sunday afternoons. Stepping into the world of sweet, indie-pop love songs, with influences ranging from Fleetwood Mac to The Walters. 

The Crying Violets said, “It’s going to be amazing to get back on stage for the first time in so long, and we just can’t wait to play all the new tracks we’ve written… and we are super excited to perform acoustically together all three of us for the first time too. It’s really great to be performing among so many phenomenal artists, and we can’t wait to see them all play.” 

The event is open to all ages (with under sixteens being accompanied by an adult), and their separate Fringe stage will have exciting entertainment for the whole family. Alongside this there will be lots of delicious pop-up food outlets, a selection of local ales on offer and a container bar from Camden town brewery. 

Homegrown takes place on Monday 30 August. You can grab your tickets here