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Festival Review: Dot To Dot 2025

The Sunday of the late May Bank Holiday in Nottingham – often the greatest day of the year in our city. Why? Well, because of Dot To Dot of course! Arguably the greatest metropolitan festival in the country, it takes place in multiple venues throughout Bristol on Saturday and right here in Nottingham on Sunday. With the 2025 edition marking the festival’s 20th Anniversary, there was an even greater sense of occasion at this year's event. Heading out to take in the sights and scope out the very best emerging talent from the local scene, the UK and some artists from even further afield, here’s the LeftLion live report from Dot To Dot 2025…

Festival Review: Bearded Theory 2025

Back for its 17th year, this independent gem - which sits by the Trent and straddles the Derbyshire and Staffordshire border - is somewhat of a starter gun for the local festival season. Following last year’s quagmire-like conditions, attendees are thankfully greeted with blue skies and sunshine for the 2025 edition of Bearded Theory. Here’s what went down…

Gig review: Sunday (1994) at The Bodega

We chat to Davoli about music, life and Dot To Dot

Dot To Dot Festival is almost upon us! One of the hundreds of musicians performing at the day-long musical extravaganza is local artist Davoli. We spoke to him about his brand new EP, his inspirations, and what DTD means to him...

Green Hustle Festival Returns to Nottingham's Old Market Square at the End of May

Music, food, fashion, art and environmental action will once again all come together at the free entry Green Hustle Festival in Nottingham city centre on Saturday 31 May

Gig review: Supergrass at Rock City

There were no bands quite like Supergrass, in 1995. At least, not our writer's hazy recollection. They stood out; slightly apart from their contemporaries. Off to the side seemingly having just that little bit more fun than anyone else. On the evidence of this riotous, rollocking show at Rock City, the same is just as true in 2025...

Gig review: Bryan Adams at Motorpoint Arena

With new songs under his belt, and a vast back catalogue of hits, Bryan Adams has come a long way since his 90s Wembley Stadium heyday. We headed to Motorpoint Arena to find out if the Canadian rocker is still on form...

Gig review: Hachiku at The Grove, with Lucy Crisp and Emzae

Following its win at the Duckies last week, we headed to The Grove to catch two local artists - and one from very far away…

Gig review: Moonlit at Rough Trade

Recent winners (for good reason!) of the Ultimate Battle of the Bands, Moonlit, headlined Rough Trade Nottingham alongside fellow NTU artists Skunk and Emily Sanders…

Gig review: The Waterboys at Rock City

To celebrate the release of Life, Death and Dennis Hopper - a concept album celebrating the film pioneer the project is named after - The Waterboys have embarked on an impressive 32-date tour across the UK. Naturally, LeftLion couldn’t miss their visit to Nottingham...

Gig review: The Amazons at Rough Trade

The sun is out, the weather is warm, and Nottingham's Rough Trade is buzzing with energy as the dance floor fills with eager gig-goers, all gathering to see The Amazons. Now two days into their in-store Rough Trade tour, the rock band, known for their anthemic sound and blistering live performances, continue to draw crowds with ease... 

We review Kinoteka, the Polish Film Festival

Join us for a deep dive into two of the films at this year's Kinoteka Film Festival...

Gig review: Richard Dawson at Metronome

For a man with a bizarre and enigmatic back catalogue, Newcastle’s folk troubadour Richard Dawson possesses a rare gift: to create songs that revel in the mundane while also providing an elemental musical base that allows his tales to flourish. At Nottingham's Metronome, Dawson, with his leg encased in a surgical boot, was able to put on a show packed with a gamut of emotions; a night of opinion polls, cheese pasties, ghost stories and a ruptured Achilles tendon made for an evening which will go down as one of the most bizarre in a long time...

Gig review: Kid Spirit at Mist Rolling Inn

Alt-rock four-piece KID SPIRIT are carving their own path in Nottingham, and Mist Rolling Inn provided the perfect venue to showcase their talents...

Gig review: Soda Blonde at The Bodega

Gig review: Personal Trainer at Rescue Rooms

Dutch indie rock band Personal Trainer swung by Rescue Rooms on their UK tour of their 2024 release Still Waiting, much to the excitement of LeftLion. We headed down for a Thursday night boogie…

Connecting the Dots: Celebrating 20 years of Dot2Dot Festival

From intimate beginnings to sprawling across iconic venues in Nottingham and Bristol, Dot to Dot has become a cornerstone of the UK’s festival calendar. Celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2025, the festival has been championing emerging artists since the mid-00s indie boom, many of which have risen to international acclaim. 

With this in mind, we decided to take a look back at the festival’s history, speaking to the team behind the UK’s best metropolitan festival and explore the global superstars that have emerged from Dot To Dot over the last two decades…

In photos: Panic Shack at The Bodega, with The Pill

Gig review: Greentea Peng at Rock City

Self-described psychedelic RnB singer-songwriter Greentea Peng returned to Rock City with intention, clarity and energy to burn...

Gig review: Anastacia at the Royal Concert Hall

Emerging in the early 2000s, Chicago pop-rock legend Anastacia is still going strong 25 years later. Overcoming numerous health battles and winning a GQ Humanitarian award for Breast Cancer awareness in the process, Anastacia delivered her eighth studio album titled Our Songs in late 2023. With the beloved singer bringing that latest album and a quarter century of chart hits to Nottingham for the Not That Kind tour, we knew we had to go along and experience that iconic voice in person…

In photos: Roddy Woomble at Metronome

Festival Review: Beeston Film Festival

From Cornish mermaids to crazy golf tournaments, runaway factory robots and first date musicals, this film festival had it all.

'Bad Betty Live' Returns to Peggy's Skylight

This Sunday, watch the best live poetry with a daiquiri in hand.

Gig review: Self Esteem at Rescue Rooms

With the launch of the new album A Complicated Woman, there's plenty to celebrate for Self Esteem. We dropped in to one of her very special Rescue Rooms shows and found the pop artist on exceptional form, despite some tiredness...

Five reasons not to miss Bearded Theory this year

A plethora of top quality artists, creative activities and unique educational content… Bearded Theory really does have it all. The festival takes place over the late Bank Holiday weekend in the beautiful setting of Catton Park, under an hour from our Nottingham doorsteps. Here are five reasons you can’t afford to miss the 2025 edition…