What's On / Bristol Gigs

Bristol Gigs

— All Bristol's Live Music

Buy tickets for Bristol's best gigs and live music.

Live music gig with great Bristol bands.

Bristol’s best gigs

Every week, the Headfirst editors trawl through all of the live music listings on the website and pick the best gigs for you to go to. Our event selections range from classical music concerts at St George’s Hall to smaller, local musician’s gigs at The Canteen or the Exchange.

Check out this week’s Bristol gig selections over on the Headfirst Facebook page and don’t forget to join our weekly email list for ticket alerts and announcements about interesting bands coming to Bristol including our biggest venues like SWX.

All tickets for this concert were sold through Headfirst Ticket Shop.

Tickets for Bristol gigs

In 2016, Headfirst Bristol launched an online ticket shop for live music events. Inspired by local cooperatives and community interest companies like the Bristol Cable and The Island, Headfirst provides an ethical and respectful place to buy tickets for gigs in Bristol. Our booking fees are low (usually 65p per ticket) and we strive to help support independent live music events as much as large concerts at venues like Bristol Beacon or Marble Factory.

Upcoming gigs in Bristol

Tue 18th March
Hockey Dad at The Trinity Centre
— The Trinity Centre

Hockey Dad in Bristol Tickets

Tue 17th December
The Wandering Hearts at The Trinity Centre
Mon 16th December
James Yorkston at The Jam Jar
Sun 10th November
THE URANIUM CLUB  plus GIMIC and more at Rough Trade Bristol

Live music venues in Bristol

Bristol’s gig venues play an essential and often overlooked role in the city’s music scene. A spectrum of venues provides a ladder for new bands and musical talent to ascend. DIY spaces like Lost Horizon and Strangebrew provide a testbed for the screaming synthesisers and the guitars that will undoubtedly become part of Bristol’s future. Check out Headfirst’s Bristol venues page to discover which kind of performances and concerts you can expect from each gig venue.

First live gig for one of Bristol's best guitarists.

Our editor's top live music recommendation

Sell out warning! The jazz gods have spoken, allotting us mortals in Bristol one final chance to reach true transcendence and achieve a love supreme. Get down on your knees - the greatest reedsman of the 21st century is about to lift the roof off St Mary Redcliffe. Praise be the Worms! SHABAKA in concert at St Mary Redcliffe.

Sell out warning! Vulnerable, tender and epic, seemingly all at once, Piglet pair gorgeously emosh pop music with masterfully disciplined arrangements. Think Caroline and Shovel Dance Collective meets Phoebe Bridgers and you’re getting warm... it’s gorgeous. piglet EP Launch at Cloak.

The audio equivalent of flicking through a year’s worth of National Geographics - Floating World Pictures fills you with the calming ambient beauty of the planet. Fourth world soundscapes full of field recordings, embracing drones, birdsong and textural wonders. Guaranteed tranquillity for fans of Laraaji, Brian Eno, Gigi Masin, Bing & Ruth, Koyaanisqatsi. Friendly Records Presents Floating World Pictures at The Louisiana.

Sell out warning! Not jazz nor rock nor film music, fans just call it ‘Necks music’. That spine-tingling unwinding of instrumental textures and improvised magic - a once in a lifetime gig for those who’ve never witnessed. The Necks at Strange Brew.

Recommended Gigs

Thu 5th December
Moin & Ex Agent at Rough Trade Bristol
— Rough Trade Bristol

Moin & Ex Agent in Bristol Tickets

Fri 25th October
Queer Joy Party at Rough Trade Bristol
— Rough Trade Bristol

Queer Joy Party in Bristol Tickets

Wed 16th April
Mary Coughlan at The Trinity Centre
— The Trinity Centre

Mary Coughlan in Bristol Tickets

Sun 2nd February
The Brian Jonestown Massacre at The Marble Factory
Tue 18th March
Nadia Reid at Strange Brew
Tue 25th February
Laibach at The Trinity Centre
— The Trinity Centre

Laibach in Bristol Tickets

Tue 25th February
The Bug Club at Thekla
Mon 11th November
Tashi Wada at Bristol Beacon
Sat 30th November
Existentialist + 9 at Moor Beer Co

Gigs in Bristol today

Most of Headfirst’s visitors come to discover new bands and live music in Bristol. We’re proud to be Bristol’s most complete gig listings resource, complete with a full breakdown of gigs in Bristol today and tour dates for the next six months. A sterling selection of open mic nights (particularly along Gloucester Road), provide ample midweek entertainment for would-be talent scouts.

Sell out warning - buy tickets while you can!

Sell out warning! Raw emotion made manifest by any means necessary. Histrionic synth-pop, searing folk noise, soaring baroque soundscapes - alienation’s never had sonic champions like Angela & Jamie. Uncompimising, exhilirating, unpredictable genius FFO: Scott Walker, Björk, Deerhoof, Lingua Ignota, Perfume Genius. XIU XIU + Semay Wu + Frise Lumière at Strange Brew.

Sell out warning! The En Masse wormhole opens with ethereal sonic virtuoso Bethany Ley (fka STANLAEY), serving her opalescent dreampop in a must-see collab with Cold Light’s cosmic wordsmith Eldon. Immense FFO: Björk, Aga Ujma, Hania Rani, billy woods, R.A.P. Ferreira. Cube w/ Bethany Ley + Eldon & more at The Cube.

Rapper announces our new Bristol gig guide on the microphone!
Brace yourselves for DSM IV’s gut-punching neo-goth-pop, ft Guy McKnight of noughties psychobilly faves The Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster. Heavy-hitting alt-anthems channelling Sisters of Mercy meets Sleaford Mods = pure darkwave abandon. The DSM IV + Jemma Freeman & The Cosmic Something at The Golden Lion.

Sell out warning! Zeke weld snot-punk fury and bluesy hard rock riffage into their own time-honoured brand of demolition derby hardcore. Ain’t nothing faster FFO: Poison Idea, Motorhead, Dicks, The Bronx, Supersuckers, Dwarves. ZEKE plus Zero Again and Split Dogs at Exchange.


Local bands and musicians

Local musicians are the lifeblood and new energy that constantly rejuvenates Bristol’s venues and performance spaces. Graduates from Bristol University’s Music course and BIMM provide regular injections of talent ranging from electronic music producers to classically trained pianists and orchestral musicians. Some of Bristol’s most successful bands are the first to point out that their inspiration comes from other local bands and gigs they’ve attended; with this in mind Headfirst is careful to include as much local talent as possible in it’s gig guide.

In addition to attending gigs you can also support Bristol’s musicians by buying their records from independent stores like Idle Hands Records, Shall Not Fade and Christmas Steps Records.