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Free Gigs in Bristol

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Bristol's Free Gigs Scene

Where to find free music in Bristol Free music's pretty easy to find in Bristol. Whilst most gigs outside of the big venues are usually only a few quid, it's always nice to see some bands for free or a couple of pounds in a bucket (if they're good!) For guaranteed free music with your pint, go to a venue which has a free entry policy.

The Old Duke, The Canteen and The Golden Lion (except fridays) should probably be your first port-of-call to check out Coronation Tap are also very reliable and popular for free gigs. Luckily free gigs can happen anywhere, this means you can keep things interesting and not get bored of rotating the same Bristol venues. Free live music can crop up anywhere from the Grain Barge and Lousianna to Colston Hall and even St Georges.

The economy of free gigs. Can it survive Covid?

Good news: gigs in Bristol are more likely to be free than anywhere else! General ticket prices seem to be more common between free and £5; the £20+ bracket is a rare one compared to the capital’s high-end arts and theatre gigs. Bristol’s pandemic response has opened up some extra local music funding. Will free gigs disappear with the added financial pressures of covid? Indoor gigs may soon be possible, but how many of them will remain free and accessible?

Free outdoor gigs and festivals in Bristol

From mid June to the beginning of September Bristol Council and independent organisations put on some great free music events. Best of all there's something different almost every weekend and they don't cost any money! Significant large events include St Werbergh's Fair, The Harbourside Festival and St Pauls Carnival. In addition there are some great smaller, open air gigs with free entry to be found in places like Queens Square, Stokes Croft and Castle Park.

Buy tickets for free gigs events in Bristol

Our recent free gigs recommendations

Sheffield’s knotty computer-music maestro Rian Treanor meets the wind-instrument minimalism of Japan’s Rai Tateishi, pairing Autechre-esque rhythmic workouts with stark, ancient harmonics. Their bizarro style is prodded further into the vortex by Eye Measure’s corrupted cyber-coding and Luigi Marino's deep explorations in Wuhan cymbals. Rian Treanor & Rai Tateishi + Eye Measure at The Cube.

An immersive odyssey through the foggy dreamscapes of Neil Ó Lochlainn & Cuar: dense ancestral Irish chamber-jazz stuffed with stretched Sean-nós melodies, bowed scrapes, and microtonal folds. Support comes from experimental harpist Rhodri Davies, distinguished local trumpeter Pete Judge and Scottish Gaelic vocalist Ewen MacIntyre. Essential FFO: Slow Airs, The Gloaming, Lúnasa, Nightnoise. A new year’s evening of traditional & improvised chamber music

Sell out warning! Just play the hits! Neglected self-sabotaging art-punk anti-heroes return to their ‘77 roots with an unbeatable repertoire of vitriolic Peel-approved classics. This might be your last chance to see them behave, with spirited renditions of How Much Longer?, Action Time Vision, and none of that jazz stuff! Essential historical fix FFO: Wire, X-Ray Spex, The Adverts, The Fall. Alternative TV will play a set of their early, 77-81, songs, supported by lovcl, punk, legends, Social Security

Free entry! Imploding destructo-rock double billing from two treasured local underground units. Riley/Radley take a desert-frazzled Sun City Girls-style detour into primitive guitar twang and impressionistic drums, while Carnivorous Plants marry found radio sound smudges with melodic dronegaze delight. A basement treasure FFO: Bill Orcutt, Dirty Three, Flying Saucer Attack, Manuel Mota. Avant-rock deconstructionists