Rough Trade Bristol
Bristol branch of the iconic record store with decent sized gig space and excellent music
Rough Trade's punk credentials stretch way back to 1976 and Geoff Travis' watershed Rough Trade Records (home to Stiff Little Fingers, Cabaret Voltaire and the C86 compilations that defined that UK indie sound). The first branch open in West London, but Bristol is its fifth and newest store. The 2018 opening came at a great time - whatever you think about the store - the addition of a solid 150 - 200 venue in town with some discerning heads behind the programming was welcome news for all.
Free and ticketed events happen most nights of the week - mix of big names like Idles and Throbbing Gristle's Chris Carter plus local acts like Bad Tracking and Elder Island.
Free and ticketed events happen most nights of the week - mix of big names like Idles and Throbbing Gristle's Chris Carter plus local acts like Bad Tracking and Elder Island.
What's On At Rough Trade Bristol
— Rough Trade Bristol
rock
alternative rock
punk
post-punk
garage rock
— Rough Trade Bristol
open mic
singer-songwriter
spoken word
poetry
family event
— Rough Trade Bristol
indie folk
indie pop
lo-fi
alternative rock
indie rock
— Rough Trade Bristol
metal
rock
classic rock
alternative rock
— Rough Trade Bristol
post-punk
grunge
shoegaze
lgbtq+
drag
Get a feel for Rough Trade Bristol
Our recent recommendations for Rough Trade Bristol
Deadly MBV x Fontaines DC x Scalping cocktail of macabre vocals, wall-of-noise-guitars and industrial dancetronica; Bristol’s rapturous post-rock shoegazers come of age with their debut EP, crashing into the world via the Rough Trade stage. Essential I-saw-them-before-they-were-massive bragging rights FFO: Interpol, New Order, Primary Colours-era Horrors, A Place To Bury Strangers.
Damefrisør + guests at Rough trade
The mighty Punka returns with a triple bill of raucous queer punk energy. Headed up by Martyrials’ psychedelic electro-punk with goth-rockers Witch Hook and riotous noise-punx Split Dogs.
3 Bristol queer punk bands and a drag host!!
Free entry / PWYC! Medieval chamber-prog meets indie-metal in a bizzaro mashup of seriously accomplished modern sludge liturgies. Like Horse Lords collabing with Mars Volta or Oxbow covering Hildegard von Bingen; Extra Life have stumbled upon something unclassifiably out of time FFO: Zs, Liars, Dirty Projectors, Theatre of Hate, These New Puritans, Kayo Dot, Lingua Ignota.
New York avant rock unit, with elements of math rock, dark pop, metal and classical.
Punka heads to Rough Trade, dragging DIS with them for another night of drag crossover madness. With musical delights from spoken word soulful popster Freddie Lewis and brooding synth-driven anthems from Kerensa.
3 amazing queer artists and a drag host!
Leather-clad legends of no-wave disco anarcho-glam, Special Interest command a riotous car-flipping synthpunk sound somewhere between Suicide, Sonic Youth and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. They’re gonna make a real big noise with chaotic techno hero Container in support too. Fans of Guerilla Toss, early HTRK, Show Me The Body, ESG, why haven’t you bought tickets yet?
New Orleans, Louisiana / Rough Trade Records.