The Canteen
Seriously popular Bristol venue with free gigs every night.
Thankfully surviving lockdown, the Canteen is still a centre point of the Stokes Croft live music scene: 5 nights a week of the best free* music on the most vibrant street in Bristol (*£5 entry fee after 9:30pm Fri & Sat)
Since it's launch in 2009 The Canteen (part of the Hamilton House Arts Space) has become seriously popular, so much so that it's fair to expect queues on both Friday and Saturday nights. The Canteen is a multifunctional meeting space, it is neither predominantly a restaurant nor a music venue, however arguably succeeds in both of these roles.
With regards to gigs at the Canteen you can find some of Bristol's best bands and entry is always free (see our free live music in Bristol page for more).
The atmosphere (gig wise) can depend on whats on at The Canteen in Bristol, bearing in mind that many patrons will not be there specifically for the live music. That said the quality of musicians booked by the Canteen is seriously high so be sure to check the listings.
Since it's launch in 2009 The Canteen (part of the Hamilton House Arts Space) has become seriously popular, so much so that it's fair to expect queues on both Friday and Saturday nights. The Canteen is a multifunctional meeting space, it is neither predominantly a restaurant nor a music venue, however arguably succeeds in both of these roles.
With regards to gigs at the Canteen you can find some of Bristol's best bands and entry is always free (see our free live music in Bristol page for more).
The atmosphere (gig wise) can depend on whats on at The Canteen in Bristol, bearing in mind that many patrons will not be there specifically for the live music. That said the quality of musicians booked by the Canteen is seriously high so be sure to check the listings.
What's On At The Canteen
— The Canteen
uk garage
bassline
drum and bass
jungle
reggae
— The Canteen
tech house
industrial techno
lgbtq+
talks
workshops & classes
— The Canteen
folk
folk-pop
singer-songwriter
soul
gospel
Get a feel for The Canteen
Our recent recommendations for The Canteen
Free entry! Revival-style Celtic balladry melds with velvety Americana in the hands of former Green Man Rising winners the Eve Appleton Band. Their lush layered harmonies and intricate proggy arrangements ooze with graceful warmth; art folk at its best FFO: The Weather Station, Laura Marling, The Staves, First Aid Kit.
Eve Appleton Band at The Canteen.
Free entry dub session featuring two of Bristol’s finest next gen crews in a first time collision of radical roots, rootical dub and year 3000 steppas. It was only a matter of time before Chewing Glass called on 1Relation to meet them in the dance, will Stokes Croft survive?
CGC Sound mark the TENTH Stokes Croft Sub Sessions with a meeting between themselves and fellow Bristolians, 1Relation Sound.
Free entry! British-Americana troubadour duo A Different Thread weave together the roots of Celtic balladry with Appallachian bluegrass and country to create a richly emotive strain of contemporary transatlantic folk – featuring fiddle, banjo, double bass and honeyed vocal harmonies. Timeless!
"British Americana" - The transatlantic collaboration between UK-born Robert Jackson and North Carolina native, Alicia Best
Free entry! Magnetic Bristolian mega-fusion of warm analogue jazz, funk, soul, and psych– basically a mid-week Canteen-goer’s dream. Dr. Chonk & The Nature Injection’s gently trippy, retro-tinted grooves fall somewhere between languid late-night loungefest and a sun-kissed jam session FFO: Azymuth, El Michels Affair, Magic in Threes, Ill Considered.
Dusty, raw sounds of 70s psych-jazz to imagine a modern, lo-fi soul
Free entry! Step inside the haunted house of West Country blues that is Ma Plaine’s Great Decline. Their moody Waits-channelling Americana slithers and swings with bone-rattling skiffle rhythms and a big dollop of proggy oddness. Sinister, spellbinding!
Uplifting mash of blues, jazz and country