LIVE in Barnsley has announced 7 more bands that have been confirmed to take part. They are;

Everyone an Army, are Martyn Hughes - Vocals, Guitar, Lee Simpson – Bass,

Iain Hunter – Drums are originally from Scarborough but are now based in Barnsley.  Formed in the winter of 2009, the band have been melding the vocal histrionics of Buckley and Thom Yorke with intricate, yet explosive instrumentation (Think NIN/The Smiths/Oceansize/Radiohead-if you have to).  After playing gigs up and down the UK with the likes of Young Knives, Pulled Apart by Horses and Dinosaur Pile-Up.  The band recently went into the studio with Romesh Dodangoda (Motorhead/Manic Street Preachers) to record their third EP, ‘The Thundering Triumph of Knowing What’s Right’.  The EP was described as having ‘thundering deep bass sounds overlaid by some seriously huge guitar” 

The band received regular airplay on BBC introducing and has been played on Tom Robinson's BBC 6 music show. They have also had airplay on several independent stations around the globe.

2014 will see the band take their strong DIY ethos and explosive live show around the country and further expand their fast-growing fan base. This looks to be another good year for this young band. 

Midnight Hitch, a five piece from Barnsley who describe themselves as "A Group of mates from Barnsley all with a huge interest in music but mainly Rock and Roll and Blues, we like to have a laugh and have a good time while creating the best Cool as owt riffs and grooves we possibly can”. The band consist of Alex 'Cole' Dalton - Lead guitar and Vocals, Connah Clapham - Rythym Guitar & Blues Harp, Scott Swift – Bass, Brad Jacobs - 2nd rhythm and backing guitar and Zak Wright – Drums.  A young band with some old time influences, such as, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Albert King,  Pink Floyd, Neil Young, George Thorogood, Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard. 

Exit Lounge, are from Normanton and comprise vocalist/guitarist Steve Maloney, vocalist/bassist Sam Ramsden, keyboardist Tim Ramsden, and drummer Ed Thompson. The group started life as Maloney's occasional solo project. The former Johnny Zhivago and Vicious Cabaret singer released his first recordings under the name Exit Lounge in early 2010, with a full album - entitled ‘Theriac’ - arriving in 2011. A follow up, called ‘City Bottom Blues’, was released in 2012.  However, Exit Lounge became a full band in 2013.  Hailing from disparate regions of the British Isles, the band is currently based in Leeds. On the odd occasion they can find a venue that appeals to their rarefied aesthetic sensibilities, they are known to venture out to perform in public. A new EP is currently in production and should appear in early 2014. 

Bruja, are from Worsbrough and feature Zach Duvall – Drummer, Del Wadsworth – Bassist, Lewis Naylor – Guitarist. When they first formed, Zach had hardly touched a drum kit and Lewis had only been playing guitar for a couple of years. They started off jamming together but said themselves that they were terrible. After months of jamming every week, the band thought that they would ask their friend Del to join. She was happy to do so but on a temporary basis, until they found somebody else. Del had never really played the bass before. It turned out that Del joining the band was the perfect move. They finally started to play like a proper band and began playing some small gigs. In their first live set, they played the whole of Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged.  They started off with a Punky sound, whereas now they say they are “moulding our own sound, our own form of Grunge.”  They decided to call the band Bruja which is Spanish for Witch. A year down the line, Bruja had enough material to bring out a Demo which featured the tracks Freakshow, Born Again and Mental hold. They are currently working on their debut album and also have more gigs lined up. 

Ashby, a four-piece from Thurnscoe who describe themselves as Indie modsters. Formed in 2011 the band have taken their time to develop their sound and have been hard at work on the northern music scene, being voted 'Best Band of 2012' by the legendary Stone Roses Venue in York.  “We were brought up listening to the indie sounds of Sheffield and Manchester and have really taken that as a starting point, but we have introduced our own vibes” Said Lead Vocalist and Guitarist Ashley Mitchell. The Rest of the band consists of Levi Hand (Lead Guitar), Jack Law (Bass Guitar) and Greg Mason (Drums). Toward the end of last year they were signed by Native Records and recently played the legendary Dublin Castle in Camden. They also released their debut album only last week with a headline gig at Sheffield O2 Academy. They cite their influences as Oasis, The Beatles, The Clash, Stone Roses, The Smiths, The Jam, The Kinks and many more. 

Before We Are, a five-piece alternative rock band from Doncaster, consisting of Neil James - Vocals/Guitar, Chris Rebbeck - Bass/Vocals and Joseph Lidster – Drums. They only came together in March 2013, but have played loads of gigs including Tramlines Festival and Mapfest in Doncaster. In late 2013 two new members were introduced, Elliott Davies and Chris Rebbeck. The guys recently filmed a video for ‘Fool for Everything’ with Electric Eye Films and the track will be released later this year. A teaser clip appears on YouTube now.  

City of Lights, are based in Leeds, although the original seeds of the band were formed in Paris in April 2011, when Matt Dunwell (acoustic Guitar & Lead Vocals), inspired by the ever-present swirl of possibility floating throughout the French capital, decided to form a band. Collaborating with long-time song-writing conspirator Sean Howey (Drums & Backing Vocals), the two formed City of Lights in the aim to create their own brand of honest rock-pop that would ignite and engage. When the duo pulled in Sean’s brother Ashley to play bass and handle backing vocals, the boys undertook over a year’s worth of rigorous rehearsals and shows throughout the UK to help shape their sound. In order to further complete the line-up, they drafted lead guitarist Alex Humphreys into the fold, and City of Lights became the four-piece it is now. The band released their debut album ‘Seasons Change’ in 2012.  The band describes their sound as meshing Biffy Clyro with the melodic mastery of Snow Patrol and the heart of Thrice. They will be launching their album with a headline gig at The Cockpit in Leeds. The band played last years LIB Festival and followed it shortly after by playing the Leeds/Reading Festival. 

Today you have a chance to listen in to the LIVE in Barnsley Show on WAB Radio today at 2pm-4pm when the LIB Team will be playing tracks by local bands and some of the bands announced today.

They have SOULPRINT in the LIVE lounge this week playing a couple of tracks. Festival organiser, Steve Clifford said, “The first show was chaotic but a lot of fun. We’re not professional DJ’s, just music lovers having a laugh and playing some great music with some wonderful people coming into the studio to chat.” 

Festival organiser, Dave Pearsall, told us, “That’s 31 bands confirmed now, many of them first timers at the festival, which I think continues to show the breadth and depth of musical talent in the area.”  117 bands are scheduled to appear at this year’s festival in 13 town centre venues set to take place on Saturday 21st June. For more information click here.