Celebrate More of What Our Musical City Has To Offer at This Year’s Tramlines Fringe
- Megan Wood
- Jul 25
- 6 min read
Updated: Jul 28
The excitement is brewing for this year’s Tramlines Festival as preparations are underway to transform Hillsborough Park into a magical musical wonderland for the weekend (Friday 25th – Sunday 27th July). But for those of you that won’t be joining the 40,000 festival-goers for Sheffield’s sold-out annual party, fear not! As always, down the road (or ‘tramlines’ if you like) the city centre will be buzzing with bucket-loads of artists and music to enjoy for FREE, all weekend!
Proudly supported by Sheffield BID, Sheffield City Council, and Tramlines Festival, The Fringe is expected to attract music lovers from all walks of life, having brought an estimated £1.86 million into the local economy last year! In addition to the wealth of acts gracing the stage at Devonshire Green, it’s also the wider Fringe programme, fondly known to regular Fringe-goers as ‘Sheffield Christmas’, that never fails to disappoint and treats local music-lovers to over 400 bands and artists with performances taking place across 40 venues.
So, grab a drink and relive the inner-city festival vibes reminiscent of what Tramlines used to be back in the day. With so much going on, it’s impossible to squeeze it all into one guide – so here’s a little taster of just some of the things you can catch this weekend…
Think of Dev Green as the ‘official’ heart of the Fringe – a stage that was once an integral part of Tramlines and was even home to the main stage back in the early days. This year it will play host to numerous acts across the weekend and is sure to be a lively hub of activity, music, food, drink, and dancing; all the while being super family friendly – what’s not to love! Get down, chill out, and soak up everything our musical city has to offer from ska and reggae stars to Ed Sheeran-supported artists from Tracks music project. Let’s hope the rain holds off (but I doubt nothing can dampen our spirits with such a stellar line-up on show!)
When: SATURDAY and SUNDAY
Three tracks to get you in the mood:
The Tivolis (SAT) – Tell Me
Shanghai Treason (SAT) – Gatling gun
Macka B (SUN) – Cucumba
This iconic venue and recording studio will be open this weekend for your Fringe music needs, hosting three jam-packed nights of chaos courtesy of local music college WaterBear, local hardcore punk band Nylon, and Yellow Arch itself on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night respectively. Expect three nights of legendary sets, each supporting the local music scene in their own way. WaterBear pride themselves on providing real life music opportunities for their students so gig-goers on Thursday night were well and truly warmed up by the very best fresh, up and coming talent – now the rest of the weekend awaits! So, come and soak up the industrial charm and rich musical heritage in this stunning venue, you won’t be disappointed.
When: THURSDAY, FRIDAY, and SATURDAY
Three tracks to get you in the mood:
Good Damage (THURS) - Superego
NYLON (FRI) – Wind Your Neck In
Bruise Control (SAT) – Left Behind
Sidney & Matilda - Jarred Up at ‘The Other Festival’
If you want to start your weekend right, Sidney and Matilda is the place to be on Friday night. Guess who’s back for a second year in a row to take over that sweet spot where Sidney Street meets Matilda Street…it’s local promoters Jarred Up of course, with another set of stellar artists in tow to get you in the mood!
This former industrial space is home to multiple gig spaces with The Basement and The Gallery being the two main gig rooms, ready and waiting for you to rock out over the weekend – yes, although this is just the Friday we’re talking about – ‘The Other Festival’ is spanning the whole WEEKEND with loads more free music to discover on Saturday and Sunday too. You might just decide to move in for the weekend, especially when you find out there’s a Hot Chip DJ set kicking off Friday night so you can stay and boogie long after all the bands have finished…
When: FRIDAY
Three tracks to get you in the mood:
Nervous Pills – Cheetah
Mickey Nomimono – Hot and Cold
STRIXEN – Body Made Of It All
‘Shakelines’ at Shakespeare’s
Jarred up will also be back at the much-loved, quirky watering hole that has become their tramlines home and boy do they have a treat lined up for you on Saturday night! Head down to this cute little live music pub, located on Gibraltar Street near the edge of Kelham Island, to celebrate five years of ‘Shakelines’; which has become an iconic part of the Fringe weekend and never fails to provide an exhilarating night featuring some of the best local (and non-local) talent around. This year’s line-up also includes a secret set (shhh), so I guess the only way to find out more is to head down and witness the fun for yourselves. Make sure to pop in on Friday and Sunday too as there is gonna be sweet, sweet music at Shakey’s ALL weekend!
When: SATURDAY
Three tracks to get you in the mood:
Any Old Iron – The Water
Bait Britain – Glencoe (No Place Like Home)
Surf Jaz - Lindo
‘Clamlines’ at Delicious Clam
Located on Exchange Street at Castlegate, you will find the legendary DIY punk venue and label, Delicious Clam. Famous for their iconic ‘Clams In Their Eyes’, their Tramlines weekend will see a Fringe line-up brimming with garage punk, lo-fi indie, and good vibes spread across three nights! With a secret special guest set headlining the Friday, this is not to be missed - so go and find out what all the fuss is about and support one of your local DIY venues - Delicious Clam is definitely worth the visit.
When: THURSDAY, FRIDAY, and SATURDAY
Three tracks to get you in the mood:
Mock Tudors (THURS) – Back on the Pils
Lawi Anywar (FRI) – Cop Land
Jade Hairpins (SAT) – Drifting Superstition
‘Washingline’ at The Washington
One of Sheffield’s favourite venues offers an intimate setting that is both cosy and chaotic. The Washy are experts at hosting the free gig, and as always, they have a weekend stacked full of free talent for you to enjoy. Here’s a place if you want to get up close and personal with the artists and really feel those reverberations deep in your bones. After having kicked off with a free night of live bands on Thursday, plus a DJ set til 3am, they’re serious about getting the weekend started. With an extra three nights of phenomenal artists and DJ sets til 4am, its sure to be a weekend to remember - when you find yourself at Washy, there’s no excuse not to party.
When: THURSDAY, FRIDAY, SATURDAY, and SUNDAY
Three tracks to get you in the mood:
Hallan (FRI) – Modern England
Sam Scherdel (SAT) – Somebody Else
Malah Palinka (SUN) – Baby Who Hurt You?
Live music is well and truly back on West Street with The Hallamshire now in its second year of Tramlines Fringe. Bringing some of the best underground sounds to your lug holes and DJ sets til the early hours, you really are spoilt for choice. Whilst the venue itself is stunning and dripping with a retro 70s disco aesthetic (the cocktails are delish too), the artists playing this weekend span all genres from rock and roll, jazz, punk, disco, and even a live tribute in the form of The Bowie Contingent – there’s something for everyone’s taste!
When: FRIDAY, SATURDAY, and SUNDAY
Three tracks to get you in the mood:
FloodHounds (FRI) – Psychosemantics
We Hate The Sharkman (SAT) – Bears In The Brig
Junk (SUN) – trousers
If you find yourself near Dev Green or Washy this weekend, you must pop into The Green Room on Division Street and check out their array of festivities. The self-proclaimed ‘dive bar’, that’s always been about the live music, has been a must with Tramlines Fringe goers over the years. With live artists a plenty on the Friday and Sunday, Saturday will see a ‘reprieve’ if you fancy a little breather – we all know it can all get a bit overwhelming so instead of live bands, they will instead be serving up all the good vibes, banging playlists, and an unbeatable atmosphere so your ears can recover from Friday and be raring to go again by Sunday. Sounds like a plan.
When: FRIDAY, SATURDAY, and SUNDAY
Three tracks to get you in the mood:
Malachite (FRI) – A Stone’s Throw
My Lo-Fi Heart (SUN) – Song 1
Three Of Swords (SUN) – Broken Inside
And there yous have it. That’s our lil’ taster of the Tramlines Fringe weekend but there’s loads more going on that we simply cannot fit into this little guide – but we hope it’s still one you can use to inspire your weekend plans (or maybe you’ll find yourself just wandering wherever the music (and beer) takes you…
With the Fringe festivities taking place in and around the city centre, TravelMaster has introduced a special CityWide ticket, to make exploring the event even easier. They are offering unlimited bus and tram travel for £10 across two days with this pass available via the TravelMaster app, it’s well worth a nosy!
