BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//wp-events-plugin.com//7.1.1//EN TZID:Europe/London X-WR-TIMEZONE:Europe/London BEGIN:VEVENT UID:23536@xyzbrighton.com DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250716T190000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250716T230000 DTSTAMP:20250716T071916Z URL:https://xyzbrighton.com/events/waterbear-music-bar-launch-party/ SUMMARY:WaterBear Music Bar Launch Party DESCRIPTION: \;\nWaterBear Launches New Brighton Music Venue to Champio n Grassroots Talent\nBrighton’s live music community gets a vibrant new home this July as WaterBear Music Bar opens in a venue rich with musical h eritage. The new bar launches on Wednesday 16 July with a free-entry night of live music from four standout acts: Congratulations\, Sametime\, Dirts harks and Tia Ice.\n\nThe building has previously welcomed artists includi ng Amy Winehouse\, The Kooks and Chris Difford. Now under the stewardship of WaterBear – The College of Music\, it becomes the college’s second live venue in the city. The opening marks the start of a wider plan to emb ed students and emerging artists directly into Brighton’s grassroots cir cuit\, offering real-world experience in performance\, stagecraft and prod uction.\n\nCongratulations are a four-piece known for their break-beat dri ven\, noise-pop energy and vibrant\, colour-coordinated live aesthetic. Th eir chaotic\, kinetic shows have drawn comparisons to acts like Jockstrap and Pom Poko\, and they’ve been building a name through constant gigging and a growing following on the local circuit. Sametime\, a WaterBear alum ni band\, are Australian brothers Sam and Tim Aitken\, now based in Bright on after signing an early global publishing deal with Sony. With a pop-lea ning sound and sharp songwriting instincts\, they’ve played sold-out sho ws across the UK and built buzz at The Great Escape. Joining them will be Dirtsharks\, comprising another WaterBear alumni\, who will bring a heavie r alt-rock presence to the launch night. Known for their dynamic\, violin- infused arrangements and reverb-soaked chaos\, they’ve toured widely and earned critical acclaim for high-impact sets at Boardmasters\, The Great Escape and venues across the south coast. Completing the line-up is neo-so ul vocalist Tia Ice\, a WaterBear student whose soft\, rich voice and spok en-word-infused songwriting have marked her out as one to watch. Her intim ate sets tap into Brighton’s growing soul and R&\;B scene\, blending vulnerability with stage presence.\n\nThe venue itself includes a basement live space and a ground floor bar with an intimate performance area. It w ill host touring acts\, student showcases and events tied to WaterBear’s educational programmes. Its launch comes as the UK’s grassroots venue n etwork continues to shrink. According to the Music Venue Trust\, two venue s are closing every week\, with over 120 shut down in the past year alone. \n\nAs part of a direct response\, WaterBear will serve Fightback Lager fr om launch day\, with a portion of every pint supporting the Music Venue Tr ust’s national fund for independent venues. WaterBear’s new venue is a lso part of the Keeping Music Live campaign launched with the Music Venue Trust\, which raises awareness of the role grassroots venues play in shapi ng British music while encouraging direct action.\n\nSam Rushton\, Events and Careers Coordinator at WaterBear\, said: “We’re thrilled to announ ce the opening of WaterBear Music Bar. This is a building with serious his tory. We’re proud to continue that story\, creating a space for gigs\, t alks\, club nights and more.”\n\nWaterBear co-founder Bruce Dickinson ad ded: “It’s incredible to think that we now have two live music venues in the city. It’s so important to ensure we don’t lose these spaces. W e recently launched the Keeping Music Live Campaign with the Music Venue T rust to highlight the crisis facing independent venues across the UK. Thro ugh this campaign\, we want to encourage young people to go out and suppor t their local music venues. These are the places where the magic happens —where talent and careers take shape\, where artists\, bands\, and songw riters grow and mature to the point of making great records.”\n\nDespite record demand for live music\, with over 19.2 million UK concertgoers in 2023\, venues face rising costs\, redevelopment pressure and the long-tail effects of the pandemic. WaterBear Sheffield is already putting this into practice with students playing midweek slots in local venues to boost foo tfall. The campaign will expand this October with a national tour featurin g WaterBear students and established headliners.\n\nWednesday 16 July will be the first night of a new chapter for a venue that helped shape Brighto n’s musical past—and now plays a role in securing its future. Entry is free and open to all.\n\n \;\nAbout WaterBear – The College of Musi c\nFounded by Adam Bushell and Bruce John Dickinson\, WaterBear was create d to support musicians and artists in building long-term\, independent car eers. Both founders bring over 30 years of industry experience and 25 year s in music education at the highest level.\n\nThe college delivers a range of BA (Hons) and MA music degree courses across performance\, production\ , songwriting\, business and education. Courses are offered in partnership with Falmouth University and are available on-site in Brighton and Sheffi eld\, or online through flexible learning models.\n\nWaterBear Brighton is now home to two live venues\, forming part of a wider strategy to bridge education with the real-world infrastructure of the music industry.\nEvent Details\nWaterBear Music Bar Launch\n\nLocation: 14-17 Manchester Street\ , BN2 1TF\nDate: Wednesday 16 July 2025\n\nTIme: 7-11 PM\n\n \;\n\nFre e entry\, 18+\n\nLive music from:\nCongratulations\n\nSametime\n\nDirtshar ks\n\nTia Ice ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://xyzbrighton.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/ 07/image002.png CATEGORIES:Arts,Community,Free,Live Music,Performance,Students LOCATION:WaterBear Music Bar\, 14-17 Manchester Street\, Brighton\, England \, BN2 1TF\, Brighton and Hove\, United Kingdom GEO:50.820465;-0.135507 X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=14-17 Manchester Street\, B righton\, England\, BN2 1TF\, Brighton and Hove\, United Kingdom;X-APPLE-R ADIUS=100;X-TITLE=WaterBear Music Bar:geo:50.820465,-0.135507 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:Europe/London X-LIC-LOCATION:Europe/London BEGIN:DAYLIGHT DTSTART:20250330T020000 TZOFFSETFROM:+0000 TZOFFSETTO:+0100 TZNAME:BST END:DAYLIGHT END:VTIMEZONE END:VCALENDAR