St Helens Council saves Eclectica music festival

Aug 8 2007 Liverpool Daily Post

Ian McCulloch and Will Sergeant, Liverpool band Echo and The Bunnymen _180

ST HELENS council has stepped in to save an element of the Mathew Street Festival following its cancellation.

Organisers of the free Eclectica music festival in St.Helens have stepped in to save Streetwaves 2007.

Eclectica, a free event which organisers claim is one of Northern England’s most exciting, innovative, and up and coming music festivals, is now in its third year.

Eclectica ‘07 - being headlined by the legendary Echo & the Bunnymen, together with Little Man Tate and John Power (ex The La’s and Cast) - will take place on Saturday in Victoria Square, St.Helens.

The event is organised by St.Helens Council, in association with The Citadel Arts Centre and Love Music, Hate Racism.

In addition to major established acts, Eclectica provides a platform for new young talent, which this year will see The Poems – a Glasgow-based folk rock band impressing crowds throughout Scotland and further afield - plus local bands The Aclyrics, Giant Root Attack and The Lancashire Hotpots, all taking the stage.

Streetwaves 2007 is a chance for talented musicians aged between 14 and 25-years-old to take their first steps in the music industry, get advice from industry professionals and obtain valuable real live performance experience.

After hearing about the cancellation of the Mathew Street festival, St Helens Council contacted the Liverpool Culture Company to offer to incorporate Streetwaves into the Eclectica ‘07 music festival and make sure that some of the best young musicians from across Merseyside did not miss their big chance to perform live.

Cllr Neil Taylor, executive member for urban regeneration and housing at St Helens Council, said: "Eclectica is a superb event that enjoys a growing regional following thanks to its fantastic headline acts and diverse line up.

"This year will undoubtedly see the festival’s biggest crowd yet due to the headline performance by Liverpool Legends Echo and the Bunnymen, which is their only gig on Merseyside this Summer.

"We already work very closely with partners across Merseyside to maximise our individual and collective appeal as a visitor destination, and so for us it was an obvious step to offer to help salvage Streetwaves.

"This is positive partnership in action that will be great for the bands and their following, great for the Eclectica music festival, great for St.Helens and great for Merseyside."