CAPITAL OF CULTURE: Mathew St Festival aims at a broader culture

Sep 28 2007 by David Bartlett, Liverpool Daily Post

THE organisers of the Mathew Street Festival plan to bring it back next year with a broader base of genres.

Festival director Dave Jones, of Cavern City Tours, said next year’s festival on August Bank Holiday will offer “more than just rock and roll”.

The outdoor element of this year’s festival was cancelled on safety grounds, but Mr Jones said the lessons had be learnt to make sure there was no repeat next year.

Mr Jones added: “We are very cautious that a lot more planning has got to go into the event so that what is announced is what happens.

“We have been working on the plan since August.

“A lot of discussion and work have already been done, but we are still in the planning stages.

“We have got to be careful that the mistakes made in 2007 are not made in 2008.

“It’s bound to have an outdoor element.

“There will be a broad genre of music including contemporary that is associated with Liverpool, music of the ’60s with cover bands.

“There will also be an element of Afro-Caribbean music, there will be a broader representation of genres than perhaps there has been in the past.

“We can expect changes in the event that will make it a broader, and perhaps more cultural, event than just people regarding it as outdoor stages and a fun fair.”

He said the festival would celebrate and demonstrate Liverpool’s musical culture.

“It will showcase Liverpool and its culture,” he said.

International Beatles Week, which is also organised by Mr Jones, promises to attract thousands of visitors when it is held in August.