O2 Institute Birmingham

However dimly we perceive it, we are living through a change of worlds. The one we were born into is slipping away, reshaped and denuded by human action. What remains is the question of what we will carry forward, and how we will refuse to surrender ourselves. Bonnie “Prince” Billy’s latest album, We Are Together Again, feels like an answer. 

Friendship, community, and the stubborn joy of making art with others become a means of persistence within his songs. This isn’t a denial of collapse, which would be delusion, but a kind of defiance: remaining fully human, fully joyful, in a world with a diminishing horizon.

2025 marked the long-awaited return of The Temperance Movement after a five-year hiatus. It proved one thing beyond doubt: the fans’ love for the band still burns brightly. 

Now, in 2026, the band head out on their ‘Let It All Out’ tour, all signs point to an exciting new chapter for The Temperance Movement — back together and in the form of their lives.

Singer and songwriter, Drake Milligan, has been hailed a Country traditionalist with his old-school flair and rock n’ roll roots. 

Making his breakout debut with his critically acclaimed album, Dallas/Fort Worth, and his EP, Jukebox Songs, Milligan has perfected his signature sound. 2025 sees the singer head out on his ‘Tumbleweed World Tour’ in support of his sophomore album, Tumbleweed. 

Founded in 1998, American rock band Eagles of Death Metal head out on tour celebrating 20 years of their 2006 album Death By Sexy. 

Frontman Jesse Hughes has gained a reputation for his over-the-top stage histrionics and evangelistic interaction with his fans, the band’s live performances are a sight to be seen.

2026 is big year for artist Seb Lowe as he rises to new heights with his autumn headline run, joined by special guest, Kate Couriel, who also plays in Seb’s live band.

Seb Lowe’s songs target their righteous anger at hefty topics such as inequality and misogyny, often engaging hearts and minds by infusing them with a scathing sense of satire and a savage wit. His contemporary take on the tradition of the protest song blends its timelessness with a contemporary indie-folk style.

The Rifles celebrate 20 years together as they embark upon a very special anniversary tour during which they will play their debut album No Love Lost in full, alongside other fan favourites.

NYC-based artist Julia Wolf’s rise has been defined by an unflinching commitment to lyrics-first storytelling, carving out a space that reaches beyond the confines of genre.  

What sets Wolf apart is her ability to translate intrusive thoughts and quiet insecurities into striking, universally resonant hooks, writing that feels diaristic yet expansive, confronting themes like comparison, self-worth, and longing with a rare bluntness that listeners see themselves in. 

Del Amitri return with their ‘Past To Present’ UK tour 2026, marking four decades of songs, stories and live shows.

A celebration of a catalogue that has soundtracked generations.

The undefinable, undeniable, raucous London band, Fat Dog, return after a period of calm with renewed ferocity, new tour dates and new music in 2026. 

The band, with chief rabble rouser Joe Love at the eye of the storm and now expanded to a seven piece, will be bringing their riotous live experience to venues across the UK and Europe this Autumn, playing some of their biggest shows to date.

Curfew 5am

South Gidi is a collaborative project between DJ Tunez and DJ Maphorisa, bringing together Nigerian afrobeats and South African amapiano in a seamless fusion of two of Africaʼs biggest contemporary music movements. 

More than a collaborative EP, South Gidi represents a cultural connection between afrobeats and amapiano, bringing together some of the continent’s most influential artists and reinforcing Africa’s position at the forefront of global popular music.

Curfew: 12am

One of the UK's most-streamed rappers Nemzzz returns with his ‘Locked In Tour’ in support of his latest mixtape Locked In.

Locked In captures Nemzzz's mindset at this stage of his career, focused, disciplined and constantly evolving, it reflects an artist becoming increasingly confident in his own identity while continuing to push his sound forward. 

Recharged and looking sharply at a world gone sideways, Staines’ finest Hard-Fi make their long-awaited return with their latest studio album Sweating Someone Else’s Fever, their first in 15 years.

The album looks outside the window to the fractured present, and paints it in bold musical strokes, with the same sharp-eyed social commentary that powered their classic debut Stars of CCTV, but with fresh perspective, new sounds and hard-earned freedom.

One of Ireland’s most popular music acts, The Tumbling Paddies head back on the road with their exuberant, energy-filled, live show.

Dance and sing along to the greatest Irish anthems with the Paddies uplifting versions of “Dirty Old Town", “Fields of Athenry” and “Zombie”, in what promises to be an incredible night of live music.

Southern California-bred singer and songwriter Tori Kelly embarks on her UK headline tour, in celebration of her latest album, God Must Really Love Me. 

The latest album from three-time GRAMMY winner Tori Kelly, God Must Really Love Me captures her in a moment of near-magical harmony between inner life and artistic impulse. 

Multi-platinum rock band Barenaked Ladies return with their 2026 UK tour ‘Yuletide Ride’, the band’s first UK tour dates since 2023. 

Over the past 38 years, Barenaked Ladies have established themselves as a much-loved live tour de force – consistently selling out tours across the globe. Hit singles, virtuoso musicianship and a unique and special bond with their audience make an evening with Barenaked Ladies something very special indeed. 

‘Yuletide Ride’ will see the band play festive favourites from their much-loved 2014 Christmas album Barenaked For The Holidays alongside their staple of hits including “One Week”, “If I Had a $1,000,000”, “Pinch Me” and “Big Bang Theory Theme”. 

Curfew 4am 

Get ready for an epic club night of the best in hard rock, metal and hip hop with maxim from The Prodigy, Rob Holliday and Em Masters from Cowgirls From Hell DJs.

Curfew 2am

Britpop-era icons Ash head out on tour to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their seminal debut album 1977. 

1977 defined a generation with its breakneck energy, razor-sharp hooks, and unforgettable anthems including "Girl From Mars", "Goldfinger", "Kung Fu", and "Oh Yeah".

One of the generations most decorated producers, Trevor Horn and his band head out on tour this December with a setlist of iconic hits that he produced, played and sang on.

One of the country’s biggest day time discos, Day Fever, has got people partying across the UK and Ireland, get ready to dance the day away.

With perfect party music, personally curated by Jon McClure of Reverend and the Makers, Vicky McClure, Jonny Owen and the gang it's time you joined the Day Fever family.

Coming to Sleigh Fever? Head to their website to request your favourite song before you arrive. 

Whether he’s singing an ode to conspiracy theories, telling his potential paramour all the things he won’t be doing for her, or lamenting his new vegan lifestyle, Stephen Lynch will always consider himself “a musician trapped in the body of a comedian". 

His unique blend of musical based comedy has earned him fiercely loyal fans around the world who live to experience his sold-out live shows, six best-selling CDs, his RIAA-certified Gold DVD and his top-rated Comedy Central Specials.

Curfew 4am

Portuguese-born and Toronto-raised, Sofia Camara pairs a powerhouse voice with heart-on-sleeve songwriting, creating cinematic pop rooted in heartbreak, longing and connection.

Countess Luann de Lesseps is back with her all-new live show, "The Love Tour" as her latest cabaret experience. 

Original cast member of one of the most successful franchises in television history, The Real Housewives of New York City, The Countess has achieved some real history of her own, with live appearances across the globe. 

Luann transformed her career as a nurse, model, actress, author, philanthropist, and TV star into a wildly successful cabaret entertainer: she is undoubtedly the voice of luxury. 

Knox revamps, revitalizes, and re-energizes emo and pop-punk with a fresh punch. Growing up in New Carlisle, OH, he fell in love with music as a kid, obsessing over Fall Out Boy, All-American Rejects, Boys Like Girls, Panic! At The Disco, Hawthorne Heights, and more. 

In 2019, he relocated to Nashville and launched a career behind-the-scenes as a songwriter. 2022 saw him embrace the spotlight as a solo artist with the viral breakthrough “Sneakers”, which surpassed 49 million Spotify streams. Everything kicked into high gear with the arrival of “Not The 1975” though.

After piling up hundreds of millions of streams, selling out shows, and earning critical acclaim, he returns home sonically and emotionally on his second full-length album, My Midwest Best.

Formed in Oxford, shoegaze four-piece Ride head out on their ‘Here And Now’ 2027 Tour, with their blend of dreamy melodic hooks, hypnotic grooves and noir-pop soundscapes.

The greatest tribute night to the music that was never just a phase… 

Teenage Nostalgia featuring all your biggest emo songs in existence with a live band and DJs spinning all the angst your teenage dirtbag heart desires all night long. Live performers, confetti and much more.

Put on your eyeliner, lace up your high-tops and get ready to rock to all your favourite nostalgic emo anthems.

Disclaimer: The Emo Festival and its events are not affiliated with the artists listed. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Switchfoot have spent nearly three decades cementing their place as one of the genre’s most enduring and impactful acts, the beloved band have built a global following through emotionally resonant songwriting and energetic live performances.

With a renewed focus on the present moment, the band delivers their first record in five years, Forever Now, their fourteenth studio album. A bold, guitar-driven return to their classic sound, the project serves as their most thematic and narrative-driven work to date, centering on the emotional roller coaster of a person’s final day on Earth. 

Known for his huge hit “Toxic”, Reading-born artist Songer, brings his authenticity, adaptability, and razor-sharp lyricism out on his ‘What If I Say Tour?’.  

It would be easy to imagine 4AM KRU were born in an instant flash of blinding light. After all, the truest way to experience their music is in the timeless white heat of a manic rave dancefloor as they deliver their literally sweat-drenched live show. The way they condense the purest essence and energy of early 90s rave and jungle seems so natural, it feels like it must be done on pure instinct.

It would be easy to imagine 4AM KRU were born in an instant flash of blinding light. After all, the truest way to experience their music is in the timeless white heat of a manic rave dancefloor as they deliver their literally sweat-drenched live show. 

The way they condense the purest essence and energy of early 90s rave and jungle seems so natural, it feels like it must be done on pure instinct.

Lambrini Girls return with No Refunds, a darker, even more direct and radical record for a moment in history where little else would make sense. Following their UK Top 20 debut Who Let The Dogs Out and sold-out global tours, the Brighton duo channel their fury into songs confronting modern horrors: genocide, fascism, the rise of AI and the descent into the grubby basement of the ‘manosphere’.

Hailing from Wigan, high-energy indie band The Lilacs have built their reputation the hard way, gig by gig, city by city. Now the band head out on tour in support of their debut album Keeping Up With The Joneses.

Since their inception, cleopatrick have proved themselves to be one of the most in-demand rising rock bands on the planet. They have amassed over 100 million streams, alongside a string of sold-out tours and festival appearances across Canada, the US, UK, and Europe. 

From viral hits to genre-defying albums, cleopatrick continue to carve out their own lane, proving that rock's future is not only alive but thriving in the hands of a new generation.

Sugababes have announced a run of major UK live shows for March, bringing their celebrated catalogue and new music to fans in Birmingham, Glasgow, London and Manchester.

The shows arrive at an exciting new chapter for Sugababes, following the announcement of their new album, Sugababes, that sees Mutya, Keisha and Siobhán embrace the eclectic, genre-defying sound that has always set them apart.

The tour will give fans the chance to experience the next chapter of Sugababes live, alongside the songs that have made them one of Britain’s most enduring pop groups, from ‘Overload’ and ‘Round Round’ to ‘Push the Button’ and beyond.

Sugababes have announced a run of major UK live shows for March, bringing their celebrated catalogue and new music to fans in Birmingham, Glasgow, London and Manchester.

The shows arrive at an exciting new chapter for Sugababes, following the announcement of their new album, Sugababes, that sees Mutya, Keisha and Siobhán embrace the eclectic, genre-defying sound that has always set them apart.

The tour will give fans the chance to experience the next chapter of Sugababes live, alongside the songs that have made them one of Britain’s most enduring pop groups, from ‘Overload’ and ‘Round Round’ to ‘Push the Button’ and beyond.

French atmospheric metal legends Alcest embark on an extensive European tour for March and April 2027. 

Special guests for this tour will be ecstatic Los Angeles black metal band Agriculture. 

Elliot Minor - Alex Davies, Ed Minton, Dan Hetherton, Ed Hetherton, and Ali Paul - fuse classical influences with a unique blend of orchestral rock, alternative, and pop-punk. 

Their music became a defining sound of the late-2000s alternative scene when they had their breakthrough with debut single "Parallel Worlds". 

20 years on, Elliot Minor return for their biggest headline tour since reforming, joined by special guests Madina Lake and The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. 

Brooke Combe, the face of modern Northern Soul, is back with her biggest UK headline tour to date, in support of her sophomore album Too Late For Tears. 

Too Late For Tears is 11 tracks of modern soul, with one foot firmly in the timeless influence of the past and the other very much in the future, Brooke perfectly straddles the sounds of old with a modern edge. Recorded live with her formidable band, when the needle hits the wax, for a precious moment the world seems to stand still. 

Los Angeles-based singer and songwriter Stella Lefty is carving out a name with her emotionally sharp songwriting and a sound that seamlessly blends pop sensibility with country storytelling.

Her magnetic live presence and songs that balance raw vulnerability with undeniable hooks see her quickly building momentum as an artist to see live too, Stella Lefty is emerging as one of pop’s most compelling new voices.

Sleeper head out on their biggest UK tour since reforming, with the band set to take their sixth studio album, End of the World, on the road, with South London four-piece Turin Brakes joining them as special guests. 

End of the World is a deeply personal collection of ten songs that combines Sleeper’s instinct for huge melodies and anthemic choruses with a newfound emotional directness. 

‘The End of the World Tour’ will see two hugely respected British bands sharing the stage, with Sleeper performing songs from their new album alongside the classic tracks that established them as one of the defining guitar bands of the 1990s. 

So you know, this show has been rescheduled from Saturday 14 November 2026. If you’ve already got tickets, they’ll still be valid, so hang on to them; your ticket agent will be in touch to tell you more.

This autumn, Nieve Ella enters her biggest chapter yet with the release of her debut album How Long Will It Take? and her largest headline tour to date. 

How Long Will It Take?, explores the messy reality of coming of age, navigating identity and relationships while feeling like everyone else has somehow got there first.

One of the most important and influential acts in the history of British electronic music, Orbital - Kent-born brothers Paul and Phil Hartnoll - helped define electronic music, bringing it from underground rave culture to festival main stages and establishing electronic artists as a major live force. 

Their 11th studio album, Other explores themes of otherness - neurodiversity, identity, outsiders and the freedom to exist beyond society's prescribed categories. Thematically and sonically, it is one of Orbital's most ambitious records, moving through gothic folk, drum & bass, punk and ambient music alongside their trademark electronic sounds. 

Jo Whiley is quite simply the ultimate authority on British music.

No-one knows the 90s like Jo – she was right there on the cutting-edge, leading the charge as Britpop blew up, dance music exploded and indie went wild.

Now you can relive those magical memories on a dancefloor once again with the queen of the 90s. From Oasis to Blur, The Chemical Brothers to The Prodigy, let Jo take you on a personal tour of her finest musical memories of the decade that defined them all.

Multi-platinum rapper Professor Green brings his 'Live and At Your Service' tour out on the road. 

A celebration of a remarkable career, and the start of an exciting new chapter: a night of the anthems that made him one of the UK's most distinctive artists. From “I Need You Tonight”, “Just Be Good To Green” and “Read All About It”, expect every word sung back. 

With two No.2 albums and multiple MOBO Awards, Professor Green is an artist who has always connected far beyond the boundaries of UK rap. Don't miss the chance to hear it live.

Christian experimental, folk rock, worship band from Northern Ireland, Rend Collective are on a mission to share the joy of knowing Jesus. 

The band, consisting of Chris Llewellyn, Stephen Mitchell, Daniel Jones, Bobby Russell, and Jonathan Chu, are best known for songs “Build Your Kingdom Here", "Counting Every Blessing", and the platinum single "My Lighthouse”.

Just so you know, this show was moved from O2 Academy2 Birmingham on the same date, but all original tickets will still be valid. If you’ve got tickets already, your ticket agent will be in touch to tell you more.

So you know, this show has been rescheduled from Saturday 1 May 2027. If you’ve already got tickets, they’ll still be valid, so hang on to them; your ticket agent will be in touch to tell you more.

The Chats are back with their third album, Half Cut. more of the loud, fast and distinctly Australian rock and roll they’re known for. Slightly older, possibly wiser. Probably not.

So you know, this show has been rescheduled from Friday 25 September 2026. If you’ve already got tickets, they’ll still be valid, so hang on to them; your ticket agent will be in touch to tell you more.

Vernon Kay is hitting the road with a record box time machine taking us back to the heady, hedonistic days of house phones, Sega Megadrives, Sony Discmans and raves in fields everywhere.

With the internet barely invented, the 90s brought us some of the greatest tunes of all time, from the Shamen to The Prodigy, Snap! To Underworld, JX to Ultra Nate and on and on and on – you’ll find them all and much more at Dance Sounds of the 90s: The Live Tour with Vernon Kay.

The 90s were of course the very best era for dance sounds so stand by for the ultimate nostalgia night.

Lightning Seeds return with a major greatest hits tour for winter 2027. The tour will see Ian Broudie and the band play a career-spanning set of fan favourites including “Pure”, “The Life Of Riley!, “Change”, “Lucky You”, “Sense” and many more. 

Formed in Liverpool by Ian Broudie, Lightning Seeds have sold more than eight million albums and delivered a remarkable run of era-defining pop songs. Their timeless songwriting and uplifting live performances have made them firm favourites with audiences across the UK. 

This brand-new greatest hits tour promises an unforgettable night showcasing one of British pop’s most enduring catalogues.