Take it away

Brighton Header

Voting closes at MIDNIGHT tonight - Fri 30 May 2008 -
any votes cast after this deadline WILL NOT BE COUNTED!

“A vote for Brighton as the Most Musical City is a vote for everything great in music - from indie cool to festival fun on the beach and the high-camp of Eurovision. While other cities rely on history and heritage, style and scenes, Brighton celebrates a musical culture reflecting a coastal setting based on fun rather than a wet-weekend.

Probably Brighton's most famous musical son is Norman Cook, former member of Beats International, Freakpower and best known as Fatboy Slim. Aged 18, Norman met Paul Heaton at Brighton Polytechnic, together they formed the Housemartins and went on to top the Christmas charts with Caravan of Love. Numerous number ones have followed in various guises with the height of his success seeing Fatboy Slim as the figurehead of 'Big Beat'. In 2002 he drew a quarter of a million people to Britain's most famous beach for an open air concert. Norman's star on the city's hall of fame can be found next to that of Winston Churchill...

While Fatboy puts the fun into the city, we're not short of our own brand of cool thanks to an ever growing generation of indie kids (taking their influence from Quadrophenia?)  including the wonderfully named British Sea Power, Electric Soft Parade, Mumm-Ra, Brakes, The Maccabees and Mercury nominated Bat for Lashes.

Brighton's bohemian pride at not being part of short-term scene's can best be summed up by political folk-punk activists The Levellers, named after a piece of Brighton land and better known as 'crusties' famed for campaigning against the Criminal Justice Act.

Also, Brighton has been the scene of some of the seminal moments in music including the visits of the rival Mods and Rockers in the 1960's and April 6th, 1974 when an unknown band walked on stage to perform Sweden's entry into Eurovision at The Brighton Dome. Waterloo would win the Song Contest and Abba soon become the biggest pop band in the world.

So why vote for Brighton? Maybe it's because we'll always be the home of the quintessentially English mods, the city which gave Swedish pop to the world and the anti-cool dance of Big Beat. Just as long as you can forgive us for the Peter Andre and Jordan duet.”

Do you agree? Have your say below...

Dave Hewitt
May 23, 2008
I agree brighton live festival is great, loads if bands to choose from...
My favourite brighton band at the moment has to be The Hornblower Brothers!
C-Dogg
May 22, 2008
everyone's a musician, most are pretty good too. check myspace.com/meanpoppalean to see just part of the proof!
Mark
May 22, 2008
With a band like Beat Express based in Brighton, how can Brighton NOT win?
Björn
May 17, 2008
What can be more musical than the waves playing with the shingles on the beach with seagulls in the background.
bigiam
May 15, 2008
As Andy Bass said (above), check out the Brighton Live festival at the end of September for a taste of what the local scene is about. Visit www.brightonlive.net for info & to submit your demo for this years festival. Thanks!
indy
May 13, 2008
RISING STYLES the UKs largest dedicated celebration to Global Hip Hop Culture takes place across Brighton annually.
The city has become a beacon to all variety of artists from across the globe and its always good to see new people from across the UK travelling here and having a great time.
www.risingstyles.com
Ollie Elmes
May 13, 2008
www.myspace.com/wearewelfaremothers - One of many, many great bands from Brighton!
anon
May 07, 2008
checked out imightdisco and tis' nice!!
barry
May 02, 2008
one place and its on the beach at Brighton
Colin Masterson
May 02, 2008
Hang on, why does it say "vote for london" on the tab above right? You're giving the wrong impression!
Colin Masterson
May 02, 2008
Brighton's scene is close, intense and eclectic. As metioned before there is no definitive Brighton sound, except for that of bands and artists pushing boundaries of originality and inventiveness to be heard in a competitive and localised scene. Fatboy Slim, The Levellers and The Maccabees may once have been relatively well known but sctratch not too far below the surface to find a DIY ethic breeding a huge variety and quality of sounds.
steve burnaby - davies
April 28, 2008
www.myspace.com/datesmusic 100% essence of Brighton
laurab
April 24, 2008
home of bands and djs across the genres and through the years - where else. Birth place too of all time top 100, nuff said
marcus
April 23, 2008
www.myspace.com/imightdisco enough said.
Andy Bass
April 22, 2008
That the 'Brighton Scene' does not have a recognisably homogenous sound is its main strength. There are whole host of great bands ranging from indie, pop, punk, funk, country, rock, blues, hip-hop and dance. There is quite literally something for everyone, and in my opinion a live scene that is far greater than you would expect of a 'city' this size. You should check the Brighton Live festival in september to gauge the scale of Brighton's musical community when hundreds of local bands play for free across the city. It truly is a musical city.
Ishara
April 22, 2008
yeaah!! brightons where its at... gimme gimme gimme a man after midnight...lalalalala :-))
Chippy
April 22, 2008
Brighton - my home city since birth (I'm 40 now). Steeped in musical culture. Famed for dirty week-ends, and people coming far and wide to sample the pubs, clubs, and restaurants. Beautiful in the summer, and always interesting all year round. The subject of many songs down the years, and mentioned in some of the best songs ever written (Pinball Wizard is one). Will always get my vote.
Jimmy Fuller
April 22, 2008
3 words. british. sea. power.
nig2dmic
April 22, 2008
brighton is kicking on the music front, the hip hop festival, the brighton live festival, its all happening down here, no one else can touch us on the music, plus we have the best clubs and the best venues.

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