Tenement Trail 2025 - preview

The air in Glasgow has a beautifully fresh autumnal chill, the leaves in the parks are turning all kinds of glorious colours and there is the unmistakable buzz of a city preparing for one of its best days on the music calendar: Tenement Trail. 

On Saturday October 11th, the area around The Barrowland, will be transformed into a sprawling, multi-venue festival, and if you're a fan of discovering your new favourite band, this is where you need to be.

Five things about the Tenement Trail;

• This will be the 11th Tenement Trail.
• It is named after the very platform that spawned it - the beloved Tenement TV sessions filmed in a flat. The website still highlights and supports new music on a regular basis.
• The festival used to run up on Sauchiehall Street and take in Sleazys, Broadcast, the ABC and ABC2 plus other venues. I think the new 'arts district' in the East End really suits it.
• Lewis Capaldi, Sam Fender and Yungblud all passed through the "Trail" at the beginning of their careers.
• McChuills holds a special 'midnight slot' for those with any energy left!

Dead Pony - Photo by Josephine Best for Clunk Magazine

The legendary Barrowland Ballroom itself will host the headliners Dead Pony who I blogged on HERE back in 2021, but the real magic of the Trail is found in the surrounding venues. Places like Saint Luke’s, BAaD (Barras Art and Design), The Winged Ox and Van Winkle will open their doors to a staggering number of bands, creating a dense, under cover, walkable festival experience that's second to none. The journey between venues is part of the fun, as the streets around the Gallowgate pulse with the energy of thousands of music fans. Check out Ho Lee Fook for amazing street food!

But what truly sets Tenement Trail apart is its commitment to championing new and emerging talent, both from Glasgow and further afield. The lineup for 2025 is a carefully curated mix of breakout artists and underground heroes. It's a platform for local bands to play to bigger audiences and for touring acts to get a taste of Glasgow's famously electric crowds.

Last year my friend Joe and I particularly enjoyed YesAndMaybe (below) playing an early afternoon set in Barrowland 2 - I described them as a cross between The Strokes and Phoenix. Shortly after we caught Dallas Love Field (pictured further below) in BAaD. I described their set as a glorious shoegaze psychedelic racket with some dreamy lead vocals. 2024 blog

The previous year (2023) I'd caught Kerr Mercer open the festival at Saint Luke's. The young singer songwriter has since gone on to support all kinds of artists to hone and tone his live performances and road test the dozens of songs he has been writing. Make that hundreds. Kerr's soulful voice has been making real connections and I look forward to his first release.

So a top tip is to get there early to spot up and coming artists who maybe haven't quite got the profile of those playing later on.

One of the most talked-about slots each year is the "midnight slot" at McChuills, a tiny, intimate venue that hosts a buzz band for a lucky crowd of a hundred or so that still have the stamina to keep going. 

Whether you're looking to catch a jaw-dropping headline set or simply wander the Gallowgate and stumble upon your next obsession, Tenement Trail is the place to be. It's a celebration of live music, a showcase of new talent, and a reminder of what a day (and night) Glasgow can put on.

Based on research and what we have heard to date (largely based on band names we like!), here are five bands/artists Joe and I are hoping to catch;

Five acts to check

• Fatale - my current favourite band. Teenagers from Lanarkshire who love Eugenius, Teenage Fanclub and BMX Bandits - right up my street! Check my introducing blog HERE. Fatale haven't even played a handful of gigs - get into them nice and early. Check their demo Moves You and cover of The Velvets Femme Fatale on their soundcloud. 

• Chloe Slater - a young singer-songwriter based in Manchester who I have heard on 6music. Her song Harriet has a brilliant video that has her singing (as Marianne) in scenes from Normal People.

• Jelly - Surely there must have been a band called Jelly before? Anyway, I haven't bothered to google. I like the name, checked the artist and found out that Tenement TV has tipped them as one of their ten to watch in 2025. It turns out that Joshua (Jelly) has worked with Youth - which sounds quite interesting. His website claims that he draws inspiration from a diverse range of artists ranging from David Gray, MGMT and The Streets. Summer single Forever Has A Feeling isn't really like an of those acts, although with some synths behind it the chorus could have an MGMT vibe. 

• Cloud House - Again, I checked Cloud House based on their name. Right from the off, you can tell they are going for big anthemic songs that could fill arenas. So it will be interesting to check them out in a small venue and see if they get the reaction that they are going for.

• Girls.Speak.French - One of the first bands I checked based on their name. They have a single called Britpop Genius, that sounds more in tune with American indie guitar bands from that time. Do I hear a tinge of Idlewild in there? Sounds promising and I'll be going to check them out.