Thanks to the efforts of a number of Sheffield students, a revival of grassroots music has sprouted throughout the city.

The Music Venues Trust labelled 2023 the ‘most challenging year’ for grassroots music venues, and with the closure of Sheffield’s own Green Room Bar scheduled for May this year, it may be tempting to say change is unlikely.

At Sheffield University however, student musicians are proving that hope is not yet lost. Thanks to the support of local venues such as Sidney & Matilda and The Washington, in a matter of just six months, a music scene has slowly developed amongst first-year students.

One such artist is Grace Kolter, a 19-year old Korean Studies student and Folk obsessive.

She said: “It’s very good. The more you get into the scene, the more gigs open up. You go to a venue once, you meet someone, they tell you about a gig going on somewhere else. There is a lot around, especially if you are in the scene.

Grace Kolter performing at Sidney & Matilda on the 11th March [Photograph: Theo Harrison]

“On the surface, it might not look like that…but underground it is”

A number of bands made up of students have popped up, one of which being Five-Overs, a five-piece influenced equally by The Strokes as by Pavement and Orange Juice.

Lead Singer and Songwriter Jem Elston, a 19-year old Politics student, compared the scene in Sheffield to that of his native Nottingham: “I really think the Sheffield scene is so much better than the Nottingham scene. I just think there’s so much more stuff going on. There’s so many more bands starting out.”

Along with Five-Over’s,who are just two gigs in, local bands formed at University include Sam’s Town and Meridian, who released their debut single ‘Down By The Waterline’ in March.

Jem added: ‘I’ve got a little bucket list of things I want to do with the band. I’d like a single out. I’d like a music video. It would be really fun. I just want to play more music.’

Five-Over’s performing at Sidney & Matilda on 16th March [Photograph: Finn McFadden]

Grace said: “I have no plans. And I don’t like the concept of plans. Let’s just go along with whatever happens.

“If I end up on the streets of New York, then that’s exactly where Patti Smith was. So I think it’s fine.’