{"id":5307,"date":"2025-05-13T04:30:00","date_gmt":"2025-05-13T04:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/?p=5307"},"modified":"2025-05-13T11:36:40","modified_gmt":"2025-05-13T11:36:40","slug":"london-grassroots-music-tube-map-celebrates-capitals-venues-and-heritage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/13\/london-grassroots-music-tube-map-celebrates-capitals-venues-and-heritage\/","title":{"rendered":"London Grassroots Music Tube Map celebrates capital\u2019s venues and heritage"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson, Skin from Skunk Anansie and Billy Bragg are backing the campaign (Picture: Belinda Jiao\/Shutterstock\/WireImage)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Feeling the drumbeat in your core. The sweet smell of the smoke machine. Closing your eyes and belting out the lyrics.<\/p>\n

When it comes to nights out, there’s very little that can beat catching a bit of live music. A decent gig can brighten your week; a great gig can change your life.<\/p>\n

It might be a cramped performance in a room above a pub, where it feels like you could reach out and strum the guitar yourself. It could be a stadium show, where you’re surrounded by thousands of people jumping in unison.<\/p>\n

Londoners are lucky enough to have easy access to both those options – and everything in between.<\/p>\n

Some performers, like pop superstar Dua Lipa and heavy metal legends Iron Maiden, have climbed every rung on the ladder and are now selling out some of the biggest venues in the country.<\/p>\n

But they would not have made it to that level if they had not taken the initial step, and walked out in front of a tiny audience at one of London’s grassroots music spots.<\/p>\n

For singer-songwriter and activist Billy Bragg, it all started in the early eighties with weekly gigs at Greenwich’s Tunnel Club, where the air smelt of sawdust and a couple of hundred punters could fit in at a push.<\/p>\n

He told Metro<\/strong>: ‘I had a Tuesday night residency there for about three months, and I kind of learned how to to stand in front of a crowd and get their attention, because I was opening for whoever played, just me solo. <\/p>\n

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The new Tube Map celebrating London’s grassroots venues – CLICK TO ENLARGE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

‘I dealt with all sorts of audiences playing. It really was an apprenticeship to connect with an audience, absolutely crucial in the way I do gigs now.’<\/p>\n

Bruce Dickinson, Iron Maiden’s lead singer, said his band and thousands of others had ‘taken on the world after starting their journey in London\u2019s clubs and venues’.<\/p>\n

‘London\u2019s diverse music scene and its grassroots venues are essential to nurture and support new artists, to bring music fans together and create lifelong passions and memories,’ he said. <\/p>\n

‘We need to cherish it, celebrate it and protect it.’<\/p>\n

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