Future Yard has revealed the first names for the launch series at its new 600-capacity crowdfunded venue in Birkenhead, which is due to open before the end of the year.
The inaugural Autumn/Winter programme is led by Mercury Prize shortlisted Scottish multi-instrumentalist corto.alto, Detroit hip hop icon Xzibit, experimental art-rock band Squid, Brit Award-winning singer-songwriter Holly Humberstone, Belfast post rock group And So I Watch You From Afar, Liverpool doom metal band Conan and New York art-rockers BODEGA. Also announced are a rare Q&A with author Irvine Welsh, as part of BBC 6 Music DJ Chris Hawkins’ Q&A Sides series, and the 2026 edition of Birkenhead Day of the Dead, the ongoing KLF, The K Foundation and K2 Plant Hire project.
The new live room and adjoining purpose-built studio complex will sit on the venue’s former garden and connect to Future Yard’s existing space. Organisers say the expansion will make room for more than 50 extra Future Yard shows a year, including at least 150 additional performance opportunities for local artists in the live room.
Twelve acoustically treated mixed use studio and teaching spaces will also provide 2,000 extra hours of practical experience for Sound Check trainees, and space for 3,500 children a year to access Future Yard’s Schools Music Curriculum. The complex has been designed around the seven principles of universal design, with accessibility built into the architecture.
The building is also central to Future Yard’s aim of reaching operational net zero by 2030, which the organisation says would put it among the first venues in the UK to hit that target. It has been planned as a low energy space with a bespoke sustainable heat recovery system.
Future Yard launched in 2020 as Birkenhead’s first dedicated live music venue. The original 280-capacity room, artist rehearsal rooms and mixed use spaces have since become a key part of the Wirral’s music scene, bringing national and international artists to the town, often for the first time, and giving early stage chances to local acts.
corto.alto will return in November after a sold-out show earlier this year, with Squid booked for 25 October, And So I Watch You From Afar for 3 December, Irvine Welsh for 11 December and Holly Humberstone for 22 January. Grandmaster Flash, James Lavelle, Obie Trice, Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band and Orchestra Baobab are also on the growing bill, with more names still to come.
Co-founder Christopher Torpey said: “It feels like a real step up for Future Yard to be hosting artists of this calibre at our home in Birkenhead – our expanded home, which is being built with the support of our incredible fans and backers. It’s really important for the town, too, to see Birkenhead appearing on tour listings of this magnitude and welcoming musicians from across the world to our home, especially at a moment when opportunities are scarce and times are tough. We genuinely can’t wait to invite people inside for a show, share in the excitement and experience this hopeful new direction for the town. The Future is Birkenhead!”
The announcement lands as Birkenhead has been shortlisted as the only North West entry in the first UK Town of Culture initiative, with the winning town due to receive £3m in 2028. Future Yard is pointing to the project as a rare story of growth in the grassroots music sector.
Shows already in the 2026 season include Lime Garden, Ibibio Sound Machine, Knats, The James Taylor Quartet, African Head Charge, James Lavelle, Dinosaur Pile-Up, Yumi and The Weather, Lagos Thugs, Cheekface and GNOD. Tickets and further details are available at futureyard.org.
Future Yard Autumn/Winter programme:
- 4 September: DJ Yoda’s 90’s Mixtape
- 5 September: Pleasure Island
- 9 September: Ak’chamel
- 10 September: steel. EP Launch
- 11 September: Birkenhead Calling III
- 12 September: Martha
- 17 September: Connor Selby
- 18 September: Smoove & Turrell
- 20 September: Trial Tapes + Little Furry Things
- 25 September: Rebel Dread Rockers (Don Letts + Andy Smith)
- 26 September: The Bends
- 2 October: Katy Hurt + Two Ways Home
- 3 October: James Lavelle
- 9 October: Lime Garden (sold out)
- 10 October: Ibibio Sound Machine
- 11 October: Everything Yes
- 19 October: Iguana Death Cult
- 20 October: Yumi and The Weather
- 22 October: Lagos Thugs
- 23 October: Annie-Claude Deschênes with THE DSM IV
- 24 October: Grandmaster Flash
- 25 October: Squid
- 29 October: Saigon Soul Revival
- 31 October: Breakthrough Festival
- 4 November: Mae Stephens
- 7 November: African Head Charge
- 10 November: ĠENN
- 13 November: Mike Viola
- 14 November: GNOD
- 18 November: corto.alto
- 20 November: Cheekface
- 21 November: Knats
- 21 November: Birkenhead Day of The Dead
- 26 November: Dylan LeBlanc
- 27 November: Omega Nebula
- 27 November: BODEGA
- 29 November: Cowboyy
- 3 December: And So I Watch You From Afar
- 11 December: Irvine Welsh
- 12 December: The Cheap Thrills
- 18 December: Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band
- 22 January: Holly Humberstone
- 6 February: James Taylor Quartet
- 16 February: Obie Trice
- 18 March: Rosalie Cunningham
- 25 March: Orchestra Baobab
- 27 March: Dinosaur Pile-Up
Image credits: Robin Clewley
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