Invention Music Festival Is set to be the Biggest Celebration of Derby’s Grassroots Music Scene in Years

On Saturday 19th September, Derby city centre will become one giant stage as more than 40 artists perform across six independent venues for the inaugural Invention Music Festival. Supported by Arts Council England, Music Venue Trust and Gigantic, the brand-new multi-venue event isn’t simply another date on the calendar. It is the coming together of the people, places and organisations that have spent years building Derby into one of the most exciting grassroots music cities in the Midlands.

Anyone who has followed Derby’s independent music scene over the past few years will know that this hasn’t happened overnight. The city has quietly developed an incredible network of venues, promoters, artists and audiences who have continued to invest in live music because they believe in it. Every sold-out gig, every new promoter, every emerging band and every venue willing to take a chance on something different has helped create the foundations for a festival like Invention.

At TRENDNG we’ve had the privilege of documenting a tiny part of that journey. We’ve watched Dubrek Studios celebrate 25 years of supporting musicians and creatives while continuing to champion the next generation of artists. We’ve covered packed nights at The Hairy Dog as it has cemented its place as one of the East Midlands’ most important grassroots venues. We’ve spent evenings at Mr Shaw’s House discovering brilliant singer-songwriters, DJs and intimate live performances, while venues such as The Wardwick, Electric Daisy and Chapel Street Arts have continued adding their own unique character to Derby’s cultural landscape. Alongside them, promoters have continued putting on exceptional events, often taking risks on new artists because they understand that thriving music scenes are built by giving people opportunities.

Invention brings all of those threads together. Instead of venues working independently, they are collaborating. Instead of audiences choosing between separate gigs, they can spend an entire day exploring Derby’s music scene as one connected experience. Ticket holders will have access to performances at The Hairy Dog, The Wardwick, Electric Daisy, Dubrek Studios, Mr Shaw’s House and Chapel Street Arts, while busking performances hosted by Furthest From The Sea will add another layer to the festival by bringing live music onto the streets between venues. The result promises to be a city-wide celebration of everything that makes Derby’s independent music scene so special.

The organisers have promised an eclectic programme spanning punk, metal, indie, alternative rock, electronic music, psych-folk and acoustic performances, with more than 40 artists performing throughout the day. That variety is one of the festival’s greatest strengths. Rather than focusing on one particular genre, Invention has been designed to encourage discovery. Festival-goers might spend the afternoon watching a favourite local band before wandering into another venue and stumbling across an artist they’ve never heard before. Those moments of discovery are often what grassroots music is all about, and Derby has no shortage of talent waiting to be found.

We’ve been given a sneak peak at the line-up ahead of the official announcement, and while we’re not able to reveal any names just yet, we can confidently say the organisers have put together something genuinely exciting. There is a real depth to the programme, balancing familiar faces from Derby’s thriving music community with outstanding artists from further afield. The bookings feel thoughtful, varied and ambitious, reflecting exactly what this festival is trying to achieve. When the full announcement arrives, we think plenty of people are going to be pleasantly surprised.

Speaking about the launch, the Invention organising team said: “We wanted to build something real for Derby. Invention is co-created with the city’s incredible independent venues and creators. We’re swapping mega-stages for intimate venues where music fans can feel the music. It’s about community, exploration, and supporting grassroots music. The question we’re asking Derby is simple: Are you in?”

That sense of community is what makes Invention feel so important. The festival is not centred around one headline act or one venue. Instead, it celebrates the entire ecosystem that allows grassroots music to thrive. From venue owners opening their doors week after week, to promoters taking chances on new bands, sound engineers working behind the scenes (Big up our GOAT Gez), volunteers giving up their weekends and audiences continuing to buy tickets, everyone has played a part in creating the conditions for a festival like this to exist.

Derby’s music scene has earned this moment. Over the last few years the city has steadily built a reputation for producing exciting artists and supporting independent culture, often without making a huge fuss about it. Invention shines a spotlight on that collective effort and gives it a platform that feels long overdue. It isn’t trying to imitate the country’s biggest festivals. Instead, it embraces everything that makes grassroots music special: intimate venues, passionate audiences, close connections between artists and fans, and the excitement of discovering something unexpected around every corner.

Early Bird tickets are available now for £20 before increasing to £30 once the first allocation sells out. Considering the scale of the programme and the number of venues involved, it represents excellent value, but perhaps more importantly it represents an opportunity to be part of what feels like a landmark moment for Derby’s independent music community.

There is a genuine sense of excitement surrounding Invention Music Festival, and having seen what is still to come, it’s easy to understand why. This is more than a new event. It is a celebration of years of hard work from Derby’s venues, promoters, musicians and music lovers, all coming together to create something the city can be proud of.

To reward early supporters, a limited number of Early Bird tickets are available now for just £20. Once these are gone, standard tier tickets will rise to £30. Due to the intimate capacities of the participating independent venues, tickets are strictly limited to ensure a safe and premium experience for all attendees. Music fans are encouraged to move fast to secure the best price. Tickets are available exclusively via Gigantic Tickets. Follow @InventionDerby on Instagram for more updates and line-up announcements from next week.

https://www.gigantic.com/invention-festival-tickets

Topics