LEGENDARY Manchester music venue Band on the Wall has been shortlisted for the prestigious Best Small Venue in the UK by music magazine The NME.

Band on the Wall has been an integral part of the ever-changing musical history of Manchester since the 1930s

Based in the city’s creative Northern Quarter, Band on the Wall has been an integral part of the ever-changing musical history of Manchester since the 1930s. It was at the centre of Manchester’s punk scene in the late 1970s where Buzzcocks, The Fall and Joy Division played some of their earliest concerts and has a global reputation for showcasing diverse and respected artists from around the world, as well as promoting equality and diversity through music.

Evidently we have a lot to be proud of.

The venue has been a charity since the early 1980s, supporting the Greater Manchester community’s interest in a wide range of musical activity from live shows to development workshops and outreach programmes. It is also home to Mr Scruff’s Keep It Unreal and Craig Charles’ Funk & Soul club, two of the most popular nights in the City. Last year, Band on the Wall (so-called because the landlord in the 1930s put plinths on the walls for bands to play above the clientele) celebrated its eightieth year since being granted a music license.

It seems about time that Manchester gave back to a venue that has given so much.

You can vote online for Band on the Wall to be awarded The NME Best Small Venue in the UK 2013 and the winners will be announced in 2 weeks. Every vote will count and help strengthen the region’s claim to be the most musically vibrant in the UK. Other venues in the shortlist include Belfast Limelight, Southampton Joiners and Brighton Concorde 2.

Gavin Sharp, the CEO of Band on the Wall has said:

“This is fantastic news for the venue and the North West. Over 50,000 people come to Band on the Wall every year to enjoy a night out here. Manchester is the music capital of the UK and it is great to see the venue being recognised as being at its centre. We are now asking people to get behind us, go online, and vote for Band on the Wall”

To vote, go to: http://www.nme.com/smallvenues/vote