Last weekend, Live At Leeds: In The City ended the festival season for 2022 with twelve hours of non-stop indie tunes.
This isn't a festival Leeds is likely to forget anytime soon.
The bi-annual event takes place every summer and autumn, and brings a handpicked selection of up-and-coming artists to the city for a single day of music. Whilst the summer season brings crowds to Temple Newsam, the 'In The City' version is spread across the city centre and sees venues as far as Hyde Park and Woodhouse getting involved.
Saturday 15 October 2022 saw over 150 artists take over every music venue imaginable across Leeds, from tiny bars to the headlining the O2 Academy.
Kicking off at lunchtime, the crowds slowly trickled into the city as the afternoon went on, but for anyone looking for the chance to catch a glimpse at the next big hit, arriving early was a must.
The festival has previously hosted huge international names before going on to become the successes they are today.
Take the 2018 line-up for example, Live At Leeds: In The City hosted Easy Life inside the 450-capacity venue The Wardrobe, Sam Fender at Stylus and Yungblud at Call Lane's own Oporto.
Clearly it doesn't take much to see the talent that this festival can predict global names, and Saturday was a prime example of the magic that can happen when you put so many creative talents into the city on a single day.
The Clause brought the crowd to their feet at The Wardrobe, with guitar riffs hitting every beat to to crowd favourites like Cruella and Electric, whilst Big Image took to the stage at Nation of Shopkeepers and pulled the early day crowds.
Those making a pit stop for food, the dedicated brunch and dinner menu at The Wardrobe was an exclusive offering to those with a Live At Leeds wristband. A selection of pizzas, burgers and fruity cocktail options were served up to the sound of the Live At Leeds soundtrack, whilst we spoke to passersby about their favourite Yorkshire bands.
Following a fly-by visit to just about every city centre music venue, including the intimate Sela Bar and Belgrave's DJ sets, we were lucky enough to speak to numerous artists at Live At Leeds: In The City, starting with a sit down with Glasweigan artist Joesef about Mel B, Leeds gig venues and his upcoming debut album, Permanent Damage.
Presenter Fran with Joesef. / Image: The Hoot Leeds
Turns out that Joesef is a big Leeds fan. Having previously played at Hyde Park Book Club, Brudenell and now Belgrave as part of his Live At Leeds session, the indie-alt artist has a special place for the city and our crowds.
"I feel like it's probably one of the closest crowds to Glasgow which are like just the energy is unmatched and it feels like we're all mates, maybe it's a northern thing".
Read the full interview with Joesef on The Hoot Leeds soon.
Swim Deep meanwhile were intrigued by the infamous Otley Run after spotting too many traffic cones and grannies walking down the street as we caught up with the band at Hyde Park Book Club.
The She Changes The Weather artists are no stranger to the city, and have the Brudenell Social Club, Belgrave and headlining Hyde Park Book Club for the day festival. The underground venue prides itself on keeping its concerts intimate, with space for a little over 100 people to get up and close with their favourite artists- and Swim Deep were no exception to this.
Swim Deep at Live At Leeds: In The City 2022. / Image: The Hoot Leeds
Meanwhile The Skinner Brothers brought bags of character to The Wardrobe, warming up the crowd for headline act Spector.
The crowds for the rock and roll four-piece is known for a rowdy crowd, and with frontman Zan Skinner singing not on the stage, but in the crowd with fans jumping around and hanging on to every lyric- between the crowd surfing that is.
The evening acts kept Leeds buzzing with events all night long all over the city- with the likes of Pale Waves, White Lies, Sundara Karma and TikTok famous Casey Lowry playing across the city, many at the same time.
With 150 artists over 16 stages to choose from throughout the day, planning your chosen music route for the day involved plenty of planning, and making hard decisions about who to forego and who to check out across the 12 hours of live events.
That's the beauty of an event like this though.
The festival leaves you with a host of new names to download on Spotify and check out up-and-coming names at these intimate venues in the future.
It introduces a new level of talent to the city- and remains one of the most exciting events of the year for the Leeds music scene.
As a bi-annual event, the next opportunity to visit Live At Leeds will be in May 2023, where the festival will return to Temple Newsam for a summertime day festival. Whilst the line-up is yet to be announced, if the 2023 version is anything like the handpicked artists selected for In The City, we're in for a real treat.
Early Bird tickets cost £40 each, plus a booking fee via See Tickets.
For more information, including how to sign up to the mailing list to be the first to hear about the 2023 line-up can be found on the Live At Leeds website.
Feature Image- The Hoot Leeds
News
Inside the huge multi-million-pound makeover transforming Leeds United’s facilities
Yorkshire interior design specialist Design Tonic has completed a major series of projects for Leeds United Football Club.
A new era for Leeds United is on the horizon, and we're catching a first glimpse of it already.
Design Tonic is a long-standing design and build partner of the football club that has delivered approximately 30,000 sq ft of new and refurbished space, completed to coincide with the start of the new premier league season.
The latest work has been designed to support the club’s continued development of plans for Elland Road, including the new West Stand.
Image: Supplied (Pink Gorilla)
The main element of the programme has been the full design and build of a new 20,000 sq ft temporary hospitality marquee at Elland Road, providing high-quality hospitality facilities while the West Stand is redeveloped.
The facility incorporates four individual hospitality suites with capacity for approximately 1,000 guests with interiors carefully considered to deliver a high-end experience.
Images: Supplied (Pink Gorilla)
Alongside the temporary hospitality facility, Design Tonic has delivered a series of significant upgrades throughout Elland Road including the creation of a new Presidents Lounge transforming a previous back-of-house area into a premium hospitality environment, a new Chairman’s Guest Lounge, and refurbishment of the club’s reception and boardroom.
Head of IT and facilities at Leeds United Football Club, Mark Broadley, said: “Design Tonic has become a trusted partner to Leeds United. They understand both the operational requirements of a football club and the importance of ensuring every environment feels unmistakably Leeds United.
Images: Supplied (Pink Gorilla)
“This has been a particularly important project for us, supporting the next stage of development at Elland Road while ensuring our hospitality guests continue to receive a high- quality experience. At the same time, the improvements at Thorp Arch enhance the everyday environments available to our players and Academy.
“The completed spaces look fantastic and provide an excellent platform as the club starts the new Premier League season.”
Five of the best new restaurants and cafes to open in Leeds recently
Clementine Hall
Leeds has welcomed a whole host of new places to eat and drink recently, and there’s a lot to get excited about.
We all love our food, and it's safe to say we love writing about it.
So please, allow us to indulge by telling you all about five of our favourite new foodie openings that have popped up in and around Leeds over the past few months.
But fair warning, continuing to read on may cause extreme hunger...
Moods
98 Kirkgate, Leeds LS2 7DJ
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Just over a month ago, one of Leeds' most historic buildings was transformed into an all-day cafe, bar, restaurant and events space.
Moods is the brainchild of husband-and-wife founders Will and Hayley Moody, the team behind Buzz Club Tattoo.
They do it all, whether you're popping in for a coffee and a spot of brunch or swinging by for a few carefully curated cocktails and some small plates to share with friends. With a kitchen led by Head Chef Craig Rogan, who trained within Simon Rogan's Michelin-starred restaurant group, you know you're in good hands.
Taking over the old Flannels site on Vicar Lane, Dishoom Leeds is nothing short of beautiful and has been in the pipeline for quite some time.
Dusty pink exteriors welcome you into a huge dining room complete with gold picture frames, baby blue walls and huge arched windows. They've really thought of every little detail, even down to the relaxing incense burning on the windowsill.
The menu is large and can seem overwhelming, featuring everything from breakfast naan rolls and small plates and to big sharing curries, but the staff are keen to lend you a helping hand.
If you order anything - let it be the lamb chops (thank us later).
Rizia's Bottega, on Bolling Road on the outskirts of Ilkley, officially opened at the end of August following a soft launch, serving authentic schiacciata sandwiches, colourful salads, and light Sicilian breakfasts.
The new neighbourhood spot comes from the team behind Ilkley favourite Emporio Italia and has been created as somewhere locals can pop in for their morning coffee, sit down for a bite to eat, or pick up some high-quality Italian treats to enjoy at home.
One of Manchester’s most popular brunch spots, which always has queues down the street, has made its way across to Leeds at last.
Bruncho has opened on The Headrow, bringing its hit products like French toasts, Middle Eastern brunches, and iced matchas, to Leeds city centre.
Bruncho has also made a name for itself with its viral creations, including Labubu Dubai pistachio French toast (how many 2025 buzzwords can you get in one menu item?) and its collection of drinks served at -86°C. We're sure that their weird and wonderful creations will go down just as well here in Leeds.
Domo is an independent restaurant born in Sheffield that is loved by many for its delicious food, inviting atmosphere and stellar service.
Run by Raffaele Busceddu and Sarah May Elliott, Domo serves a range of traditional Sardinian specialities that aren't often seen outside the island, all made entirely in-house.
Located right on the water's edge, you could do a lot worse than plonking yourself on the terrace with mates, ordering a selection of their cocktails and tucking into a heaping plate of fried calamari and prawns or a carefully curated plate of Sardinian cured meats and cheeses.
Sophie Smith -
20th October 2022 
