We’ve all been there before: New Year, new me. As soon as the clock strikes midnight, we attempt to find exciting ways to improve the coming year, and of course discovering new music is a safe and satisfying bet to ensure that there is always something brightening up life. Especially now during exam season, discovering new musical expressions could provide a reliable method to reduce exam stress, or at least remove some of the tension. After all, there is no better treat than to vibe to an energetic song after a long study session, or for those who do all nighters, having a decent playlist that has the potential to be a suitable companion whilst studying.
Nowadays, access to music is at our fingertips. Scrolling on your phone or a simple google search can open the doors to several musical rabbit holes, creating many opportunities to explore the underground side of your favourite music genres. From personal experience, there is also the possibility of getting exposed to new genres and that’s exactly how I realised that electronic music was worth exploring and a great proportion of my liked songs now belong to the electronic side of music. Personally, the best way to discover new music are the daily mixes or the Discover Something New playlists on Spotify, or even if you do not have a music streaming app, on Youtube, channels of the likes of COLORS specialise in the promotion of talented artists worldwide and exploring their videos is totally worth it.
Still, on Spotify if you don’t fancy music you are always a step away from amazing podcasts suiting all kinds of humour and interests, ranging from TED talks to history podcasts. As a Modern Languages student, I have a soft spot for language learning playlists or playlists directly in the languages and for me, they are an important source where I can keep up to date my language skills whenever and wherever.
If listening to music on your headphones is not enough then Sheffield has a marvellous musical scene catering to a variety of musical tastes. Indeed, Sheffield is home of household names, such as Bring Me The Horizon and Arctic Monkeys. This means that if you are into heavy metal, rock or indie, you are in the right place as there are many venues where these sorts of music are regularly played. For instance, The Washington, regularly organises live music, whilst smaller venues such as Sidney & Matilda and Yellow Arch Studios are perfect for discovering lesser-known artists and can act as a springboard to make it to the larger venues, like the legendary Leadmill.
However, venturing outside campus to scout concerts or events is not always necessary because of the Foundry, right in the heart of the SU. Almost every night there are music related events, ranging from electronic music on the Tuesday Club to the nostalgic hits of Pop Tarts on the Saturday. The Foundry also hosts concerts, attracting large names like Yungblud and Easy Life, and will act as the main stage for the University’s own Get Together festival. Finally, an underrated place where it is possible to relax in the company of that very same music that will make you say “what an atmosphere” is the SU’s much celebrated Bar One. A visit alone is justified by the music selection, containing an enticing blend of well known and niche songs.
So to conclude, you are never far from a potential sound discovery in a city like Sheffield, where even a visit to the local student bar can easily be a method to find out new, exciting sounds.