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I S S U E # 1

Uncover a Different Derby

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W E ’ R E V I B R A N T. INNOVATIVE. C R E A T I V E . I N C L U S I V E . A R T I S T I C . F R E E - T H I N K I N G . I N D E P E N D E N T . C O N F I D E N T. TA L E N T E D . S U P P O R T I V E .

DBY produced by Archer Hampson for Marketing Derby.

Supported by the 2014-2020 European

Regional Development Fund

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SOME WOR DS O N

WHO WE AR E

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AN INDEPE N DEN T

REVOLUT I O N

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A NEW CE N T R e

FOR SOUN D

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FORGE T

REAL A L E

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AL L E Y E Z ON

N O RMA NTON

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AR O UND HE RE W E

PERFORM

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L I V I N G IN THE C IT Y

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IN DBY

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THE RE ’S MORE

TO DE RBYSHIRE

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RA DIO FRE E

MATLOCK

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THE FACE S OF

DE RBY

THEFACEOFDERBY#1

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AN INDEPENDENT REVOLUTIONAcross the UK, city centres are struggling for air, left gasping as they seek to satisfy a populace without a need for high street shopping and seeking genuinely unique experiences. Is Derby beating this trend?

Derby has seen a wave of new, vibrant and independent businesses

springing to life in the city’s streets and those businesses have begun

to redefine the city’s identity. Much of that change has been found

in the city’s Cathedral Quarter – an area which won the Great British

High Street Awards in 2016 – but over the past few years, that area’s

independent revolution has crept across the rest of the city.

Let’s, for a moment, choose to ignore the obvious positive impact

that major development projects like the multi-million pound

renovation of the historic Market Hall will have on Derby. Derby’s

new spirit comes from a different place, away from large-scale

investment and towards the minds of the city’s entrepreneurs and

trailblazers. The ideas that sparked Derby’s new independent wave

started life on the kitchen tables of Derby’s terraces.

This Isn’t Just About Bars, Shops and Restaurants... But They’re Cool Too

Once a month, Bustler Market – a street food market which feels as if

its ripped straight from the streets of Camden or Brooklyn – brings

Derby’s independent spirit under one unused retail unit’s roof. When

walking around Bustler, you see the city’s new wave of small businesses

mingling and literally drinking in the new scene they’re creating.

A uniquely Derbeian DIY-oriented attitude is driving the city’s

independent revolution, and you can see it leaking out everywhere

beyond Bustler’s lo-fi monthly events.

Yes, Derby is now a city of independent bars and restaurants like Suds

& Soda, Terroir Bistro, The Posthouse, Junk, The Brooklyn Social and

Bunk, but it’s also a city where – seemingly overnight – four escape

rooms can pop up, nestled alongside a set of well populated specialist

board game cafés.

And this is to say nothing of the same independent spirit which propels

Derby’s street art scene. Abandoned buildings aren’t just adorned by

run-of-the-mill graffiti – proper works of art are brightening the

façade of some of our dreariest buildings.

What’s important is what all of this shows, though. For many years,

Derby found itself to be a comfortable place whose various scenes

never quite coalesced into something meaningful. Over the past few

years, however, that pattern has died. Now, in its place, there’s a new

wave in town and they’ve changed the city forever.

Left hand page: Derbeian Street Art, Above, left to right: Sadlergate, Terrior Bistro owner Tim Sidaway, Bustler Market6 7

Welcome to Dubrek, the multi-purpose venue at the heart of Derby’s music scene.

For its size, our city has always punched above its weight in the music department

- remember White Town’s number one pop smash ‘Your Woman’? We always have

musical talent making waves across the world and more happens here than most

might realise.

Few people can attest to this more than Jay Dean, owner of Dubrek Studios on Beckett

Street, a vibrant recording studio, rehearsal space, café/bar and gig venue creating a

local, artistic hub.

After a stint as a live music promoter at The Wherehouse/The Loft, the Rock House

and the Victoria Inn, Jay decided to record bands full-time. After visiting Pete Bassman

on Spacemen 3’s studio and rehearsal space in Rugby, the idea for Dubrek was formed.

With help from the Arts Council and the Prince’s Trust, a converted stable at the back

of the Victoria Inn became the first space before a stand-alone premise on Monk Street

opened in 2001. Now, based on the idea of creating ‘Andy Warhol’s Factory’ in Derby,

Dubrek has converted a derelict space on edgy Beckett Street where local, national

and international musicians record, rehearse and play gigs and artists display their

work.

It’s all about bringing the local creative scene together in a hub. Jay explains why he

decided to do this in Derby and what Dubrek aims to do for the community.n Derby

A NEW CENTREFOR SOUND

D U B R E K

Right: A typical evening’s entertainment at Dubrek Studios

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“For me, it was the obvious place to do it because I was

already embedded in the scene here. I’ve lived in a few

other cities and one of the things that has always struck

me about Derby is that it has amazing music and its

musicians need to be supported. When I wanted to start

this business, I aimed to support the people that I knew.

In the almost 20 years that I have run this studio a lot

of those people have changed, but that support is still

needed especially when it comes to young, new bands.

“There’s been a period of young people not coming

through and getting creative, and part of the reason for

doing this is really to create a space where young people

feel safe, whether they are male or female. It needs to be

a very inclusive space and I want them to get creative.

And Derby needs it. Anything we can do to stoke the

flames is important.”

And it is certainly fulfilling its remit with renowned

local bands calling the space home, acts from all over

the country choosing the space to record and gigs

happening most Fridays, with monthly art exhibitions

also featuring. Over the years, Dubrek’s halls have

welcomed the likes of famed producer Gil Norton

(Pixies, PJ Harvey), Mansun’s Paul Draper and Suede’s

Brett Anderson. As you walk the halls, record covers

show the wealth of music that has been produced right

here in Derby.

And there’s even more going on. “There’s a monthly

new music podcast, that myself and my friend Russell

Beresford put together called Dubrek Soundlab. That

basically collects 20 new songs from that month that we think you

should be listening to. I also manufacture pro-audio studio equipment,

and guitar effects pedals under the then named Dubrek Audio Boutique.

I have a workshop at the rear of the building where they are made and

sold all over the world,” explains Jay.

But that is the past and Jay is all about the future. He explains what is

next for the Dubrek site.

“There are three main projects on my mind right now. First, we are

currently working on an Arts Council bid to develop a development

project for young musicians. We have a whole set of young bands

that need some guidance and steering. We want to develop a solid

programme for these young artists and we can send them on their way

so they can continue to produce great music.

“One of the other projects is to create an internet music channel. We

have gigs here every Friday and there is such a demand for people

wanting to see high-quality content being streamed or pre-recorded.

I’ve had a lot of support from the University of Derby with their

students providing research for us. I’ve also been working with Real

Creative Futures in Nottingham who have very kindly given me a little

bit of money to go towards the tech side that we need for this, but we’re

still at the stage where we are planning how this is going to work and I

am still raising cash to make it happen.”

“The really big one is buying this building. The lease runs out in two

years and I have the option to buy the building. For me securing this

building for the future, so we can carry on doing what we are doing is

the most important thing. We’ve already spent a lot of money turning

it from a derelict space into making it into a really great usable space,

but we need to make sure it is still here in 10 or 20 years.”

Any thing we can do to stoke the flames OF CREATIVITY is important.

Jay Dean, Owner - Dubrek StudiosRight: Jay Dean, Owner, Dubrek

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From then on it has become a Mecca for new, interesting beer and has

become a community hub. “People that have been coming for the last

two years now seem to know everyone in the bar. Obviously, we’ve got

big long tables, so everyone is forced to sit with each other, but yes,

we get people standing at the bar chatting to each other. They know

what days they are going to be in, they don’t know their full names,

phone numbers, they just know they can meet them here! I think the

‘community pub’ idea is still something that people are still interested

in all over the country. We did want it to happen and it is something

that actually did happen. Which is great”, explains Thomas.

Suds & Soda reflects, on a small scale, one of the great things about

living in Derby, its community spirit, but their business has also fed

off the benefits of the city. Thomas says, “It’s a small city, so word of

hand and the most knowledgeable staff, it’s a connoisseurs choice for

beer.

A passionate labour of love, Joshua acknowledges that in the beginning

they ‘didn’t have a clue’ about the business of bars doing “all our own

paperwork, licensing, the lease, we did everything ourselves - that was

a massive learning curve from being postmen just walking around, not

having to do anything on a computer, to suddenly having to do forms

and speak to a hundred different people at the Council.” That extensive

research and a mission do to it right soon led to the bar opening.

mouth works and people talk to each other.”

Joshua adds, “Because we are one of the first to do this, we are not

really in competition but also not taking away from anyone else. We’re

just trying to create our own thing, our own little scene, trying to

provide a different flavour to Derby nightlife.”

And this will to create something new, didn’t stop at one bar. Within

a year the duo had also launched the Derby Beer Con, a new type of

beer festival, at the Silk Mill museum in 2017. It returned this year at

F O R G E T REAL ALE

In 2015, two Derby postmen had a dream of bringing a new type of bar to the city centre. Today, that duo is celebrating over two years’ of existence and have been crowned Derby’s Best Bar.

WE Do EVERY THING OURSELVE S.Joshua Mellor, Owner - Suds & Soda

Bustler with an expanded line-up of international breweries like Brew

Dog, Evil Twin, Tiny Rebel, Odyssey, Black Iris and Lervig.

“For me, it’s just creating that scene again, getting people together and

saying “this is good beer, this is what beer is like from around the world,

that you can be drinking. And, yes, it’s a little more expensive than your

average pint but what you are getting is a far greater product, in my

eyes. With the Beer Con, especially this year, we had over 1,000 people

turn up and it just reaffirms that there are people out there that want

something special and different. They want to experience something

exciting.”

Just over two years in, Suds & Soda is at the forefront of a new era for

Derby’s bar scene.

With a reputation as a ‘real ale capital’, Derby has always been a beer-drinkers hotspot, but the international ‘craft’ brewing boom was yet to find

a home in the city. In 2015, this changed as Derby welcomed Suds & Soda to its bar scene. Tom Ainsley - one half of Suds’ ownership duo - explains

the situation... “Derby has a good reputation for being a beer drinking city, but there’s all this beer that we have had over the last two years that still

isn’t elsewhere. That is what we are bringing that’s different. There are 2,000 breweries in England, there are however many thousands of beers all

over the world, and we’re still the only place showcasing strange international craft breweries and their odd eclectic beer.”

With an ever-changing six tap draft list of the best beer around, plus fridges packed with a grand selection of bottles and cans there is something

for everyone from breweries like Mikkeller, Cloudwater, Verdant, Thornbridge and Evil Twin. With regular tap take-overs with the brewers on

Josh Mellor & Tom Ainsley, Owners of Suds & Soda

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When Derby is being discussed, that

discussion rarely includes Normanton, the

thriving, multicultural area just south of the

city centre. But that small part of the city is a

hotbed for talent, not least in the case of Eyez,

the artist putting the Midlands on the map

in the UK’s biggest homegrown, grassroots

music genre in recent years - grime.

A unique part of Derby, Normanton has a sense

of community and diversity. This manifests

in a bubble of independent businesses and

resourcefulness. It is this environment that

fed the success of Isaac Elijah Branford, aka

Eyez, who has been on big stages since the age

of 14 (when he performed with Lethal Bizzle).

Now aged 26, he is a regular on BBC 1Xtra, has

over 70k Twitter followers, has notched up

millions of YouTube views and has toured all

over the world, joining stages with the likes of

Chance The Rapper and Skepta.

After a childhood living all over the

UK - London, Birmingham, Brighton,

Loughborough, as well as Derby, it is here he

has always called home and it is Normanton

where he has always felt the most comfortable.

All Eyez on

Normanton based grime MC Eyez explains why Derby needs to stop overlooking his area.

NormantonAway from the often negative perceptions of

the area, Eyez believes it to be special.

“I feel like the community in Normanton is

really special out of all the areas in Derby.

I feel like it’s the most multicultural, I

probably know people from around 20

different backgrounds. It’s a respect thing.

In Normanton, you understand a lot of

things and you respect them, you hear people

talking different languages, you see people

worshipping different religions and it brings

us back to that same part of everyone being

human. Normanton is a great example of

that.”

“There are so many different groups of

people just working together and that’s what

Normanton is about, just making a family,” he

adds.

And walking the vibrant and busy Normanton

Road this is hugely apparent, with shops,

takeaways and businesses from all walks of

life that you don’t see in other parts of the

city.

Walking the streets of Normanton, he is

stopped multiple times, waved at from cars -

Eyez may be a bit of a celebrity, but he is also

one of Derby’s own. Pointing out the places

that mean something to him, he is full of

passion. Places like the Madeley Centre, the

place he first started to perform and learn the

ropes. It is still doing what it did for him.

“It was a place that we could all come, it was

kind of the meeting hub. Madeley is essential -

it is all about bringing together communities

and cultures. Around six months ago, I

actually came here to deliver a course for

some European kids, It was so cool because

only 70% of them could speak English to a

level where you could have a conversation. A

lot of them found it hard to communicate but

they just came. They had already heard of who

I was, so it was just really cool. To bump into

fans who are from crazy backgrounds, and

can’t even speak English properly but they’ve

ended up in Normanton. The word is that

there is a rapper called Eyez so they listen to

me. then they come here just like we did.”

It’s clearly time for the wider city to embrace

the diversity and innovation of Normanton

if only to revel in the success of Eyez. He’s

currently our biggest musical export and a

voice that urban youth can relate with in a

positive way. When he speaks so passionately

about his home, does so much for the

community and stays true to his roots, why

not?

He adds one last word on our city, “It’s a fuse,

it’s myself and I love Derby!”

Isaac Elijah Branford, aka Eyez

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AROUND HERE WE LOV EThis city has a performance culture built

into it, reaching from grassroots, community

performances to cinemas the world over, via

every conceivable outlet.

In the city centre, many establishments are

bringing performances out for the public.

It would be easy to simply list performance

spaces and what they have on, but that would

be doing their work a disservice. This is

because Derby performance is so much more

than simple ‘entertainment’, it is an activity

with bettering the community at its heart.

Building on a long history of delivering quality

production, Derby Theatre has morphed into

something much more integral to the city

since it has come under the wings of the

University of Derby.

Under Sarah Brigham, the Theatre’s Artistic

Director and Chief Executive, its offering now

includes undergraduate and postgraduate

courses, an emerging talent programme and

increased work with children. On the back of

this success, it has been earmarked for a 59%

increase in Arts Council England funding to

continue this work.

This attitude towards nurturing young

creativity is possibly best highlighted with

the Departure Lounge festival, which exposes

groundbreaking art from the region. This

theatrical creativity seeps out from the

Theatre to the rest of the city as extraordinary

works fill cafés, cars, all-nighters and a range

of immersive and intimate performances.

Across the city, community theatre groups

produce fantastic grassroots productions

from the community for the community.

Working with the same ethos, but in a

different way, is Baby People, the UK’s first

dedicated hip-hop school fuses arts, music

and culture to offer a voice and creative outlet

to those most deprived in our communities -

much like hip-hop’s emergence as an art form

in the 1970s.

Started and led by Baby J - who has produced

music for the likes of Amy Winehouse,

Estelle and Mark Ronson - this innovative

school helps people of all ages connect with

skills through workshops and placements.

Its success speaks for itself with the school

creating UK champion breakdancers and

diverse musical artists who have been played

on BBC Radio 1, BBC 6Music, BBC Introducing

and 1Xtra as well as MTV and have toured with

Jay Z and Mark Ronson.

For a city of its physical size, the list of

performing achievements here is truly

astounding.

Across Derby, performance is right at the heart of many people’s lives

Derby and the surrounding county is

absolutely overflowing with artistic talent,

filling the world’s biggest stages and screens

with their art. De

Revered acting talent like Jack O’Connell and

Paddy Considine, both patrons of Quad, are

currently on our screens, while this region has

given the acting world Robert Lyndsey, John

Hurt, Lauren and Michael Socha, Timothy

Dalton and Tom Chambers. Musically, we’ve

got rock n roll revivalists The Struts and grime

artist Eyez making it big on the world stage,

while Derbyshire Dales three-piece Haiku

Salut have released their critically-acclaimed

third album and guested on the latest Public

Service Broadcasting record. ‘Your Woman’ by

White Town is still a major hit the world over

- whatever great culture is being made, Derby

is there at the forefront.

TO PERFORM

E X T R A O R D I N A R Y E N T E R T A I N M E N T

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LIV ING IN THE CITYDerby’s independent spirit and creative approach to business, culture and entertainment extends to the areas in which people live in the city. This is no more evident than when you take a wander through Strutts Park and its surrounding streets.There’s more to making a home for yourself in Derby than finding

yourself a place to live in popular suburbs like Allestree, Oakwood

and Chellaston. Home owners and residents living in Strutts

Park, on and off Kedleston Road, Asbourne Road and in places like

Brookbridge Court, will be able to extoll the virtues of both their

quirky and historic homes as well as their short walks into the city

centre.

Living close to Derby city centre offers up a mix of Victorian three-

story family homes, Georgian terraces, modern flats, converted

former mills and affordable living; all set within a five-minute walk

of the city centre and Derby’s beautiful Darley Park. If you’re looking

to live in an area with character, look no further.

BROOK BRI DGE C OURT, DERBY

Brookbridge Court - located near to BBC Radio Derby - really does

benefit from some seriously impressive room proportions.

If this is Derby’s version of New York City living, then it’s doing an

admirable job of living up to the billing.

The former Mill was sympathetically restored by Messrs. Thomas

Fisher and Son in 2004, to a Heritage Trust specification, and the

various apartments within the development are still in excellent

nick over a decade after the restoration project finished.

THEFACEOFDERBY#2

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INDBY

DUBREK1

de da2

SUDS & SODA3

BUSTLE R MARKE T4

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MADE LY CE NTRE5

BRIT ISH HIGH STRE E T OF THE YEAR6

THE POSTHOUSE7

DE RBY THE ATRE8

MARKE T HALL9

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THE C I T Y NORMANTON

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WHAT IFTHERE’S MORETO DERBYSHIRETHAN THIS?

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THE NEW SOUND

Nestled in the Derbyshire hills a tiny group of radio presenters is bringing the cultural best of its local area, the wider county and even New Orleans to the airwaves.

This is Radio Free Matlock and, over the

last year, it has expanded to become a vital

voice in the county’s cultural conversation,

bringing like-minded music enthusiasts, local

people and businesses forward for some truly

exciting radio programming.

Moving to Matlock two years ago, Ashley

Bird became involved in a “tiny ultra-local

online radio station called Radio Free Smedley

Street”, revitalising an involvement in radio

that previously formed part of his past life

as a music journalist and Editor of Kerrang!

Magazine. In May 2018, the owner left, Ashley

took over as Station Manager, changed the

name and looked to expand its remit working

mainly with Corey Lavender, Rob James,

Cromford DJ Rob Hardy (of the Eclectic

Boogaloo Crew) and his partner Lucie De Lacy.

With a three-fold mission to provide a

platform for the region, allowing people to

create their own shows, to create shows that

are ‘rooted in the local area’ and also run

shows created locally, independently - “quality

shows that can be enjoyed anywhere” - this is

all intended to “contribute very positively to

Matlock’s national reputation.”

“It represents Matlock and Derbyshire, with

its independent creatives, musicians and

eccentrics in a really positive, fun light, and

I think it adds to local pride. Those who make

shows really enjoy doing it, and some see a

marketing benefit in it too, such as Lime Tree

Music Centre, Dubrek Studio and Vanishing

Point Records. We did a lot of work over

summer promoting events in the area such as

Matlock Bath Music Festival, Maazi Movies In

the Park, The Peak District Highland Games,

Matlock Bath Pirate Mutiny and Hecate Arts’

Tiddley-Om-Pom-Pom Beach Day. And we also

got involved in some of the events ourselves,

with outside broadcasts and compéring,”

explains Ashley.

He continues to explain the positivity of the

place he has decided to call home and how it

feeds the dynamic nature of the station.

“Lucie and I LOVE living in Matlock (I’m from

Derby originally but have lived in London,

Brighton, New Zealand and Nottingham, plus

Bournemouth for uni) and it’s our love of this

place that inspires us to make radio shows for

it/from it/about it. Derbyshire has a wealth

of amazingly creative people just under the

surface of the mainstream, and they provide

us with lots of music, art and events to talk

about.”

Broadcast from a studio in Ashley’s house,

or show’s pre-recorded elsewhere by the

presenters, it has an obvious local, personal

tone that passionately feeds into local life.

With an almost ‘open door’ policy for local

people to get involved and a freedom to

indulge personal tastes, it has created a truly

eclectic mix covering everything from rock

to obscure electronic music, even taking on a

Head of Year from Matlock’s Highfields School

for a show called Redders’ Rewind.

And Radio Free Matlock is only just getting

started and has strong ambitions for the

future.

“Our schedule is getting a revamp and an

expansion as there are a number of new shows

incoming. We hope to add more community-

focused elements too. Once that is settled

and running nicely, we intend to do another

marketing push to raise awareness of the

station and try to build some loyal audiences

for the new shows. We also want to actively

seek out some more diverse presenters - more

female voices and different ethnicities for

instance.

The long-term dream is for us to build a proper

studio which we can all use to make our shows,

and that will open up the possibilities for so

many more people to get involved. That would

also give us the possibility of teaching radio

skills to young people or adult learners too,

which could be fantastic. The big question for

us is how to fund it all (grants, crowdfunding,

commercials...). That’s an ongoing discussion.

But we certainly don’t want to go down any

route (e.g. fully commercial) that limits the

station’s ability to run really niche shows

made with passion, to run some ‘rough around

the edges’ shows made by people having a go

for the first time, and to have an independent

voice. Being a genuine ‘alternative’ is

something we treasure.”

OF DERBYSHIRE

I LOVE L IV ING IN MATLOCK Ashley Bird, Owner - Radio Free Matlock

Ashley Bird, Owner and Presenter of Radio Free Matlock

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THEFACEOFDERBY#3

The FACE OF DE RBY #1Street art found at Derby’s Friar Gate Goods Yard, which is soon to be redeveloped.

The FACE OF DE RBY #2Josh Russell, the young fabricator behind Russell Oak & Steel, a Derby-based

furniture company.

The FACE OF DE RBY #3A participant taking in a VR exhibition at Derby’s QUAD.

M A R K E T I N G D E R B Y . C O . U K

Front cover image by Daniel Dytrych x David Sebastian

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