STARSAILOR will be headlining Warrington Festival in a day that will pay tribute to Viola Beach’s legacy.
The band, which includes Warrington’s Ben Byrne and James ‘Stel’ Stelfox, will perform at Bank Park on Saturday, September 17. It will be the quartet’s first open air gig in the town and their first appearance in Warrington since they released their greatest hits last year.
Their headline slot will follow a day of performances from bands in tribute to Viola Beach and their Woolston manager, Craig Tarry, who tragically died in a crash in Sweden in February.
Starsailor drummer Ben and bassist Stel met at St Oswald’s Primary School and the band formed when they met frontman James Walsh at Wigan and Leigh Music College. Keyboardist Barry Westhead joined later, completing the line-up.
Their debut album, Love is Here, and 2003 follow-up, Silence is Easy, both hit number two in the charts and they had sold three million records before a hiatus in 2009.
Since their reformation in 2014, the band has played on the main stage at the Isle of Wight festival, supported Manchester indie band, James and toured North America with Embrace, before returning to play in Wigan at Robin Park Arena in July 2017.
The Saturday event will be part of a wider weekend of music and two weeks of events across the town celebrating sport, culture and entertainment. Last years music headliner of Warrington Festival was Bromley’s Pixie Lott, who saw Ellie Dibben and Viola Beach support her in-front of thousands.
– Tickets go on sale on Monday at 9am, priced £10. Visit pyramidparrhall.com
– Any band or artist from the north west can apply to play at the festival at warringtonfestival.org/contact-us
