Hawk-ley Hus-tuah! Music on that local community.
On the 20th of this month, the ever-exciting Hockley Hustle graced the streets of Nottingham once more. bringing the city’s exceptional pool of musical talent into its exceptional venues, to the benefit of exceptional audiences, and all to raise funds for exceptional local charities doing the real hard work for the community.
But is that all it’s about? On the day of, I took it upon myself to be a plain annoyance and run around pestering friends, strangers, musicians, to see if we can get to the heart of what was going on with everyone’s own personal Hockley Hustle. With no wrong answers, here we go.
So, what does hockley hustle mean to you?
“Community, it’s a festival for the people that gives back to the people.” – Mitch, 23
“It means community, beers, good people and a good environment all around.” – Jaque, 30
“There is a lot of gigs happening in Nottingham, I guess.” – Kay, 30
“Hockley Hustle is the best way to showcase Nottingham bands, big or small. The festival does get in bigger names too of course, but it’s mainly focused on bringing in and showcasing people in the Nottingham scene. A great coming together of bands, and people here to have a nice time!” – Zach, 21
“Discovering new music.” – Harry, 24
“I don’t think that question works, do you? A great opportunity for local music to show what its got to offer.” – Tom, 24, of SPITVALVE
“Everyone’s having fun, you know, it’s just fun! You know.” – Meg, 21
“A nice excuse to hang with my friends, and to check out some new music I’ve not seen before, some more local stuff.” – Ste, 40
“That’s what today is right? Yeah yeah, it’s been good so far. Is what I say during this actually going to be put somewhere?” – Anonymous mid-to-late 20s man in Bodega smoking area
“Good time in the city with friends and bands!” – Livvy, 24
“I hustle in Hockley every day. I’ve been hustling in Hockley for years now, so it’s just another day in the life, but it’s good to see everyone else jumping on board as well.” – Finn, 24, of SPITVALVE
[answer redacted] – Tom, 24 (A different Tom to our Tom)
“A lot of expended energy, and a good night’s sleep. And lots of fun, lots and lots of fun.” – Beau, 19
What has been your highlight of the day so far, or what are you most looking forward to?
(Quick note: You may notice many of the answers name Saffron, which might be in part a consequence of me interviewing a lot of her mates sitting at one table. That is definitely not to say that they’re wrong for saying so though, as Saff and the boys as always knocked my little socks off! I needed those!!)
“Wizards Can’t Be Lawyers. They’ve come to my open mics as a two-piece before, but I’ve never seen them as the full eight-piece. It’ll be sick.” – Jaque, 30
“Tanooki Moon!” – Harry, 24 (Note: Does anyone know what band he was talking about? Please write in!)
“I’ve been looking forwards to seeing a few new acts I haven’t had the opportunity to see yet.” – Tom, 24, of SPITVALVE
“Uhh, hah. No comment.” – Anonymous mid-to-late 20s man in Bodega smoking area
“Well we’ve only watched one band, that will have to be the highlight I think. I’m quite looking forward to popping between venues and exploring a little bit.” – Ste, 40
“You know what, the highlight was playing, we just came off stage and it got a bit messy at spots, but I’m just happy to have had so many people come to see us. It was great! It’s also great to see so many people playing, all my mates playing, having a good time, doing their thing.” – Zach, 21
“My girlfriend.” – Mitch, 23
“Getting drunk.” – Kay, 30
“Well I got here ten minutes ago. I’ll be looking forwards to seeing my friend Saff play later, it’ll be sick.” – Finn, 24, of SPITVALVE
“I’m most excited to see Saffron!” – Meg, 21
“Probably playing Saffron’s set, we’ve been playing that set for a while now so we’re really locked in and have fun with it really. Brilliant, and all the other guys are just sick musicians.” – Beau, 19
“Super excited to see Frankybones and Saffron, because they’re two of my best friends and amazing artists!” – Livvy, 24
“I hope Saffron’s my highlight, but if not my highlight was… probably Saffron.” – Tom, 24 (A different Tom to our Tom)
What do you want to be when you grow up?
“A dinosaur [unspecified]” – Finn, 24, of SPITVALVE
“Myself.” – Tom, 24 (A different Tom to our Tom)
“Preferably someone else.” – Tom, 24, of SPITVALVE
“A power ranger. Green one, specifically.” – Ste, 40
“A Transformer. They can be whatever they want to be. And just doing this all for a living, it’s a hard road and a lot of risks to be taken, but yeah this.” – Zach, 21
“I want to work for women’s aid! [Polite clapping around the table].” – Meg, 21
“Will Rabjohns.” – Beau, 19
“I want to be a space-man.” – Jaque, 30
“An astronaut.” – Livvy, 24
“Alive.” – Harry, 24
“Alive forever.” – Kay, 30
“Chef.” – Mitch, 23
“No comment.” – Anonymous mid-to-late 20s man in Bodega smoking area
And there we are! Be sure to be at Hockley Hustle next year, and the year after that, and the year after that, to keep your soul pure. Stay beautiful, Notts.