What's On / Bristol Gigs / free gigs

Free Gigs in Bristol

upcoming gig

Bristol's Free Gigs Scene

Where to find free music in Bristol Free music's pretty easy to find in Bristol. Whilst most gigs outside of the big venues are usually only a few quid, it's always nice to see some bands for free or a couple of pounds in a bucket (if they're good!) For guaranteed free music with your pint, go to a venue which has a free entry policy.

The Old Duke, The Canteen and The Golden Lion (except fridays) should probably be your first port-of-call to check out Coronation Tap are also very reliable and popular for free gigs. Luckily free gigs can happen anywhere, this means you can keep things interesting and not get bored of rotating the same Bristol venues. Free live music can crop up anywhere from the Grain Barge and Lousianna to Colston Hall and even St Georges.

The economy of free gigs. Can it survive Covid?

Good news: gigs in Bristol are more likely to be free than anywhere else! General ticket prices seem to be more common between free and £5; the £20+ bracket is a rare one compared to the capital’s high-end arts and theatre gigs. Bristol’s pandemic response has opened up some extra local music funding. Will free gigs disappear with the added financial pressures of covid? Indoor gigs may soon be possible, but how many of them will remain free and accessible?

Free outdoor gigs and festivals in Bristol

From mid June to the beginning of September Bristol Council and independent organisations put on some great free music events. Best of all there's something different almost every weekend and they don't cost any money! Significant large events include St Werbergh's Fair, The Harbourside Festival and St Pauls Carnival. In addition there are some great smaller, open air gigs with free entry to be found in places like Queens Square, Stokes Croft and Castle Park.

Buy tickets for free gigs events in Bristol

Our recent free gigs recommendations

Haunting post-rock laments full of bucolic imagery and eerie melancholy… The Declining Winter swoons with orchestral textures and Richard Adams' soft world-worn vocals. Like a folk tragedy soundtrack or The Leisure Society’s sinister sibling. Immense FFO: Red House Painters, The Microphones, Good Night & Good Morning. The Declining Winter + Pefkin + Coims at The Cube.

Free entry! Magnetic Bristolian mega-fusion of warm analogue jazz, funk, soul, and psych– basically a mid-week Canteen-goer’s dream. Dr. Chonk & The Nature Injection’s gently trippy, retro-tinted grooves fall somewhere between languid late-night loungefest and a sun-kissed jam session FFO: Azymuth, El Michels Affair, Magic in Threes, Ill Considered. Dr. Chonk & The Nature Injection at The Canteen.

Rally round the free entry metal gig of the year as beloved local sludgers Empire of Dust come of age with their debut LP! A grinding slab of glacial-slow misery awaits you, with evil Cardiff stoner-fuzz merchants Lung and propulsive Bristol post-metal giants Urzah on support. It’s the best of the West FFO: Khanate, Earth, Thou, Mastodon, Neurosis, Electric Wizard. Empire Of Dust + Lung + Urzah + Mutilated State at Strange Brew.

Free entry! Step inside the haunted house of West Country blues that is Ma Plaine’s Great Decline. Their moody Waits-channelling Americana slithers and swings with bone-rattling skiffle rhythms and a big dollop of proggy oddness. Sinister, spellbinding! Ma Polaine's Great Decline at The Canteen.