Friday, July 02, 2021

Race for the prizes

In light of all the support that Nightshift has given to bands in Oxford and the surrounding area since it first appeared (as Curfew) 30 years ago, it's heartening to see some of the scene's biggest acts - all given a leg up by the magazine in their early days - rallying round to back editor Ronan Munro's personal Project Restart.

As reported by both the BBC and NME, it's hoped that a prize draw featuring generous donations from Radiohead, Ride, Foals, Supergrass, Stornoway, Glass Animals and Young Knives will help to raise the funds necessary to get the freebie mag back up and running until advertising revenues pick up.

I've waxed lyrical about Nightshift before, and make no apologies for doing so again. It's an asset to the city, something that most local scenes could only dream of having, and I remain honoured and grateful to have had the opportunity to spout my nonsense about countless deafening nights in darkened, sweaty rooms in its pages.

At the time of writing, more than half of the targeted £12,000 has already been raised. Here's hoping that the rest is forthcoming and the mag's back to keep us informed, entertained and howling with laughter again soon.

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