Shortlist For Our NME Breakthrough Competition Announced

Our panel of esteemed music industry experts have shortlisted five new bands competing in the NME Breakthrough search to open the main stage at this year’s Lovebox festival in Victoria Park on July 16th.

The panel, made up of NME editor Krissi Murison, Groove Armada’s Tom Findlay, NME New Music Editor Jaimie Hodgson, Peter Elliot from Primary Talent International and Rob Silver from Lovebox, have listened to hundreds of unsigned acts.

Groove Armada’s Tom Findlay said: “I was really impressed with the quality of music we listened to and spent a long time coming to a decision about the five we chose. We would be delighted to share a stage with any of the 5 bands on this list”.

NME New Music Editor Jaimie Hodgson adds “Listening to the long list it made us all realise just how much brilliant new music is rising up through the NME Breakthrough ranks. Whittling them down was an incredibly tough task, especially taking into account the specifics of what a main stage opening slot at a festival like Lovebox entails!”

The panel has selected five bands which will now go through to go a public vote. They are:

 - May 68 from Manchester

 - Matt Henshaw from East Midlands

 - Visions Of Trees from London

 - Loose Talk Costs Lives from Leeds and London

 - The Heartbreaks from Manchester

Voting will open on the official Lovebox Facebook Page on June 11th.  The artist that gets the most votes before July 4th will win the opening slot on the main stage of Friday Lovebox.

The winning band will be announced on July 5.