Live Events Returning in 2022!
After a VERY long time of our wonderful stage falling silent, we’re coming back with a bang and are staging a major event with our friends at NWOCR. Stand by, because you wont want to miss it! NWOCR AND LIVEWIRE proudly present ‘Rockin’ by the River III’ Livewire, Saltash. Saturday, 19th March, 2022 All proceeds are going to Livewire, so let’s get behind this amazing event and once again, sell the venue out. All bands are playing for expenses only, so on Saturday, 19th March, 2022, there’ll be nowhere else in the SW staging finer bands for less money, or a worthier cause! FIVE great bands for just £11 Buy them from Seetickets here, now This will be our third Rockin by the river event in collaboration with the New Wave Of Classic Rock community.The event is both a fundraiser for Livewire Youth Music who provide invaluable music and emotional support to a great many young people, but its also a showcase of all that’s awesome about the new wave of classic rock. The event will feature 5 amazing bands – The Fallen StateSKAMSons of Liberty50 Year StormMinor Offences This will be a great event to blow away those Winter blues and welcome…
COVID-19 SUPPORT
This is really, really important. We believe it is crucial for young people that we provide some form of normality through the COVID-19 outbreak. As you’ll know, we’ve had to take the devastating decision to close our evening delivery. From Friday 20th March we will be providing the following: VIRTUAL MUSIC LESSONS/JAMS – Music lessons/jams get togethers will happen on Monday and Thursdays from 7pm till 9pm and Wednesdays 6pm till 8pm. This will be through Facebook live and you will be able to choose which musician you hook up with – details will be on our Livewire members support page. SUPPORT – ANY young person local to us that is in need of emotional support can TXT 07398 091507, giving – YOUR NAME YOUR AGETHE PROBLEMA STAFF MEMBER’S NAME, IF YOU WANT TO TALK TO SOMEONE SPECIFIC We will then get back to you. VIRTUAL LIVEWIRE – On MONDAYS and THURSDAYS there will be Youth Workers and Counsellors able to chat between 7pm and 9pm and on WEDNESDAYS 6pm till 8pm on our Livewire members support page. This will include regular updates and supports via Facebook live from Andy Rance and Elaine At Livewire. TELEPHONE SUPPORT – On…
The State of Play
Article by our very own Nigel Follett, appearing in ‘Love Saltash’ magazine, May 2019. Much is said about the decline of medium-sized music venues in and around Plymouth and it’s probably fair to say that it’s not a pretty picture, with seemingly every news report lamenting the impending demise of accessible and affordable gigs for the average music fan. Equally, you’d also think that ‘real music’ is in terminal decline and that we are all starving on a diet of force-fed, banal, studio-cooked gruel, dished out by popular broadcasters as a flavourless substitute for the glory days of classic rock. Except that much of it isn’t true and most of the above is a superficial view, concealing a brilliant, vibrant and creative force of young musicians and some great local music hotspots that are prepared to serve a rich bill of fare for the more discerning. One such venue has caught everyone by surprise in the Plymouth area, suddenly appearing on the touring circuit of some of the UK’s most pre-eminent Rock and Indy bands, as well as staging a healthy representation of some of the greats from the past few decades. It gets more interesting again when you understand…
Allen & Heath – A Brilliant Donation
Livewire Youth Music have received an incredible surprise late Christmas gift from leading pro-audio live sound manufacturers Allen & Heath, with the donation of one of their flagship dLive c3500 live sound mixing desks to be used for gigs and teaching young people live sound in its amazing 250 capacity venue in Saltash, Cornwall. Over the years a great many local young people have been taught the finer art of mixing live sound at Livewire, including Sam Walsh who went on to be legendary Jethro Tull guitarist Martin Barre’s front of house engineer and Alex Skinner, who went on to develop a career at Allen & Heath himself. This amazing donation will massively enhance their ability to reach even more budding young sound engineers and hopefully support them into long lasting careers. Comments from Andy Rance, youth work coordinator: “We are so delighted with this amazingly generous donation from Allen & Heath – we have had a wonderful and long relationship with this UK leading live sound and DJ product manufacturer based right here in Cornwall. This new dLive desk will be a huge upgrade to Livewire’s live music venue and massively increase our ability to teach local young people…
Christmas Came Early…
Christmas came early… …for a lucky few of our young people this weekend. They met the band ‘Enter Shikari’, when they played a gig at Plymouth University on Saturday 8th December – a massive thank you to the band and their management. It wouldn’t be true to say that Livewire can introduce our young members to top bands all the time, but it certainly happens and it’s always inspirational. Sometimes these bands even gig in our own venue right here in Saltash. If you aspire to be a songwriter, musician, recording, sound or lighting engineer, then Livewire is for you. If you don’t know what you want to be but would like to have a go at all of it, Livewire is also for you. It’s all FREE if you’re aged between 13-21. In just a short time, the band you form at Livewire could be supporting major national touring acts like ‘Bad Touch’ or ‘The Quireboys’, playing to a full house. If you want an adrenaline rush, this is one of the best you’ll ever get. All of this is on offer to you, right now. All you need to do is come along and get involved. Did we…
Anxiety Is a Dirty Ugly Liar!
Article by Andy Rance. First published in Love Saltash – December 2018. Anxiety is that quiet voice that tells you ‘you can’t’ when you can – it tells you you’re ugly, that no one really likes you, that you’re worthless, that you’re unlikeable! Like most liars, once they’ve been found out they usually disappear, so if your anxiety is lying to you, check it out with someone you trust, or come and chat to one of us lot at Livewire! Anxiety holds more people prisoner than anything else, real freedom comes from realising just what a dirty, ugly liar it is. Problematic anxiety has become almost an epidemic amongst young people (and many adults too), however it is is a normal emotion that we all experience, such as in the run up to exams or a job interview, but when it becomes much more severe, this feeling can take over and begin to interfere with everyday life and in some cases lead to severe mental health issues. At Livewire we are starting some targeted and focused work with young people experiencing problematic anxiety issues, this might include counselling, it might include youth worker one to one or group support, or even the…
Love Saltash – Nov 2018. Another big side of Livewire
Don’t you just love it when a popular local magazine is so supportive of what we do? Thank you Karen Pilkington and ‘Love Saltash’!
Livewire Launches New Mental Health Service For Young People
Saltash, Cornwall. June 9, 2018 Livewire Youth Project’s new mental health service for young people – ‘Heart n’ Soul’, is now up and running. With generous grant funding of £80,000 from Global’s ‘Make Some Noise’, the Saltash Waterside based charity is providing an on-site Mental Health Worker for two years, with the intention of making this a permanent service. Global’s ‘Make Some Noise’ is the official charity of Global, the Media & Entertainment group, and home to Capital, Heart, LBC, Classic FM, Smooth, Radio X, Capital XTRA and Gold. After the funding was received in April, Livewire embarked upon a lengthy and complex recruitment process resulting in the hiring of Elaine Keogh, who is now heading up Livewire’s mental health support services. Andy Rance, Livewire Youth work Coordinator explains, ‘Young people’s mental health and wellbeing has been a growing problem over the past few years. Since national and local government introduced widespread and devastating austerity measures, the numbers of young people presenting with issues has increased frighteningly. We became painfully aware that long waiting lists for help and support were exacerbating an already intolerable situation for young people who were struggling. We decided enough was enough and that we needed to do…
HEART SOUTH WEST Surprises Livewire Youth Project With £80,000 From Global’s Make Some Noise
Saltash, Cornwall. February 13, 2018: Today Heart South West Breakfast show presenters Matt and Victoria surprised Livewire Youth Project with a cheque for £80,000 raised by Global’s Make Some Noise. The charity was hoping for a grant of almost £38,000 but thanks to the generosity of listeners across Global’s radio brands, Global’s Make Some Noise donated more than double that amount. Livewire supports more than 1,000 children and their families in the South West providing young people with opportunities to develop socially, emotionally and musically in a safe and supportive environment. The money raised by Heart South West and Global’s Make Some Noise will fund the cost of their ‘Heart and Soul’ mental health project which is a music orientated mental health support service for young people aged 5-21. Global’s Make Some Noise is the official charity of Global, the Media & Entertainment group, and home to Capital, Heart, LBC, Classic FM, Smooth, Radio X, Capital XTRA and Gold. Global’s Make Some Noise helps small charities and projects dedicated to improving the lives of disadvantaged youngsters living with illness, disability or lack of opportunity. Global’s Make Some Noise gives charities such as Livewire Youth Project a platform to reach…
Mental health worker to be based at the foot of the Tamar Bridge – Plymouth Herald, Katie Timms. March 1st 2018
A specialist mental health professional is being brought in following a series of tragic deaths at the Tamar Bridge. Video interview with Andy Rance here. “The bridge is famous for a lot of things – Brunel, wonderful engineering – but unfortunately it’s also famous for being that place that some people have chosen to end their life.” Andy Rance has had enough of seeing people end their lives falling from the Tamar Bridge. He has been a youth worker at the Livewire Youth Project – which is based at the foot of the bridge – for more than 30 years. Three people have died falling from the bridge in under a year. A 21-year-old man lost his life in February in a tragedy that followed the deaths of 38-year-old father Trystan Bryant and a 22-year-old woman, who has not been publicly named. Now Livewire has just been granted funding from Global, Make Some Noise, to recruit a part-time Mental Health Youth Worker in a bid to put a stop to the tragedies. The new worker will operate at the centre from around April or May and will hold sessions for young people struggling with their mental health. Andy said: “The mental health worker will…
Discover why Rockstars Love Saltash ‘Livewire’
A state-of-the-art recording studio for the young people of Devon and Cornwall, championed by rock royalty including Pete Townshend of ‘The Who’ and the late Lemmy Kilmister of ‘Motorhead’, will open its doors to the public on Saturday 3 March. Based at Saltash Waterside, Livewire Youth Music incorporates traditional youth work, a youth club and a music project. The world-class recording studio has been created for young people aged between 10 and 21, thanks to support from local organisations, major brands and celebrities. Between 10.00 am and 3.00pm, Saturday March 3rd, for the first time, Livewire will be swinging open its doors for everyone, young and old, to come along and have a look at their state-of-the-art recording studio, their live music venue and all their facilities. This is also an opportunity to meet the team, youth workers, musicians and management committee members. If you’re a parent, grandparent, a young person interested in music, an interested member of the public, a local business, town councillor, or someone who might want to volunteer, this will be great way to spend a few hours. The event is free and there is free parking – there will be refreshments available. About Livewire: Livewire…
Recording ‘My Generation’ in Cornwall
Thanks to the amazing kindness of legendary ‘Who’ guitarist, Pete Townshend, Saltash based Livewire Youth Music will be offering local young musicians the chance to use our recording studio, free, and to learn hands-on how to use recording studio equipment. We are delighted to announce that Cornwall Music Education Hub will be financially supporting the new studio project (unofficially known as ‘Pete’s Place’), by funding regular Saturday recording sessions and funding Livewire’s sound engineer, teaching young people on Thursday evenings how to use the new studio. Having the new studio is awesome, but we needed someone to develop and run it, and Cornwall Music Hub has given us that opportunity. Pete’s request to us was to record as many young musicians as possible and to teach as many young people how to use it – now with this additional support that’s exactly what Livewire will be doing when it returns from its summer holidays in September 2017. Situated on the banks of the river Tamar, the new studio complex at Livewire Youth Music encompasses much of the building, with its live music venue doubling as a massive and great sounding live room. Livewire’s ‘Purple Room’, rehearsal room, will be doubling…