It’s rare that two people can embody a collective’s identity quite so perfectly, but with James Watkins and James Lawson, the James² driving force behind Jarred Up and its fast-growing Jarred Up Festival, you can see it instantly. They look and talk like two sides of the same coin – one leaning punk, the other psych – but together they’re building something that captures the best of both worlds.
Jarred Up Festival is back this October, promising another packed-out day of live music at Sidney & Matilda. The line-up is class: Do Nothing headline alongside LIFE, Keg, Our Girl, and a host of rising names including Floral Image, Hutch, and Jeanie and the White Boys. And this year, they’ve even got balloons and bunting!
The two James’ have taken lessons from last year’s debut, tweaking timings, refining the flow between stages and, crucially, adding space for people to grab a drink without missing half a set. Watkins laughs: “Last year we thought, ‘Yeah, back-to-back sets will be fine.’ Turns out, not so much. This year it’s all about making sure everyone gets to see who they want – and has a good time doing it.”
Lawson adds that each stage has its own flavour, including The Jingle Jangle Jungle – the Factory Stage rebranded to reflect his own influence. “That’s my taste through and through,” he says. “Four out of five bands are mates from playing our shows and gigging around the country – Norwich, Brighton, everywhere – and they’re genuinely class acts.” Watkins nods. “Yeah, that’s the fun bit now – the line-up really feels like us.”
If last year’s event was about proving Jarred Up could pull off a festival, this year’s feels like it’s about momentum. Tickets have flown out faster than before, and the team’s confidence has grown with them. Watkins admits the first one was stressful, but with a full year under their belt, they’re calmer and more ambitious. Adding: “It’s still DIY, still us running around putting bunting up and blowing up balloons, but it feels bigger, more fun. That’s how it should be.”
Timing-wise, October works perfectly for them. “You’ve got Tramlines in July, Float Along in September, Get Together in May,” says Watkins. “Summer’s chaos – every festival under the sun. We like being the one that kicks off gig season again after that. People are back from holidays, the weather’s cooling off, and bands are back touring. It just fits.”
The dream is to grow without losing what makes Jarred Up special. Watkins talks about learning from other Sheffield day festivals but staying patient with expansion. “We’d never just go bang, and book five venues,” he says. “It’s about doing it when the time’s right. When we move up a step, it’s got to stick. You don’t want to go backwards. But if this keeps selling like it is, yeah – we’ll be looking at bigger spaces and bigger headliners.”
It’s clear the pair’s partnership has injected new energy into the brand. Watkins founded Jarred Up as a passion project, running shows and championing grassroots acts, but bringing Lawson on board has added fresh perspective and a complementary eye for bookings. “I was working at Sidney, juggling everything, and thought: I need someone else in,” Watkins recalls. “There was this lad who kept turning up to our gigs – dressed like he’d walked out of Dazed and Confused – and I thought, he gets it. I barely knew him but asked if he wanted to help with a show. He gave me great support suggestions, and that was that. He’s moved into Jarred Up like honey.”
Lawson laughs. “Yeah, he basically said, ‘Do you want to book gigs?’ I’d always thought about it but didn’t know how you even start something like that in Sheffield. Then suddenly I’m doing the Washington nights and getting involved with the festival.” His taste leans psych and jangly indie; Watkins’ is more punk and electronic. Between them, the Jarred Up roster’s never looked stronger. “We overlap loads,” says Lawson. “We both love the heavy stuff and the weird stuff, just from different angles. It works.”
That balance – and the friendship that’s formed around it – runs through everything they do. Watkins says Lawson is now “the face” of Jarred Up, always out gigging and socialising, while he’s more the behind-the-scenes. Lawson grins: “People meet me and think I’m the James from Jarred Up. Then they meet him and realise there’s two of us. It’s like a good cop/bad cop setup – except we’re both just knackered promoters trying to put on a good show.”
This year’s line-up once again champions upcoming artists alongside established names. The duo are particularly excited about The Pearl River Band – a brand-new Sheffield act making their live debut at the festival. “They’ve got real potential,” says Lawson. “It’s that feeling of being there at the start, which is kind of what Jarred Up’s all about.”
For both Jameses, that’s the point: creating a space where audiences can catch tomorrow’s headliners today. “We’ve never lost money on the festival,” says Watkins proudly. “That’s rare for a DIY setup. The bands get paid, the venues are happy, people go home buzzing. They get their wristband, their badge, maybe even a balloon. It’s fun – but it’s proper. We’re building something that lasts.”
And from the way they talk – finishing each other’s sentences, riffing on future ideas, half-joking about taking over the whole city – you get the sense they really are. Sheffield’s scene is better for having Jarred Up in it – and it sounds like they’re just getting started.
Jarred Up Festival takes over Sidney and Matilda on Saturday 25 October and you can still grab tix here.
