For anyone who’s been in a rehearsal room, you’ll know there’s something about the raw energy in those spaces – the clatter of a drum fill, the hum of an amp, the singer and the guitarist arguing about the length of a solo in the corner!
It’s a world away from the polished sheen of a live gig or a studio recording. And that’s exactly what Red Light Sessions, a new Sheffield-based music project founded by drummer Joe Green (Milburn, Bromheads Jacket) in collaboration with little old us, is here to capture.
“The idea was to get the most out of rehearsals,” Joe tells us. “A lot of bands post performances, post gigs, but they don’t really show what happens inside the practice room. I wanted this to have all the flaws, all the imperfections – it’s about seeing music at its rawest.”
The concept is simple but effective. Each session brings together different local musicians for a spontaneous, live-recorded jam – one take, no do-overs, just pure collaboration. The house band (Joe, alongside fellow Bromheads band members, Tim Hampton and Jono West) provides the backbone, while guest artists bring their own flavour. The results? Unpredictable, high-energy, and always unique. “Sometimes it could be a heavier version, sometimes it’s stripped back – it depends on the mood that day.” explains Joe.
At Exposed, we love shouting about Sheffield’s music scene, so when Joe approached us about getting involved, it was a no-brainer. We’ll be premiering a track from each session across our platforms, giving a wider audience a front-row seat to these one-off moments.
Each session is filmed and recorded professionally, with filmmaker Dan Booth capturing the visuals and Dave Sanderson handling the sound engineering. The goal is to create something that isn’t just another live session but a snapshot of Sheffield’s musical DNA, unpolished and unfiltered. “It’s just about doing something fun with musicians,” Joe says. “No overthinking, just playing.”
The name Red Light Sessions comes from the old-school red recording light – something that can either bring out the best in musicians or freeze them in their tracks. “On the big old studio tape machines, there was this huge red light that came on when you were recording,” says Joe. “Some people would outperform; others would completely freeze – it’s that pressure of knowing this is it.”
Kicking things off then is a brand-new Bromheads Jacket track, the first taste of new material from the band in years. “We’ve been back in the studio working on an album,” Joe says, “so this is a great way to start sharing new music.”
On the live front, Bromheads Jacket are set to play The Leadmill on 9 May, a gig that could carry extra weight following recent developments in the venue’s court case with its landlord. With its future uncertain, this could be one of the final chances to catch a Sheffield band on that legendary stage under its current guise.
The first session – featuring Bromheads – is out now now, so hit up ours and Red Light Sessions’ socials to check it out. And if you’re a Sheffield artist interested in getting involved, Joe’s got an open-door policy: “I know loads of musicians in Sheffield, and this is about bringing people together. Just drop us a message and get involved.”
And if you’re into this first vid, there’s plenty of exclusive content over on The Red Light Sessions Patreon – so go check that out.
