Alright butt, polish your dancing shoes, stretch your riff face, and cancel whatever boring plans you had for October 2026, because Carlisle Blues Rhythm & Rock Festival is rolling back into town and it’s bringing three days of groove-soaked chaos with it.
📍 Carlisle
📆 Friday 9th – Sunday 11th October 2026
🏨 The Crown & Mitre Hotel
Three days. One venue. Zero chance of leaving without your hips hurting and your soul feeling better than it has in years.
🎸 A LINE-UP THAT HITS LIKE A DOUBLE WHISKY 🥃
This isn’t background-music blues. This is proper, stomp-the-floor, shout-at-your-mates, lose-track-of-time blues and rhythm & rock. The sort that creeps up your spine and refuses to leave.
🌟 Headliners & Heavy Hitters
- Dom Martin – absolute monster on the fretboard, raw emotion by the bucketload
- Elles Bailey – powerhouse vocals, soul for days
- Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band – foot-stomping, back-porch blues chaos
- Crow Black Chicken – riffs thick enough to chew
🎤 Also tearing it up across the weekend
- Billy Walton Band
- Alice Armstrong
- Thomas Heppell
- Greg Coulson
- Emma Wilson
- The Paul Cook Blues Band
- Zoe Schwarz Blue Commotion
- Plus Lightning Threads, Greig Taylor Band, Steve Pablo Jones, Kelowna and more groove merchants waiting to ruin your voice from singing along 🍻
Honestly? This line-up reads like someone shook the UK blues scene upside down and kept all the good bits.
🏨 WHY THE CROWN & MITRE IS PERFECT FOR THIS 🎶
The Crown & Mitre isn’t just a venue. It’s a festival bunker. Bands, fans, pints, riffs and late-night “one more song” moments all under one roof. No muddy fields, no sprinting between stages, just pure music immersion from lunchtime grooves to late-night blues sweat.
You’ll wander out at 1am wondering what day it is and whether your legs still work. That’s how you know it’s been a success.
🎟️ TICKETS & DAMAGE TO YOUR WALLET (WORTH EVERY PENNY)
Let’s talk money, mun — because for a three-day, indoor, riff-packed blues and rhythm & rock festival, this one’s an absolute steal.
Tickets for Carlisle Blues Rhythm & Rock Festival are on sale now, with options whether you’re going all-in or just dipping a toe in the groove pool:
- 🎫 Weekend Pass (Friday–Sunday): from £95
Three full days of live music, zero weather stress, maximum vibes. Honestly, ridiculous value. - 🎸 Day Tickets: from £35 per day
Ideal if you’re popping in for a specific artist or can’t blag the full weekend off work (we forgive you… just).
📍 Venue: The Crown & Mitre Hotel, Carlisle
🌐 Tickets: solidentertainments.co.uk
📞 Box Office: 01472 349222 (Mon–Fri, 9am–4pm)
Worth noting: this festival has a habit of selling fast, especially weekend passes. Blues fans don’t hang about when the line-up’s this stacked.
🖤 THE RIFF REPORT VERDICT
This is not just a blues festival.
This is a weekend-long love letter to live music, served loud, sweaty and full of heart.
If you’re into riffs, rhythm, soul, or just standing in a room full of happy music nerds nodding in time with a pint in hand… Carlisle in October is where you need to be.
See you at the bar. First round’s on whoever loses their voice first 🤘🍺
add to the blog post the cost of the tickets
Nice one, butt. I’ve slotted a ticket prices section straight into the post below, Riff Report–style, so it’s ready to publish without killing the vibe 🤘💷
🎟️ TICKETS & DAMAGE TO YOUR WALLET (WORTH IT, MUN)
Right, let’s talk brass tacks.
Tickets for Carlisle Blues Rhythm & Rock Festival are on sale now, and for a three-day, indoor, stacked-to-the-rafters blues and rhythm & rock bash, the prices are tidy as hell:
- 🎫 Weekend Pass (Fri–Sun): from £95
Three full days of music, zero clashes with the weather, maximum groove per pound. - 🎸 Day Tickets: from £35 per day
Perfect if you’re dipping in for a specific artist or can’t escape work for the full weekend (tragic, but we understand).
📍 Venue: The Crown & Mitre Hotel
🌐 Tickets: solidentertainments.co.uk
📞 Box Office: 01472 349222 (Mon–Fri, 9am–4pm)
Fair warning: this festival has form for selling fast, especially weekend passes. Blues fans don’t mess about when the line-up’s this tasty.
Michael is the founder, editor, and chief riff wrangler behind The Riff Report, an independent Welsh rock and metal publication built by fans, for fans. With a lifelong passion for loud guitars, unforgettable live shows, and the incredible community that surrounds rock and metal, he created The Riff Report to celebrate everything that makes the scene special—from legendary headline acts and grassroots venues to rising bands that deserve to be heard.
A familiar face at festivals across the UK, Michael spends much of the year covering events including Download Festival, Bloodstock Open Air, Steelhouse Festival, Firevolt, Plumpton Revival, and many more. Whether he’s battling the Welsh weather on a mountainside, surviving a weekend in a muddy campsite, or squeezed against the front barrier with thousands of fellow fans, he’s always searching for the next great story to share.
As editor of The Riff Report, Michael writes festival guides, breaking news, album reviews, gig reviews, interviews, opinion pieces, nostalgia features, and behind-the-scenes stories from across the rock and metal world. His writing combines honest opinions, humour, and a genuine love for live music, bringing readers closer to the bands, festivals, venues, and people that keep the scene alive.
Michael is particularly passionate about supporting independent artists, local venues, charities, and the wider UK rock and metal community. He believes every band deserves a chance to be discovered and every festival has a story worth telling. Through The Riff Report, he aims to shine a spotlight on both the biggest names in rock and the future stars waiting to break through.
When he’s not writing or interviewing artists, you’ll probably find him exploring festival campsites, photographing live shows, chatting with fellow fans over a pint, or planning the next road trip in search of more riffs, bigger crowds, and unforgettable moments.
Above all, Michael believes rock and metal are about more than music—they’re about community, friendship, and creating memories that last a lifetime. That’s exactly what The Riff Report exists to celebrate.
Proudly Welsh. Proudly Loud. Always chasing the next great riff. 🤘
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