Andy Abbott

Andy Abbott is an artist, musician, writer and arts organiser living in Halifax since 2021. Andy’s formative experiences were in the Do-It-Yourself underground music scene in Leeds in the early 2000s. He is a self-taught musician and guitarist - performing solo and with groups – through which he has released records on independent record labels and toured across the UK, Europe and Asia in spaces ranging from squats and art spaces to large-capacity venues including Alexandra Palace in London, and Leeds and Reading festivals.

As ADRA Promotions Andy has organised gigs and events for The Puzzle Hall Inn in Sowerby Bridge, The Victoria Theatre’s ‘Antidote’ series, Sowerby Bridge Fire and Water, and Calderdale Borough Council’s Culturedale Youth Music Takeover programme. In 2023 he facilitated the formation of the Calderdale Grassroots Music Venue Network - an informal collective of venues and promoters aiming to mutually support each another through shared promotion and initiatives.

Between 2011 and 2018, through his role as Fellow in Music at University of Bradford, Andy produced the M@BU programme of grassroots and underground music, and the city-wide festivals Bradford Threadfest and Recon which were listed in The Guardian’s top-ten metropolitan festivals. He has also organised DIY club nights, gigs and events with Bare Plume, No Hands and Obscene Baby Auction.