The ninth running of music writing festival Louder Than Words was held at the Innside Hotel near The Haçienda in Manchester on the weekend of 12 – 14 November.
Each event at the festival was held in front of a live audience, but the festival was also being livestreamed to people around the world.
Technology was also used to involve panellists who were not able to make it to the event in person like Australian writer and musician Joe Matera.
The festival is about music culture, with talks being held across three days on topics ranging from particular music scenes to how to break into the music journalism industry today.
As well as Joe Matera, one of the panels included experienced music journalists Mick Middles and Paula Farr, music writer turned university lecturer Simon Morrison, and music journalism student Lily-May Jones who discussed the unique ways in which they made their breakthroughs in the industry.
There were also talks that focussed on the club scene, suggesting that parties could be our way out of the pandemic, as well as questioning if there was ever a political point connected with clubs and dance music over the years.
Having been held during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, hand sanitiser was regularly available, and the talks were held with relatively small crowds, some of whom chose to wear masks.
Pending any potential restrictions, the tenth running of the event is set to be held at the same venue on the weekend of 11 – 13 November 2022, with the event also being livestreamed for people around the world.
More information about the festival can be found here: https://louderthanwordsfest.com/