Boasting over 40 acts across three days, annual live music event We Shall Overcome took place at The Carlton Tavern on 26-28 December.
The event, which was free to enter, was in support of West Cheshire Foodbank, as it had been in previous years.
For some, the event marks a key turning point in the process of moving from the livestreamed gigs which had become the norm during lockdowns.
Rob McGuffin, frontman of Cheshire based band Fiction Lies called the event his “first gig since February 2020, not including livestreams.”
According to UK Music’s annual report revenue for live music dropped by around 90% in 2020 after reaching “a pinnacle of success” the previous year.
The unprecedented impact of Covid-19 resulted in We Shall Overcome being cancelled in 2020, along with countless other live gigs.
In September 2020, The Trussell Trust reported that around 50% of those who used a foodbank at the start of the pandemic had never needed to before, with further rises in poverty being predicted down the line.
Nigel Paramor, a frequent supporter and fundraiser for West Cheshire Foodbank, expects that in the coming weeks foodbank usage will increase.
“I think we’re about to hit peak usage of foodbanks as we approach Christmas and it’s really great to see people out supporting and trying to raise money for the cause which hopefully, we will never need again at some point in the future,” he said.
This sentiment was shared by event organiser Andy Hignett.
“It’s good in a way that we can organise these events and it’s a shame that they’re still necessary this many years on,” he said.