Samfire creates confessional alt-pop charged with emotion and electricity - songs that move between tenderness and defiance, always rooted in truth. With three EPs behind her, she’s received steady BBC Introducing support, including an invitation to open the Alcove Stage at Latitude Festival. Her performances at festivals like Wilderness, alongside national BBC Radio 2 airplay and press support from Wonderland and Notion, have marked her as a distinctive new voice in alt-pop.

Now self-producing her debut album, Samfire explores devotion - when it thrives, when it fractures, and how it endures. At Karousel, she will perform songs from this project live for the first time.

Fresh from supporting Jools Holland at the Royal Albert Hall three days ahead of playing for us Twayn are making waves. They are 20-year-old twin sisters, Hannah and Grace, from the Northeast, who whilst still at school, the came in the top 10 in the young songwriters competition (SAYS22) and 2nd place (out of over 22,000 entries) in the Liverpool International Songwriting Competition (Road to Nashville 2022), performing at the iconic Exit/In, Nashville.

Twayn sings about the journey of being young women, candidly exploring coming-of-age experiences and tackling controversial themes. Their perspective is refreshing, as they fully embrace their youth and the complexities of being young and female, without trying to be anything other than themselves. Their lyrics are clever, bold and often witty and their harmonies are simply sublime.

The girls’ have had regular radio play on BBC Introducing Northeast (‘Spine’ was their Track Of The Week 11/09/25), Amazing Radio UK and USA, and they are firm favourites with local stations, SparkFM and Radio Tyneside. Twayn only left school in the summer of 2023 but have already released almost twenty tracks and caught the eye of Jools Holland who they will be supporting on four dates of his Winter 2025 tour (including at the Royal Albert Hall). The siblings have also supported the likes of Casey McQuillen and Tors and have had three of their music videos played on Channel 4's Sunday Brunch. 2025 saw them play Coast Fest again and the Treehouse Stage at the Hardwick Festival.

The girls are releasing their latest EP, ‘Sadness Is My Sanctuary’, later this year.

Yorkshire newcomers Map the Wilderness craft anthemic, emotionally charged songs that pair evocative lyricism with infectious, upbeat energy. Formed by Andy Howden, Tom Butler, Karl Sykes, and Paul Brown, the band brings years of experience from previous projects including Pavilion, Anechoic, Dear Friends, and The Blueskins. This is their first blip on the industry radar, having been working away on the record behind closed doors, and it's our wildcard for the night. They have got some magnificent tunes on this record, and you can imagine tracks like the quite brilliant 'Wonderful Day' all over Guy Garvey's show, as well as being Sync City!

This is your chance to get in early as they are fresh off the press, but seasoned writers and performers from previous projects

Beau Bennett is an alternative folk/pop artist from London. From supporting artists such as Ralph McTell at The Royal Albert Hall, to sell-out shows throughout the UK, Beau is making big strides into the music world. Growing up in a music filled home with Stevie Nicks and Joni Mitchell as inspiration, her spine-tingling vocals and emotion fuelled lyricism sit at the helm of her work, with musical arrangements crafted in her vibrant band, it’s no shock she is mercilessly growing in popularity. Beau’s debut single ‘Apricity’ crowned as BBC Introducing’s ‘Track-of-the-Week’ was the arrival gates for her journey, securing a summer of notorious UK festivals, such as Boardmasters, Black Deer and Tunes in the Dunes. She recently released her debut EP ‘Palette’ described by Clunk magazine as “a collective catharsis, highlighting life as a palette of colours”, and is now embarking on an autumn tour supporting artists such as Leah Weller and Martha Tilston across the UK. Beau is lighting up the independent scene with a fresh, energetic sound that makes for nothing short of a euphoric live experience.