Loose Tubes, Rita Marcotulli, Andy Sheppard

Thirty years on and Loose Tubes’ anarchic and uniquely exhilarating music is still reverberating through the UK music scene.

The 21 piece line-up reads like a veritable Who’s Who of a brilliant generation of musicians, from maverick keyboardist Django Bates to saxophonists Mark Lockheart (Polar Bear), from Iain Ballamy (Food) to irrepressible trombonist and charismatic MC Ashley Slater (Freak Power, Kitten and the Hip) and trumpeter Chris Batchelor (Big Air).

Playing some of their greatest hits (including Yellow Hill, Shelley, The Last Word, Village and Sunny) the band will also present new music after a collective decision that they “definitely didn’t want to be their own tribute band” resulted in a BBC Radio 3 commission for new works from composers Chris Batchelor, Django Bates, Steve Berry, and Eddie Parker. Their return was triumphant – fresh, forward-looking and as crazily inventive as ever.

Loose Tubes line-up: Flutes: Eddie Parker, Clarinets: Dai Pritchard Alto / Soprano saxophones: Steve Buckley & Iain Ballamy. Tenor Saxophone: Mark Lockheart & Julian Nicholas, Baritone: Julian Argüelles, Trumpets: Lance Kelly, Noel Langley, Chris Batchelor & John Eacott Trombones: Paul Taylor, Ashley Slater & Richard Pywell, Bass Trombone: Richard Henry, Tuba: Dave Powell, Keyboards: Django Bates, Guitar: John Parricelli, Bass: Steve Watts, Drums: Martin France, Percussion: Louise Petersen Matjeka