Not a thing.Our Events.

Out There @ Sela Bar

Out There @ Sela Bar

Overview

Out There @ Sela Bar is a night of alt-jazz and soul, with occasional funk, and electronic music. 

It takes place on 2nd Sundays and entry is Free.

We have 2 band slots, and DJ new music in the same genres before, between and after the bands.

The night generally runs from 7pm-10pmish, though the bar is open until 12 on a Sunday so people can stay on.

About Not a thing.

Not a thing. CIC is a non-profit promotion run by Dan Akers, based in Huddersfield, working mostly in at venues the Leeds area.

Our model is that generally we pay for the spaces, and most promotion activities, so that bands can split door takings equally. We take (and make) no money from what we do, £0. In fact... minus up to £1,000 a month.

Our goal is to provide spaces for (mostly) new and upcoming bands across a number of 'alt' genres - alt-jazz and soul, alt-rock and all its many variants, plus electronic, afrobeat, latin etc.

Check out our Instagram or YouTube to see what we do.

Not a thing. CIC is a Community Interest Company, company number 15685867.

Venue Details

Sela Bar - 20 New Briggate, Leeds LS1 6NU

Sela Bar - 20 New Briggate, Leeds LS1 6NU

https://www.selabar.com/

Sela is an established basement jazz venue in the heart of Leeds, just reaching 20 years old. It features smaller band setups more often than the larger bands we put on. To support this, we bring a lot of our own kit to augment what they already have.

It's essential a single large room, with a stage at one end and a bar at the other. There is only one area that isn't in view of the stage, which is where people go who hate jazz. It's primarily a seated venue - benches, stools, tables with candles, low and high tables - all the way up the edge of the stage. When the chairs are full, there's lots of standing space. Capacity is about 120.

For more dancey nights, we have the option to clear the area in front of the stage of table and chairs to create a small dancefloor. This is quite a bit of work as back room storage is limited, so we need to know in advance if bands would like this.

Sela Bar is not an accessible venue unfortunately - it's accessed via a narrow set of 16 stairs, and there is no wheelchair access.

Toilets are up a narrow set of 17 stairs, and there is no accessible toilet.

Large print menus are available upon request.

For any enquiries about accessibility please get in touch with GM Emily via [email protected]

Fees

Not a thing. receives the space for free from Sela bar, plus £50 which is used to pay the sound engineer. Bands are paid out of their own pocket.

Sela provide the space, as well as 2 free drinks per band member (from the 'house' drinks, beer, wine etc) plus a reduced price pizza deal of £6 for all band members. Their pizzas are amazing.

Performer fees are currently £100 for each band.

Because all the fees are being paid by Not a thing. there are no riders beyond the free drinks.

Equipment & Tech

The equipment available on the night is a mixture of what we bring, and what Sela provide.

The TL:DR version of below is that basically we have a Bass Amp, a Nord keyboard, drum shells and hardware but no breakables. Performers need to bring breakables and all other equipment. We have no guitar amp.

We mic up or DI everything on the stage, even if that mic is never being added into the room mix, because we multi-channel record and video record all nights. These nights are made available on the Not a thing. YouTube channel within 7 days, and the audio & video recordings are available for performers to do what they want with.

We bring:

Zoom L20 - 20 channel desk with 6 independent monitor mixes

A stage box with 20 channels plus 8 channels return.

3 powered monitors

Mics: 2 x SM58, 2 x SM57, Drum overheads, kick mic

All cables

Some mic stands

GoPro 11 for recording

Sela provide:

Main stage speakers

Bass Amp

Drum shells and hardware, but no breakables - you'll need to bring these

Nord keyboard with stand

Additional mics and DIs, though we tend to run everything DI to the desk.

NOTE: We have no guitar amp or any other store of instruments.

We don't have any 'in ears' kit of our own, or specific instrument mics - though we're happy to work with these if you let us know what you'll be bringing.

Additionally, although we can guarantee what we bring - there's always a slim chance that the Sela kit will be unavailable (or broken) as it's not in our control, and is used by all the jam nights and performers who pass through.

Load In, Soundcheck & Stage Times

Sela Bar is open from 16:00 on Sundays. We arrive at 16:00 to begin setting up the space, which should be completed by 17:30 at the latest. Performers are welcome to arrive before 17:30 but we'll be setting up the space until then.

All performers need to arrive - and all equipment be on site - before 17:30.

When arriving, please bring your equipment into the area in front of the stage - out of the main bar area, and away from the stairs - but not straight onto the stage. We have a really specific layout of the stage that we try to stick to, especially for larger bands, to help with feedback and just overall space on the stage!

Sound check is from 17:30 until 19:00, with a hard stop at 19:00 when we begin playing music. The bar is open to the general public throughout this time, so soundchecks need to be as quick, focused (and tidy) as we can all make it. 

After soundcheck, we'll need to clear the bar area of instruments and bags. We have limited cupboard space behind the drums, and some behind the bar - so it's always a bit of a squeeze.

There's over an hour of space between soundcheck and first performer, so there's plenty of time to go get food (or have a Sela pizza.) 

First performer set starts at 20:15 (ish - we have some flexibility here, if the room is still filling up for example) - and can play up to 45 minutes. So we have about a 15-30 minute changeover.

Second performer set starts at 21:15 (ish)

After the second set is done, we play tunes for an hour or so depending on how busy it is. We'll be breaking the stage down throughout though, and you're welcome to take your kit out as soon as we're done.

Most people are leaving between 22:30 and 23:00 to get last buses etc.

Out There @ Sela Bar

Before you complete the form below, PLEASE READ what is above.

Please tick ALL dates you are available to play *

What we will do

Not a thing. CIC is a non-profit promotion, run by 1 person and a number of helpful volunteers. We pay for spaces out of our own pocket, and make no money from the nights we run.

This means we can only work with bands/performers who put in the same effort as we do, and who are willing to 'do the work' required to make a good night.

Here's what Not a thing. CIC agree to do for any night you play:

  • Always do our best to be nice, respectful and not rude - to treat everyone like humans.
  • Promote the gig on our own website, via our socials, posters at the venue (whenever possible!) and via paid adverts on at least Facebook/Instagram.
  • Create and share promotion assets for the gig with you, for you to share.
  • Be clear about timings, kit and what you need to bring (see above) with as much advance warning as we can give you.
  • Be transparent about money taken, and pay you as soon as all moneys have been paid out from the ticket platform/card provider.
  • Do everything we can to create a welcoming, safe space, take any concerns you raise seriously, and be clear about what we are doing to address them.
  • Do what we can to produce a video/audio recording of the night, and share it both on our socials, YouTube and with you directly.

What we expect from you

The following is a list of things we expect YOU to do, as part of our shared agreement. This is the minimum 'work' we think you need to do to contribute to making a good night.

If you don't think you can commit to doing one of the items on the list, please let us know separately and we can discuss it.

  • Always do your best to be nice, respectful and not rude - to Not a thing. and to all other people working on the night.
  • Understand that Not a thing. is a non-profit voluntary promotion, and not a paid day job - we can't always respond immediately.
  • Take part in the shared job of 'promotion' by sharing the provided assets in as many places as possible.
  • Turn up on or before the agreed time - or communicate as far in advance as you can if this isn't possible.
  • Provide a clear tech spec, agree what you are/aren't bringing, and then bring it on the night.
  • Watch as much of the other bands on the line up as you can, and ask others to do the same.
  • Do your best on the night to make it a good night.
Not a thing. CIC. Company No: 15685867