This outing will witness the emergence of what’s known as a “pop up shop”, featuring original seating and home ware from local designers Perch & Place, all available for Perch-ase.

The idea behind this spontaneous design stall is to promote and support local designers in the North East, and the Toffee Factory are using the already action-packed summer in Ouseburn as a backdrop to the event in order to gain a ready-made audience for the designers – and why not? Ouseburn’s a happening place after all.

Perch & Place are hoping that the creative and chilled-out atmosphere around the Ouseburn Valley in June will fit in well with their designs and encourage the public to pop in (or pop up? Nah, that was terrible – sorry) and be tempted by their work.

As an added bonus they’ll be some street food on offer so you’re not distracted by hunger when you’re looking at quirky-looking chairs.

Toffee Pop! comes to the Toffee Factory on Sunday June 23rd

This year’s festival is bigger than ever, with more stages and a wider variety of entertainment on offer, all for free! This year we’ve added a stand-up comedy stage courtesy of Creased Comedy and Gigglebeats, and a spoken word and performance poetry stage thanks to Apples And Snakes.

Every week we’ll be focusing on two of the festival’s stages to take you right up to the date itself so, without further ado, check out what’s on at…

THE FREE TRADE, St Lawrence Road

6pm-10pm

Headlined by The Cornshed Sisters, The Free Trade’s stage gets a dose of class with the girls’ contemporary folk sounds and stunning vocals. The release of their debut album last year, on trendy Memphis Industries no less, cemented the group’s reputation as one of the region’s most loved acts and to see them in such intimate surroundings will be a treat indeed.

Poised to release their debut album later this year, the understated melancholia of Our Imaginary Friends has been compared to the likes of The Delgados, Belle & Sebastian and Galaxie 500.

Teessiders Silver Trees peddle chilled out stoner rock complete with haunting echoes reminiscent of Mazzy Star and early Pink Floyd.

Although Rice Milk may describe themselves as a “lame two-piece making minimal punk rock songs” their pleasantly scuzzy dreamy pop punk is as catchy as they come.

Alongside the opportunity to turn up and participate in artistic practices for the day, there will be demonstrations from actual local artists to help you get consumed by the artisan way of life, ranging from painting to ceramics to stained glass art.

The Ouseburn Valley, which is home to Mushroom Works, as well as other arts venues, is the culture zone of the city, featuring centres of art, music and entertainment of any other sort. Be Creative! aims to both promote the arts in Newcastle and help draw out the creativity in North Eastern residents, and maybe even unlock the artist within them – you may be a secret creative without even knowing it.

Be Creative! comes to the Mushroom Works and Creative Ouseburn on Saturday 22nd June

Well you don’t have to put up with it for much longer, because Newcastle’s Tyneside Cinema is having a week of French, German and Spanish language cinema in their Crossing Cultures event, which features foreign films – some of which may never be released in the UK – taken from a range of film festivals across the world, including Toronto and Venice.

All week long there’ll be something for all types of film lovers to come and watch; from the more cerebral Spanish films to French comedies to German family movies, and all other genres in between covered in all three languages. There’s even the silent Spanish film Blancanieves, which is a matador based version of Snow White (seriously) and has won several awards – who needs talkies anyway.

Crossing Cultures aims to promote more multi-cultural attitudes in film viewing, and will allow audiences to immerse themselves in the Spanish, French and German cinema that isn’t usually available in this country, as well as putting on language cafes after selected showings to help people learn the language better, as well as allowing bilingual speakers to hear something other than English for a change.

Flamenco collective Alba Flamenca will also be performing live on Sunday 23rd June as part of the Spanish/Portuguese VAMOS! Festival.

Don’t worry though, if broadening your cultural horizons still isn’t your thing, everything shown will have English subtitles.

Crossing Cultures comes to the Tyneside Cinema from Sunday 23rd to Sunday 30th June.

Heel and Toe is a charity, based in county Durham and Darlington, dedicated to providing free care to children with physical disabilities including cerebral palsy, developmental delay, and genetic abnormalities, all using a system known as Conductive Education, which features techniques such as physiotherapy and occupational therapy.

The Last Fakers formed in 2008 and have some major festival slots and high profile gigs on their CV; they’ll be using that musical talent and drum-backed clout to help raise money for Heel and Toe with this new single and launch gig.

Heel and Toe really is a great charity, and a worthy cause too. Throw in a free gig and a sweet rock ‘n’ roll number strummed out to help children with disabilities, and you’ve got a recipe for a great evening of entertainment and positive karma.

The Last Fakers release Help Me Out at Durham University’s Riverside Bar on June 22nd. 7pm. Free Entry

Kenny Denis (Anticon)

“It’s a metaphor for life. You gotta get up and do something!” is the message from the 50 year old protagonist in the first track of Serengeti’s sequel to the Kenny Dennis EP. It certainly supports a remit for the Anticon record label and Serengeti’s contributions to this family give a warmth and lighter humour than you might find in other residents’ outputs.

These songs lovingly describe the anecdotes and philosophies of our fictional moustached subject Kenny Dennis, using simple repeated phrases in amongst fuller raps, performed in character. Occasional tracks are straight, instrumentally-supported monologues.

The fluffy crackly beats are provided by label staples, Jel and Odd Nosdam. Each re-listen feels like a return to a favourite photo album.

Released: 24.06.13

www.thekennydennis.com

Lanterns fuse vocals from members Hazel Wilde and Adam Sykes to create soothing melodies with a folky twist. Their mix of alternative indie rock and electronic subtleties create a tranquil atmosphere, which they will be bringing to venues around the country in June, ending with a show at The Sage on Friday 21st June.

The band will be showcasing their new material following the release of their self-recorded debut album Gracious Tide, Take Me Home, with new single Another Tale From Another English Town. Singer Hazel believes the song sonically provides a bridge between their two releases.

“The new album as a whole definitely has a more live, passionate and colourful personality than the last one. It’s also more raw and darker in places. We wanted to progress as a band and move on creatively.”

With such a bleak economy at the moment, Hazel feels it is almost inevitable songwriting will be influenced. “Another Tale…does have quite a dark political undertone running through it. I think the way things are going in this country, especially in the North East, it’s going to be hard for people not to write music that carries some of that weight.”

Lanterns On The Lake and Ajimal will play the Sage Gateshead on Friday 21st June.

All Of This Is Real, released through Cosmos Recordings, was self-recorded in guitarist Luke’s house with the help of big brother Mark. “We love doing everything ourselves,” explains Luke, “to be honest, it was probably the best, funniest, most stressful two weeks of our lives. But looking back it was a huge learning curve, and we’ve ended up with a record that we all couldn’t be happier with.”

Palace will be celebrating the launch of their EP on Saturday 22nd June at The Studio in Hartlepool. With a combination of alternative rock and poppy melodies, Palace have developed elements of a shoegaze sound over the past year, inspired by bands such as Local Natives and Tokyo Police Club. “It will be amazing to just finally get the EP out there and get people listening to it,” claims Luke. “It means a lot to us all and we put a crazy amount of work into it.”

With members of the band just 19 years old, their progression at such a young age seems the focal point for what inspired their songwriting on All Of This Is Real. “We’re all getting to the stage where we’re turning into the people we’re going to be for the rest of our lives. We have to make things happen for ourselves, and we have the chance to be anyone that we want to be if we really believe in it. That’s what the EP is about.”

Two years to be where they are now is quite remarkable for any band, let alone for a band so young. But Palace put it all down to sheer hard graft and an obsession to continuously progress. “We couldn’t be happier with the pace of the band’s success,” continues Luke. “It’s no secret that we really want to make it, but we just want to make it for the right reasons – for being a great band.”

The boys plan to concentrate on gigging as much as possible before buckling down and writing another EP, but understand that nothing is set in stone. “The best part about being 19 is having your whole life ahead of you to mould it into whatever you like. Right now we’re trying our best to mould a Palace future for ourselves but that won’t happen unless we concentrate on Palace now. If we’re still in the band in two years time and still in the same position we are now, I’ll be super happy.”

Palace will be playing The Studio in Hartlepool on Saturday 22nd June to celebrate the launch of All Of This Is Real EP.

Put together by Jonathan Winship and Neil Wood, Let’s Away have a certain depth to their music that only sad songs can really achieve – this new single is no different. The eerily slow rhythm and rarely altering low vocals mean that the song You & I can strike at something pretty moving inside, even if you don’t want it to, while Suitably Loose has a slightly faster and yet still understated beat to it, making it both sad and kind of hip at the same time. Nice work.

Previously the band released another two track EP called Let’s Away… From Here, which received positive feedback and had much the same feel and format as the songs in Suitably Loose/ You & I.

Music that looms in on you rather than slaps you in the face with the first chord, Let’s Away uses slow tempo and low voices to pretty haunting effect. They’re a band to watch out for, but don’t say we didn’t warn you when you start crying at work.

Let’s Away release Suitably Loose / You & I on Monday 17th June

The project aims to express and evaluate the many faces of violence and the influence it has on our lives, opening up a dialogue of reflection and analysis into the true nature of violence itself.

There’s some serious theatre clout involved in this one: Alex Swift’s credits include the award-winning and widely praised play Mess, which deals with the not too dissimilarly difficult subject of anorexia; and Kieran Hurley’s monologue Beats won Best New Play at the Critic’s Awards For Theatre in Scotland, as well as his other works being nominated for the same prize.

The subject, though difficult, is important to address, it being a negative but constant factor of global life – why not trust award-winners to do so. It’s a bold undertaking, but if anyone can do it it’s these two. We promise that no actual violence will occur in the development of this project.

Violence opens at Stockton ARC on Friday 21st June. 5.30pm. Admission is free

Playing beneath the stained glass windows of this former chapel it was a fitting venue for some Sunday musical service. But at less than half full for this superb bill and with the For Sale sign up outside just how much longer will the town have its dedicated live music venue?

There have been few weekend’s more fitting for the summery indie pop tones of Collectors Club. Blue skies and bright, warm, sunny weather seems to go so perfectly with the bouncy, curly guitar licks and fringes of the boys from Middlesbrough and the North Yorks Moors. A four piece for the night but it in no way put the shimmering guitars in the shade. It is a set glittering with pop jewels.

They are confident and so competent, when lead vocalist/guitarist Joe sings that he is always the First To Know you have to believe him. There are a good few more in Hartlepool in the know now.

Spectrals have been supporting Frankie through the tour and like the main band have a brand new album release. They are a young guitar band with a singer crooning in a Yorkshire accent. Spectrals like to slow down the tempo before cranking it up for single A Heartbeat Behind that rocks out, but gently. There are interesting sounding tunings on songs that chug along nicely with that dark, Yorkshire croon overlaying it all. I would be interested to get to know the material better on the album.

Come forward, we are beckoned to the front by Frankie who like a coiled spring unleashes a bouncing ball of energy. How can we resist? Frankie is a top frontman, flopping hair, stairy eyes, great engaging vocals and lots and lots of movement. The band is tight and taught, playing top alternative pop. A manic guitar player twists and unravels to stage left as Frankie darts and grooves down the front.

These new Sunderland shopkeepers certainly know how to play a melody. Although the drummer is from Merton as he points out. Did he ever tell you the time he went down to a Pool’s nightspot with an Elvis impersonator? And how come they couldn’t get on that “big boat?” The one with all the masts, sails and rigging, with the museum wall around it. They are top entertainers and it is all a hoot.

It is scratch and swift song after song. Chirpy, charming, upbeat and packed with plenty of punch. Every song is a winner and we gladly clap, sing and whoop along. If this is to be the last major show at The Studio then Frankie and the Heartstrings have delivered a real belter and are sending is out on a real high.

Simply put, this really should have been a bigger deal. The venue’s right, the sound’s right, the band are relaxed, friendly, and playing their hearts out with a shrugging, off-the-cuff loucheness. But the crowd is inexplicably (remember they’ve released two critically acclaimed albums and played a 6Music session only this week) thin on the ground, and, the three of us daring to get within close proximity of the front, and (gulp) move, aside, frighteningly immobile.

That it makes no sense is clear from the first note from vocalist Alison Costelloe. They open with three new numbers, and pull off the impossible – they’re all great songs. They all have a beat, gorgeous, noisy, rattling little riffs, and a snarl of grunge attitude. That’s not to say the stripped back, trippier elements have disappeared from the set.

Although the new material is heavier and more riff-driven – and a sped-up, sludgy rendition of the fraught ‘Talk’ is a highlight – the softer, smokily curling edges of Costelloe’s vocals are still woven through the mix. When fellow singer/guitarist Kacey Underwood pulls out a solid-bodied electro-acoustic, it’s achingly beautiful.

This is the first time Big Deal have played on the shores of the Tyne, and it’s to be hoped that a puzzling lukewarm reaction won’t put them off returning in the future. Get yourself a copy of ‘June Gloom’, and don’t be this silly next time around.