Deer Shed, North Yorkshire’s famed forward thinking & family-friendly festival, have announced Cowboy Hunters, Dilettante and Neve Cariad as the selected finalists of their 2025 ‘Apply to Play’ artist development programme in partnership with EMI North. EMI North is the UK’s first major label office to be based outside of London and is solely dedicated to supporting and investing in artists and creatives across the North of the UK, helping them find new audiences and build their careers.
An opportunity for emerging Northern talent to share their music with the Deer Shed community and beyond, Deer Shed and EMI North received an unprecedented amount of Apply to Play applications. After much consideration, the three finalists were chosen by a panel of industry professionals and representing the thriving spectrum of creative talent coming out of the North.
Fueled by spiralling synths, buzzsaw distortion and tongue-in-cheek spite, Scottish duo Cowboy Hunters have been turning heads and testing ears with a slew of infectious post-punk No Wave singles such as ‘Body Parts’, ‘Gemma’ and most recently the uproarious ‘Mating Calls’ which coincided with the band’s headline ‘Cowboy Decimation’ UK tour.
- 25th – 28th JULY 2025
- BALDERSBY PARK, TOPCLIFFE, NORTH YORKSHIRE
- https://deershedfestival.com
Dilettante is the art-pop brain-child of multi-instrumentalist Francesca Pidgeon. Based in the North of England but now performing across the country and internationally, Dilettante’s unorthodox yet intricately-woven looped woodwind and off-kilter fuzzy riffs have seen her sell out shows across the country; release two full-length albums, support the likes of Caribou, Self Esteem and Philip Selway (Radiohead); receive the prestigious Paul Hamlyn Award for Artists and perform at festivals including The Great Escape, SxSW, Kendal Calling, Focus Wales and Live At Leeds.
Based in Leeds, Welsh-born Neve Cariad is one of Far Out Magazine’s “10 Most Exciting Artists in Leeds Right Now” (Dec 2024). Having released her debut EP, ‘Neve’, in July 2023, Cariad has gone from strength to strength in both the studio and on stage. Performing her arresting fusion of indie-folk and art-rock regularly up and down the country with her five-piece band, Neve’s debut album is set for release this autumn through Esco Romanesco Records.
As Apply to Play finalists, Cowboy Hunters, Dilettante and Neve Cariad will all be supported in the next steps of their career, receiving a series of invaluable mentorship and advice sessions from the EMI North Team alongside a paid performance slot at Deer Shed Festival this summer, joining a lineup that already includes the likes of critically-acclaimed poet and spoken work artist Kae Tempest, fast-rising London quartet Wunderhorse, inimitable indie outfit The Big Moon and many, many more as well as a host of world class, award-winning comedians such as Reggie Watts, Frankie Monroe, John Shuttleworth and more.
Celebrating its fifteenth birthday this summer and still as proudly independent as ever, the dedicated team behind Deer Shed festival are ready once again to transform Baldersby Park into a three-day wonderland of community and creativity that spotlights contemporary musical and cultural curation. Carefully designed to be a brilliant experience for all ages; Deer Shed is a festival for everyone – families, friends and fans.
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Cowboy Hunters said:
We’re absolutely buzzing to have been selected to play this year’s Deer Shed Festival! The lineup is stacked and it’s gonna be a suuuuuper fun weekend. Also very excited to take our tunes down to Yorkshire for the first time. Big thanks to EMI North and Deer Shed for selecting us from so many applicants – we’re hyped!
Dilettante said:
I’ve played Deer Shed a couple of times in the past as part of other people’s projects so I know what a wonderful festival it is, but to get to play it as myself feels like a big step up for me. I’m really grateful for the opportunity and glad that EMI North + Deer Shed are making a concerted effort to find and include emerging Northern artists in festival line ups, it’s really important that that continues to happen.
Neve Cariad said:
It’s very nice to have been selected and we’re very excited to play our first festival!
Megan Evans – Festival Director, Deer Shed said:
I’m so, so excited to announce the finalists of our Apply to Play Programme in partnership with EMI North! We were absolutely blown away by all the incredible music that was submitted and the final decision was the hardest yet. We think this year’s finalists Cowboy Hunters, Dilettante and Neve Cariad all represent the values of creativity, authenticity, diversity and uninhibited fun at the heart of Deer Shed Festival. We can’t wait to welcome them to Baldersby Park and watch where their journeys in music take them.
Scott Lewis – Label Manager, EMI North said:
After an overwhelming response to the call out, we’re delighted to be able to support Cowboy Hunters, Dilettante and Neve Cariad in being part of Deer Shed festival. They’re talented, unique and fully deserving of the chance to appear at the festival.
The initial plan was to support one artist, but it soon became clear there were too many brilliant applications, and after discussion with the fantastic team at Deer Shed, we found a way to open this up.
Whittling down over 700 applications was a huge and challenging task, reiterating the incredible wealth of talent bubbling up in the North, which makes each of these 3 selected artists a must-see at Deer Shed.
Deer Shed 2025 programme:
Music:
Kae Tempest, The Big Moon, Wunderhorse, Sprints, Antony Szmierek, Idlewild, Big Special, Bodega, Divorce, Fulu Miziki, Honeyglaze, Joshua Burnside, Maruja, Nadia Reid, Rich(ard) Dawson, The Bug Club, Hamish Hawk, Ibibio Sound Machine, Joan As Policewoman, King Hannah, Moonchild Sannelly, Roddy Woomble, The Unthanks, Honesty, The None, Olive Grinter, Tommy WÁ, Ugly The Scratch, Jacob Alon, KEG, Mandrake Handshake, Naima Bock, Nancy Williams, The Pill, Zawedde, Cowboy Hunters, Dilettante, Neve Cariad
DJs:
Across The Tracks, Get In Her Ears, Rory Hoy
Lit & Talks:
Nobody’s Empire: In Conversation With Stuart Murdoch, Adelle Stripe: Base Notes Scents of Life, John Harris: Maybe I’m Amazed: A Story of Love and Connection in Ten Songs
Comedy:
Reggie Watts, Laura Lexx, John Shuttleworth, Scummy Mummies, Frankie Monroe, Barbara Nice, Eleanor Morton, Thanyia Moore, Lachlan Werner, Katie Pritchard
Shows:
Oh My God It’s The Church, Queenz
