Frequently asked questions

Where is the festival?
When does the festival take place?
Is entry via Butterley or Swanwick?
When's the last train from the festival site back to Butterley?
Is parking available at the festival?
Can I volunteer to help?
How do you pick bands to play at Indietracks? Is there any fixed criteria?
How are bands then shortlisted? Is there a voting system?
Can under-18s attend?

Where is the festival?
The festival takes place at the Swanwick Junction site of the Midland Railway Butterley. This is one stop on the train from the main railway entrance at Butterley Hill, Ripley, Derbyshire DE5 3QZ. For more details, see how to get there.
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When does the festival take place?
The festival takes place annually, Friday to Sunday, usually over the last weekend in July. In 2012 the festival will be at the beginning of July so as to avoid clashing with the Olympics, and to make it cheaper and easier for people to travel.
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Is entry via Butterley or Swanwick?
You can enter the festival via either Butterley or Swanwick - it's your choice. Depending on where you are staying or travelling from, one may be easier than the other. There is also a footpath between the two stations taking about 15 mins to walk.

Entry via Butterley:
If you are driving and/or staying in a local hotel, you are better off parking at Butterley station or asking your taxi driver to drop you there, then catching the free steam train to the festival site. Trains run regularly and journey time is about 5 minutes.

Entry via Swanwick:
If you are camping at Golden Valley Campsite, you can walk straight to the festival site at Swanwick in about 15 minutes.
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When's the last train from the festival site back to Butterley?
The last train back is usually at 00:15, allowing time to get to the station after the entertainment finishes at midnight.
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Is parking available at the festival?
There is ample free parking available at Butterley Station.
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Can I volunteer to help?
Yes! For details of how to volunteer at the festival, please visit the main page.
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How do you pick bands to play at Indietracks? Is there any fixed criteria?
We're an indiepop festival and like to provide a platform mainly for unsigned, independent bands with a DIY ethos. However, we welcome applications from anyone, each of which will be considered on its own merit. We believe that no-one should be excluded on the grounds of age, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, disability or religious belief.

We receive hundreds of applications a year and do our best to listen to them all. To keep the line-up fresh and give as many bands as possible the chance to play, we no longer feature bands on consecutive years.
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How are bands then shortlisted? Is there a voting system?
Initially we look at the wishlist thread on the Anorak Forum, on which a large part of our audience post regularly. Each unique mention of a band counts as one vote. We count the votes to find out who you'd most like to see, and we do all we can to invite the most popular few to play.

Bands are also invited to apply by emailing indietracksbands@gmail.com with a short biog and a link to some of their music, and the Indietracks team listen individually to each one. To keep the application process fair to all bands, we ask that they please use only this email address rather than via social networking sites.

We also invite our own favourite bands to play, along with any we have heard and loved throughout the year or who we think would make a great addition to the line-up.
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Can under-18s attend?
Indietracks is an all-ages festival, but under-16s must be accompanied by an adult. Details on ticket prices for adults and children will be published soon.
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