Get the inside track on some of the most exciting acts playing this weekend.

Well, it’s festival season once more! Whether you’re strutting your stuff at some pop-punk at Slam Dunk or swooning to some indie-dance inflections at this years’ multi-venue fest Dot to Dot Festival, it’s the official start of festival season.

So we are here to bring you the artists to watch at this years’ congregation. We’re specifically looking at the specially curated line-up for the edition in Nottingham, so if you’re looking for some saucy stuff for Bristol, move on you Southerners !

The right kind of carnage. This six-piece from Leeds will all be enough to whet your appetite. A happy medium between hook laden indie and that undeniable ’90s acid house, comes a sound that’s harder to pin down and even harder to not move to. If you had to, it brings that discerning quality and humour that the likes of Baxter Dury and Getdown Services bring to their live sets. Turn up to Rock City at half 5 to catch these lot.

A gem in the city’s crown jewels, five-piece Pict are a dazzling post-folk surprise set right in the heart of Nottingham. Riding off the coattails of their first EP last year, they spur forward this Spring with jaunty number, Lakes. A delicacy in rich harmony and riff intricacies, it’s the perfect offset to wade in the spritely festivities. Be sure to catch these local heroes early at BETA.

Another worthy up-and-comer comes in the form of Little Grandad. Just off the boardwalk from Brighton’s Great Escape Festival, comes the band that is fast becoming one of London’s most talked-about bands. Infusing both Americana-indie and ’90s alt-country, they bring their clean-cut urgency to a crowd eagerly awaiting for a taste. They play Rescue Rooms at bang on 7.

A boundless void of electronic- indie sleaze, The Itch are another to disembark from Brighton to hitch the ride Northwards. Undulating dance-floor fillers quell under the surface here; the dance punks of Simon Tyrie and Georgia Hardy are just out here to have fun. Hot off the heels of their mammoth debut last month, the glitchy duo surface from the static and will bring a party worth remembering. Catch them on a 11pm late-night doozy at Bodega.

Dot to Dot Festival is taking place in the city of Bristol on the 23rd of May and in the city of Nottingham on the 24th of May. A slew of exciting new bands hit multiple venues over the city, showcasing the very best in new and upcoming music talent.