In photos: summer scenes in Hebden Bridge and Halifax, West Yorkshire -

I recently returned to Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire to play the rather wonderful Trades Club with The Monochrome Set.

We were only in town to play the show, so these are the pics I managed to grab between the soundcheck and the show, and around Halifax the next morning.

The town lies on the confluence of the River Calder and the Hebden Water, and lies on the Rochdale Canal which cuts through the Pennines.

The views along the canal side walk are stunning.

In 2015, the Calder ward, covering Hebden Bridge, Old Town, and part of Todmorden, had a population of 12,167 with the town hosting a population of approximately 4,500.

It is known for being an LGBT-friendly town, and has been called “the lesbian capital of the UK”. [—]

Now here’s a walk I’d love to do one day!

Town centre view.

The Trades Club was built in 1924 as a joint enterprise by six local trades unions who were involved with the once thriving cotton industry.

The venue website has more about its history:

The unions levied a one penny contribution from each member per week, and when finally built, the building was equipped with a fully sprung dance floor for the purposes of ballroom dancing. It’s still there, though probably used for more energetic dancing than its designers originally envisaged.

As the cotton industry declined and the factories closed down, the building fell into disuse. It was taken over by the combined Hebden Bridge and Luddendenfoot district Labour parties, who appointed a Building Management Committee to administer the building.

The Trades Club Social Club has leased the first floor since 1982 from where we operate as an independent socialist members club. In May 2016 the Club was formally constituted as a members’ co-operative.

The Trades Club is a celebrated venue for live music and has for several years running been voted into the finals of the NME Small Venue of the Year Awards. The last few years have seen the club updating its facilities with a new stage, PA system, mixing desk & LED lighting rig. Alongside the live music the venue is a community hub that is committed to hosting political events and fundraisers for local and international campaigns.

Soundchecking.

In the adjacent bar.

We returned to Halifax late at night, and I took these photos during the morning:

The Piece Hall in Halifax is a Grade I listed building, and it was built as a cloth hall for handloom weavers to sell the woollen cloth “pieces” they had produced.