Covid: Radiohead among bands helping Nightshift magazine

Radiohead and Supergrass are among the bands that have rallied to save a music magazine that stopped printing due to the impact of the pandemic.

Foals, Ride and Glass Animals are also contributing prizes to a crowdfunder to help Oxford's Nightshift publication.

The magazine has helped many bands get their big break, but has been on hiatus since April last year.

Editor Ronan Munro said the response showed there was a real community spirit in the local scene.

"It doesn't matter how many global superstars we produce, they don't forget their roots," he added.

Munro started a magazine - then called Curfew - in 1991 to cover Oxford's burgeoning music scene.

It morphed into Nightshift in 1995, with the free monthly publication covering the latest news and gig guides, and including irreverent demo reviews.

In a tweet in 2019, Jonny Greenwood from Radiohead thanked Munro for backing his band, describing the magazine as a "great read" and "very funny".

But Nightshift relies on advertising to keep afloat, which drastically dropped off when venues went dark during the Covid lockdowns.

The prize draw aims to raise £12,000 to cover costs until advertising revenue picks up.

It includes a test pressing of Radiohead rarities, a deluxe boxset of the Supergrass Strange Ones greatest hits, and a signed Ride album plus Andy Bell demos.

Radiohead, Ride, Glass Animals, Stornoway and Young Knives have also signed rare copies of their magazine cover debuts.

"I went to the most successful bands in Oxford and asked them if they would help and every single one of them said yes straight away which was fantastic," Munro said.

Truck Festival - itself affected by Covid restrictions - provided VIP packages for its 2022 event, and the Oxford O2 Academy donated a "golden ticket", allowing the winner and a friend free entry to any O2 Academy venue for a year.

Conor Burns, from Truck Festival, said he became involved because the magazine had "always been supportive of Truck since the beginning and Ronan is a cornerstone of new music in Oxford".

He added: "Independent music magazines are dwindling across the country and people like Ronan need to be cherished."

The campaign runs until 28 July. Munro said if the target was not reached the magazine would not return.

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