The Academic to live stream gig from Belvedere's Jealous Wall around the globe

The Academic have announced details of a pay-per-view gig from Belvedere's Jealous Wall next month that will be live streamed across the world.

Lead singer Craig Fitzgerald says that after a frustrating year he and his band mates are looking forward to getting back on stage and entertaining their fans at home and abroad. They are also delighted to be able to showcase their home town.

“It’s been a really tough year for everybody and like so many others around the country our industry just shut down. All we have known for the past couple of years is getting in a van or a bus or on a plane to play a show somewhere and to have that massive void now it really does start to hit home how much we love playing music. We know that nothing can really compare to being in the throes of a gig and feeling the intensity of a room full of people going for it but we really wanted to get back on a stage together and do something for our fans. When we talked about the idea of performing a live show with no audience and in the context of streaming we knew we would have to make it something special and unique. We have always wanted to do something on a big scale at home and while there are no audiences right now, we thought that this would be the next best thing.

“The Jealous Wall is such a spectacular backdrop, and we are so excited for people to see it in a different light. Just to get back on a big stage together and to feel normality and it also gives our fans a glimpse into where we are from. Also, in putting on this show, it gives us an opportunity to get a lot of people back to work including our crew who have been hit harder than most this year. As part of the Live Performance scheme announced by the government recently, we were fortunate to have received some funding the Department of Culture, which has been a big help in making it happen,” Craig said.

The Academic are also pleased to share a cover of “Lonely This Christmas”, a high octane re-imagining of a holiday favourite. (Watch below)

The early gift to their fans caps a bittersweet year for the Mullinger four-piece who had their global touring commitments cut drastically short in accordance with the pandemic and lockdown.

As a thank you for their continued support, the band offer fans this sub four-minute yuletide blast and look ahead cautiously to 2021 in the hope that they can finally get back out on the road and embark on the next chapter of a riveting story.

Tickets for the live stream event can be purchased here.