The Hydrant
Hydrant Thurs 10th
Don’t believe what the naysayers tell you about the music industry’s decline. Although sales are down, there are still stacks of new bands arriving each year. The Great Escape is a fantastic opportunity to uncover those emerging artists, but the Alternative Escape feels like a whole new layer to peel back. Try out this daytime showcase for Brighton’s Icarus Youth, with their rock ‘n’ rhyme fusion music, the low-fi blur of the Shinies, or Nottingham quartet The Frontiers, with their epic rock. (TR)

‘Blog Up’ (The Recommender, Killing Moon, Strongrooms Alive, Euphonios)
Life Fri 11th
There aren’t many people online who network harder than music bloggers and so each year they’re found organising a giant piss meet up. This time around it will be sat on the sofas outside the Life venue (weather permitting) from 5pm. If you fancy meeting the folks behind some of the biggest blogs in the UK then head down. Amazing Radio’s Shell Zenner, The Recommender and a handful of others will be DJing, plus if you’re really nice, we might share out some of the free booze. (TR)

Amazing Radio  
Queens Hotel Fri 11th
Amazing Radio is a digital station that’s been running for around three years, successfully positioning themselves right at the heart of unsigned music. Expect to be rubbing shoulders with their presenters, who include Bella Union founder and ex-Cocteau Twin, Simon Raymonde, The Guardian’s Paul Lester and music hack Charlie Ashcroft. Onstage highlights include Brighton groups Gross Magic and Fear Of Men, plus acts earning lots of blog buzz, such as NZCA/Lines and Manchester’s hotly-tipped, all-girl guitar band, Pins. (TR)

Les Enfants Terribles
Riki Tik Fri 11th
Brighton duo DA10 are post-rave instrumentalists whose tumbling, hammering synth and beat concoctions betray a past spent hunched over console handsets. Live, DA10’s heart-fluttering rhythms scale ever higher peaks of squiggles, bleeps and tweets. Their Alternative Escape appearance finds them entertaining festival survivors in the early hours of Saturday morning at Les Enfants Terribles’ New Electronic Music night. (SH)

Old Blue Last
Loft Fri 11th
The famous Vice-sponsored Shoreditch boozer arrives in Brighton to host their exciting evening set. Brighton’s very own electro-punketeers AK/DK kick things off with lightning bolts of energy. We expect Swim Deep to be busy, as this trio is one of a handful of bands that are currently sending the A&Rs into overdrive, as part of Birmingham’s burgeoning music scene. Peace – the band that initially caused all that Midland buzz – follow later on, no doubt sending the room into a sardine-like formation. (TR)

Raygun Music & Love Thy Neighbour
Latest Music Bar Fri 11th
Speak Galactic is the pseudonym of Brighton’s Owen Thomas, who assembles thick layers of lo-fi home recordings into fuzzy, otherworldy collages. Live, Thomas rebuilds his tunes with an arsenal of overdriven keyboards and guitar, revealing some of the songcraft that lies beneath. Speak Galactic’s shows are rare, inventive and hypnotic, so try and catch him at this afternoon showcase. (SH)

Jeah!
Life Fri 11th
This particular Alternative Escape showcase runs all day and into the evening. Strongrooms Alive is one of Shoreditch’s most exciting digital radio stations, Killing Moon is a blog and label fronting cutting edge bands, Euphonios is one of London’s hottest independent record labels and The Recommender is Brighton’s own music blogging workhorse. Highlights will include Saint Saviour, with a voice that won’t be bettered all weekend, deadly alt-pop artist FOE, white-hot remix king Draper, and synth throbsters Worship. (JK)

Republic Of Music & Clash Magazine
Shipwrights Yard Fri 11th
This venue feels the most reminiscent of Austin’s SXSW festival, with the stage placed in an open-fronted garage, while punters watch from the outside yard. Aside from being a little weather-dependent, historically it’s provided some pretty awesome showcases in past festivals. This year sees one of the most talked about bands from March’s SXSW, Australia’s Pond, who always deliver a wild party set. We Have Band will continue the high-energy show with their beat-driven tunes, before Slow Club crash through with their contagious indie pop. (TR)
Second Opinion
As one half of Electric Soft Parade, a quarter of Brakes, and an artist in his own right, Thomas White has tasted chart success, Mercury nominations and international acclaim, yet he’s never strayed far from his Brighton roots. White’s third solo album ‘Yalla’ was released this year, stripping his occasional psych excesses back to basics for a soft set of classic songwriting. Live, he’s a bit of showman, always ready with some entertaining, tongue in cheek showbiz banter. (SH)

Neighbourhood
Hydrant Sat 12th
Part of Brighton’s sprawling, incestuous Willkommen Collective (they share members with Sons Of Noel And Adrian, among others), Laish turned heads with the, um, striking group bathtime shot on the cover of their 2010 debut. Fortunately its contents deserved the attention, being a warm collection of delicate, swirling folk pop led by vocalist Daniel Green. Willkommen groups are well represented at this year’s Alternative Escape – keep an eye out for Laish multi-instrumentalist Emma Gatrill’s solo slot too. (SH)

Warehouse
Audio Sat
This should be a massive finish to a massive weekend, with Disclosure playing live at Audio’s Warehouse club night. This duo, formed from a pair of hyped South London brothers, are re-writing the textbook on how to make it in dance music, following a backing from prominent record labels, a tour supporting Annie Mac and getting playlisted on Radio One. For those of you lucky enough to get in, you can expect to marvel at their excellent, post-everything brand of deep house music. (TR)