The Beehive is renowned for giving new things a try, and never more so than with the music that it books to grace its compact and bijou playing area. Tonight is no exception as The Fresher and Angel Collective will be doing their thing there. And if you thought that acoustic music is largely the territory of bearded, ageing folkies, hipsters in wide brimmed hats and Ed Sheeran wannabes, then these guys and their blends of pop, soul, funk and hip-hop will give you a whole new perspective on things.

There has been a real buzz lately about the new musical happenings from a couple of the ex-XTC chaps under the TC&I moniker. I’m pretty sure if you are following those developments with keen interest or are just a fan of the original band in general then you will want to be down at The Rolleston on Friday for Fossil Fools. This, the UK’s only tribute to Swindon’s most famous sons, will relive the nature of those early gigs and of course given their premature move away from live performance give you a chance to appreciate many of the later songs beyond their recorded confines.

Meanwhile downstairs at Level III, in contrast to the quintessentially Englishness of Fossil Fools, Wrong Jovi will be doffing their cowboy hats in reverence to the music of Bon Jovi. If you are a fan of the Jersey Shore’s best known band and indeed probably one of the best known stadium rock band on the planet, then get ready to sing your heart out and strut your rock and roll stuff.

Two bands whose name sort of suggests that they take things a bit less seriously can be found at The Victoria and The Queen’s Tap respectively. In It For The Money, well, at least they are honest, have it covered, pop to rock and 60’s to the present day and the dysfunctional musical gang known as W.A.M. (When Alcohol Matters) will be laying out a musical stall of ska and punk classics.

Saturday offers plenty of tried and tested, familiar and pre-loved sounds right across town and indeed the musical spectrum. Peloton bring a cool bag of music to The Victoria, ranging from mod and power-pop to punk and new wave, perhaps a bit of Northern Soul too but certainly a gig filled with cool tunes and expert musical moves. The Castle also head down similar musical pathways with The Roughcut Rebels and their penchant for all things Mod, 60’s and Brit-pop.

Elsewhere more general musical stalls are laid out, with The Ultimate Band offering up a wide and diverse music set at The Queen’s Tap and Echo doing what they do best, firing off salvo after musical salvo of great party music from Abba to AC/DC at The Woodland’s Edge.

More tributes can be found at The Rolleston, this time to a scene rather than a specific band. Blink Daze bring you all the classic hits from the pop-punk end of the music spectrum as penned by the likes of Green Day, Sum 41, Wheatus and Good Charlotte. All Killer, no filler! ( You just knew that I was going to say that didn’t you?)

If you prefer something a bit more casual then Shocks of Mighty will be spinning iconic reggae, ska and dub at The Beehive, the perfect and coolest background music for those who just want to soak up the vibes, …not to mention a few drinks and relax.

A bit of treat on Sunday can be found at The Victoria. Those in the know will recognise front man Weab from that strange and wonderful full-on assault on the senses, Dirt Box Disco. This time he returns with his other musical concern Kid Klumsy. Punky, rocky and infectiously poppy in equal amounts with the odd bit of ska thrown in for good measure, this is good time punk perfect for rounding the weekend off.