Contours & Ellen Beth Abdi | Small Hours @ SHOP, Preston

Ellen Beth Abdi and Contours arrive in town for Small Hours number three - an unmissable evening of music in the mega-intimate setting of SHOP. Very limited tickets, don't sleep!

Ellen Beth Abdi

Mancunian music-maker Ellen Beth Abdi uses live loops, pokey drums, undulating synths and quietly subversive lyrics to mould her unique sound. 'Wonky soul-infused pop with a social conscience. Her self produced, eponymous debut album was independently released in May 2025 to critical acclaim.

"Silky smooth street soul rich with shimmering arpeggios and throbbing bass, meticulously crafted passages of minimalist electronics and Abdi's athletic, rhythmic vocals. A brilliantly cohesive, musically inventive debut from an artist we'll be hearing lots more of in the future."
-Piccadilly Records

Contours

Contours is the project of musician, producer and DJ Tom Burford. Based in Manchester, Contours' sound explores the rhythms and sonic spaces that sit between Jazz, percussive experimentation and raw club cuts through to blissed-out ambient and minimalism.

Having been exposed to an eclectic range of music from an early age, Contours' DJ sets traverse a litany of sounds and influences. Contours' live set draws on the minimalist percussive and ambient compositions that formed his Balafon Sketches release and now his latest album on the acclaimed Music From Memory label.

'Compositions glow up to echoing inflorescence... It's original music, full of detail, inhabited by good spirits'
-The Wire