9 Best Wed­ding Bands in Hamp­shire for 2024

Hamp­shire is a thriv­ing area for live music and some incred­i­ble live par­ty bands. From soul and Motown to indie/​rock bands you have every type of band that reg­u­lar­ly per­form at beau­ti­ful wed­dings and cor­po­rate events.

There is a huge vari­ety of offer­ings avail­able and you have the choice of how to make your wed­ding day unique to you and just how you want it. Bands with sax and pop bands are par­tic­u­lar­ly pop­u­lar when you want to cre­ate that incred­i­ble evening atmosphere.

A lot of the bands in Hamp­shire are per­fect for an incred­i­ble evening par­ty and can also pro­vide day­time wed­ding enter­tain­ment pack­ages that include acoustic sets and chill­out music, mak­ing them ide­al for all-day wed­dings and keep­ing a close eye on your budget.

How we choose the best wed­ding bands in Hampshire

All our per­form­ers are spe­cial­ly select­ed and vet­ted by our team before they join the ros­ter. We bring you only the best and most trust­wor­thy per­form­ers and musi­cians that we know well and have worked with before, or that have been rec­om­mend­ed to us by peo­ple we trust.

The UK’s net­work of musi­cians is small, and we only rec­om­mend peo­ple we trust. You’re trust­ing us with one of the most spe­cial days of your life after all!

We hope you’ll love what you see on Gecko Live. You can get in touch with us here, read more FAQs and Blogs here and check out our incred­i­ble per­form­ers on our acts page.

Fol­low our Insta­gram 📸 for more videos and pho­tos of the bands per­form­ing live at real wed­dings, par­ties and events.

Here’s the list of the 9 best Hamp­shire wed­ding bands for hire in 2024

1. AKA

2. Hit­men

3. Alpha

4. Hori­zon Fes­ti­val Band

5. Hats Off

6. Glow

7. Rise

8. Strikes

9. Helix

2. The Hit­men Collective

Main Musi­cal Styles — Rock / Pop / Indie

See more infor­ma­tion, videos, and tes­ti­mo­ni­als about Hit­men on their pro­file page 🎶

A col­lec­tion of the best, world class musi­cians that are no strangers to fes­ti­val stages, world tours and high class wed­dings. Their col­lec­tive per­for­mances include Glas­ton­bury Fes­ti­val, Read­ing Fes­ti­val and tours that have tak­en them to Japan and Europe.

The hit­men col­lec­tive are based in Hamp­shire and are one of our most booked Indie/​Rock par­ty bands. Their 3, 4 and 5 piece per­former line ups include soar­ing vocals and gui­tar and they can add sax and addi­tion­al vocals to cre­ate your per­fect live wed­ding band.

4. Hori­zon

Main Musi­cal Styles — Rock / Coun­try / Folk / Pop

See more infor­ma­tion, videos, and tes­ti­mo­ni­als about Hori­zon on their pro­file page 🎶

Hori­zon is the lat­est addi­tion to the Gecko Live Exclu­sive Artist ros­ter. Their take on the tra­di­tion­al coun­try band, mix­ing that style with pop, folk, coun­try, and rock makes them one of the hottest and most in-demand bands for next year.

Their wed­ding pack­ages can be tai­lored to suit you and can incor­po­rate your wed­ding cer­e­mo­ny and drinks recep­tion with their acoustic roam­ing band before elec­tri­fy­ing their per­for­mance for the evening party.

If you are look­ing for live par­ty band that is edgy but won’t look out of place in one of Hamp­shire’s rur­al barn wed­ding venues, Hori­zon is the band for you.

Hori­zon’s Wed­ding Packages 

Elec­tric Par­ty Package

2 hours of music from the bril­liant 4 piece elec­tric band. The band will learn your choice of first dance and their light­ing and sound sys­tem will make sure it looks and sounds as good as you want it to.

Drinks to Danc­ing Package

Per­fect for cou­ples who want music and enter­tain­ment from the drinks recep­tion through to the end of the night. This is Hori­zon’s most pop­u­lar wed­ding pack­age and includes a 60-minute roam­ing set fol­lowed by 2 x 60-minute elec­tric sets for the evening party.

Full Fes­ti­val Experience

This is Hori­zon’s all-day wed­ding pack­age. Start­ing as soon as guests arrive at the venue, they will play all the music for your cer­e­mo­ny, drinks recep­tion, and evening par­ty with a mix of the acoustic roam­ing band and their sta­t­ic elec­tric par­ty band.

6. Glow

Main Musi­cal Styles — Pop / Soul / Motown / R ​‘n’ B

See more infor­ma­tion, videos, and tes­ti­mo­ni­als about Glow on their pro­file page 🎶

With­out a doubt, Glow are one of the most for­mi­da­ble par­ty bands to book in Hamp­shire. Based in Lon­don and The South, they reg­u­lar­ly trav­el to many of the lux­u­ry wed­ding venues in Hamp­shire.

Their med­ley-style set list and per­for­mance blends songs togeth­er for a seam­less string of songs that work just like a DJ. Their per­former line­ups with mul­ti­ple singers, horn sec­tion, and per­cus­sion­ists give and stun­ning ener­gy and vibe to any occasion.

Glow has been booked for our cor­po­rate clien­t’s awards galas and cel­e­bra­tions and large 300+ per­son wed­dings where only the best will do.

Per­former Line­up Ideas

6 Piece Band — 2 x Vocals + Gui­tar + Key­boards + Bass + Drums

7 Piece Band — 2 x Vocals + Gui­tar + Key­boards + Bass + Drums + Sax

8 Piece Band — 2 x Vocals + Gui­tar + Key­boards + Bass + Drums + Sax + Trumpet

9 Piece Band — 3 x Vocals + Gui­tar + Key­boards + Bass + Drums + Sax + Trumpet

10 Piece Band — 3 x Vocals + Gui­tar + Key­boards + Bass + Drums + Sax + Trum­pet + Percussion

11 Piece Band — 4 x Vocals + Gui­tar + Key­boards + Bass + Drums + Sax + Trum­pet + Percussion

12 Piece Band — 4 x Vocals + Gui­tar + Key­boards + Bass + Drums + Sax + Trum­pet + Per­cus­sion + Trombone

13 Piece Band — 5 x Vocals + Gui­tar + Key­boards + Bass + Drums + Sax + Trum­pet + Per­cus­sion + Trombone

14 Piece Band — 5 x Vocals + Gui­tar + Key­boards + Bass + Drums + Alto Sax + Trum­pet + Per­cus­sion + Trom­bone + Tenor Sax

15 Piece Band — 6 x Vocals + Gui­tar + Key­boards + Bass + Drums + Alto Sax + Trum­pet + Per­cus­sion + Trom­bone + Tenor Sax

8. Strikes

Main Musi­cal Styles — Rock / Pop / Motown / R ​‘n’ B

See more infor­ma­tion, videos, and tes­ti­mo­ni­als about Strikes on their pro­file page 🎶

Strikes’ mul­ti-tal­ent­ed per­form­ers have been par­ty­ing at wed­dings for over a decade. They are no strangers to the rus­tic barns, hotels, and state­ly homes that make up Hamp­shire’s best wed­ding venues and have line­ups that will work for large par­ties and more inti­mate set­tings. Their band leader and key­board play­er also plays sax and can switch it up for those impor­tant soul­ful moments!

The band’s reper­toire of floor fill­ing songs will keep your guests on their feet and cre­ate the most bril­liant atmosphere.

9. Helix

Main Musi­cal Styles — Pop / Soul / Motown

See more infor­ma­tion, videos, and tes­ti­mo­ni­als about Helix on their pro­file page 🎶

Start­ed as an acoustic duo, Helix has grown into a ful­ly-fledged par­ty band with mul­ti­ple singers, sax, and trum­pet. Their jour­ney from duo to band has giv­en them the abil­i­ty to cre­ate arrange­ments of songs and build an impres­sive reper­toire that cater­ers for the best crowds.

Their 5 piece band made up the male and female vocals is their start­ing point, with the abil­i­ty to add key­boards, sax­o­phone, trum­pet, and even per­cus­sion allow­ing you to cre­ate a band that is per­fect­ly suit­ed to you.

Band FAQ

Main Musi­cal Styles — Rock / Pop / Soul / Motown / Indie / Coun­try / Folk / R ​‘n’ B

When do Hamp­shire wed­ding bands get booked?

It’s best to book your band as ear­ly as pos­si­ble. Many of our top Hamp­shire wed­ding bands get booked up to two years in advance and we are tak­ing book­ings for 2026 already. For wed­dings held on Sat­ur­days in the pop­u­lar months of May through Sep­tem­ber, we rec­om­mend secur­ing your band at least a year before your date. Since Sat­ur­days in the sum­mer are high­ly sought after, par­tic­u­lar­ly those that offer pack­ages that are per­fect for rus­tic barn and out­door wed­dings, bands receive the most inquiries for those days. How­ev­er, with more cou­ples choos­ing Sun­days and mid-week dates (espe­cial­ly Thurs­days and Fri­days), it’s a good idea to reserve your band soon­er rather than lat­er to avoid disappointment.

How long do wed­ding bands typ­i­cal­ly per­form for and what hap­pens between their sets?

Most wed­ding bands per­form two live sets, either 2 x 45 min­utes or 2 x 1 hour. All our wed­ding bands offer a ​“lap­top DJ” ser­vice between and after their live sets. While this isn’t the same as hir­ing a pro­fes­sion­al DJ who can read the room and adjust the music to the mood, it typ­i­cal­ly involves a pre-made playlist (often on Spo­ti­fy or iTunes) that plays through the band’s PA system.

Can I choose the music played between and after the band’s live sets?

Yes, you can usu­al­ly pro­vide the band with a list of song requests before the wed­ding, and they’ll down­load them to play on the night. Alter­na­tive­ly, you can cre­ate your own playlist and bring a device to con­nect to the band’s PA system.

Will the band learn my first dance song?

Yes, most bands will hap­pi­ly learn your first dance song and per­form it live on your wed­ding day. How­ev­er, if the song does­n’t fit the band’s style (e.g., a jazz song for an indie-rock band), they may rec­om­mend play­ing the record­ed ver­sion through their PA sys­tem. Some bands may charge a small fee (around £150) to cov­er the extra time need­ed for rehearsals to learn a new song.

Can I share my song pref­er­ences with the band?

Absolute­ly! Most bands wel­come your input when craft­ing their setlist. You can pro­vide a list of songs you’d pre­fer them not to play and high­light your must-have tracks. The band will then adjust their setlist to suit your pref­er­ences, ensur­ing your wed­ding music reflects your tastes. This can be par­tic­u­lar­ly impor­tant if there is a song you want to have at the end of the night either played live by the band where you can or via the sound system.

What time do wed­ding bands nor­mal­ly arrive at the venue?

Bands typ­i­cal­ly arrive around 5 p.m. to be ready to per­form by 7 p.m. This allows them enough time to set up their equip­ment and do a sound­check to ensure every­thing sounds great and com­plies with any sound or noise restric­tions at the venue.

Can the band arrive earlier?

Yes, most bands can arrive ear­li­er if need­ed, though they may charge for the addi­tion­al time. If you’re con­cerned about them set­ting up while guests are present, rest assured that expe­ri­enced bands can do this dis­creet­ly with min­i­mal noise and mess. The sound­check, which is the loud­est part, usu­al­ly takes only 15 – 30 min­utes. For a more cost-effec­tive solu­tion, you might con­sid­er hav­ing just one or two band mem­bers arrive ear­ly to han­dle set­up, rather than pay­ing extra for the entire band to come early.

Do I need a con­tract with my wed­ding band?

Yes, the best way to secure a band is to book through an agency like Gecko Live, where all book­ings are gov­erned by a con­tract. This con­tract, based on the UK Musi­cians Union’s stan­dard, pro­tects both par­ties and includes details like the date, venue, and spe­cif­ic terms agreed upon with the band.

How do I find a live wed­ding band?

The eas­i­est way is to sub­mit an enquiry on Gecko Live. Since top bands get booked quick­ly, sub­mit­ting details about your event ear­ly allows you to receive offers from avail­able bands. You can then com­mu­ni­cate direct­ly and secure your pre­ferred band through the site at no extra cost. Gecko Live curates top-qual­i­ty UK acts, ensur­ing you get the best selection.