As well as singing and writing his music, Stuart Todd, who played in several rock bands around Liverpool, plays guitar, bass, piano and harmonica. Completing the line-up is Brubeck, a three-piece band that regularly plays at Liverpool venues, including Barfly, Zanzibar, Magnet and Night and Day. Live Smart, the company behind the Your Ticket For Liverpool smart card, is staging the event with Maghull Coaches, which operates the City Explorer. The event will mark the companies' involvements in Liverpool's Alive After Five late-night opening scheme. The bus has extended its timetable to continually loop the city until 7pm on Thursdays for late-night shoppers. To tie in, the smart card provides discounts on attractions and dining. The Live Smart spokeswoman added: "We thought, ahead of the Mathew Street Festival, that this event, which is live after 5pm, was a quirky way to explore and air the city's unsigned talent and support Alive After Five." The Mathew Street Music Festival is now the largest free annual music event in Europe. More than 75 bands will perform on five stages across the city in celebration of the 2006 Capital of Culture year, Liverpool Performs. And more than 40 indoor venues will also be hosting free live music throughout the weekend. It starts tomorrow at 7.30pm with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, who will be joined by a host of famous-name guests. The Lightning Seeds will headline the festival on Sunday - their first appearance in Liverpool since the millennium. And from Saturday to Monday, 31 new or unsigned Liverpool bands will perform on a dedicated new band stage at the Pier Head. The first hour on Saturday and Sunday from 11am to midday, will be dedicated to the winners of an X Factor-style music competition called Streetwaves. * FOR information on the Mathew Street Festival, call 0151 233 2008 or visit www.liverpool08.com graham.davies@liverpool.com | 
