BBC Introducing

This year is the third year of the intimate End of the Road festival at the Larmer Tree Gardens, north Dorset.

With a capacity of only 5,000 people, the family-friendly weekend in late summer has gained a reputation as one of the best smaller, so-called 'boutique' festivals of its kind, winning 'Best New Festival' at the UK Festival Awards 2006.

BBC Radio Solent's Sunday night unsigned music programme South:Live spoke to Ro Cemm from the festival about plans for this year's festival, and how local unsigned bands can appear on the bill too - effectively opens up the stage to anyone.

Listen to BBC South:Live's Phil Jackson interview with Ro.

Says Ro, "[The idea for the festival] started after a bunch of us went to Greenland festival in Wales, and we liked the idea of what they've done.

"And with so much advertising etc at other major festivals, we'd decided to take things back to the grass roots, and put bands in the order where it makes sense for them to be [rather than where they 'should' be]."

Architecture in Helsinki, 2007

And we also put it at the end of the festival year so bands are more relaxed."

Ro, who is responsible for the unsigned band stage at the festival, says that anyone who wants to submit a CD for consideration for a performance slot can go to the End of the Road Festival website to find out how (click on 'information').

Acts announced so far for this year's festival include Mercury Rev, Low, Dirty Three, British Sea Power, American Music Club, Billy Childish, Akron/Family, Kimya Dawson, Darren Hayman (Darren and Jack Play Hefner Songs), FM Belfast, Laura Marling, Devon Sproule, Angelo Spencer and Kelley Stoltz with more to follow.

End of the Road Festival 2008 - Larmer Tree Gardens, 12 - 14 September 2008