This article was published in 2012.

With summer almost upon us (honest!) that can only mean one thing for West Yorkshire bands - the annual Futuresound Competition and the opportunity to appear live at the Reading and Leeds Festivals.

Now into its twelfth year, Futuresound are once again be searching for the best local acts to take part in the annual competition with the overall winner of Futuresound 2012 set to open the NME / Radio One Stage at both sites.

The five runners up will each get the opportunity to play live on the BBC Introducing Stage at both Reading and Leeds.

From the many hundreds of applications five judges will select 60 bands who will appear in a series of heats at the Cockpit in Leeds. Each heat will feature 4 bands and will take place in late June and throughout July.

The six winners to be announced shortly after the final heat.

The deadline for applications is Friday 25th May and you can download an entry form here.