LIVE: SHEER MAG / TV CRIME – 23/07/2017

-DEAF INSTITUTE, MANCHESTER- What’s going on here, then? It’s not even 8pm and the merch table is 4 deep with t-shirts and records flying from one side of the counter to the other at a sweatshop pace; this isn’t normal. Then again, neither are Sheer Mag. A quintet formed in upstate New York (in Purchase, […]

SINGLE: THE WAR ON DRUGS – STRANGEST THING

Sleepless, flame-out anxiety ivies the narrative of Adam Ganduciel – front-man of Philadelphia-hailing sonic-sculptures The War on Drugs. The obsessive architect has openly touched on how a sudden personal downfall – flanked by isolation and paranoia, inspired elemental crusher ‘Lost in the Dream’, but has also spoke of how he’s still figuring out what happened […]

GIG GUIDE

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LIVE: LET’S EAT GRANDMA – 16/07/2017

-PAVILION THEATRE, MANCHESTER- Stepping from a bright Manchester afternoon into a blacked-out tent in the middle of Albert Square, I am soon joining the gathered crowd in applauding the on-stage arrival of the two young Norfolk musicians in Let’s Eat Grandma. The claps give way to complete silence as Rosa Walton and Jenny Hollingworth take […]

SINGLE: TURNOVER – SUPER NATURAL

Austin Getz, vocalist and guitarist of Virginia Beach darlings Turnover, demystifies ‘Super Natural’, the first cut from the band’s third studio album ‘Good Nature’, by describing a meditative, yet colossal romance as influencing the weightless cut. Getz paints scenes that speak to the indescribable qualities that can be found in the meeting of memory and […]

LIVE: THE HAXAN CLOAK – 07/07/2017

-GORILLA, MANCHESTER- The Haxan Cloak, or Bobby Krlic to his friends, is performing as part of the Mary Ann Hobbs curated Dark Matter strand of the Manchester International Festival, “eight immersive shows from pioneering national, international and Manchester-based musicians…with a light show that will transform Gorilla and the Ritz, creating new universes for each artist”, according […]

WHO ARE YA? GAFFA TAPE SANDY

WHO ARE YA? THE GNARWHALS

LIVE: JAMES / THE SLOW READERS CLUB – 07/07/2017

-CASTLEFIELD BOWL, MANCHESTER- Castlefield Bowl is a phenomenal venue, regardless of who is playing there. It is not used for concerts very often but every year Sounds of the City takes full advantage of the outdoor performance space that is surrounded by the buildings of Deansgate and Castlefield in the city centre. It turns the […]

LIVE: BONOBO / SANDUNES – 04/07/2017

– MANCHESTER CATHEDRAL, MANCHESTER – Bonobo at Manchester Cathedral was nothing short of an absolutely stunning show. The Manchester Cathedral was an extremely interesting choice of venue but it was the perfect place for the Manchester International Festival to showcase the electronic sensation that is Bonobo. The combination of music and light made this a […]

INTERVIEW: SEAN PECKNOLD

THE BIG MOON SHARE LIVE VIDEO OF ‘CUPID’ & SOOO MANY LIVE TOUR DATES – CHECK THEM OUT HERE

INTRODUCING: CULTURE ABUSE NEWLY SIGNED TO EPITAPH RECORDS – LISTEN TO NEW SINGLE ‘SO BUSTED’

CRUMBS REVEAL NEW SONG & VIDEO ‘WEASELS CAN WAIT’ FROM THEIR DEBUT ALBUM OUT THIS MONTH

ARCADE FIRE UNVEIL NEW TRACK ‘ELECTRIC BLUE’ FROM FORTHCOMING ALBUM ‘EVERYTHING NOW’ OUT THIS MONTH

LIVE: HOOKWORMS/CARLA DAL FORNO – 02/07/2017

– PAVILION THEATRE, MANCHESTER – Loud doesn’t really cut it. According to Twitter someone in the crowd clocked Hookworms playing at 124.8 decibels tonight, which Google describes as “tinnitus inducing, ringing in the ears, permanent hearing loss”. It’s an absolute fucking blast. Hookworms play as part of the Manchester International Festival at the Pavilion Theatre […]

HOLY FUCK ANNOUNCE ‘BIRD BRAINS EP’, ALONGSIDE THE RELEASE OF THE TITLE TRACK’S VIDEO AND AUGUST TOUR

ULRIKA SPACEK MAKE THEIR RETURN TO SOUP KITCHEN THIS OCTOBER

THOUGH NOT CONDONED L.A. WITCH SHARE NEW SINGLE ‘KILL MY BABY TONIGHT’

SWEET BABOO UNVEILS THE VIDEO FOR ‘PINK RAINBOW’

LIVE: CABBAGE – 01/07/2017

– THE RITZ, MANCHESTER – Before I talk about Manchester’s new favourite sons and their Cabbage Patch Kids, I want to briefly mention how good The Blinders and Strange Bones were as support acts tonight. It’s not easy supporting one of the most exciting live bands in the UK but both clearly knew what the […]

LIVE: SAMPHA / PAULI – 05/07/2017

-ALBERT HALL, MANCHESTER- When you’re a well blogged about, up and coming artist, it’s very easy to get carried away in a whirlwind of hype, but singer/songwriter Sampha hasn’t let any of this consume him. Forever humble and always focused, the South London based musician delivered an outstanding debut at the start of the year […]

THE GOLDEN LION – A CULTURAL HUB IN AN UNLIKELY PLACE

‘NO MIND’ FOR PAVO PAVO’S NEW VIDEO – WATCH NOW

WARM DIGITS ANNOUNCE TOUR DATES ALONGSIDE NEW TRACK ‘BETTER FRICTION’

FROTH SHARE THEIR VIDEO FOR ‘SHUT THE WINDOWS’

SOUP KITCHEN CELEBRATES 7TH BIRTHDAY WITH 12 HOUR PARTY THIS AUGUST

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INTERVIEW: TOM HICKOX