– Gorilla, Manchester – Tamara Lindeman, front woman and driving force behind the Canadian band The Weather Station, stops for a chat with the crowd towards the end of their excellent gig here at Gorilla. Looking longingly towards the corrugated roof of the venue, she tells us “we look at the stars and dream, but […]
I can clearly remember where I was when I first heard The Coral, at home tuned into the radio in 2002, the magnificent ‘Skeleton Key’ blasted out with all its frantic rhythms and psychedelic induced melodies, and so began my musical love affair with the scouse musical magicians. They created the kind of melodies and […]
– Academy, Manchester – Magical bands do not come along that often. To be a magical band, you have to have an alchemy that is almost undefinable, a mysterious quality that’s all but impossible to put your finger on, something that no other combination of people could achieve, something not even an infinite amount of […]
– Manchester Arena – James’ gig on Friday 3rd December 2021 at the AO arena in Manchester was phenomenal. There are very few words to describe it. A lot of people were drunk on alcohol and live music. Being my first gig after lockdown, I honestly cannot tell if my judgement was clouded or it […]
– The Engine Shed, Lincoln – Very few people have emerged from the last two sorry years with more goodwill than Tim Burgess. Aside from almost single-handedly reviving the long-form album format with his Twitter listening parties, he also played a hand in rescuing two of Manchester’s most sacred live music spaces, Deaf Institute and […]
– YES, Manchester – I’m looking forward to this. I’m looking forward to it a lot. William Doyle (FKA East India Youth, pseudonym fans) released one of my (and now one of The Quietus’) favourite albums of the year back in March, the superb ‘Great Spans of Muddy Time’, and I’ve been waiting to see […]
Comparisons are odious but given that I went to two gigs in two days I think I can be forgiven for drawing them. On Wednesday night it was Self Esteem at Gorilla and on Thursday it was This is the Kit at RNCM. Both intelligent female-led music, but that’s where the comparisons end. RNCM is […]
– YES, Manchester – Reader, a confession: I am very hungover. I have been in London for the weekend visiting friends and taking a trip to the Oval Space to see Tirzah and Koreless as part of the Pitchfork London festival (really very good, would go again). I’m trying to be enthusiastic about mustering the […]
Is black midi performance art now? Halfway through this absolutely ferocious gig, keyboardist ‘Shank’ sneaks up behind the extraordinary saxophonist ‘Cassanova’ with a plastic pirate cutlass, and proceeds to ‘slash’ his neck. But lo! Casanova rises (through ‘the power of love’, we are told by vocalist and guitarist Geordie Greep, who is narrating the pantomime […]
– Castle Hotel, Manchester – It’s a later than expected start tonight, scheduled support act Loose Articles are sadly unable to perform, here’s wishing a speedy recovery. It means I arrive barely ten minutes before the main event, just in time to hear Black Flag then Black Sabbath playing as background music, as though the […]
GIG GUIDE
Our gig guide is handpicked and every act has been listened to before making it onto the list.
See this month's guide
ALBUM REVIEW - THE LOFT: BADGES
GIG GUIDE - MAY 2026
ALBUM REVIEW - ABIGAIL LAPELL: SHADOW CHILD
ALBUM ROUNDUP WEEK ENDING 1 MAY 2026
LIVE REVIEW - THE SCRATCH: MANCHESTER ACADEMY 2 - 25/04/2026
ALBUM REVIEW - RINGO STARR: LONG LONG ROAD
ALBUM REVIEW - VARIOUS: ALL YOU GOOD PEOPLE - BRITPOP AND BEYOND 1995-1999
ALBUM ROUNDUP WEEK ENDING 24 APRIL 2026
ALBUM REVIEW - JESCA HOOP: LONG WAVE HOME
LIVE REVIEW - DEATHCRASH + GLASSHOUSE RED SPIDER MITE: YES PINK ROOM - 15/04/2026
