LIVE: CARAVAN PALACE – 31/01/2020

-ALBERT HALL, MANCHESTER- While waiting in line for a drink, I overhear several conversations about the dramatic turn that Caravan Palace have made with their most recent album Chronologic. These conversations were not ecstatic at the departure from the electro swing of old. I have to say, I share their apprehension as to whether the […]
-DEAF INSTITUTE, MANCHESTER- The post-punk revival is raging, fuelled by the B word and the government and the utter bollocks we wake up to on the news every day. John (or John (timestwo) for internet purposes) are a duo of John’s from Crystal Palace – ‘I’m John, he’s John, we’re John’ they announce, one John […]

LIVE: JOHN – 29/01/2020

LIVE: H. HAWKLINE – 31/01/2020

-YES, MANCHESTER- John Myrtle opens the show tonight with songs about, in his own words, “sadness and paranoia”. The tunes themselves are a much more cheerful affair than this may make them sound and the moments of lyrical levity in songs like ‘Cyril the Slug’ merge easily with the more sombre themes of ‘Get Her […]
-WILDERNESS RECORD STORE, MANCHESTER- POSA The formats of convention such as verse-chorus-verse appear to be marked absent today as the presumed acronym-named support act display a structure in a form one would deem free. Essentially, the sonic pentagon Tago Mago their way through a man-made steppe involving a clarinet, inaudible vocals (techniques vary), synthesisers (both […]

LIVE: FAMOUS / POSA – 30/01/2020

LIVE: DRAMA – 29/01/2020

-NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, MANCHESTER- The Night and Day Café is full tonight, and the crowd is full of love for the Chicago based smooth electro pop duo Drama. Drama is a collaboration between vocalist Viva Rosa and producer Na’el Shelade. They blend soulful R&B vocals over tightly crafted electro beats. Straight away their sound […]
-THE PEER HAT, MANCHESTER- Vat-Egg Imposition I suppose the obvious thing to comment on would be the leading vocalist’s decision to wear a costume resembling that of a poultry staple known to most as an egg (colour inaccuracy), tying in with one word in their name in a thematic fashion, presumably. Salted snacks, authoritarianism in […]

LIVE: THE EARLY MORNINGS / ROXY GIRLS / ALL GIRL ARSON CLUB – 24/01/2020

LIVE: BLACK COUNTRY, NEW ROAD – 22/01/2020

-YES, MANCHESTER- Last night was a first for me; I saw the same band twice in two separate parts of the same venue, Manchester’s imperious Yes. That band, dear readers, are the best new band, scratch that, the best band operating in the world right now, and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to consume […]
-ROYAL NORTHERN COLLEGE OF MUSIC, MANCHESTER- Francis Lung Discomforted by the balcony’s design flaws, I watch the support wither through a set I can only describe as somewhat square. Lacking any discernible rhythm as they dispense with mundane topics about ‘being too real’ and feeling invisible (eyes remained open), the opener’s minimalist tone hinders rather […]

LIVE: WHYTE HORSES / FRANCIS LUNG – 18/01/2020

LIVE: THE FUTUREHEADS – 15/12/2019

-THE RITZ, MANCHESTER- Playing their self-titled debut album in its entirety, The Futureheads have filled out the Ritz with an eager crowd of all ages. With an album that is as quick and snappy in length as the guitar riffs that fill it, it is a concern whether they will fill the evening. But, with […]
-VICTORIA WAREHOUSE, MANCHESTER- It’s that time of year again, The Libertines are on tour. It’s been the same program more or less for the last five years for the likely lads: a few festival slots during the summer and then a lovely tour of their home ground at the back end of the year. Last […]

LIVE: THE LIBERTINES – 10/12/2019