LIVE: BEST COAST – 17/06/2012

THE HMZ RITZ, MANCHESTER Now Wave gigs regularly promise plenty of bands and no fillers, as with tonight’s quadruple bill. The thankfully renovated Ritz is starting to get a little sticky underfoot again, due to spilt beer. At £4.35 for a pint of Guinness, I’m not wasting a drop. Psychedelic dark punk pop rock band […]
– THE RITZ, MANCHESTER – I had the pleasure of catching Brighton based outfit Fear of Men as part of the wonderful Sounds From The Other City Festival which took place in Salford last month, and it was their simplistic indie pop melodies that won over my heart and have refused to leave my head […]

LIVE: FEAR OF MEN – 17/06/2012

LIVE: DOT TO DOT FESTIVAL – 04/06/2012

– VARIOUS VENUES, MANCHESTER – Back for its third year in Manchester, Dot to Dot has come along tremendously since it started in Nottingham in 2005. Ever since then they have continuously created compelling line-ups, bringing some of the best new and upcoming talent to an exciting inner-city environment. This year’s line-up is certainly no […]
– THE RUBY LOUNGE, MANCHESTER – While the rest of the nation is bopping away to the legends of pop strutting their stuff outside the Queen’s gaff, we’re in town’s most luxurious subterranean pit for something altogether less bombastic. “Hey, I’m Kevin Devine from New York…” the slender troubadour onstage announces, “did you guys revel […]

LIVE: CURSIVE – 04/06/2012

LIVE: SAVAGES / HIGH PLACES / DIE HEXEN – 30/05/2012

– ISLINGTON MILL. SALFORD – I’m not usually one for forward planning but I felt quite gutted that I couldn’t go to the SAVAGES gig at the beginning of the month due to it being sold out (how does a few months old, pretty unknown, four piece all female band sell out in a city […]
– MOHO LIVE, MANCHESTER – After discovering the latest release of The Melvins EP ‘The Bulls and the Bees’ (a free download by the way) I was on the hunt to find the tour that follows, and to my delight they were coming to Manchester’s Moho Live, four long years since their last visit to […]

LIVE: THE MELVINS – 30/05/2012

LIVE: SAVAGES / HIGH PLACES / DIE HEXEN – 30/05/2012

– ISLINGTON MILL, SALFORD – Savages, an all-girl four-piece based in London, has been much-hyped in some quarters, but as I head to Salford’s Islington Mill for the band’s second gig in the city within the space of a month, I’m determined to keep an open mind. Despite the girls only playing their first gig […]
– SOUP KITCHEN, MANCHESTER – Tonight, in the dark underbelly of Manchester’s Northern Quarter, a cluster of like-minded music fan poseurs are readying their Friday nights with a low-profile offering from Denver’s most cherished lo-fi indie poppers. The crowd is modestly sized, given the relatively established nature of the night’s headliners – Tennis released their […]

LIVE: TENNIS – 25/05/2012

LIVE: DUKE SPECIAL – 25/05/2012

– THE DEAF INSTITUTE, MANCHESTER – Getting into the Deaf Institute a bouncy, pub sing along atmosphere hits me. The upstairs’ room is rammed. There’s a packed turn out for tonight’s gig from a slightly older, dare I say more refined audience. The sing along atmosphere is coming from Duke Special, with band and on […]
– ST.CLEMENT’S CHURCH, MANCHESTER – It’s such a beautiful, warm evening (I don’t even need a jacket, hooray!) and I’m stood in the grounds of St Clements church surrounded by trees and greenery forgetting that I’m in a city.  I’m here on the recommendation of a friend and considering the facts: a husband and wife […]

LIVE: THE HANDSOME FAMILY / TINY RUINS – 24/05/2012