LIVE: DELAYS – 08/10/2010

– ACADEMY 3, MANCHESTER – In a city that sets its watch by the academic season and where fads come and go with the next uni term, it’s hard for all but the most stalwart bands to hold a place in Manchester’s psyche. That’s why, to some extent, it’s quite a feat that Delays, whose […]
– THE DEAF INSTITUTE, MANCHESTER – For those of you who don’t already know, Junip is the new / old band of Jose Gonzalez. Originally formed in 2000 with Tobias Winterkorn (Moog and Keys) and Elias Araya (Drums), however, Junip’s plans for world domination got firmly put on the backburner when Gonzalez’s solo career took […]

LIVE: JUNIP – 07/10/2010

LIVE: SUBLIME WITH ROME – 07/10/2010

– ACADEMY 2, MANCHESTER – Do the over-25′s save up all their energy to release in controlled bursts? Although this is an old crowd, they are keen – half of them are wearing the t-shirts they bought in 1997 – and everyone is going crazy: screaming, pogoing, skanking and chucking pints. I bump in to […]
– ACADEMY 1, MANCHESTER – Who shot streams of sparkle and strangeness through the Tuesday night sky? Who bastardised performance art with camp disco flamboyance, only to nurture this bastard child and let it grow into a fabulous monster? Of Montreal did, oh yes, and nanas would cry out in terror or thrill at the […]

LIVE: OF MONTREAL – 05/10/2010

LIVE: CROCODILES – 04/10/2010

– THE DEAF INSTITUTE, MANCHESTER – San Diego residents, Crocodiles, visit the Deaf Institute in support of their second album ‘Sleep Forever’ which was released over here on September 10th. They’re a band who clearly wear their influences on their collective sleeves. Jesus and Mary Chain, Spacemen 3 and Echo and The Bunnymen are all […]
– ACADEMY 1, MANCHESTER – Uniqueclectlic. That’s the word for a Mark Ronson gig. Ok I made it it up. But this experience was unique and electric as the throbbing crowd at The Apollo get taken on tour de force ride consisting of 80s electro through to indie rock via hip hop. Kick off begins […]

LIVE:MARK RONSON & THE BUSINESS INTERNATIONAL – 02/10/2010

LIVE: EXIT CALM – 01/10/2010

– THE ROADHOUSE, MANCHESTER – If a sign was needed that Exit Calm were gathering a bit of momentum, the crowd that greets me at The Roadhouse is it. It’s certainly a welcome sight – vindication of my faith in this young band from South Yorkshire. The previous time I saw them, I could have […]
– ACADEMY 3, MANCHESTER – Who said pop was dead? It’s a drizzly September evening and the dancefloor of the humid broom-cupboard known as Academy 3 is seeing more action than Darren Day’s grotty bedpost. Scores of teenagers brandishing glowsticks, make-shift banners and Gladiators-style polystyrene headwear are foaming at the mouth at the thought of […]

LIVE: 3OH!3 – 28/09/2010

LIVE: MGMT – 26/09/2010

– APOLLO THEATRE, MANCHESTER – Midway through ‘The Handshake’ a beer sails through the air and hits the drummer on the head. He glances over his shoulder, sticks his middle finger up at the unattentive, bored audience and, like the consummate professional he is, finishes the track. After which he again sticks his middle finger […]
– THE DEAF INSTITUTE, MANCHESTER – Managing to ram so many people into such a small space you can see how The Vaselines got their name (wince). Just on the off chance that there was any call for yet another petroleum jelly related pun when discussing the Glaswegian outfit… The Vaselines, Eugene Kelly and Frances […]

LIVE: THE VASELINES – 23/09/2010