LIVE: PRIMAL SCREAM – 26/11/2019

-ALBERT HALL, MANCHESTER- Touring in support of their greatest hits album Maximum Rock n Roll released earlier this year, the bar was already set high with anticipation for a gig fuelled with Primal Scream’s finest. Not that hearing a band’s latest album cuts is any less appealing, but there’s just something that makes you that extra […]
-THE BRIDGEWATER HALL, MANCHESTER- Gaining entry into a seated, progressive rock concert would no doubt not appeal to most under 50, yet for me the opportunity to go a little left-field and cover a guitarist of Steve Hackett’s stature (familiar with finger tapping?) carried a subversive charm that contrasts with Manchester’s present musical disposition. As […]

LIVE: STEVE HACKETT – 26/11/2019

LIVE: MAC DEMARCO – 23/11/2019

-APOLLO, MANCHESTER- The city of Manchester has been one of disappointment recently, with both football teams failing to perform. However tonight, Mac DeMarco is here to Freak Out the Neighbourhood, and chances of disappointment are slim. It’s surprisingly my first time here in Manchester’s finest Apollo, and the wait has been worth it. An urgent […]
-RNCM, MANCHESTER- Richard Dawson should really be a national treasure by now. The Newcastle born troubadour has released two of the best albums of the 2010s in 2017’s Peasant, a concept album set in medieval Northern England (stay with me here folks) that reflected our (then) current troubles (he introduces ‘Hob’ from the album tonight […]

LIVE: RICHARD DAWSON – 21/11/2019

LIVE: WORKING MEN’S CLUB / YOWL – 22/11/2019

-YES, MANCHESTER- Since I first heard of Working Men’s Club after seeing then-member Giulia Bonometti (also known under her stage name Julia Bardo) perform live earlier this year, I’ve been keen on them. Since then, many things have changed for the band: they have signed to Heavenly Recordings, original members Bonometti and Jake Bogacki have […]
-ACADEMY, MANCHESTER- Happy Mondays played the Manchester Academy on Thursday evening. For me, the only thing that overshadowed their performance were the disabled facilities. The gig took place in Manchester Academy – a venue that is not altogether unfamiliar to a Happy Mondays gig, with them having played there on greatest hits tours for the […]

LIVE: HAPPY MONDAYS – 21/11/2019

LIVE: THE RAINCOATS – 15/11/2019

-THE WHITE HOTEL, SALFORD- With the White Hotel largely full to capacity, it appears appropriate the Raincoats would perform their debut LP in its entirety 10 years after its 30th anniversary. If I abided by convention, I would proceed to ramble on about their supposed importance and point out the vague connections they have to […]
-RITZ, MANCHESTER- Dear Reader, this is going to be one of those reviews where I say how great someone has been before declaring ‘I don’t understand why they’re not a massive pop star’, because that is exactly, one hundred percent what I have witnessed tonight. Shura (real name Alexandra Lilah Denton), has electro-pop bangerz and […]

LIVE: SHURA – 18/11/2019

LIVE: DEERHUNTER – 06/11/2019

-RITZ, MANCHESTER- Walking into the Ritz on this bitterly cold Wednesday night, I could not help but feel a rather morbid atmosphere, no one looked like they had paid twenty-five pounds a ticket to be stood there. The weird yet at points interesting collaboration between front man Bradford Cox and support act Cate le Bon, […]
-VARIOUS VENUES, MANCHESTER- ‘New Music Festival and Conference’ Off The Record is returning to Manchester for its fourth edition this Friday. It’s a one day event (apart from the networking drinks on Thursday), taking place over different venues across the Northern Quarter, such as Jimmy’s, Night and Day Café and Soup Kitchen. During the day, […]

LIVE: OFF THE RECORD FESTIVAL 2019