LIVE: SHOCKWAVES NME AWARD TOUR – 07/02/2010

– ACADEMY 1, MANCHESTER – I’ve never been too sure whether to love or hate the NME. On the one hand the NME is frequently guilty of touting substandard bands, hyping them to the hills’ highest hillbillies, only to stab them in the back when they realise that no one actually likes them. The hype […]
– SOUND CONTROL, MANCHESTER – Oh the sound, the sound of The Drums. When I heard seven days ago I was going to see them, I got so excited I began practicing my dance moves and planning what to wear to a night I thought would be monumental. This was the act which I thought […]

LIVE: THE DRUMS – 06/02/2010

LIVE: THE MALADIES OF BELLAFONTAINE / S.R. GENTS / SAM & THE PLANETS – 06/02/2010

– FUEL CAFE, MANCHESTER – It is the first night of the year for Ted Harris as having finished his hundred-and-fifty-first essay he is ready to party and the crowd are ready to join him. Though do note this is a Cloud Sounds Presents night so if you do want to party you had better […]
– ACADEMY 3, MANCHESTER – Attendance is deservedly good for the first support: As I Watch You From Afar. Use of super-heavy riffs and interesting time signatures is done in a good way, not just for the sake of it, yet they do go all 4/4 and melodic from time to time. The shirtless, beefcake […]

LIVE: OCEANSIZE/VESSELS/AS I WATCH YOU FROM AFAR – 02/02/2010

LIVE: DAG FOR DAG/THAO with THE GET DOWN STAY DOWN – 02/02/2010

– Deaf Institute, Manchester – Pronounced “Dog for Dog”, Dag For Dag are a brother and sister songwriting duo originate from “San Francisco, Sweden” according to lead singer and guitarist Sarah Snavely. The Deaf Institute’s crowd is undeservedly low in numbers and the between songs conversation from the band is met with embarrassed silence. Undeterred, […]
– THE RUBY LOUNGE, MANCHESTER – There are some venues which can make even the most unknown acts come alive such as Manchester’s Academy; there are others which are seeped in so much history that the band are bolstered into putting on a spectacular show even if they are usually mediocre. Venues like Night and […]

LIVE: JOHNNY FOREIGNER / TALONS – 02/02/2010

LIVE: ADAM GREEN – 01/02/2010

– CLUB ACADEMY, MANCHESTER – I am so excited about seeing Adam Green this evening that I turn up to the gig an hour early to grab a beverage and soak up the atmosphere before heading down to the basement. The above, could very well have been the entirety of my review of three acts, […]
– THE RUBY LOUNGE, MANCHESTER – This is unusual. A headline band in Renegades that CityLifers has never heard of, yet the Ruby Lounge is absolutely packed to its subterranean gills. Something is clearly afoot. Before our mystery guests, though, the throng is treated to Lights Go Blue, a very young, stylish and stylised duo, […]

LIVE: RENEGADES – 26/01/2010

LIVE: SOUND CONTROL LAUNCH PARTY – 26/01/2010

– SOUND CONTROL, MANCHESTER – Emerging out of the recession with more false starts than Great Britain is the grand opening of Sound Control Manchester. You may have heard it had launched a couple of times back last year, but as these openings either didn’t go to plan or were not quite as spectacular as […]
– ACADEMY 1, MANCHESTER – If there was a world record for squeezing-as-many-discordant-riffs-as-possible-into-a-Mini, the ghost of Norris McWhirter would be straight on the spectral blower to Shapes. Drummer Gavin Filmer has a tough time staying in his seat, such is the voracity with which he sets about destroying each and every corner of his kit, […]

LIVE: GLASSJAW/PULLED APART BY HORSES/SHAPES – 24/01/2010