LIVE: THE CHATS – 10/12/2019

-THE RITZ, MANCHESTER- (Insert: Opening statement about how, like everybody else, I discovered them through a certain viral hit that appeals to anyone with a sense of humour regarding inhaled narcotics.) The obvious appeal with this particular 3-piece is the straight forward, 3-chord mimicry of classic punk which is tied in with their Australian background […]
-GORILLA, MANCHESTER- After some unexpected problems on the door regarding the guest list, I finally take shelter from this cold Friday winter night in a packed Gorilla. Unfortunately, I have missed the first four tracks of this ten-year celebration of the band’s 2009 debut album These Four Walls. The opening four tracks contain two of […]

LIVE: WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS – 06/12/2019

ALBUM REVIEW: MICK RONSON – ONLY AFTER DARK – THE COMPLETE MAINMAN RECORDINGS

When David Bowie announced the end of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders Form Mars, live on stage at the end of the Ziggy tour in 1973, Bowie’s management company Mainman decided they needed to fill the Bowie sized gap in the music world, and Bowie’s guitarist in the Spiders From Mars, Mick Ronson was duly […]
Ralph Pellymounter debuts his solo work, which is separate from his previous endeavours with To Kill a King. ‘Three Love Songs, Death & Kindness’ is an EP of five tracks from the folk-rock frontman. Released on Tequila King Records (ha ha, it’s a pun!), the songs appear be an extension of his other work with […]

EP REVIEW: RALPH PELLEYMOUNTER – THREE LOVE SONGS, DEATH & KINDNESS

LIVE: POZI – 30/11/2019

-THE TALLEYRAND, MANCHESTER- Humint Although I miss a portion of the opening act’s set, I manage to see an amount significant enough for review. They have a style reminiscent of the post-hardcore bands of old (the late 1980s specifically), which you could argue isn’t exactly unique as better known bands in a similar vein are […]
-YES, MANCHESTER- “I think we’ve got just enough time for one more”. Brian Christinzio, AKA BC Camplight, mumble-growls from somewhere deep within this thick trucker beard, from out beneath a black baseball cap that reads “Cape Lookout”, from behind the blackest of black sunglasses. And that’s all fine – it is Black Friday after all […]

LIVE: BC CAMPLIGHT – 29/11/2019

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

ALBUM REVIEW: BLOCKHEAD – BUBBLE BATH

Aaaah, it’s time to relax, and you know what that means: a glass of wine and a bubble bath and, of course, the latest album from prolific NY hip-hop producer Blockhead playing on your home stereo… Like an early DJ Shadow on a chilled out day (and without the scratching), this album is primarily spacey […]
-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 […]

LIVE: MAC DEMARCO – 23/11/2019