ALBUM REVIEW: NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS – GHOSTEEN

Nick Cave announcing a new album is always welcome news in our house. After witnessing his recent ‘In Conversation’ tour, where everything was stripped back, raw, emotional, funny and a real one-off event, plus reading his brilliant responses to fans’ questions via his ‘Red Hand Files’ emails,  predicting where he could go next with his […]
-ALBERT HALL, MANCHESTER- In these dark and troubled times, it is somewhat reassuring to be in the presence of Bill Callahan. He enters the stage with his relaxed preppy college prof demeanour to greet the large audience, in one of his rare visits to the UK to support his recent double album, Shepherd in a […]

LIVE: BILL CALLAHAN – 02/10/2019

LIVE: BLACK COUNTRY, NEW ROAD – 02/10/2019

-YES (THE BASEMENT), MANCHESTER- Wow. Could probably leave this piece at that exclamation and be pretty pleased with how I’ve summed up my experience of this absolutely extraordinary show I’ve just witnessed. Might add ‘mind blown’ and just walk away from it. Because to try and explain to you, dear readers, just how ridiculously, astonishing […]
-BAND ON THE WALL, MANCHESTER- After spending the summer abroad and finally having returned, seeing King Kartel will be my first gig back in Manchester. The Mancunian band hailing from Northern Ireland (mostly) are playing Band On The Wall with support from local bands Global and Narrow Margin. As soon as we enter, we see […]

LIVE: KING KARTEL / NARROW MARGIN / GLOBAL – 04/10/2019

LIVE: THE MYSTERY LIGHTS – 01/10/2019

-NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, MANCHESTER- New York’s The Mystery Lights grace Manchester’s Night and Day Café on a brisk evening signifying the end of the summer but the kick start to the usual autumn plethora of gigs around the city. They are currently mid-way through a mammoth two-month tour of Europe that’ll conclude at the […]
-GORILLA, MANCHESTER- “Thanks for coming out guys, we haven’t really done much since last time so we really appreciate it!” says Camp Cope leader Georgia McDonald in her distinctive Aussie drawl, to much whooping from the crowd. People don’t care that the band haven’t released any new music since their brilliant 2018 LP How To […]

LIVE: CAMP COPE – 25/09/2019

ALBUM REVIEWS: DINOSAUR JR – GREEN MIND, WHERE YOU BEEN, WITHOUT A SOUND, HAND IT OVER

I’ve spent many a happy hour in a Dinosaur Jr moshpit. From Reading Festival (yes I am that old!) to Manc Academy in the 90’s, and still like to get involved in some ferocious head nodding / arms in the air kind of activity whenever I see them live these days too, although my mosh […]
-THE CASTLE HOTEL, MANCHESTER- There is a dreamlike start to Bonniesongs’ set. An array of ethereal layered vocals are intertwined. It is vast, especially for a singular artist on stage. It is like a Sigur Ros track, transporting you to a tundra, or mountain top but wrapping you warm in the expanse with Bonnie’s enticing, […]

LIVE: NATALIE EVANS / BONNIESONGS – 22/09/2019

ALBUM REVIEW: PIXIES – BENEATH THE EYRIE

When the Pixies reformed back in 2004 I was leaping around like a deranged idiot with excitement, the gigs were great, then after a long wait, the comeback album ‘Indie Cindy’ was surprisingly good too, so fifteen years since reforming it seems like business as usual in terms of releasing new material, although no one […]
Having recently performed in a cruise ship as part of their ‘Boaty Weekender’ festival, the ever evolving Scots band release their second film soundtrack album. Sadly I didn’t take the indie rock n’ roll cruise, but apparently there were people there for the bands (Belle and Sebastian, Teenage Fanclub and tons more) plus bizarrely enough, […]

ALBUM REVIEW: BELLE & SEBASTIAN – DAYS OF THE BAGNOLD SUMMER