LIVE: JULIEN BAKER – 24/09/2018

-GORILLA, MANCHESTER- If anyone has been following my series of ‘shit, how good are all these incredible young female songwriters at the moment’ reviews, then you’ll know this is approx. entry number 49, with previous editions featuring the likes of Phoebe Bridgers, Soccer Mommy, Florist and Let’s Eat Grandma. There’s just such a magnificent wealth […]
-GORILLA, MANCHESTER- A crucial starting point to any gig, I’m off my tits on Spoons refill coffee. I’m heading to see the performance of my Twittersphere’s latest darling, Mitski. She’s little known to me bar a few enjoyable listens to her latest album, Be The Cowboy. I could be here for that name alone. I […]

LIVE: MITSKI / EERA – 19/09/2018

LIVE: ICEAGE – 09/09/2018

– Gorilla, Manchester – Let’s get this out of the way upfront: I have the biggest man crush on Iceage front man Elias Bender Rønnenfelt. He’s possibly the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen in real life, and his brooding, pouting, strong silent type stage persona (and off stage persona if his interviews are anything […]
-GORILLA, MANCHESTER- We’re in a bit of a golden era for young women making exceptional albums with, gasp, guitars rather than synths and a vocoder, like so many of their male peers. Artists like Snail Mail, Soccer Mommy, Julien Baker, Mitski, Lucy Dacus and tonight’s star turn Phoebe Bridgers are all making brilliant, emotional, funny, […]

LIVE: PHOEBE BRIDGERS – 19/08/2018

INTERVIEW – IDLES (Joe & Bowen)

The Idles boys were back in town, so we (Max & Simon) though it best to have a quick catch up with them, our last meeting was the December of 2016 ahead of their Night and Day Cafe show. Almost 18 months later we’re back stage at Gorilla before they entertain Manchester on a much […]
-GORILLA, MANCHESTER- The steam rising from the oversold and packed crowd gathered in Gorilla on this warm early Summer’s evening is testament to just how huge this band have become in a short space of time. Plus it’s also proof that no matter how much Manchester’s skyline changes with new developments, as the city expands, […]

LIVE: ROLLING BLACKOUTS COASTAL FEVER – 21/05/2018

LIVE: DRENGE – 02/05/2018

-GORILLA, MANCHESTER- My only live experience of Sheffield-based Drenge prior to tonight was in a television studio in Kent, the band performing a couple of songs to promote its self-titled début album in 2013. At the time, Drenge was very much just youthful brothers Rory (drums) and Eoin (vocals and guitar). Watching them perform, one […]
-GORILLA, MANCHESTER- It’s three days since I was last in exactly the same place, and four since I conked my head on, of all places, the floor. On my way in the bouncer also knocks his head, on the less ridiculous place of the brick arch he is standing under at the entrance to Gorilla. […]

LIVE: HINDS – 17/04/2018

LIVE: THE ORIELLES – 14/04/2018

-GORILLA, MANCHESTER- Disclaimer: yesterday I hit myself on the head embarrassingly forcefully. With that mild concussion in mind, I’ll be keeping this brief. The album sleeve for The Orielles’ Silver Dollar Moment is smears and dabs of bright colours. For myself, and maybe others, the record came along without warning. From nowhere, the chimes of […]
-GORILLA, MANCHESTER- Idles have not been an easy band to see in Manchester since they caught fire at the tail end of 2016. Their only appearance last year was at the Neighbourhood Festival in October, their Spring tour curiously skipping Cottonopolis. It all means that the anticipation tonight at Gorilla as they take the stage […]

LIVE: IDLES – 18/04/2018