LIVE: DAN MICHAELSON & THE COASTGUARDS – 11/09/2014

– THE CASTLE HOTEL, MANCHESTER – Dan Michaelson has always struck me as endearingly old fashioned, in that he concerns himself with the craft of writing songs, and the subtlety of his songs on record demonstrate a becalmed, bleached and sparse beauty, where space and brevity become sumptuous and rich. In the live setting the […]
Manchester promoters Northern Noise and Forced Fun are thrilled to announce that their next show will be on September 28th with the fantastic Brighton three-piece, Fear Of Men. They’ll be playing Manchester’s Castle Hotel, an 80 capacity venue for a one-off special show to celebrate the launch of debut album Loom. The band will be no […]

FEAR OF MEN ANNOUNCE INTIMATE MANCHESTER GIG

LIVE: HAPPYNESS – 20/06/2014

– THE CASTLE HOTEL, MANCHESTER – For the second time in four days I’m at the Castle for some live music. Tonight’s lineup features Happyness with support from Manchester’s Butcher The Bar. Taking advantage of a warm evening, much of the crowd crammed into the outside area at the back of the venue awaiting the […]
– THE CASTLE HOTEL, MANCHESTER – It’s Tuesday night, the Castle’s selection of ales are flowing and we have four acts to look forward to tonight. Billed as a co-headline show for Literature Thieves and Natalie McCool, support comes from See Emily Play and The Bear Around Your Neck. Slowly making his way to stage, […]

LIVE: LITERATURE THIEVES / NATALIE MCCOOL – 17/06/2014

LIVE: PAWS – 05/06/2014

– THE CASTLE HOTEL, MANCHESTER – I love a good freebie. If it’s going free, I’m on it. I’ve always got a keen eye on Twitter, looking for whatever I can get my claws on. So I was delighted when it was announced a couple of months back that the rad Glaswegian three piece Paws […]
– THE CASTLE HOTEL, MANCHESTER – “A sunny day in Manchester – cause for celebration!” Tom Hickox says with a knowing smile, connecting with his audience before a single note is struck. While the content of his songs are not always celebratory, the quality of them is certainly worth cherishing. Pitching a look somewhere between […]

LIVE: TOM HICKOX – 21/05/2014

LIVE: ELLEN & THE ESCAPADES – 15/03/2014

– THE CASTLE HOTEL, MANCHESTER – Described on their website as a “very exclusive intimate gig”, Ellen & The Escapades come to Manchester to road test some new songs. It feels like The Castle have tried to create a dual purpose gig venue and sauna this evening. I don’t think it works too well though, […]
SHINIES grew out of the late night jams of Ric, Adam and Tom in a South Manchester basement, fueled by a mutual love of loud noises, discordant chords, catchy melodies and cheap cider. Their sound exudes walls of swirling guitars underscored by poppy hooks, relying heavily on melody, drive and frantic rhythms. Having released two singles in […]

NEWS: SHINIES/BEST FRIENDS/MISTOA POLTSA – MANCHESTER SHOW

NEWS: LOOM – MANCHESTER SHOW

Grunge outfit LOOM will be playing at The Castle on 19th December as part of their sardonically festive ‘Season’s Beatings’ tour. Those who saw them tear Trof Fallowfield to shreds BACK in June can vouch for their anarchic Nirvana ‘In Utero’ inspired brand of guttural guitar aggression. Support comes from Manchester’s raucous two-piece Bad Grammar, […]
In an era where bands like Green Day sounded Punk, Nirvana were Punk. Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon on guitar showed thousands of girls they didn’t just have to follow the band, they could BE the band…They came, they pissed about, they made great music… Sonic Youth and Nirvana shaped a generation.  Twisted Reel, the new […]

FILM SCREENING: TWISTED REEL PRESENTS ‘1991 THE YEAR PUNK BROKE’