TRACK OF THE DAY : Gardenback - Health And Wellbeing

Gardenback's new single Health And Wellbeing is released today to coincide with their biggest headline show to date at Manchester's Soup Kitchen.

TRACK OF THE DAY : The Maitlands - Kisses For The Masses

The Maitlands return with a new single Kisses For The Masses and more line-up changes. Often described as being influenced by The Fall, it seems that only applies to movements in members of the band as Kisses For The Masses recalls the heady romanticism of pre-success Pulp, but couched in the here and now in North Manchester.  It's their finest moment to date.

The Happy Soul - Interview

Manchester four-piece The Happy Soul recently released their second album Big Wow and launch it with a headline show at Salford's Kings Arms on Saturday. We caught up with them for a chat about the making of the album, their use of a string quartet and vocal harmonies and their plans for the rest of the year.

TRACK OF THE DAY : The Lucid Dream - Alone In Fear

The Lucid Dream have revealed Alone In Fear, the second track to be taken from their forthcoming fourth album Actualisation that will be released on October 19th.

TRACK OF THE DAY : James - Coming Home Pt 2

James have revealed the video for Coming Home Pt 2, the latest single to be taken from their forthcoming 15th studio album Living In Extraordinary Times, due for release on August 3rd. The video was filmed “on zero budget” in California by Tim’s long-time friend, director Leif Tilden.

Kristin Hersh - Halifax Square Chapel Arts Centre - 25th June 2018

Kristin Hersh is on a short UK tour ahead of the release of a new solo album as well as an in-progress Throwing Muses record. Without a North West date we made the short trip across to Halifax’s impressive Square Chapel Arts Centre for an intimate one hour set of both solo and band tracks performed with just an acoustic guitar on a solitary stage.

The Happy Soul - Big Wow - Track By Track

Manchester four-piece The Happy Soul recently released their second album Big Wow. Ahead of their album launch show this Saturday (June 30) with a string quartet at Salford Kings Arms Theatre, they walked us through the twelve tracks that make up the record.

Belly - Glasgow The Garage - 16th June 2018

The devastating fire that destroyed the Glasgow School Of Art and the O2 ABC on Friday night had put this show in doubt. But the never-say-die spirit of the Glasgow music community saw The Garage step up and offer the use of their venue for Belly's show on Saturday night where they took the crowd's mind off the devastation a few hundred metres away with a two-set joyous combination of songs from their two 1990s albums Star and King and a heavy lean towards their wonderful comeback album Dove.

SKIES - Interview

SKIES recently released their third EP X following their support slots with The Slow Readers Club. We met up with Alie and Jericho before the Nottingham date of the tour to discuss the songs on the EP.

Afghan Sand Gang - Machine Music EP

Afghan Sand Gang are another of the emerging new bands coming out of Manchester. Rather than adopting the full-on guitar approach of many of their contemporaries, they instead focus on the machine music that has given this debut EP their name. It's a record that doesn't seek to blow you away with volume or power, but instead adopts a more seductive mysterious manner in order to draw you in and win you over.

Belly - Manchester Ritz - 12th June 2018

Belly made a triumphant return to Manchester after their comeback show in 2016 armed with their new album Dove and a set of old favourites from their two 1990s albums Star and King. A two-hour set split over two sections mixed old and new together with a real continuity of sound between songs written nearly twenty five years apart.

King Of The Slums - Artgod Dogs

Hailing from mid 80s Hulme in Manchester, King of the Slums have a long and chequered history.  New album Artdog Gods is their sixth studio album. Stuart Ralston has a listen.

John Bramwell - Bury Met - 8th June 2018

John Bramwell continued his never-ending touring cycle with a return to the splendid setting of Bury Met's newly-refurbished Derby Hall to play to an attentive respectful audience with a set of songs that spanned his career from early I Am Kloot records to his debut solo album Leave Alone The Empty Spaces and an as yet unreleased new song, accompanied by Alan Lowles on keyboards, accordion and bass.

Déjà Vega - Manchester Band On The Wall - 7th June 2018

Déjà Vega brought their unique brand of noise to Band On The Wall on Thursday night as part of Shell Zenner's Amazing Radio Free Vibes night. A seven-song set confirmed their status as one of the most exhilarating live bands in town with their growing band of admirers joining in with the "DEJA""VEGA" call and response chant and them winning over a new set of curious onlookers with their at times vicious onslaught.

Patti Smith - Manchester Apollo - 5th June 2018

Patti Smith returned to Manchester Apollo as part of a short UK and Ireland tour to coincide with festival slots. In front of a reverential Manchester crowd, who chose this legend over the Stones down the road at Old Trafford, she held them spellbound in her oft outstretched arms as she mixed most of her best known work with an intriguing selection of covers and a series of natural witty and humorous between song anecdotes.

Matter Of Mind - Manchester Jimmy's - 1st June 2018

Matter Of Mind headlined the latest instalment of This Feeling club night in the intimate surroundings of Jimmy’s basement. A blistering half hour set that barely paused for breath got a rapturous reception that confirmed the growing belief that their breakthrough is just around the corner.

The Pastels - Glasgow McIntosh Church - 1st June 2018

A rare outing for one of Scotland's most important, influential bands in the beautiful surroundings of McIntosh Church sees Stuart Ralston and a packed audience enthralled.

SKIES - X EP

SKIES release their third EP X on Friday following recent support dates with The Slow Readers Club. For fans of the band already, the four tracks will both sound familiar but over the course of the EP they experiment with new variants on their uplifting sound and boundless energy.

Ryan Jarvis - Rosie EP

Ryan Jarvis's new EP Rosie is his first new material in over a year and whilst it contains much of the battered, bruised romanticism of living in a northern town, it also represents a step up in terms of the title track and the release of two established live favourites.

James / Ride / Low Island / Maximo Park - Oxford Common People - 27th May 2018

James concluded their mini intimate venue and festival tour with a headline slot at Oxford's Common People festival on Sunday night on a bill that also included an emotional homecoming show for Ride, a set by up-and-coming local band Low Island and an entertaining career-spanning set from Maximo Park.

James - Southampton Common People - 26th May 2018

James started their festival season with the Southampton leg of the Common People festival. A co-headline slot with Lily Allen saw them given an hour and a quarter slot, enough to allow them to introduce an all-ages crowd to new material from their Living In Extraordinary Times album as well as deliver them some old favourites.

The Slow Readers Club / October Drift - London Islington Assembly Hall - 25th May 2018

The Slow Readers Club played their biggest headline date outside of their native Manchester at Islington Assembly Hall in London on Friday night. A celebration of the recent top 20 success of their third album Build A Tower, they blew away a crowd of devotees and those who've only recently discovered the band with a ninety-minute non-stop stomp through songs from all of their three albums. Support came from an energetic performance from October Drift.

Sahara / The Roques - Perth The Green Room - 17th May 2018

Perth's premier venue plays host to two promising Dundee bands who have made the short journey through to play to a packed and enthusiastic crowd. Stuart Ralston enjoys a rare home town gig.

James - Oban Corran Halls - 23rd May 2018

Stuart Ralston ventures to the picturesque Scottish town of Oban on a beautiful summer's evening to catch old favourites James, and witnesses something spectacular.

James / Lanterns On The Lake - Middlesbrough Town Hall - 22nd May 2018

James continued their Better Than That tour with a sold-out at the recently refurbished Middlesbrough Town Hall. In front of a seated crowd that didn’t remain that way for long, they debuted another new song, resurrected an old favourite and introduced some new selections from their back catalogue. Support came from Lanterns On The Lake, playing the closest they get to a hometown show on this tour.

James / Lanterns On The Lake - Halifax Victoria Theatre - 20th May 2018

James continued their Better Than That tour with a twenty-three song set covering all bases of their career from debut album Stutter right through to six songs from their as-yet-unreleased fifteenth studio album Living In Extraordinary Times. Over two and a half hours of moments of musical magic and death-defying moments captured on film, James proved exactly why they have no equals on the live stage. Support came from Newcastle’s Lanterns On The Lake.

James / Lanterns On The Lake - Blackburn King George's Hall - 19th May 2018

James continued their Better Than That tour with a sold-out Saturday night show at Blackburn's King George's Hall, a venue they hadn't visited for twenty-seven years. Dan Starr was at the show for us and reports back on a night of new songs and old favourites. Support came from Lanterns On The Lake.

The Slow Readers Club - Northwich Library - 19th May 2018

As part of The Charlatans' North By Northwich Festival, The Slow Readers Club headlined the town's library. In slightly surreal surroundings with bookcases moved out of the way to create a stage and a powerful sound system to accommodate a set that covered all three of their albums to date in front of a partisan hardcore of the band's fan base that had travelled from far and wide for this unique experience.

Average Sex - Manchester Jimmy's - 18th May 2018

As part of The Charlatans North By Northwich Festival, the Friday night show was broadcast live to a number of venues across the country, many of which had a live band as support. At Jimmy's in Manchester that band was Average Sex, one of the most exciting new bands around. They ignored the small numbers that had turned up early to deliver a set that was every bit as thrilling as if the room was full and bouncing.

James / Lanterns On The Lake - Warrington Parr Hall - 17th May 2018

James' Better Than That tour continued into its second night with a first return to Warrington's Parr Hall since the band filmed a live concert of their then-unreleased Seven album. In front of a packed crowd, they recreated the feel of that with songs from their forthcoming Living In Extraordinary Times album, as well as revisiting both some of their biggest hits and some rarities pulled out of the deep rabbit hole of their extensive back catalogue. Support came from Newcastle's Lanterns On The Lake.

Jess Kemp - Interview

Jess Kemp releases her latest single No Shouting / On The Ground today and celebrates with a co-headline show at Manchester's Deaf Institute tonight. We caught up with the proudly independent songwriter for a chat about the two new songs, her songwriting process and how she got into music in the first place.

ILL - We Are ILL

ILL’s debut album has been a long time coming. The volatile boundary-challenging band have made their name in Manchester and beyond with their voracious mix of styles and approaches to their art and a series of often chaotic on the brink of breakdown live shows. We Are Ill somehow manages to distil this melting pot into an album that demands your full attention, often baffling, spliced with moments of off-the-wall genius that you’d blink and miss as the next curveball smacks in you right between the eyes.

James / Lanterns On The Lake - Llandudno Venue Cymru - 16th May 2018

James opened their Better Than That tour at Llandudno Venue Cymru with a set that mixed half of their newly-announced Living In Extraordinary Times with some old Best Of era favourites, highlights of their most recent two albums as well as the odd rarity. Support came from Newcastle’s wonderful Lanterns On The Lake, eventually making their bow with James after years of trying to make the support slot work.

The Magic Numbers - Outsiders

The Magic Numbers return with their fifth album Outsiders, their first since 2014's Alias. Whilst their commercial star might have dimmed since they burst onto the scene over a decade ago, they come out fighting with the best record of their career to date.

James Announce Living In Extraordinary Times Album

James have announced the release of their fifteenth studio album Living In Extraordinary Times on August 3rd. Featuring Hank and Better Than That from their Better Than That EP plus ten additional tracks as well as four further songs on a deluxe version, the album is available in a number of formats to pre-order from the James webstore.

TRACK OF THE DAY : James - Hank

Hank is the final track to be revealed from James' upcoming Better Than That EP, to be released on May 18 to coincide with a run of seven intimate shows to preview their fifteenth album due in July and two festival appearances. It's a scathing attack on Donald Trump and US society under his presidency and also represents a sonic departure for the band.

Déjà Vega - Northwich The Salty Dog - 14th May 2018

Déjà Vega opened up the North By Northwich Festival with an no-holds barred seven-song set in the Salty Dog on the town's pedestrianised High Street. An intimate setting for the Winsford band, they took the opportunity to win over new converts curious at the band hand-picked by The Charlatans as their semi-official support for their own show over the road at Memorial Court.

The Charlatans - Northwich Memorial Court - 14th May 2018

Returning home for a week-long festival to celebrate their hometown of Northwich, now called North By Northwich in honour of the Austin festival, The Charlatans played the first of four sold out nights at the town’s Memorial Court with a career spanning set from their debut album Some Friendly right through to two tracks from their forthcoming EP Totally Eclipsing, from which two tracks are debuted tonight.

TRACK BY TRACK : The Slow Readers Club - Build A Tower

The Slow Readers Club entered the UK album charts at number 18 with their third album Build A Tower this week. As part of the campaign, they released a series of videos to accompany the release where they walked through the history and meaning of some of the songs.

Neon Waltz - Dundee Beat Generator - 10th May 2018

Scotland's hardest working band bring their brand of 60s influenced pop tinged psych to a packed Dundee crowd and Stuart Ralston joins them.

The Slow Readers Club / SKIES - Nottingham Rock City - 12th May 2018

The seemingly unstoppable The Slow Readers Club bandwagon rolled into Nottingham and the iconic Rock City venue for the biggest show of their Build A Tower tour and the band took on the cavernous hall and made it feel intimate. Support came from SKIES.

The Slow Readers Club / SKIES - Hull Welly - 11th May 2018

With the announcement that Build A Tower had entered the album charts at number eighteen, a phenomenal success for not just The Slow Readers Club, but their growing army of loyal followers and every band that is playing the local circuit of their hometown starved of the attention of radio and media that has belief in what they're doing. A party atmosphere ensued in a hot, sweaty and packed to the rafters Welly Club in Hull.  Support came from SKIES.

The Slow Readers Club / Wild Front - Newcastle Riverside - 10th May 2018

The Slow Readers Club bandwagon rolled into Newcastle on Thursday night on their Build A Tower tour. A triumphant show saw them win over an initially cautious audience by the sheer power of their performance and discover their festival-slaying, radio-conquering moment in the process. Support came from Southampton's Wild Front.

EXCLUSIVE : TRACK OF THE DAY : Jess Kemp - On The Ground

We're delighted to exclusively reveal On The Ground, the first of two new singles from Jess Kemp ahead of her co-headline show at the Deaf Institute in Manchester next Friday (May 18).

David Ford - Animal Spirits

David Ford returns with his fifth studio album Animal Spirits, a collection of songs written about the concepts of macroeconomics applied to day to day situations. We asked long term fan Andy Sweeney to have a listen to the album and compose his thoughts.

The Slow Readers Club - Manchester HMV - 8th May 2018

The Slow Readers Club continued their campaign in support of their Build A Tower album, announced earlier as being number twelve in the midweek charts, with a hastily-arranged full band acoustic performance in the HMV store in Manchester Arndale. In front of a crowd of all ages, they played five songs - a mix of three from Build A Tower and two from their previous album Cavalcade.