James / The Slow Readers Club - Nottingham Royal Centre - 6th December 2016

James returned to Nottingham Royal Centre to fulfil the gig they had to cancel at the end of their May tour due to Tim Booth's illness to deliver a set full of songs from their number 2 album Girl At The End Of The World as well as highlights from their pre- and post-reformation. Support came from an impressive set from Manchester's The Slow Readers Club who now feel very much at home in these big venues.

Pixies / Fews - Manchester Apollo - 4th December 2016

Pixies' latest tour in support of their second post-comeback album Head Carrier hit Manchester Apollo on Sunday night. A thirty-four song set covered all bases in their career from Surfer Rosa through to their latest album and left us with one of the most spectacular encores we've witnessed. Support came from the excellent Fews.

The Slowdown Family / Baby Brave - Manchester Gorilla - 2nd December 2016

 

Back in September, Liam Frost reunited The Slowdown Family for the tenth anniversary of their debut album Show Me How The Spectres Dance. At the end of the shows he revealed that they were writing new music for a record that they hope to release in 2017. This first show since then revealed a couple of new songs, revisited some old favourites and a little Christmas spirit. Main support came from Baby Brave.

The Vacant Lots - Berlin EP

American psych duo The Vacant Lots return with a sparkling four track EP. Stuart Ralston reviews.

The Maitlands - Manchester Aatma - 2nd December 2016

The Maitlands might never worry the scorers in the pop charts, but we suspect they care about that even less than we do. Outsiders on the vibrant live scene in Manchester, they probably also care little about that fact too, happy to play their own merry way around the venues of the city. We caught up with them in the cosy surroundings of Aatma as they headlined the first Atomic Catfight club night.

Track Of The Day : Keep Dancing Inc - Alright

Alright is the new single from Parisian trio Keep Dancing Inc ahead of their debut UK tour which calls in at Manchester's Soup Kitchen on Tuesday night (December 6).

Blossoms / Inheaven - Manchester Albert Hall - 3rd December 2016

2016 has undoubtedly been Blossoms' year. Tipped as the next big thing by pretty much everyone (except us, as they topped our 2015 list), they delivered a number one album which managed the rare feat for a debut of holding on to the spot for a second week as well as constant touring around the UK and further afield. As they top of the year with another sold out UK tour we caught up with their second night at Manchester's Albert Hall for a triumphant homecoming (of sorts, Stopfordians) supported by Inheaven.

Cabbage - Salford White Hotel - 2nd December 2016

Deep in darkest Salford is The White Hotel, formerly known as The Bunker, an old garage where the pit acts as a bar and acts perform in a cage whilst the audience are in the adjoining one. It's an unusual place to catch a band that's everywhere at the moment - BBC Sound Of 2017, Blossoms and Courteeners supports to name just two, but Cabbage are no ordinary band as they proved with a chaotic performance in the smallest place you're likely to see them for a long time.

Heidrik - Funeral

Funeral is the second album by Faroese artist Heidrik. It's a magnificent piece of art, delicate in its construction but opulent in its furnishings, easy to immerse yourself in but with depths that reveal themselves with each listen. It's given us food for thought in our already shifting album of the year poll.

Track Of The Day : New Luna - Noise

Noise is the lead track from Manchester four-piece New Luna's debut EP due out next week. The four-piece have spent their summer honing their craft at festivals across the country in anticipation of their first proper release.

The Cure / The Twilight Sad - Manchester Arena - 29th November 2016

It's twenty years since The Cure last played Manchester Arena and as they returned to the UK at the end of a year-long world tour expectations were high amongst the 16,000 sold out crowd. The career- spanning set was cut short by Robert Smith's vocal issues but they still delighted with a two hour mix from most of their albums leaving their biggest songs to the end. Support came from Glaswegian heroes The Twilight Sad.

Lanterns On The Lake - Live With Royal Northern Sinfonia

Back in February, Lanterns On The Lake collaborated with the Royal Northern Sinfonia for a one-off show at The Sage in Gateshead. Bella Union have just released a digital version of ten of the songs from one of our favourite shows of the year and it's every little bit as special as we remembered.

LIINES - Manchester Aatma - 26th November 2016

Aatma played host to LIINES' hometown launch show for their first physical release, the double A-side single Be Here / Disappear, on Saturday night. A packed crowd was delighted by a forty minute set that left both band and audience gasping for breath.

Track Of The Day : Lucia Fontaine - When I Think Of You

When I Think Of You is the third track to be revealed by Glasgow's Lucia Fontaine from her forthcoming Best Boy EP which will also include her previous tracks Best Boy and Lose My Mind,

Trampolene - Divided Kingdom (Pocket Album Five)

Divided Kingdom is the fifth in the series of Pocket Albums that Trampolene have released over the past couple of years. As with previous releases there's a huge variety on show from full-on everything turned up rock songs to delicate heartwrenching acoustic tracks and poetry from one of Britain's most underrated bands.

Cabbage - Terrorist Synthesizer EP

Terrorist Synthesizer is the final in a trilogy of Cabbage EPs, released one a month over the past three, that will make up their Young, Dumb And Full Of... record that's coming out in January.

October Drift / Larkins / Plastic House / Sly Antics - Manchester Dive NQ - 24th November 2016

Four bands playing for free on a Thursday night? When it's the calibre of established acts such as October Drift and Larkins playing a venue much smaller than their previous Manchester headline shows, then it's too good to turn down especially when highly tipped local acts Plastic House and Sly Antics are also on the bill.

Weyes Blood - Manchester Castle Hotel - 23rd November 2016

With the critical success of recent album Front Row Seat To Earth still ringing in her ears, Natalie Mering brought Weyes Blood to a packed out sweltering Castle music room in Manchester for a ten song set that focused heavily on that record but also gave a glimpse of her previous work.

Craig Douglas Gill - A Tribute

Craig Douglas Gill was drummer in Inspiral Carpets, but he was much more than that. He was a father and husband first, a friend second and a musician and music lover third. His death on Sunday at the age of 44 leaves a massive hole in the lives of all three of those worlds. In the absence of being able to do anything else meaningful, we'd like to pay tribute to an incredible drummer, a dry witted, intelligent and humorous man that we feel privileged to have been able to call a friend.

Track Of The Day : High Hazels - Joined At The Lip

Joined At The Lip is the first product of High Hazels' recording sessions for their second album which will be preceded by a new EP next year, their first material in eighteen months since their Valencia single was taken from their self-titled debut. It's unmistakably them from the very first second, but it feels like a massive progression in both sound and ambition.

Spaceheads - Laughing Water

Spaceheads have augmented themselves to a trio for their new album Laughing Water, inviting Vincent Bertholet on double bass to join their trumpet and drums duo to record an album that's been eleven years in the making. It bears all the hallmarks of Spaceheads previous albums but the addition of Bertholet brings different nuances to the record which at points feels like they're making a commercial grab whilst at others sees them retreat further into delicate jazz-tinged improvisations that were captured at the moment of creation never to be repeated in that way.

Fairchild / Young Monarch / Carnival Club - Manchester Soup Kitchen - 19th November 2016

This is Fairchild's last gig for a while in their adopted hometown of Manchester as they move onto pastures new. Soup Kitchen is packed to the point it's almost impossible to move, but two hundred or so answer the call of dance that Fairchild's big 80s tinged rock sends so clearly from the stage. Support came from two of the most impressive bands on the local scene at the moment - Young Monarch and Carnival Club.

Track Of The Day : John Bramwell - Leave Alone The Empty Spaces

Leave Alone The Empty Spaces is the title track from John Bramwell's forthcoming debut solo album. He's released a video of the song being performed recently at Manchester's Royal Northern College Of Music.

Lunar - Manchester Night And Day Cafe - 19th November 2016

One of Manchester's fastest rising bands Lunar headlined the latest This Feeling club night at the Night And Day Cafe on Saturday night to a packed crowd of their ever-expanding fan base and those curious to see what all the fuss is about. A seven-song set crammed full of singles present and future kept the hot and sweaty room dancing and wanting more.

The Slow Readers Club / Puppet Rebellion / Larkins - Manchester Ritz - 18th November 2016

Selling out the Ritz two months in advance is no mean feat for an established touring band with major label support. The list of well-known artists that have experienced chart success without a Sold Out next to their name on the Ritz's posters is testament to what The Slow Readers Club achieved in doing just that. Fifteen hundred people crammed into the hallowed space to witness an unsigned band powered by their own pockets and their own hard work and masses of love alone deliver a night that people will talk about for years to come. Support came from Puppet Rebellion and Larkins.

Reverend And The Makers - Manchester Gorilla - 17th November 2016

Across the road from Gorilla, Reverend And The Makers have a habit of making the legendary bouncy dancefloor resemble a trampoline from start to finish of their customary tour stop off. Tonight is a different beast altogether though as they embark on an acoustic tour that strips back some of their best known songs as well as some of their favourites to their bare bones. It doesn't stop Gorilla heaving, sweating and at times drowning them out in a room full of love and adoration.

Track Of The Day : Dutch Uncles - Big Balloon

One of the country's most under-rated bands Dutch Uncles have announced details of their fifth album Big Balloon to be released via Memphis Industries on February 17th. They've also revealed the rather striking title track which heralds a return to the more guitar based sounds of their earlier records.

Ryley Walker / Itasca - Manchester Piccadilly Records / Ruby Lounge - 14th November 2016

Ryley Walker is a unique character in the music industry, a man with an immense talent that refuses to play by any rules other than his own, which tend to be to do whatever the hell he likes. He returned to Manchester on Monday night for his fourth show in the last eighteen months, each one different in set up, in band mates and in style. Plugged in this time round with a band of four brothers in tow, he proceeded to play an hour and forty five minute set with just eight songs to an absolutely captivated audience. He was supported by Kayla Cohen who performs under the name Itasca. Prior to the show he rocked up at Piccadilly Records with just an acoustic guitar and proceeded to play four songs with no amplification.

Luckless / Thomas And The Empty Orchestra / Katie O'Malley - Manchester Gullivers - 12th November 2016

Luckless, aka Ivy Rossiter, hit Manchester for the first time since her 2015 performance at A Carefully Planned Festival on Saturday night, playing an intimate show in the lounge room at Gullivers. We caught up her playing songs from her last album Vindication Blues as well as songs from her next record, hopefully due out in 2017. Support came from Sheffield's Thomas And The Empty Orchestra and Katie O'Malley.

Kristin Hersh - Manchester Palace Hotel / Gorilla - 12th/13th November 2016

Kristin Hersh is in the middle of a rare UK tour to support the release of her new book and double CD entitled Wyatt At The Coyote Palace. We caught her in conversation with John Robb and performing a short acoustic set at the Louder Than Words Festival at Manchester's Palace Hotel on Saturday afternoon before Sunday's sold out show round the corner at Gorilla.