TRACK OF THE DAY : LOAstate - Blue Skies

LOAstate have quietly been making their mark around Manchester with little fanfare but packing out venues since they made their live debut at Neighbourhood Festival last year. Their new single Blue Skies seems set to take them up a notch higher and thrust them into the limelight. Julia Grantham takes a listen and finds out more.

PINS - Hot Slick

Hot Slick is PINS' first album for five years, a period where they've undergone a line-up change, losing original members before regrouping as a three-piece. Crunching guitars are replaced by bright synths and drum machines as the music's distinctive characteristic, mirrored by the bold, colourful artwork that represents both the album itself and its accompanying singles. 

TRACK OF THE DAY : Loose Articles - Snake

Loose Articles have released a lockdown video with a difference for Snake, one of the tracks from last year's Orchid Lounge EP that features them making the most of the strange times we find ourselves living in.

Thousand Yard Stare - Interview

Today sees the release of The Panglossian Momentum, Thousand Yard Stare's third studio album, released twenty-seven years after its predecessor Mappamundi. We caught up with front man Stephen Barnes to find out why a one-off reunion has turned into a fully-fledged one with a live album and double EP already under their belt and chatted about the album's writing and recording process and how their sound has changed over time.

Thousand Yard Stare - The Panglossian Momentum

Even The Stars favourites Thousand Yard Stare cement their return with the release of their third longer player, the sublime The Panglossian Momentum.

Machine - Same Old Story EP

Same Old Story is the debut EP from Barnsley four-piece Machine. The follow-up to debut single Machine raw in its delivery and production, but shows an immense amount of potential for a band in its formative stages, having only formed in November 2019.

Section 25 - Duette

Ever evolving Section 25 follow up last year’s excellent Always Now 5 LP box set with an exciting new live album – Duette is their 16th full length record.  Now in their 42nd year, Section 25 concluded 2019 by announcing a new phase under the moniker Section 25 Industrial Unit, with the band stripped back to a core duo of founder Vin Cassidy and long-time member Steve Stringer. Embarking on a short run of shows, Vin and Steve recorded their Vienna show last October and the results are issued here. Stuart Ralston has a listen.

Tim Burgess - I Love The New Sky

Tim Burgess releases his fifth solo album I Love The New Sky via Bella Union on Friday. Recorded over a year, it's Tim's first fully self-written album and features contributions from Grumbling Fur, Factory Floor and the Echo Collective string section. It's a record teeming with ideas, observations about life and friendship delivered with charm and an intuitive intelligence wrapped in a warm comforting musical blanket that reveals many complexities under its top layers as they push boundaries, drift off the beaten track yet remain focused on their destination.

James Holt - Interview

For some musicians, living in lockdown has seen them busier, more productive, more creative and increasingly active on social media, engaging with their fans in many different ways. We chatted to James Holt, who has been known and keenly followed by Even The Stars for some time now, and who was kind enough to speak to us ahead of the release of his new single Pendulum, which dropped today and was produced by James Skelly (The Coral) at Parr Street Studios, to find out what life has been like for him during these unprecedented times. Here, in a unique and in depth interview, we discovered much about the history and background to James’ musical journey thus far, as well as what’s he been up to since being forced to stay indoors, and cancel his gigs.

TRACK OF THE DAY : Glue - Left Without You

Left With You is the debut single from Stockport-based duo Glue who comprise of vocalist and lyricist Liv and producer and guitarist Mary. Confident, packing a punch with gravelly blues influenced vocals fighting against the drum beats and guitars, it's an impressive first offering.

TRACK BY TRACK : The Ryne Experience - Funky Town

Funkytown is the new album from The Ryne Experience released via US label Under The Counter Records. It's described as " a conceptual psychedelic alt-country record following the story of Paul Mashake, a man who has his name, lover, and identity stolen from him by Nameless Sam. As he forms new experiences as a blank slate, he begins to see the world with new eyes, and when he eventually reclaims his past life, he feels like an impostor in his own skin and disillusioned with modern societal life. As Nameless Sam returns to take the one thing that tethered him to his old identity, he snaps and descends into madness."  Ryne walks us through the album.

TRACK OF THE DAY : Ellysse Mason - Something Good

Something Good is the first new material from Ellysse Mason since 2018's Hunt Me Down EP. Accompanied by an home-made isolation video, the single shows her moving away from her folk roots to a more electronic sound without distilling any of the emotional qualities of her vocals or her words.

The Murder Capital - Live From BBC Maida Vale EP

The Murder Capital today release their Live At Maida Vale EP recorded shortly before the lockdown at the legendary BBC Studios. As well as featuring Green And Blue and Don't Cling To Life from their debut album When I Have Fears, it also sees them cover FKA Twigs' Cellophane and they've released a video to accompany that track. Jason Wynne takes a closer listen.

Pink Tears - Pink Tears

Pink Tears is the debut album from Jamie from Blackley M9 (he has a thing with postcodes) who describes himself as "Goff soul // Pop tart // Laptop // Geetar" in his bio. From the park shot of the album's cover through ten songs, he takes you on a twisting, winding journey through the deepest recesses of his creative mind, moments of dark reflection contrasting with those of shiny pop tones, often next to each other. Out of potential chaos comes surprising beauty.

Ellysse Mason - Interview

Ellysse Mason releases her new single Something Good on Friday accompanied by her own lockdown video. We caught up for a chat about her musical roots, her influences, making the video and progress on her debut album.

Ist Ist - Interview

Ist Ist today release their debut album Architecture, five years in the making for one of Manchester's most independent and committed bands who've built a strong dedicated following at home and further afield through an uncompromising approach to their music and their art that accompanies it whilst being ignored by large sections of the new music community. Architecture is an impressive calling card that reflects exactly what Ist Ist are about - from the detail in the songs, their desire to work with a Grammy-winning mastering engineer, the novel approach to releasing each song with accompanying visuals and their choice to continue with the release whilst most of their contemporaries are delaying their albums. We caught up with bass player Andy Keating to talk about all of this and more.

TRACK OF THE DAY : Rules - Wendy

Wendy is the second single to be released by Helsinki duo Rules via the Soliti label. The song forms part of their debut album Rules due for release in August, where all but ones track tell the tales of characters in world literature. Wendy takes up the story of J M Barrie's female protagonist from Peter Pan. It does so with a shining glimmering synth-led track underneath it that feels irresistibly poppy.

Reason Why : Inspiral Carpets Look Back At Their Five Albums And Reveal Unreleased Track For 24 Hours Only

One of the unexpected highlights of the lockdown and the subsequent closure of pretty much everything we've come to know and love about the music scene has been the emergence of the listening party - as devised by Tim Burgess of The Charlatans. One of our favourite bands of all time, Inspiral Carpets, have embraced this more than most with a run of five events alongside Shine On Festival featuring their studio albums - Life, The Beast Inside, Revenge Of The Goldfish, Devil Hopping and Inspiral Carpets. To celebrate the final album in the quintet, the band have decided to release, for twenty-four hours only, Reason Why, an unreleased track from the sessions from the eponymous album.

TRACK OF THE DAY : Rory Wynne - Roses

Rory Wynne returns with his new single, his first of 2020, entitled Roses. Once again it's been written, recorded, produced and mixed in his own studios (entitled RR Studios) and showcases a songwriter confident in his own ability to create big shiny pop songs without losing sight of the indie scene that he came from.

BOOK REVIEW : Flowered Up - A Weekender's Tale

Forming in Camden in 1989, Flowered Up famously graced the music papers Melody Maker and NME, before releasing a record. This was no mean feat. Thirty years on, and fan Matt Mead has assembled a colourful visual history of the band in his new book, compiled with Dave Hewitson. Stuart Ralston has a read.

Bea Sanjust : The White Rock Sessions - Songs On The Home Vol 1

It's four years since Bea Sanjust charmed us with her debut album Larosa, one of those stunning albums that come from an out-of-the-blue recommendation and become one of your most listened records of the time and one you go back to regularly. Since then Bea has been at work with her band on a new set of songs and Songs On The Home Volume 1 (not about the coronavirus we hasten to add) is the first product of those sessions and has a similar impact to the first record.

The Red Stains - Interview

The Red Stains are one of the most hotly-tipped new bands around and today they release their debut single Mannequin. Ferociously independent, vocal and visually striking on stage and on toilet walls around Manchester, they've captured the attention of the likes of Tim Burgess and Kendal Calling before even releasing a single on the back of some grainy demos and live tracks. We caught up with Natalie, Sterling and Ella for a chat about their origins, the graffiti, their uncompromising attitude and the pressures of expectation being placed on their shoulders.

Life At 30 - A Look Back At Inspiral Carpets Debut Album

In April 1990 the sun was shining and Britain had just finished rioting in response to Thatcher’s hated Poll Tax.  Meanwhile in Manchester, prisoners took to the roof of Strangeways to protest at the state of the Victorian prison they were housed in and local lads Inspiral Carpets released their classic debut into the world. Stuart Ralston reflects on one of his favourite records as it reaches its 30th birthday.

TRACK OF THE DAY : Turnstiles - I.D.C.

Hailed by many of our Irish friends as a hot prospect the energetic Galway based five-piece Turnstiles return with a fourth track titled I.D.C. that matches the breathtaking previous releases of Moving Forward, Wasting Away and Tantrum.

TRACK OF THE DAY : Aligners - Sixties Hearse

Aligners' debut single Sixties Hearse is released today. The Warrington four-piece met at college studying music and have built a strong live reputation locally, but their debut single sees them stepping out into the wider world and Sixties Hearse is an impressive first offering.

Ist Ist - Architecture

In five years Ist Ist have slowly built an incredibly loyal following off the back of word-of-mouth, limited edition single and live bootleg releases and two EPs, developing a reputation for exhilarating and uncompromising live shows, first in Manchester and now further afield. On May 1st they self-release their debut album Architecture into a uncertain world - a record to immerse yourself in and let it reveal its deep intertwining yet contrasting layers of beauty and a brutal dark side as we live through these strangest of days.

Egyptian Blue - Body Of Itch EP

Body Of Itch is Egyptian Blue's second EP, the follow-up to last year's Collateral Damage and, fresh off the back of a successful tour with their mates The Murder Capital, it once again marks them out as a band with something to say and a sound and an anger coursing through their music that stands them out from the crowd across the EP's three tracks.

Venus - Wicked Things EP

With three singles under their belt in 2019, Venus release their debut EP Wicked Things featuring three brand new tracks which show them blossoming out, exploring new avenues to their sound at times whilst at others retaining their direct targeted punk anger at whoever crosses into their line of sight.

Natalie McCool - Interview

Liverpool-based singer-songwriter Natalie McCool released her latest single Closure last week taken from her forthcoming third album that's close to completion and slated for a 2021 release. We talk to her about the single, her embrace of a number of different styles in the recording of her album, disappointment at missing out on the SXSW experience this year and what other exciting projects she's currently working on.

TRACK OF THE DAY : Hannah Scott - Shape

Shape is the first track to be taken from Hannah Scott's forthcoming second album, the follow-up to 2018's Pieces Of The Night. Like many of the tracks on that album, Shape is a very personal track, detailing her non-existent relationship with one of her grandmothers due to a family feud and looking at it from the perspective of what stubbornness can cause you to miss out on.

Document - Interview

Document were due to play their biggest headline show last week to celebrate the launch of their five-track EP A Camera Wanders All Night. We caught up with them for a chat about how they came together as band, the creation of the EP and how they are developing as a band and plans for the rest of the year.

TRACK BY TRACK : Harry Stafford With Guitar-Shaped Hammers - Gothic Urban Blues

Harry Stafford might be known to some of you as lead singer and guitarist of cult Manchester 80s band Inca Babies. He's continued to make music, most recently under his own name and last Friday he released his latest album Gothic Urban Blues made with his band Guitar-Shaped Hammers. Harry took time out from isolation to walk us through the ten tracks that make up the record.

TRACK OF THE DAY 2 : Ist Ist - A New Love Song

A New Love Song is the fifth track to be revealed from Ist Ist's forthcoming debut album Architecture. It's a radical reworking, more like a complete reinvention, of one of their earliest songs, slowing it down and taking the fierce intensity of the original early live favourite into something more glacial and majestic.

TRACK OF THE DAY : Slyrydes - I Claim To Be Intelligent

Galway's Slyrydes return with their fifth single I Claim To Be Intelligent. Skeletal in parts, frantic, cluttered and urgent in others and accompanied by a simple video that captures perfectly the themes of mental health and trying to live up to others' expectations, it's the sound of band starting to broaden their horizons as they record their debut album.

Document - A Camera Wanders All Night EP

Document released their debut EP A Camera Wanders All Night last week. Across five songs the Manchester-based five-piece set their own punk agenda that stands them out from many of their contemporaries with a uncompromisingly violent brutalist approach to their art that forces you to stand up and listen to them.

TRACK OF THE DAY : Natalie McCool - Closure

Closure is the latest single to be taken from Natalie McCool's forthcoming third album due for release at some point later this year. As the title suggests, the song deals with the aftermath of a break-up and finally turning your back on the past and looking forward.

The Slow Readers Club - Interview

With their new album The Joy Of The Return nestled in the midweek top five album chart we caught up with The Slow Readers Club's front man Aaron Starkie on the phone to chat about the album's birth, its lyrical themes and artwork as well as the impact of the COVID-19 virus on the band's plans and why their dedicated fan base is so important to them.

TRACK OF THE DAY : Janileigh Cohen - Nothin' Blues

Nothin' Blues is the first new material from Janileigh Cohen in 2020. A live solo performance of the song recently posted to her You Tube channel showcases the Boltonian's stunning evocative voice against a simple setting of an acoustic guitar to magical effect.

TRACK OF THE DAY 2 : Koala Club - No Surprise

Koala Club's second single No Surprise follows hot on the heels of January's 360 single and part of a series of releases planned through 2020. It's got an earworm quality to it from the jangling guitars at the start into the chorus - and looks set to build on their growing fan base and local radio support from the likes of BBC Introducing.

TRACK OF THE DAY : The Lounge Society - Generation Game

The Lounge Society have just signed to indie label Speedy Wunderground and their debut single, all five and a half glorious minutes of it, taking aim at the class and age divide in the way that young people are looked down upon by the media, particularly if they happen also to be working class.

TRACK OF THE DAY : Asthmatic Harp - Bird Of Paradise

Bird Of Paradise is the first track to be taken from Asthmatic Harp's forthcoming EP Things We Learned To Live With that's due out in the summer. It's accompanied by a live performance video that strips away the autoharp of the original recording into a more traditional acoustic track that still retains the fragile, delicate intricate beauty of the original.

The Slow Readers Club - The Joy Of The Return

The Joy Of The Return is The Slow Readers Club's fourth studio album and their first as a full-time band as they aim to follow-up the chart success of its predecessor Build A Tower. Across eleven songs they explore the state of the world, the obsession with social media and the divisive atmosphere it creates as well as revisiting some recurring lyrical themes with a more adventurous musical mindset that's been afforded to them as a full-time band.

The Lottery Winners - Interview

The Lottery Winners released their self-titled debut album on Friday. We caught up with Thom, Katie, Joe and Rob on the day of release just before their live performance at Manchester HMV. We talked about the excitement of the debut album, the trials and tribulations around its recording and release, their big upcoming Manchester Ritz headline and the amazing connection they have with their home town.

The Lottery Winners - Manchester HMV - 13th March 2020

The Lottery Winners celebrated the launch of their self-titled debut album with a short in-store set at Manchester's HMV followed by a signing session.

Rews - Manchester Night People - 13th March 2020

Rews brought their Phoenix tour to Manchester's Night People on Friday night. The new three-piece line up came with a far heavier rockier edge to them, giving us pumped up takes on tracks from their debut Pyro and their forthcoming as-yet-unannounced follow-up.

TRACK OF THE DAY 2 : Ist Ist - Discipline

Discipline is the fourth track to be revealed from Ist Ist's forthcoming debut album Architecture. The live favourite has been in their set for the past year - and like Wolves, You're Mine and Black it's accompanied by a lyric video as Ist Ist attempt to create a body of work that's more than just audio.

Rews - Interview

Rews are embarking on a UK tour in support of Monsters, the second track to be taken from their forthcoming second album. Ahead of their Friday show at Night People in Manchester we caught up with Shauna to talk about the single, the new album, line-up changes and what to expect when they come to town.

TRACK OF THE DAY 1 : The Red Stains - Mother's Ruin (Live)

The Red Stains are one of the hottest most-talked about new bands in town at the moment, having secured a Kendal Calling appearance without a published record to their name. They precede the release of their as-yet-unannounced debut single in April with a couple of live tracks recorded at The Railway Inn in Didsbury last November on their Soundcloud. Mother's Ruin sees Natalie lament on how she's been a disappointment to her parents.

TRACK OF THE DAY : The Slow Readers Club - Killing Me

The Slow Readers Club have released Killing Me, their third single from their forthcoming The Joy Of The Return album due out on March 20th. It's an upbeat commentary on the state of modern society with a critical eye on who runs the world and the collective apathetic silence to it.

Julia Bardo - Manchester Yes - 11th March 2020

Julia Bardo played her "hometown" show in Yes's Pink Room in Manchester on Wednesday night to celebrate the launch of her debut EP Phase and to introduce new material as well as a cover of one of the most recognisable songs ever recorded.