Mayflower - Manchester Ruby Lounge - 20th November 2015

Mayflower are one of a group of new bands in Manchester that excite us greatly. Still early in their life, having only revealed four demos to us, there's something about them that hasn't fully revealed itself just yet that suggests they're set for bigger things. We caught up with them playing at the Ruby Lounge and left convinced that our gut instinct will be proved right.

Fairchild / Moral Panics - Manchester The Castle - 20th November 2015

We'd heard a lot of great things about Fairchild so were intrigued to see what the Australian six-piece could deliver live at The Castle and we witnessed that tiny room dancing and bouncing like never before as they compelled us all to have as a good a time as they were. We were also mightily impressed by Moral Panics who preceded them.

Track Of The Day 2 : The Slow Readers Club - Don't Mind (Lake Komo Remix)

The Slow Readers Club are releasing a new single Plant The Seed from their 2015 album Cavalcade. Tucked away on the digital b-side is a rather cracking remix of previous single Don't Mind by the fabulous Lake Komo taking time out from building themselves a reputation as a band to keep a watchful eye on in 2016.

My Igloo - Manchester Night And Day - 14th November 2015

The cold nights are drawing in up north and the Manchester music scene seems to be a distinctly winteresque feel to it. Mainstream hitmakers have aged, the last crop of nearly-made-its have gone and the most austerity-hit Mancunia can look forward to is a tired string of comebacks from bands that have nothing new to say. And, yep, its raining. But despair not, My Igloo are determined to bring a freshness lacking on the scene and are making a stir wherever they play. On this Saturday in November as storm Abigail raged outside, the band, now an impressive seven-piece, played their first headline gig at Night and Day. Our guest reviewer Louie tells us more.

Wall Market Racketeers - The Forgotten History Of

The Forgotten History Of The Wall Market Racketeers is the debut album from one of the most intriguing bands on the Manchester scene at present. It mixes reworked versions of tracks from their previous EPs and singles as well as new songs.

Yak - Brighton Prince Albert - 18th November 2015

Yak may only be two EPs into their career, but they've already built up a reputation as a stunning live band and are amassing a growing following. Our South Coast reporter Starter went along to their Brighton show at The Prince Albert and came away confirming that the rumours were true

Track Of The Day 1 : Hidden Charms - Love You Cause You're There

Love You Cause You're There is Hidden Charms' second single in a few months and one that's sure backed with their electric live shows to win them a whole new raft of followers.

The Lottery Winners - Interview

The Lottery Winners have been around for a few years now and we have a soft spot for them at Even The Stars. Always entertaining live and with an ability to forge killer hook after killer hook fused with intelligent and often humorous lyrics they've slowly but surely built themselves a growing fan base. As they plan to release their debut EP via Pledge Music we spoke to drummer Joe who was pretending to be singer Thom.

Hidden Charms / Viola Beach / Lake Komo - Manchester Gullivers - 16th November 2015

We seem to be blessed with a number of great triple-header bills at the moment and this Monday night combination of Hidden Charms, Viola Beach and Lake Komo is another great example. Three contrasting bands in style and approach they fit together well and all three would appear set for bigger stages than this in 2016.

Jo Rose - Manchester Gullivers - 15th November 2015

A jokey cry of "Judas" goes out as Jo Rose makes his way to the stage with his band. A regular and much-loved member of the Manchester acoustic scene is finally going big with a band and Gullivers is packed to witness him transform songs that we've become accustomed to in fragile delicate form transformed by a six-piece band.

Purple Heart Parade - Salford Eagle Inn - 15th November 2015

Purple Heart Parade are on a mission. To pummel you to into submission with the sheer volume and depth to their sound. Armed with both old songs and new, we caught them at Salford's Eagle Inn on Sunday night.

Mammoth Penguins / Violet Woods / Plastic Animals - Edinburgh The Wee Red Bar - 14th November 2015

From a little hidden corner of Edinburgh, Stuart Ralston witnessed Mammoth Penguins, Violet Woods and Plastic Animals deliver a night of quality music to a packed and appreciative audience.

James Announce New Album Girl At The End Of The World and UK Tour

James have announced that their 14th album Girl At The End Of The World will be released on March 18, 2016 and be followed by an extensive UK tour in May.

Jemima Surrender - The Uninhabited World

Jemima Surrender's debut album is a furiously infectious piece of work from the Bristol three-piece. Rammed to the brim with hooks that it's impossible not to be bowled over by the immediacy and directness of their sound and find yourself fascinated by and immersed in an album that doesn't quite play by the conventional rules.

Josephine / James Holt - Manchester Royal Exchange - 13th November 2015

The latest in the series of free entry SFX gigs at Manchester's Royal Exchange Theatre saw a double-header of James Holt and Josephine charm the audience with solo sets.

A Post About Paris

I'm not sure whether this is any way appropriate, but I feel compelled to write about the events that enveloped Paris on Friday night.

Introducing - LIINES

This week's tip on Shell Zenner's show is the fantastic LIINES, a band that we've been championing for most of 2015 since we caught them last December at Gullivers. Chosen by John Kennedy as his Hot One on Tuesday after he read a review we wrote for Louder Than WarAhead of their support slot for Ex Hex at the Ruby Lounge, we caught up with Zoe, Leila and Steph to talk about the release of their new single Never There, how they got together and their plans for 2016.

Reverend And The Makers / The Sherlocks - Manchester Ritz - 13th November 2015

Fifteen hundred people in a room, joined together in one gigantic bouncing frenzy, witnessed Reverend And The Makers triumphant return to Manchester mixing tracks from their career-defining new album Mirrors with songs from their previous four. Support came from Sheffield's very much up and coming The Sherlocks.

Lunar / Mexicola - Manchester Night And Day - 12th November 2015

Lunar are another promising young band on the Manchester scene that are making their mark by standing out from the crowd. They headlined an SSR curated evening at the Night And Day and we went along to check them out. Support came from Mexicola.

Track Of The Day : Our Girl - Sleeper

Our Girl are a Brighton-based three piece about to release their debut single Sleeper (backed with an equally excellent b-side Level) on December 18th. It's an excellent way to introduce themselves with a big calling card guitar intro, beautiful vocal harmonies and an extended and slightly disconcerting outro.

Control Of The Going - Salford Eagle Inn - 11th November 2015

Control Of The Going are one of our most exciting discoveries of 2015. At the start of the year they were a studio project, it wasn't until July that they played their first gig, but now they're regulars on the Manchester gig scene, drawing a full room to open up Astral Elevator's latest night at the cosy Eagle Inn in Salford as they tour the city's venues revealing new songs and new sides to them with every show.

Dexters - Interview

As they take to the road in support of their second album We Paid For Blood we caught up with front man Tom of Dexters before their show at Sheffield Rocking Chair.

Track Of The Day : Meilyr Jones - How To Recognise A Work Of Art

How To Recognise A Work Of Art is the new single by Meilyr Jones, former front man of Race Horses. The track is the latest to be drawn from his album 2013 which is due out in 2016. The song takes a cynical view at the world of art collectors, but it's couched in uplifting brass and a melodic and insistent riff that's infectious and will draw you into the song.

Ex Hex - Manchester Ruby Lounge - 8th November 2015

Ex Hex returned to Manchester for the second time this year to the Ruby Lounge and thrilled us with tracks from last year's Rips and a set full of hooks, riffs and more power than you could imagine from a three-piece.

Track Of The Day : I Kept The Wolves Away - Take A Little

Sheffield three-piece I Kept The Wolves Away might only have released two songs so far, but on the basis of them we think we'll be hearing a lot more of them. We've chosen Take A Little as our Track Of The Day.

Dexters / Hidden Charms / Bang Bang Romeo - Sheffield The Rocking Chair - 7th November 2015

With possibly the best three band line-up we've witnessed this year, Dexters' tour in support of their brilliant second album We Paid For Blood hit Sheffield's Rocking Chair on Saturday night with Hidden Charms and Bang Bang Romeo in tow.  Three very different bands in style and approach, they worked together to produce a night that will live long in the memory.

Mourn - London The Lexington - 5th November 2015

With Hinds acting as trailblazers for new Spanish talent trying to break in the UK, Barcelona's Mourn are looking to try and follow in their footsteps. Our new writer, Starter, caught them at The Lexington in London as they played to an eager and enthusiastic bunch of fans and your average London industry guestlist.

Black Casino And The Ghost - Until The Waters Run Clear

Until The Waters Run Clear is the second Black Casino And The Ghost album, following up on 2013's Some Dogs Think Their Name Is No, and it's a veritable pot-pourri of styles that holds the listener in its grasp as it leads you like a pied piper through a magical mystery tour.

Track Of The Day : The Starkins - Wasted

Rotherham's The Starkins are the next in a fine line of bands to hail from that part of the world. Grounded in the tradition of articulate, slightly off-kilter pop music that inserts itself in your brain and doesn't let go, their latest track Wasted sees them delivering further on the promise of their last single Papercuts and marks them out as a band to keep an eye on.

Track Of The Day : Findlay - Junk Food

Findlay's been away for a while. One of our top three tips for 2015 she's been away freeing herself from a mire of record label machinations, but she's back to close out the year with a stunning new track and an equally eye-catching video called Junk Food.

Catfish And The Bottlemen - Manchester Apollo - 4th November 2015

It's been a meteoric rise for Catfish And The Bottlemen in the last eighteen months, going from the Night And Day to selling out two nights at the Apollo in half a morning. It's a daunting prospect playing to 7,000 people armed with just one solitary album, but it's another move that they take effortlessly in their stride as we witnessed them triumph on the second night.

Track Of The Day : Coves - Stormy

Coves' debut album Soft Friday was number 3 in our Albums of 2014 so we're eagerly anticipating the follow-up due in March next year. After an interim EP Spectrum, Stormy is the first taster of that album.

Eliot Sumner / Caesar - Manchester Castle - 2nd November 2015

There’s no better way to enjoy a bleak winters evening than in a pub, serving real ale, that’s hosting two live bands for the miserly sum of just £7, well that’s just what The Castle Hotel on Oldham Street in the City’s thriving Northern Quarter rustled up on Monday evening for me and the rest of an eternally grateful hot and sweaty crowd.

The Magic Numbers - Manchester Ritz - 3rd November 2015

The Magic Numbers are preparing for a December tour of their own by opening up acoustically for McAlmont and Butler on their tour as well as playing in their band during their set. We caught them at The Ritz where they reminded us all how great their songs are with some singalong moments as well as some where the songs were stripped back to their bones and made to feel intimate even in such a big room.

Richard Hawley - Manchester Albert Hall - 2nd November 2015

There's something magical about Richard Hawley. Seven albums into his career, each one reinventing himself without ever diluting the fine songwriter blood that runs through his veins. He understands what makes great music and carves rather than crafts songs both in the studio and live. A rapt Albert Hall fell under his spell as he played tracks from his latest album Hollow Meadows as well as selected highlights from that immense back catalogue.

James - The Living Room Sessions

Slightly belatedly James have revealed the fifth track, Quicken The Dead, from a session they recorded before the release of their thirteenth album La Petite Mort last summer. Filmed by Ron Yeadon in a South London front room, the session versions of the songs are markedly different from those that appear on the album as the band perform the tracks as a five or six piece in stripped back form.

Georgie - Manchester Castle Hotel - 31st October 2015

There are moments you watch an artist for the first time and you know they're going to be a star. We first saw Rae Morris back in 2012 in a basement bar in London and knew immediately that she was destined for bigger things. Tonight we witnessed a similar experience when we caught Nottingham's Georgie perform a short six-song set in the intimate surroundings of Manchester's Castle Hotel.

Viola Beach - Manchester Night And Day - 31st October 2015

Viola Beach have just been announced as the third band on the sure to be legendary Blossoms and The Vryll Society tour next February and March. We caught up with the Warrington four-piece as they battled with the living dead at This Feeling's monthly club night at the Night And Day Cafe in Manchester and left impressed.

Track Of The Day : Déjà Vega - Pentagrams

Pentagrams and Skeletons In The Florist is the new double A-side single from Even The Stars' favourites Déjà Vega that is released today. Pentagrams has been a live favourite for quite some time now and an obvious choice for a single and it's accompanied by a dark, spooky and a little bit weird video.