Not often does a night split itself into extremes as much as this. Opening act Hammers start the night painfully dull for such a crushingly heavy band and, whilst anything but dull, following act Iron Will’s haphazard set leaves you wondering if it is deliberate that they sound so incredibly out of time from one another. No surprise then that they announce to the waiting crowd that they are looking for a new drummer.

Bugged Out! has been at the cutting edge of electro since its conception at Sankeys in 1994. However, the drought of bodies at the door suggested that the excitement surrounding electro-house at the end of the last decade had finally subsided. Luckily, the night left a convincing impression of where the future of this sub-genre may lie.

Let me first begin by stating that I like PJ Harvey. I like concept albums. I like history. And I like weird, plinky music. If these things are not true of you, you may not share my enthusiasm for Let England Shake.

The music world erupted in both tribute and despair last week when The White Stripes announced they were no more. Rob Fuller looks back at their career.

James Blake’s self titled debut album is under scrutiny this time around as Sophie Donovan and Phoebe Hurst

The Creole Choir of Cuba’s invocatory, cultural whirlwind of a performance at the RNCM left me both astounded and invigorated; grateful that at least in other parts of the world there are musicians who stick to their roots rather than becoming over-produced and losing that raw ‘spirit’ of music. The Creole Choir is not simply a group formed to showcase the outstanding natural talent of their individual voices, they fervently fight to depict the plight of their ancestors who were bought from Africa and forced to work in slave conditions in the sugar and coffee plantations of Cuba.

As expected, The Warehouse Project returns this Easter, dragging us in our droves to get up to all kinds of mischief until the very early hours of the morning. Headliners include the French techno DJ Laurent Garnier, Steve Angello of the Swedish House Mafia, dubstep producer Skream, as well as further regulars to the Manchester scene Andy C and Shy FX.

The second of four Easter weekend nights at the Warehouse Project sees the return of a series of bug names.
Skream is back after an appearance with Magnetic Man in October and with huge new releases under his belt including the recent collaboration with Example, ‘Shot Yourself In The Foot Again’, and his remix of Cassius’ ‘I Love You So’, be sure to expect a memorable set of chart-toppers, dubstep favourites and everything you need to party to.

Youmeatsix were one of the highest rising bands of 2010, having played the British invasion of the US Warped Tour (which also included Enter Shikari and Bring Me the Horizon); the main stage at Reading and Leeds and finally ended the year supporting the album, Hold Me Down, released in January.

Deerhoof have lingered in the left field of pop idiosyncrasy for more than a decade, loved by critics and existing as a name that is ever-present in the music blogosphere. While their influence is cited by many of the most innovative artists in the alternative world, they have yet to pierce the skin of the mainstream in the way bands such as Grizzly Bear have in the past couple of years. With Deerhoof vs. Evil, their critical adoration will continue, although whether they can gain the level of visibility that has so far eluded them remains to be seen.

Before listening to this album, my only previous encounter with Iron & Wine was via the overly twee ballad ‘Such Great Heights’, courtesy of the Garden State soundtrack. Thus, I was pleasantly surprised by the overall content of Kiss Each Other Clean.

Most grime novices will know the name Skepta as being that of the man partly to blame for an embarrassing dance craze, known as the ‘Rolex Sweep,’ (a kind of, ghetto Macarena). But he may also have reached your radar lately in the form of the recent chart tracks ‘Bad Boy’ and ‘Rescue Me,’ from his third studio album Doin’ it Again.

The greatest genre in the entire world is one which many have little experience with; Stoner rock. It’s a style of music which has very few definite articles; at one edge you have psychedelic, technical acts like Monster Magnet or my personal band of 2010 Sungrazer and on the other you have deep, sludgy behemoths such as Electric Wizard and legends of the genre Sleep. Even within stoner rock there are tonnes of sub-genre’s, fuzz, psychedelic, desert and sludge to name but a few, and as spring approaches, some of the finest examples of these bands are rolling through Manchester. So here’s a preview of the four gigs to look out for if the words stoner and rock sound good to you.

Music Editor Eoghan Bennett chats to front man Jonathan Higgs ahead of two very special gigs. There’s a rumour that you’re back in the studio? Yea we just got a load of new equipment that we’re trying out, so there’s a few new songs we’re working on. We haven’t got to the recording stage yet, […]

He’s probably the most successful composer you’ve never heard of, but having written stunning soundtracks to films like Amelie and Goodbye Lenin!, this French multi-instrumentalist’s pedigree is assured.

Brazil is big. Not just big, it’s fricking enormous. It’s the fifth largest country in the world, even bigger than Australia. So, what would you expect from a country that big? Well I can tell you – a whole lotta music. There is far too much to talk about for one little box, so I’ve […]

Postcards From A Young Man is the Manic Street Preachers’ 10th studio album. In a music industry in which a band is lucky if their second album makes any kind of impression, this is a major achievement and should make the band something of a national treasure (albeit a Welsh one). So how come the Manic Street Preachers appear to have passed so many music fans by?

4 and a half stars Every article you’ll ever read about Dinosaur Pile-Up will contain at least one reference to the Foo Fighters, and for understandable reasons. Matt Bigland, singer, lead guitarist, and main driving force of the band has never made secret his love of Dave Grohl’s outfit, and the opening tracks of ‘Growing […]

Stevie Wonder, Muse, The Gorillaz, Snoop Dogg, Flaming Lips, The Pet Shop Boys, Fatboy Slim, Willie Nelson, LCD Soundsystem and Faithless all graced the two main stages at Glastonbury this year. Not bad work for a festival ruin by a bushy bearded farmer. So who stole the show? Well Wayne Coyne of Flaming Lips rolled […]

3 and a half stars With a discography that includes two well-received albums and a handful of top 40 singles, it may come as a surprise that KT Tunstall has never had a top ten single. Maybe, it’s because she has forged a career as being more of an album artist. ‘Tiger Suit’ follows this […]