Julia Brunton

It was a weekend-eve party in Club Academy last Thursday as Rain City Drive and Honey Revenge played the Manchester leg of their joint European tour, bringing Belmont along for the ride. Every set was high energy and full of personality

After 8 long years, SHIELDS are back on the scene with the gut-wrenching Death & Connection - a testimonial to dearly departed guitarist George Christie as well as Joe Edwards and Samuel Kubrick Finney's struggles in the aftermath. Across 12 songs SHIELDS pull no punches in their lyricism and elevate the technical elements of metalcore, particularly in Alastair Wain's drums, while crafting a soundscape varying from thrash to the opera. The first thing to note on Death & Connection is the...

Justin Hawkins Rides Again was wonderful midweek entertainment, full of games, gossip, and the platforming of local music.  The bulk of the evening was spent discussing music, which in the first half manifested in a discussion of the best and worst of songwriting conventions. For the best, Hawkins mused on “three chords and the truth”, using Dead Flowers by The Rolling Stones as an example for how telling of the worst aspects of oneself can create music that captivates. To this end, he...