The Skinny Northwest February 2016 by The Skinny

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February 2016 Liverpool and Manchester Issue 35

J O U R N A L I S M TRAVEL SPECIAL International Events Calendar 2016 Living Abroad: A Guide Tuff Love in Iceland ART AL and AL Glasgow International MUSIC Savages So Pitted Hinds Steve Mason FOOD AND DRINK Heart and Graft

THEATRE Kate Bornstein BOOKS Amy Liptrot CLUBS Moomin Jeen Bassa AnD COMEDY Bec Hill Amy Gledhill FILM Charlie Kaufman and Duke Johnson Hong Kong cinema

PATTON! DRUCKER! ADEBIMPE!

NEVERMEN THE FIRST INTERVIEW

BOOK NOW: 0161 832 1111 MANchesteracademy.net BLOC PARTY, DRENGE, RAT BOY AND BUGZY MALONE

NME AWARDS TOUR 2016 WITH AUSTIN TEXAS SATURDAY 6TH FEBRUARY

HURTS

FORMERLY THE MDH

FORMERLY THE HOP & GRAPE

FORMERLY THE CELLAR

FRIDAY 12TH FEBRUARY

MARINA AND THE DIAMONDS

MINISTRY OF SOUND

SOULFY

SOUL II SOUL FT. JAZZIE B & CARON WHEELER

BOB MOULD

FAITH CHILD

THURSDAY 18TH FEBRUARY

+ JAMES TAYLOR QUARTET + AFTER SHOW DJ SET FROM NORMAN JAY MBE SATURDAY 20TH FEBRUARY

AN EVENING WITH MACHINE HEAD TUESDAY 8TH MARCH

CHRIS RAMSEY: ALL GROWED UP

WEDNESDAY 11TH MARCH

GRIMES

+ HANA SATURDAY 12TH MARCH

BOYCE AVENUE

SUNDAY 13TH MARCH

THE URBAN TAKEOVER EASTER SPECIAL HOSTED BY DJ CAMEO (1EXTRA) DONAEO, BIG NARSTIE, FEKKY SCRAPZ, CCANE THURSDAY 23RD MARCH

WOLFMOTHER

SATURDAY 9TH APRIL

BEN HAENOW FRIDAY 15TH APRIL

HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD FRIDAY 22ND APRIL

ESKIMO DANCE

SATURDAY 23RD APRIL

IMPERICON FESTIVAL 2016 HATEBREED, NORTHLANE, EMMURE, BLESSTHEFALL, CHELSEA GRIN, HUNDREDTH

SICK ELEKTRIK, LOKATE, SOLARDO SATURDAY 6TH FEBRUARY SUNDAY 7TH FEBRUARY

TESSERACT

+ NORDIC GIANTS FRIDAY 5TH FEBRUARY

BASEMENT

+ TIGERS JAW + ALEX G WEDNESDAY 10TH FEBRUARY

SNUFF

THE RIFLES

SATURDAY 12TH MARCH

REEF

THURSDAY 17TH MARCH

REFUSED

WEDNESDAY 23RD MARCH

STEVE MASON

THURSDAY 24TH MARCH

BOY & BEAR SUNDAY 21ST FEBRUARY

THURSDAY 18TH FEBRUARY

LIMEHOUSE LIZZY

FRIDAY 11TH MARCH

FRIDAY 19TH FEBRUARY

SATURDAY 13TH FEBRUARY

LAPSLEY

THE INTERNET

SHUGGIE OTIS

THE JADE ASSEMBLY

JANE GETTER

SATURDAY 5TH MARCH

SATURDAY 13TH FEBRUARY

+ A STAR + S.O + LZ7 FRIDAY 12TH FEBRUARY

THERAPY?

FRIDAY 4TH MARCH

SYMPHONY X

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TRAGEDY: ALL METAL TRIBUTE TO THE BEE GEES AND BEYOND

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DAN REED NETWORK + TYKETTO

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DECAPITATED

LIFE OF AGONY

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ROACHFORD

PATENT PENDING

FRIDAY 18TH MARCH

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ALIAS KID

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SATURDAY 26TH MARCH

THE RAINBAND

ROMEO’S DAUGHTER

SATURDAY 7TH MAY

BRANTLEY GILBERT

MATT & KIM

CROSSFAITH

FRIDAY 29TH APRIL FRIDAY 6TH MAY

SATURDAY 2ND APRIL

THE LONG RYDERS THE SUMMER SET TUESDAY 17TH MAY

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KING KING

+ DAN PATLANSKY THURSDAY 12TH MAY

TELEVISON

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BRAINSTORM

MANCHESTER ACADEMY PRESENTS PETER HOOK & THE LIGHT

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THU 18 THE JAPANESE HOUSE £8/7PM FRI 19 SPRING KING SOLD OUT/7:30PM SAT 20 C DUNCAN £9/7:30PM SUN 21 THE JOY FORMIDABLE SOLD OUT/7PM WED 24 YORKSTON THORNE KHAN £12.50/7:30PM FRI 26 EASY KILL £5/7PM SUN 28 FEB MANCHESTER MUSIC INDUSTRY NETWORKING EVENT NO. 6 £5/7PM

SAT 13 VALENTINE’S DISCO GIRLS ON FILM

FRI 19 GOO

(INDIE, BRITPOP & GRUNGE)

FREE B4 11PM

£4.50/10PM SAT 20 GIRLS ON FILM

04.FEB 08.FEB 09.FEB 13.FEB 18.FEB 20.FEB 22.FEB 26.FEB 27.FEB 03.MAR 04.MAR 05.MAR 12.MAR 18.MAR 19.MAR 30.MAR 02.APR 09.APR 22.APR 05.MAY 13.MAY 21.MAY 10.JUN 28.OCT 29.OCT 18.NOV 05.FEB

(80S DANCE POP OF THE HIGHEST ORDER)

FREE B4 11PM

£4.50/10PM

(HOUSE / TECHNO) 9PM - £25/28.50/60

FRI 26 UPTOWN

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12.FEB

(DISCO, BOOGIE AND WEDDING JAMS)

SAT27 GIRLS ON FILM

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FRI.04.MAR.16 FRI.05.FEB.16

SUN.06.MAR.16 TUE.09.FEB.16

SAT.02.APR.16

WED.10.FEB.16

P.20 Bec Hill

P.15 Anomalisa

WED.10.FEB.16

FRI.12.FEB.16

THU.10.MAR.16

THU.14.APR.16

THU.10.MAR.16

SAT.16.APR.16

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P.21 Hinds

TUE.03.MAY.16

Photo: John Graham

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P.31 Heart and Graft

February 2016 FRI.19.FEB.16 FRI.18.MAR.16

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I N D E P E N D E N T

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J O U R N A L I S M

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Contents

THE SKINNY

Photo: Steve Ullathorne

TUE.08.MAR.16

Contents

Up Front 06

Chat & Opinion: Get last-grab news in Stop the Presses, read details of what’s on theskinny.co.uk in Online Only and, of course, touch those BALLS. Among other things.

08 Heads Up: So, now that the month of

23 24

25 26 28

Lifestyle 29

Deviance: Our Deviance editor traded her usual Tinder profile for that of a Disney-princess prom queen – the results were depressing. Plus, in this momentous period for LGBT rights, one writer reminds us to not forget the past.

staying at home and eating beans from a can is over, you’ll be dying to take in some culture. Step forward, our guide to the month’s best happenings.

30 Fashion: Knitwear designer Rosie

Features

Sugden tells us how her cashmere creations went global.

In their first full interview, we talk to Mike Patton, Tunde Adebimpe and Adam ‘Doseone’ Drucker about the genesis of their outsider supertrio, Nevermen. Savages' Fay Milton tells us that new album Adore Life is all “about being strong enough to change who you want to be.” Hollywood’s most original filmmaker, Charlie Kaufman, is back with a stop motion animation about lonely, depressed people. We chat to him and Anomalisa co-director Duke Johnson. Ahead of HOME’s mammoth Hong Kong crime film season, one writer looks back at his introduction to the work of Dante Lam and Johnnie To. German producer Moomin gets ready to release his second album, but – not one for shouting from rooftops – he’s doing so quietly.

Review

Music: Steve Mason breaks down new album Meet the Humans, track-by-track; So Pitted are our New Blood; plus, our verdict on forthcoming records from Animal Collective, DIIV and Beacon and recent gigs from Dilly Dally, Laura Cannell and more.

Clubs: Jeen Bassa talks us through a mix he’s kindly recorded for us; we get the lowdown on transient clubnight Lost Control, and techno double-act AnD get selecting.

Art: Glasgow International’s Sarah McCrory talks through her plans for the upcoming edition of the biennial visual arts festival.

Film: Kurt Russell stars in brutal western Bone Tomahawk and Tilda Swinton and Ralph Fiennes make waves in A Bigger Splash.

DVD: We check out how well 3D extravaganza The Walk works on the small screen and get reacquainted with The Friends of Eddie Coyle; and in Theatre, actors Katy Cavanagh and Colin Connor prepare for a brace of Jim Cartwright plays at Bolton Octagon.

Amy Liptrot discusses her first book, The Outrun, and the links between fiction and memoir writing. Aussie standup Bec Hill explains why new show Caught on Tape was a painful experience. Spanish slacker-rock four-piece Hinds prove as lively in interview as they do on stage. An effusive Kate Bornstein gears up for this month’s Queer Contact Festival. We step into another world with artists AL and AL as they prepare for new solo exhibition Incidents of Travel in the Multiverse.

46 Books: Stirred Poetry collective name

their literary heroes; plus, reviews of new books from Yann Martel and Hollie McNish, and your guide to literary events in February.

Comedy: Our Spotlight falls on Amy Gledhill, who reveals that sloe gin and Facebook videos have influenced her comedy more than any standup titan.

Competitions: Win a GoPro camera and snowboard lessons at Chill Factore, and loads of other cool stuff.

Travel Special

Fancy moving abroad? Our writer in Bogotá reports back. Plan your cultural adventures for 2016 with our international events calendar. We join Glasgow fuzz pop duo Tuff Love on the road in Iceland.

49 Listings: Thank heavens it’s a leap year – you’re going to need that extra day to fit in all this lot.

February 2016

Food & Drink: We meet the folks from Heart and Graft hoping to revolutionise Manchester's coffee consumption, and one former hospitality worker lifts the lid on life as a humble restaurant server.

Out back: After 25 years, the smell of Reeves and Mortimer is as fresh as ever. Our Comedy editor sings the duo’s praises as they embark on their 25th anniversary tour.

Contents

anuary was no one’s favourite month, taking with it some of our best-loved artists, submerging everything under a few feet of water and generally delivering its usual message that reality marches on, no matter how hard you tried over the preceding weeks to turn yourself into a cheesecake. Please join us in flipping the bird to January, with what’s turned out to be a particularly eclectic, energetic edition of The Skinny – full of inspiring people, ideas and imaginations to help light up the remaining winter dark. Music this issue is full of restless individuals, from post-punk optimists Savages and Madrid’s hard-touring, turbo-fuelled Hinds to the trio adorning our cover (in an image by a Turner Prize winner, no less): Nevermen, the long-gestating ‘supergroup’ project from TV on the Radio’s Tunde Adebimpe, Mike Patton, and Adam ‘Doseone’ Drucker, who tell us about the pleasures of working in a band where no one’s a frontman. Elsewhere, we meet Seattle racketeers So Pitted, so named after a viral video of one surfer’s enthusiasm for a particularly satisfying tide (do your day a favour and look it up on YouTube), while Steve Mason drops by to walk us through his new album, full of golden nuggets as ever (“Crying on the dancefloor, that’s what I like.” Hear here, Steve.) In fact, this month the magazine is full of especially awesome quotes, so I’m just going to fill this editor’s letter with some of the highlights. It’s totally because of how awesome the quotes are, and not because there’s an hour until we go to print and I haven’t written anything yet. (Also, we’re somewhat stuck for words after a very verbose evening at Leaf in Liverpool last night: spoken word/performance collective Neu! Reekie! made their maiden voyage out of Scotland, with poets Hollie McNish, Eleanor Rees, musicians Eugene Kelly, Pete Wylie and loads more in tow, and it was rad. Thanks to all who came down! That’s you. Maybe. Possibly. Only you can know if you were really there.) So. It’s LGBT History Month, and our Theatre editor spoke to writer, performance artist and all-round agitator Kate Bornstein – who brings a show and ‘gender workshop’ to Queer Contact Festival this Feb – in a truly invigorating interview on p23: “Look, we have a fuck of a lot of work to do, so we might as well be having fun while we’re doing it. That’s what my workshop at Queer Contact is about: how to have fun with your gender, as you end gender-based suffering in your day-to-day life.” Deviance, meanwhile, offers an important reminder that, at a time of seeming progression, the battle is far from over: “We cannot forget homophobia. We cannot forget the paranoia of the AIDS epidemic. Our history lives on, and it’s not just rainbows. We must continue to fight.”

Our interview with artist duo AL and AL, who are staging an ambitious exploration of sci-fi possibilities, artificial intelligences and alternate universes at HOME in Manchester – including a film made in recognition of Alan Turing – also serves as a reminder of this recent history: “We prefer the term ‘thinking machines’ to ‘artificial intelligence’,” they tell us at one point, “as to call any intelligent being artificial reminds us of the homophobia Turing suffered.” In Film, as well as speaking to revered oddball director Charlie Kaufman about his new stop-motion animation, Anomalisa, we are given a thorough introduction to the crime cinema of Hong Kong via one writer’s personal journey; Comedy, too takes us on a nostalgia trip, as our section editor considers the influence of surreal titans Reeves and Mortimer on his own formative years as well as those of pretty much every comedian who came after them: “Back in the mid-90s, VHS tapes were traded among school friends like cigarettes in prison. There was one video in my tiny collection, however, that could never be swapped around: it was The Smell of Reeves and Mortimer and for a short time it was my life...” As ever, there’s lots more besides – Books meets Amy Liptrot, whose first book smudges the worlds of memoir and nature writing to produce a moving, vivid portrayal of addiction and rehabilitation on the Orkney Isles, and Clubs chats to unassumingly brilliant producer Moomin – but I’ll just let you get on with it, eh? Finally, you can get your dreaming caps on with our Travel special from p25, which includes a calendar of some of the world’s most interesting cultural events across the year, and an insider’s guide to living in Bogotá – just one of several pieces our writers have produced on cities including Manila, Dubai and Kuala Lumpur, which you can read online at theskinny.co.uk/travel. If your New Year’s resolution was to up sticks and leave, you could do worse than start there. ON THE COVER: Keith Tyson (b. 1969, Ulverston, Cumbria, England) began working as an apprentice engineer making nuclear submarines after leaving secondary school at age 15. Deciding to pursue art, he quit the shipyards and gained admission to the Carlisle College of Art, England, graduating in 1990. Tyson earned his MA in Alternative Practice at the University of Brighton, England in 1993. He works in various media, including painting, drawing and sculpture, won the Turner Prize in 2002, and is the fourth Never-man.

The March Issue: Out 1 Mar Next issue we start looking optimistically towards ‘summer’ with a rundown of the international festivals we’d most like to attend this year. Spoken word/comedy performer Rob

Chat

Auton has won The Skinny’s hearts at the last few Edinburgh Fringes, so we’re thrilled to be speaking to him; and Film talks with director Pablo Larraín about his dark comic drama, The Club.

www.jockmooney.com

Editorial

Spot the Difference

Check out these two fans of The Skinny. They’re both valued members of our readership, and their feedback has been instrumental in shaping many of the developments we have recently made to our digital platform. While they might look at first glance like two peas in a pod, there are in fact some subtle differences that distinguish them. Only one of them, for example, is friends with voice of Miss Piggy Frank Oz. Can you tell us which one?

If you think you’ve got the answer, you could be in with a chance of winning a copy of Things We Have in Common by Tasha Kavanagh, courtesy of our dear old chums at Canongate. Head to the website (theskinny.co.uk/competitions) to enter. Competition closes midnight Sun 28 Feb. Winners will be notified via email within two working days of closing and will be required to respond within 48 hours or the prize will be offered to another entrant. Our Ts&Cs can be found at theskinny.co.uk/about/terms-and-conditions

Online Only Eyes to the website

Along with all the globetrotting action in this month’s magazine, we’ve cast our net far and wide to bring you local guides to some of the planet’s most exciting cities, written by people who actually live there. We’ve city guides to Amsterdam, Dubai, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, and Madrid. theskinny.co.uk/travel

Eskandarian's modern beat novel Golden Years, tells of the tragedy behind the posthumous publication of this talented musician and writer’s book. theskinny.co.uk/books

Music speaks to cult pop raconteur Aidan Moffat about Where You’re Meant to Be, a film that started life as a tour diary. theskinny.co.uk/music

Worlds collide as Fred Fletch shares air molecules with The Governator himself; we catch up with US standup Nick Thune ahead of his debut UK shows, and Isy Suttie chats about trying to live in the moment when the moment is quickly passing by… theskinny.co.uk/comedy

Film chat to genre renegade Ben Wheatley about his takes on JG Ballard science-fiction classic High-Rise. theskinny.co.uk/film With February being the 7th Annual Women in Horror Month, US author Lauren A. Forry explains how the horror genre has shaped her; and Oscar Van Gelderen, editor of Ali

Listen to the latest mix in our Skinned series, from Jean Bassa. theskinny.co.uk/clubs

Artist Jamie Crewe discusses issues of the gay male canon, transfemininity and student radicalisation ahead of his solo show as Transmission Gallery in Glasgow. theskinny.co.uk/art

THE SKINNY

Other Worlds Festival makes a return to Blackpool this April for another sensual feast of experimental music and sound art with a lineup that looks suitably delectable. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got cultural saliva glands flexing all over the shop for Dubaibased Tse Tse Fly, a sound art and experimentsin-noise platform thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the first of its kind in the Middle East region, known for throwing innovative club nights and working with a core collective of artists that have Middle Eastern roots, while closer to home London duo Gum Takes Tooth, sound artist and experimental musician Left Hand Cuts off the Right (aka Robbie Judkins), alt-folk musician Laura Cannell and Manchesterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Paddy Steer also provide ample grounds for intrigue. Head to otherworldsfestival.co.uk if that intrigueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s already kicked in. A new series of free artist talks launches this month at Salfordâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s favourite creative hotbed, Islington Mill, which will take place every third Wednesday of the month in the gallery space. Hosted by Caustic Coastal, an independent art label based in Manchester and Stockholm, the programme will kick off on Wed 17 Feb with Camberwell College of Arts grad Rebecca Sangster and London-based Oliver Hickmet, who was selected for the Catlin Art Guide last year. Looks like itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be an informal, approachable way into the art scene, with a BYOB policy that might just help nudge the uncertain through the door. 2016 at FACT looks set to be a goodâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;un, with the new season now very much unveiled. Along with unfold, the solo exhibition from Ryoichi Kurokawa that you caught us raving about a few issues back, FACT are also collaborating with

Liverpool Biennial for an exhibition that juxtaposes works by acclaimed Polish artist Krzysztof Wodiczko, known for a provocative approach to themes such as war, conflict, trauma, memory and communication, with films reflecting the history of cinema â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and its relationship with science and technology â&#x20AC;&#x201C; by French duo Giraud and Siboni. Still just about time to catch Follow, too, an exhibition featuring new commissions by CĂŠcile B. Evans and Ant Hamlyn which closes on Sun 21 Feb. Get yer skates on, or look ahead at fact.co.uk. Lots of milestones coming up for Liverpoolbased art gallery and consultancy dot-art, who are not only busy revving up for their tenth birthday celebrations later in the year, but also launch brand new art space dot-art Gallery this month. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be setting the wheels in motion with Dear Liverpool, a group exhibition from 18 local artists exploring how the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s architecture, culture and people affect its creativity and vibrancy, through 51 original and limited edition artworks. Watch this space, or, rather, watch the space at dot-art.co.uk Manchesterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s annual Wonder Women Festival returns for its fourth bash in March, coinciding once again with International Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Day to celebrate female ingenuity, invention and general kick-arsery. Spanning performance, film, debate, talks, workshops and exhibitions, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re psyched for What IS She Wearing at Manchester Art Gallery, where feminist debate explores the aesthetics of protest, a screening of Claudia Weillâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s film Girlfriends at HOME, and Written in the Margins, an evening at Manchester Jewish Museum that features a panel discussion chaired by Stuart Maconie, live music, handson workshops and more. And for a touch of the (always-appreciated) light-hearted, pop down to Hope Mill for the Manchester debut of Girl Gang, where the theatre is transformed into North Shoreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Spring Fling for a Mean Girls-themed night. Fetch or whut? Find out more about whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s in store via the Twittersphere, at @WonderWomenMCR

Shot of the Month Laura Cannell at Everyman Bistro, 21 Jan, by Stuart Moulding

BALLS.

with Mystic Mark

ARIES Your circle of friends appears to be just that: a circle of sinister hooded figures stood around you chanting ancient Satanic mantras. TAURUS Perfume ads are engineered to make you believe that some people donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t do big wet farts that sicken entire rooms.

GEMINI Looking at pictures of food on your phone is not a healthy diet.

CANCER In February you finally get your license to become a professional plane driver.

LEO This month the Dog God sends his only pup to Earth so that he may be run over by a car in order for all the bad dogs to have eternal walkies in the big park in the sky. Through the Son of Dog all bad dogs can be forgiven, but only if they â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;sitâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; and give their paw to the One True Owner. Bad dogs who donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t roll over are doomed to Dog Hell which is a very big kennel, bigger than the park, where bad doggies have to stay forever with no walkies, where the toys never squeak, where demonic vets poke and prod with torturous implements, and every night is firework night.

Wonder Woman Festival

February 2016

VIRGO Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t blow your own trumpet; blow other peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s trumpets when theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not looking to give them a fright. LIBRA LIFE HACK: When picking off scabs pour glitter into the wound and when it dries youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll have a glamorous glitter-scab like a top celebrity.

SCORPIO This year you plan to be yourself, which leaves your friends bitterly disappointed by the funless joy-hole who now meets them for lunch and turns up to their birthday parties. They beg for whoever you were previously to return and inhabit your shell instead.

SAGITTARIUS God finally ends world hunger this month after His titanic corpse is marinated in a sea of wine before being fried up with a few thousand tonnes of garlic by United Nations chefs, prior to being shipped out to the starving millions around the world. Now everyone has a genuine reason to praise God: how flavoursome He is and how the tender meat just falls off the bone.

CAPRICORN Dancing like nobodyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s watching seems naĂŻve in the post-Snowden world, since GCHQ now monitor all dance moves so effectively it allows them to map your gait and feed the data into their dance database for signs of radicalised behaviour.

AQUARIUS Do something today your future self will hate you for.

PISCES Based on your best-selling book, this month you sell the film rights to the moving true-life story of that time you got your bellend caught in the door of a spaceship.

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The Gin Journey

Sun 7 Feb

Mon 8 Feb

Tue 9 Feb

With the oldest Chinese community in Europe, Liverpool has serious bragging rights as Chinese New Year rolls around. And, as always, this year the city gears itself up for huge celebrations to welcome the Year of the Monkey, lining the streets of Chinatown and beyond with Chinese markets, parades and firecracker displays. Chinatown, Liverpool, 11am, Free

Queer Contact Festival continues with Comedy Playground, a recurring highlight of the annual programme which this year features laughs from Suzi Ruffell, David Morgan, Bethany Black, Tom Allen, Rosie Wilby, local rising star Ruth E Cockburn and MC Jonathan Mayor. Contact Theatre, Manchester, 7.30pm, £13

Hip-hop meets theatre meets puppetry as 20 Stories High and Theatre-Rites collaborate for The Broke ‘N’ Beat Collective, a live show that fuses poetry, beatboxing and rapping with flair and humour to tackle the hardships faced by young people today. Unity Theatre, Liverpool, until 13 Feb, prices vary

Chinese New Year

Bethany Black

Broke 'n' Beat Collective

Sun 14 Feb

Mon 15 Feb

Tue 16 Feb

Celebrate Valentine’s Day the alt way (yeah! Rock horns!) as RAD Screenings present a bloody double bill of True Romance and Natural Born Killers for their Valentine’s Day Special. Perfect if you’re Clarence and Alabama, Mickey and Mallory or just a lone ranger. Drexl, maybe? Gorilla, Manchester, 6pm, £8

A collection of work made during the 1960s and 70s by leading British artists, New Worlds is a retro look into the skills of Henry Moore, David Hockney, Barbara Hepworth, Frank Auerbach, Gillian Ayres, Bridget Riley, Margaret Lovell, Terry Frost and more, honing in on the era in which Kirkby was redeveloped as a new town. Kirkby Gallery, Knowsley, until 17 May, Free

Mancunian post-punk outfit PINS have always enjoyed pride of place on the motherland’s mantelpiece, but after recently releasing their second album, Wild Nights, to unsurprising critical acclaim and opening for Sleater-Kinney on the UK leg of their tour, it’s clear that Manchester's matriarchal love is now just the tip of a very sizeable iceberg. O2 Academy, Liverpool, 7pm, £7

PINS

Patrick Caulfield

Natural Born Killers

Sat 20 Feb

Sun 21 Feb

Following a triumphant performance with players from the BBC Philharmonic at last year’s Sounds from the Other City festival, Liverpool trio Ex-Easter Island Head return to Salford as part of the Samarbeta residency at Islington Mill, working with handpicked local guitarists to develop the Large Electric Ensemble. The process culminates with a live show. Islington Mill, Salford, 7.30pm, £6

Following its closure at the Tate earlier this month, the exhibition An Imagined Museum returns for one weekend – though not as you know it. In its place you’ll find 2053: A Living Museum, where everything's replaced by people representing the pieces that were once there through dance, song and spoken word. Tate Liverpool, 10am, Free LJMU BA (Hons) Dance Practices students perform Spazio Perforate (Perforated Space) (2015)

Ex-Easter Island Head - Large Electric Ensemble

Sat 27 Feb

The fourth Liverpool International Jazz Festival kicks off its first day with vibraphonist and composer Pascal Schumacher, while other festival highlights include one of the first successful black British jazz artists, Courtney Pine, and a series of free concerts taking place in the foyer. The Capstone, Liverpool, until 28 Feb, prices vary

Deemed by many as the finest documentary film in history, avant-garde Soviet flick Man with a Movie Camera was filmed in 1929 with no story and no actors, relying instead on experimental techniques and special effects that made it a groundbreaking visual feat. Metal, Liverpool, 6.30pm, Free

Underground dance party Community celebrate 20 Years of Rainy City Music, the label of Mancunian DJ Irfan Rainy, with a night of feelgood, infectious dance music headlined by German house producer Motor City Drum Ensemble – who played to a sell-out audience at the still-sorely-missed Roadhouse last time he was in town. Gorilla, Manchester, 9pm, £17.50

Courtney Pine

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Man with a Movie Camera

Photo: Jon Barraclough

Fri 26 Feb

Photo: Zoe Song

Thu 25 Feb

Motor City Drum Ensemble

THE SKINNY

Photo: Gemma Parker

Macbeth

Photo: Veronique Vial

After the post-festive drought, many of us are hankering for the hard stuff. The Gin Journey takes boozehounds around Manchester bars every Wednesday to explore the city's connections with the botanical trade (canals, mate) via some great gins. Liverpool, you can get your fix on Thursdays. Various locations, Manchester and Liverpool, from 3 Feb, 6.30pm, £45

Photo: Elinor Jones

It’s good riddance to January as this month steps up to the plate with gin, Chinese New Year, Queer Contact Festival, an all-night-long set from Erol Alkan, Liverpool International Jazz Festival, and a plumped-up gig calendar.

The January blues have finally given way, so before we find too much of a spring in our step, it’s time for a dose of tragedy with Carrie Cracknell and Lucy Guerin’s new production of Macbeth. The first of Bill Shakespeare's works to be staged at HOME, it's interspersed with powerful, unsettling choreography. HOME, Manchester, until 6 Feb, times and prices vary

Photo: Gareth Jones

Compiled by: Jess Hardiman

Wed 3 Feb

Photo: Richard Hubert Smith

Heads Up

Tue 2 Feb

Thu 4 Feb

Fri 5 Feb

Sat 6 Feb

The Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art turns 30 in style, launching its 30 Years of CFCCA programme today with an exhibition featuring work from Stanley Chow, Zu Bing, Lu Xinjian and RareKind China artists, while in Exchange Square you’ll find Hong Kong graffiti artists Rainbo and Uncle, who'll be around 'til 7 Feb creating artwork for Chinese New Year. CFCCA and various, Manchester, until June, Free

Club stalwarts Abandon Silence kick their 2016 off with a night headlined by crowd favourite Joy Orbison and Amsterdam-based genre-straddler Hunee, who’ll be joined by Denis Sulta, Andrew Hill, Harry Sheehan and Owain Gwyn for Beginnings One in an as-yet-undisclosed Liverpool location. Venue TBC, Liverpool, 10pm, £15

A re-imagining of a classic Greek myth as part of Queer Contact Festival, Icarus at the Edge of Time whisks us off to outer space in a film by AL and AL, with a Philip Glass score performed live by the BBC Philharmonic, plus a screening of Méliès’ magical early sci-fi masterpiece La Voyage dans la Lune. Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, 8pm, £15

Joy Orbison

Sat 13 Feb

Born in New Jersey, raised near Oslo and now based in New York, Okay Kaya explores melancholy through melody, traversing the dark spaces we’ve all been to with spellbinding love songs and ethereal, whispering vocals. FYI, she also collaborated with Jamie xx on Tree of Codes, which you’ll remember from last year's Manchester International Festival. Gullivers, Manchester, 7.30pm, £6

Born Benjamin Coyle-Larner, Loyle Carner (still with us?) is currently enjoying his status as golden boy of the UK hip-hop scene. When not collaborating with Kate Tempest, playing at Glastonbury or supporting MF Doom and Joey Badass, he's busy batting off a stream of big praise for his heartfelt music dealing with difficult issues. 24 Kitchen Street, Liverpool, 7.30pm, £10

Help thaw the winter chill with a dose of sunny sounds from Manc trio Blooms, whose dreamy lo-fi shoegaze is what might just keep us going until we can turn the heating off. For this, their return from a UK mini tour, support comes from Gorgeous Bully, Goda Tungl and Glue. Sacred Trinity Church, Salford, 7.30pm, £8

Asian street food purveyors and Best Newcomers in our Food and Drink Survey, Pao! celebrate the Year of the Monkey with a traditional Chinese New Year banquet, using some of Claremont Farm’s winter produce to put a playful spin on old favourites. Claremont Farm, Wirral, 7pm, £35

Gullivers

Loyle Carner

Blooms

Pao! Greg Wilson

Fri 19 Feb

We love them, Edinburgh loved them and now, it seems, Gein’s Family Giftshop are set to win over the nation, as the award-winning sketch trio hit the road for their first ever UK tour. Pulling humour from the depths of human misery, their brand of comedy is dark stuff. Good stuff. The Lowry, Salford, 8pm, £12

It's been a cold few months, for sure, but at least with a performance of La Mer you can sit back and let your mind wander to the glistening, turquoise waves of, er, Eastbourne – where Debussy completed it. Positively tropical. Also with added Prokofiev and Ravel. Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, 2.30pm, prices vary

He's king of a crossover crowd, embracing both the hardcore house heads and fans of a more accessible, alt-pop sensibility, so undoubtedly there were many impressed faces around Manchester the day Soup Kitchen announced they'd booked Erol Alkan – to play all night long, no less. Soup Kitchen, Manchester, 11pm, £returns only

Gein's Family Giftshop

La Mer

Photo: Mark McNulty

Thu 18 Feb

Photo: Drew Forsyth

Wed 17 Feb

Erol Alkan

Tue 23 Feb

Wed 24 Feb

This time last year, lo-fi garage quartet Hinds were known only to the wise few outside of their native Madrid, but since then they’ve taken on the global festival circuit and released a debut album, and are now embarking on a huge European tour. Expect raw, rickety and unfettered sounds from a tight-knit sisterhood, with heaps of energy guaranteed. Brudenell Social Club, Leeds, 7.30pm, £10

Winner of the coveted Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition a few years back, Floridian composer, arranger, singer and drummer Jamison Ross heads to Band on the Wall to flit skilfully between classic jazz drumming and throwbacks to Muddy Waters and co with his bluesy, soulful vocals. Band on the Wall, Manchester, 7.30pm, £12.50 (£10.50)

Digital theatre production The Army of Noise ends its week-long run at Constellations with one last show, throughout which you’ll witness an impressive blend of puppetry and 3D video projection-mapping, plus musical narration, mixing and improv performed live by world-class scratch champ, DJ Rasp. Constellations, Liverpool, 7.30pm, £10

Hinds

Photo: John Graham

Mon 22 Feb

Jamison Ross

Sun 28 Feb

Mon 29 Feb

It’s your last chance to re-evaluate the digi-life you lead with the final day of Right Here, Right Now, an exhibition that aims to challenge our understanding of the digital systems around us through the work of 16 international artists. The Lowry, Salford, 11am, Free

An exhibition exploring how we can experience art beyond what we’re able to say about it, Left Hand to Back of Head, Object Held against Right Thigh reaches out on a physical level, tapping into sensations and emotions through film, video, installation and sculpture – with the aim of building relationships between the artworks and audience’s bodies. The Bluecoat, Liverpool, until 28 Mar, Free

Right Here, Right Now

February 2016

Photo: Todd Hart

Fri 12 Feb

Photo: Jonathon Phillipson

Thu 11 Feb

Photo: Laura Coulson

Wed 10 Feb

Photo: Bob Wass

Icarus at the Edge of Time

The Army of Noise

Rowena Harris - Note to self mine and yours perhaps (2015)

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Photo: Giorgio Benni

James Roper - Equilibria

S RE AT U FE

Three the Hard Way Nearly a decade under wraps, Mike Patton, Adam Drucker and Tunde Adebimpe emerge as Nevermen this month. In their first full interview, the trio meditate on making music like tapas and driving around in a mega Godzilla Interview: Dave Kerr

“M

ake something, smash it, make it something else. Can’t get bored, there’s not enough time left for that.” Tunde Adebimpe cuts to the heart of Nevermen’s manifesto. With their debut LP finally in the post, the TV on the Radio co-founder, actor, director and visual artist finally gets to talk about the alliance he’s forged with two fellow outliers – Mike Patton (Faith No More/Tomahawk/Fantômas) and Adam ‘Doseone’ Drucker (Themselves/Subtle/13 & God) – since joining Drucker in his Williamsburg warehouse rehearsal space for the first time eight years ago. Although their collective discography reaches well into the dozens across myriad projects, this trio of journeymen – the minds who brought us groundbreaking work on fearless benchmark records like Return to Cookie Mountain, cLOUDDEAD and Angel Dust, no less – have never stopped questing for the next revelation. As our idols continue to move past this life, the transcendental spirit of a project like Nevermen becomes all the more precious. Nevermen touches the far reaches of hiphop and psychedelic soul music, its personnel finding an almost paradoxical point of convergence on the journey. “Three chameleons,” says Drucker. “For me, it’s funny how – despite our obvious differences – we even sound alike at points on the record.” “I think that if there’s any intent at all,” Adebimpe notes of the project’s spirit, “it’s to surprise ourselves.” The lyric sheet itself presents a lexicon that’ll take some cracking. “It’s about escaping, period,” Patton sums up. “Adam wrote 100% of the lyrics on this record… so I should defer to him. But I can say there is a general theme about responsibility and accountability in our line of work. And the consequences involved.” The Skinny: “They are the Nevermen, the greatest heroes who never existed – in the mission they never expected!” Did the Dark Horse comic book influence the project beyond its name? Adam Drucker: You found it huh!? Actually we

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were all very unaware of the graphic novel – the name came to us, then we found that a while later. If Guy Davis ever does a Nevermen movie we will do all the music for free in order to compensate him for any wrongdoing he may feel the universe has done unto him via our synchronous minds finding the same name separated by time.

“A frontman does not necessarily mean ‘ego-man,’ OK?” Mike Patton

Tell us about the circumstances of Nevermen’s genesis... I know Adam and Mike go back to Peeping Tom; is there a similarity in the way this project functions? What was your awareness of one another’s work prior to meeting and what compelled you to want to collaborate in this particular combination? Adam: Somehow, all three of us are cut from the same hybrid cloth in one way or another, and I met both these guys as a fan long before I met them as a peer. The genesis was kinda threefold… Mike and I met and instantly were like, “We should do a thing together.” Tunde and I met and instantly said, “We should do a thing together.” A year or so after having met them both, Mike and I were chopping it up about a band with just frontmen in it. I immediately thought of Tunde and all the things his aesthetic/voice/ brain do that Mike and mine don’t. So I asked Tunde if he was down, and poof – t’was the catalyst for becoming what we are today. Mike Patton: Peeping Tom was my thing, it was very dictatorial in a sense. Nevermen is a different beast, all three of us entered into the adventure with equal input and output. I wanted

to work with these dudes ’cause I respect and love, in a grand sense, what they do. And I felt that a collaboration between the three of us could construct something larger.... hope we achieved that! Tunde Adebimpe: I was listening to a lot of cLOUDDEAD and other Anticon stuff right around the time I was writing a lot of things on four-track that would eventually become TV on the Radio songs. I loved it instantly. It was definitely one of those big ‘what the fuck is this?!?’ moments in art or music that happen – I feel – only a few times in your life if you’re lucky. From there, I heard his solo work, Themselves, 13 & God and Subtle, who TVOTR toured with early on. He’s a genius. That’s that. Mike I knew through Faith No More, of course, but I was in a two-piece noise band in 1996 or so, and my bandmate gave me a Mr Bungle CD and that was it. Yet another ‘what the fuck is this?!?’ moment. Then I found Mike’s solo work, the 8000 other projects and bands he’s in, and all of the stuff he’s put out for bands on Ipecac. He’s a huge inspiration and, coincidentally, a total genius. I really don’t toss that word around, but it totally applies to both of these fools. What compelled me to work with them? The opportunity was there and it sounded like it’d be a shitload of fun. It sounded like we’d get to scream and break a lot of things, which we can also file under ‘a shitload of fun.’ Adam: That’s what Nevermen is in a sense – the fleshing out of our connection. We have all lived completely similar but different lives bent around making music; this is a non-GMO adventure in exploring our combination, like we would if we were all in the same town and 20-ish, starting a first band. The group has been talked about for so long that it was beginning to feel like one of those projects that we might never hear. You’re busy men, of course, so what compelled you to push a full-length album over the finish line after all this time? Mike: One of those instances was probably where one of us opened our mouths too soon,

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that’s all. Things take time, and become exciting once they take shape. Then, they live. The source of inspiration came from a talk I had with Adam many moons ago. We agreed to do something together, and have it be a singer-based affair, without band dynamics… when Tunde came aboard, it felt whole. Wish I could give you a specific band to reference, but honestly… I can’t think of one. We approached this adventure as ourselves, nothing more or less. Adam: Nevermen just had a ‘raise one kid at a time’ energy around it since day one, all them days ago. Each song was worked on until it was done, and so each one grew and became what it was trying to be in demo form, and then we would move on to the next song. Honestly, not rushing your music to completion is a luxury that none of us are ever really afforded. For one reason or another, one rushes some aspect of album creation; with Nevermen we sort of treated ourselves to not rushing for once, and in the end there is not a drop of juice on this record that is squeezed out. Tunde: I think that about two years in, with all that everyone was doing separately, we hit the ‘It’ll get done when it gets done and that’s actually awesome’ point, and we just kept piecing things together until it was time to plug the monster in and see if he danced funny enough. Mike remarked that the initial sessions were very loose and improvisational but you’d become surgeons in the editing. You all have form as abstract songwriters; was there a write-and-pass method to the way you built these songs (reflective of the way they’re performed)? Adam: Yeah, you kinda hit two nails on the head… the songs and their production are a product of editing this huge pile of improvised material we had made… and parts of it rose to the top and became demos. Simultaneously, we were working on words/lyrics that stood on their own. Then we intuitively sort of matched lyrics to demos and made crap-ass versions of everything. Once a song had demo bones and lyrics, it went to Mike for re-production, and

THE SKINNY

carried out between the ears. Meaning: we trusted each other’s background and impulses. Nothing more. If you are looking for a ‘genre-flag,’ then keep looking. The group’s ethos seems to be ‘three equal frontmen, no leader.’ Did you successfully circumvent the associated democratic problems of having a single ego in charge? Adam: Yeah, we became friends through the process of making these songs, and that to me is the big beautiful in all this. Three chefs and never a knife fight. Also, for me the album solves itself of this leadership dilemma, by no one having solos or alone verses. It’s a proper hydra of voices even down to the hooks.

“It’s time to plug the monster in and see if he dances” Tunde Adebimpe

he had carte blanche to embellish and delete whatever he wanted. One at a time, demos would emerge as songs from Mike’s oven. Then they went back on the chopping block for all three of us to alter, re-sing parts and make them what they wanted to be. Finally, every song got a group finish and polish and champagne bottle across its face.

“Three chefs and never a knife fight” Adam Drucker

Tunde: Adam came into the project with a lot of ideas and writing. He had poems and lyrics that he’d done and picked out/pieced together in the direction of whatever we’d be doing, and I had a bit too, then he and I bounced some stuff off of each other and edited and added when he came out to New York. I think the same thing happened with Adam and Mike on the west coast – music production and lyric-wise – and then I’d come out there and we’d do more writing/vocals at Adam’s place and so on. It’s funny, one of the things I like the most about the project is that it’s really been an ‘exquisite corpse’ sort of deal, we were almost never all in the same place at the same time,

February 2016

writing- or recording-wise, and things would get sent off and come back with an entirely different arrangement, or chopped up or fuzzed out or whatever. Factor in to that the amount of time it took, and what everyone experienced separately during that time mixed in there, it’s a weird one. It’s like staring at a ton of evidence and having no idea who did the crime. Yeah, a lot of ‘Wait, is that me? That was you, right?’ happened while listening back. As principal lyricist, Adam, did you find yourself writing from multiple perspectives? Adam: Yeah, I wrote about the ‘culminate us.’ I suppose the way to say it is: there is no me in these lyrics that isn’t them. A lot of it was written with Tunde in the room too, and refined with the three of us in mind. So where I did run with the writing ball, I tried more to write about what we had in common, than multiple perspectives. So when we sing these songs, they mean what we are. The inevitable question of influence: Were there any particular touchstones you referenced in the beginning? The vivid but often cryptic lyrics evoke Edgar Allan Poe, the layered delivery puts us in mind of Subtle, but the overall premise seems to aspire to the Crosby, Stills & Nash of outer limit hip-hop... Adam: Shiiiiiiit, all that – except maybe Stills and Nash. All three of us are and always have been

music fans, so this is kinda like three record collections colliding. We are influence-rich in our aesthetics in general, so that bleeds into all our choices and songs, but in the end there was very little ‘hey, make this part sound more like so-andso.’ We more often made songs go where they were already trying to get, and in doing so pulled all kinds of shit out of our culminate bag of tricks. Tunde: I think En Vogue, NSYNC, Boys II Men and The Three Tenors were brought up one evening but then we ran out of drinks and pretty much just referenced each others’ bad jokes from there on in. Diamond Dave Hosley was a big influence, we got to go see him once or twice while working on the album – he’s the best. Mike: For me? Zero! Maybe ELO? Our palette, to my ears, was only limited by what wasn’t appropriate to our collective ears. For example, I wrote a fucking country ballad for these guys, and we didn’t use it... haha! Adam: That actually became one of the Nevermen songs no one has heard yet – it is no longer very country though. One of my favourite things about picking demos out of Patton’s hat was some of the shit he makes is so beyond my palette, it was like picking a fight with the biggest dude in the room. It was a blast and challenge to try to bring country into our fold. Mike: We all approached this project from unique viewpoints and provided those instincts… but ultimately, it was an exercise

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Mike: This record was recorded in small pieces, ‘tapas’ style if you will, but we all knew that no one was leading, or dragging. Even when you are in a band, those things sort themselves out. This ‘band’ had no such problems or issues. Because we are all used to being assholes and getting the job done. All three of us have experienced ‘leader’ issues in the past. This project is a great way for all of us to step back and let the music lead. By the way, a frontman does not necessarily mean ‘ego-man’, OK? Tunde: I think that not really having an actual, physical studio to record in all at once did away with that... it was more like, ‘I have an idea, I’ll send it over.’ ‘I’m done! I’ll email it to you soon!’ and ‘Cool, we got all that, I’ll see you in two months to a year!’ Throughout this eight-year period, was there any music left on the cutting-room floor that you perhaps felt didn’t belong or was in some way incomplete? Adam: Jesus, eight years!? One song a year, that’s how we do! Yeah, there’s a ton of cool crap, not enough trimmings to make a dress, but lots of cool scraps. Mike: Yes, there’s plenty of stuff left over. And that is exactly why it didn’t make the record… we felt it wasn’t good enough. Outtakes are called that for a reason. Does live performance seem like a logical next step for the group or do you picture this as more of a continuing studio endeavour? Or, indeed, is this it? Adam: Oh no, we are coming to a theatre near you; hard at work on preparations now. Tunde: I dunno, you spend eight years building a mega Godzilla, you gotta drive it around a little bit, right? We’ll drive it around a little, it’s just so shiny. And it has fins! Mike: We’ll see how she goes, maybe it is indeed a studio project? But why not try to bring this zombie to life? Win a limited-edition coloured vinyl copy of Nevermen: visit theskinny.co.uk/competitions to enter Nevermen is out now via Lex | lexprojects.com/nevermen

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Positively Radical Fay Milton talks about a personal kind of politics and how Savages’ second album, Adore Life, is a force for change

Photo: Colin Lane

Interview: Katie Hawthorne

avages won’t tell you how to feel – they just want you to feel something. “People are smart. People don’t want to be told what to think,” drummer Fay Milton states, very firmly, when The Skinny calls her on a frosty January afternoon. “We can make our own minds up about what we believe in.... But you can create an atmosphere for positive change, and music is a part of that.” The London four-piece own an inimitable voice. When Savages – Milton, alongside bandmates Jehnny Beth, Gemma Thompson and Ayse Hassan – choose to speak up, know that it’s because they have something urgent to say. After the success of wall-shaking, fire-starting first album Silence Yourself (2013), the band took several years on the road, scrutinising the reactions of their audiences, before heading back to the studio with new tracks in tow. In 15 all-too-short days (“We were flying by the seat of our pants”), Savages recorded their sophomore album, Adore Life. Moving at high speed between icy, impassive post-punk and the spit and sweat of a truly incendiary punk band, Savages aren’t strangers to being described as radical. But while Silence Yourself was built upon cool, glacial fury, Adore Life takes a different tact. A call to arms in the truest sense, the record is founded upon a firm belief in the power of positivity. “It’s about being strong enough to change who you want to be,” confirms Milton. Released in late January, Adore Life is an album of love songs – but in a far from conventional sense. Forget air-brushed ballads or cynical deconstructions of heartbreak, Adore Life offers an incisive, honest and brutally intimate perspective. On semi-title track Adore, Beth’s lyrics explore the complexities of desire and identity, demanding you to ask, “is it human to ask for more? Is it human to adore life?” In strippedback, eloquent form Savages shine an intimidatingly bright light on the all-too-human tendency towards restrictive, prescriptive guilt: what do we think we deserve? Questioning how sexuality can inform identity on Mechanics – “I was never told about my sex” – and half-warning, half-admitting “this is what you’lll get when you mess with love” on single ‘T.I.W.Y.G.’, the album feels part character study, part confession. Milton admits that the band are preoccupied with trying to answer life’s hardest questions, but not always in such

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serious tones; “You know, there’s this really great love life column... I found it because it’s called Savage Love, by a guy called Dan Savage. It’s amazing! I’d love to do a Savages version. We’d call it Savages Love, obviously. Love and sex and relationship advice…” But, really, it’s shocking how radical a simple statement – “I adore life” – can sound; not a twee, throwaway statement, but in direct admittance and acceptance of human nature’s deepest, stickiest secrets. It’s no small task to write a visceral, brutalist album that demands love rather than revenge, empathy rather than aggression, and Savages avoid cliché by staring these questions straight in the eyeball.

“Right now there’s definitely a movement of believing in what’s simply, obviously, just” Fay Milton

Savages’ attack has sharpened, and this focus was imprinted in their recording strategy. “Always, when we record, we start with a version that we all play together. Last time we used a lot of those original versions… but this time, we’d go over each instrument. Individually. You can really expand the sound, and do things that you can’t do when you’re recording live,” Milton explains. This meticulous process allowed the band to insert truly theatrical touches. At the start of ‘T.I.W.Y.G.’ there’s a tiny screech, a precisely placed ear-splitting yelp, just before the band plunge into the meat of the track. It sounds totally alien… but Milton laughs, “that’s bass feedback! Only Ayse Hassan can make that noise. We took an extra week recording this time too, so we got more time to look into those details. But still, I’m often envious of other bands who can record at the same time that they’re writing. It’s not really possible with Savages. We’re too loud.” Milton details the physically punishing

implications of writing a record that packs so much sonic weight. “Try not to smoke!” she warns. “No one becomes a drummer for an easy ride… but we all stay really fit. Yoga and stuff. And running. It’s a full-time job, staying fit enough to actually do the job.” To steal the tone of a lifestyle mag, if you want to emulate Savages’ energy, Milton recommends porridge – “you’ve got to put cinnamon and turmeric in it. Make it spicy.” Once you’ve heard the record, or better still, seen the band in live action, you’ll understand the need for such strict routine. A Savages show is intense, and so is their schedule. The group have just announced a staggering list of shows; touring Europe and the US over a four-month period, they’ll be dropping in on Manchester and Leeds at the tail end of February. Moreover, their records are built on adrenaline and conviction, designed to raise your blood pressure – Savages want to move you, emotionally and physically. “We all really enjoy listening to live music, bassy music… So I guess through our taste, it’s in-built in our own music. Especially with Ayse really destroying the bass on songs like Surrender and er… well most of them, really. It’s definitely in our live shows; we make sure that the sound is really good, so people can really feel it as well as hear it.” Milton continues: “Maybe it’s a power thing? To want to get on stage and really move someone? But having the power to do that is something that really draws you back to performing… it drives you on.” There is definitely power-play at work. Savages have a degree of control over their performances which is almost chilling; the power to tip a show almost over the brink of chaos, and just as suddenly pull it back. “Yeah, there’s something really freaky about it!” Milton enthuses, seemingly delighted. “I really like pushing that kind of… psychotic edge.” It’s transfixing – on record and off – and suits the tension which the record is built upon. “Do we want to scare everyone?” she laughs. “Yeah, of course we do.” But she’s just as quick to remind us that positivity is the key to the record, “despite it being very wild in its sound.” Any attempt to conflate music and politics usually results in crossing dangerous, muddy ground. However, given Savages’ insistence on releasing a statement to accompany their records, crammed with manifesto-like rhetoric, it is ground which must be

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trodden. Unsurprisingly, Milton has firm views: this is no party-political record. “Politics is a really tricky word,” she begins, “because usually if you think of politics, you think of specific issues. For some people the word is a great thing, to others it’s a kneejerk reaction. Even within our band, there are very different reactions. For me… there’s a really great quote from Ai Weiwei, which is: ‘Everything is art. Everything is politics.’ I see things in that kind of sense.” As in, art offers a specific perspective on life – which is why it will always be political? “Yeah, I think so. It’s a really strange time at the moment. We know about so many things that a few years ago we wouldn’t have known about. We’re all following different news stories from around the world every day. It’s very… it’s really difficult. You pick one cause, and then you have to justify why you haven’t supported something else. So in a sense, it’s difficult to be overtly political.” She pauses. “But you can have your stance, and you can be who you are by standing up and showing that kind of outlook – that can be a positive way of taking a political stance. Because, you know, if you start criticising the world you’re never going to stop.” Through thorough Twitter-based investigation, The Skinny discovers that Fay met Jeremy Corbyn last November. With Corbyn’s call for positive, stripped-back politics often dismissed as radically, unrealistically utopian, is there any link between this mentality and Savages’ own call for positivity? “You know, that’s the best compliment… to have the album likened, or the band likened, to Corbyn. “You can never tell until later down the line how movements start and spread, but right now there’s definitely a movement of believing in what’s simply, obviously, just. There’s belief that people shouldn’t be treated differently, or judged, on sexual orientation or gender. In the face of mass confusion there is a small but steady movement growing, of positive thought and solidarity. I think that art always reflects its time. It would be nice to look back and think that we were a part of something… We’ll watch and wait.” Take heed, naysayers, of this band’s openhearted, calculated push for positivity; this is what you’ll get if you mess with Savages. Savages play Manchester Albert Hall on 22 Feb and Leeds Irish Centre on 23 Feb. Adore Life is out now via Matador savagesband.com

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LIVERPOOL’S INTERNATIONAL ARTS VENUE

WHAT’S ON Wed 10th Feb • £20 adv

Public Service Broadcasting

www.thecapstonetheatre.com Spring Season 2016

Thurs 11th Feb • £16 adv

Graham Bonnet Band Sun 14th Feb • £12 adv

Little Comets

Tues 16th Feb • £7 adv

PINS

Thurs 18th Feb • £15 adv

Cage The Elephant Sat 20th Feb • £16 adv

Walk The Moon Fri 26th Feb • £17 adv

Insane Championship Wrestling

23 I February £7 (£5 Con)

enCompass Collective: Circumstances

Wed 2nd Mar • £15 adv

Exodus

Tues 8th Mar • £24 adv

The Stranglers Wed 9th Mar • £22 adv

Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox Fri 11th Mar • £20 adv

The Wonder Stuff + The Icicle Works

25 - 28 I February Various

Liverpool International Jazz Festival

Sat 12th Mar • £16 adv

Foxes

Mon 21st Mar • £15 adv

Half Moon Run Wed 23rd Mar • £17.50 adv

Battles

Fri 25th Mar • £10 adv

Blossoms

3-5 I March £15 (£12 Con)

Fri 25th Mar • £12 adv

Crossfaith

Sat 26th Mar • £12 adv

The Smyths The Queen is Dead 30th Anniversary Tour

More Scouse Saddam

Thurs 7th Apr • £15 adv

Leon Bridges

Sat 9th Apr • £16.50 adv

Jack & Jack

Tues 19th Apr • £6 adv

Alxndr

Wed 20th Apr • £13.50 adv

Neck Deep

Sun 24th Apr • £23.50 adv

Ben Haenow

Thurs 28th Apr • £20 adv

Earl Slick & Bernard Fowler perform David Bowie’s Station to Station Thurs 28th Apr • £13 adv

65daysofstatic

Tues 24th May • £15 adv

Adam Green

Fri 10th Jun • £20 adv

Bad Manners

12 I March

£16.50

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Sat 10th Dec • £15 adv

The Icicle Works

February 2016

Poetry in Stop Motion Charlie Kaufman is the king of the oddball movie premise, but he plays it relatively straight with new film Anomalisa. The surprise comes from the fact it’s a stop-motion animation. We discover why he and co-director Duke Johnson chose this form for a bittersweet existential comedy “I think the creative decisions I made are primarily filmmaking decisions,” Kaufman suggests. “There are obviously technical things that I didn’t know, and I still don’t know. But the options that are there in terms of what we wanted it to feel like, and what the characters are going through, Duke and I collaborated on all of those together and I think it was a very harmonious and fruitful collaboration, at least from my vantage point.”

ince Being John Malkovich, his screenwriting debut from 1999 in which a failed puppeteer discovers a portal into the soul of the eponymous actor, Charlie Kaufman has been one of the most inventive and unpredictable minds in American filmmaking. His blindingly individual and distinctly offbeat screenplays have charmed both audiences and critics, with their delicate dissection of the human condition matched only by the sheer audacity of their cerebral premises. Kaufman returns to filmmaking seven years on from Synecdoche, New York with the Oscarnominated Anomalisa, which he co-directed with Duke Johnson. At first glance, this low-key romantic drama appears unusually reserved from a writer whose previous work has been as reliably unpredictable as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Adaptation. However, Kaufman devotees will have already clocked that Anomalisa is not the typical romantic drama that usually attracts the attention of the Academy. For starters, that aforementioned Oscar nomination is for best animated feature. You’ll be pleased to hear that Kaufman hasn’t been drafted in for a lastminute rewrite of the latest chapter in the Ice Age franchise. Instead, Anomalisa is an entirely stop-motion adaptation of a Kaufman play, which was performed only twice, at a New York theatre in 2015. It’s an involving study of existential angst and paths not followed. The focus is Michael Stone (David Thewlis), a depressed but successful author specialising in customer service. In the film we find Michael on the road, away from his wife and family, spending an evening in a city hotel ahead of a public appearance, and desperately in need of a fulfilling human connection. Upon meeting an unassuming and lonely fan named Lisa (Jennifer Jason Leigh), he falls into an instant state of infatuation. “I had no interest in doing anything after it was a play,” Kaufman is keen to stress over the phone from Paris, where he’s close to winding up a day of press. “It was written for radio, as a non-visual performance. And when we did two performances of it, back in 2005, when it was over, it was over. And I even liked the fact that it was ephemeral. If you didn’t see it, you didn’t see it, because we couldn’t produce any more and there was no record of it.” He had a change of heart around 2012, however. “I was kind of really desperate to get something made; I’d been struggling to get a movie made since 2008, and this was a possible opportunity. There was no harm in trying. And then we got the money and it became a real thing and I was excited about the prospect of figuring out how to turn this into a movie.”

February 2016

The money Kaufman refers to arrived largely from a public Kickstarter campaign, founded by co-director Johnson, and his producer Dino Stamatopoulos, who had become friends with Kaufman and acquired the script to the littleseen play. Kaufman is unwilling to comment on whether the stop-motion aesthetic might have appealed to his fans (“I really don’t want to think about that, it’s a bad road to go down,” he adds), but suggests the involvement of Dan Harmon, creator of cult television hit Community, also had something to do with the overwhelming support. Synecdoche, New York, Kaufman’s first film as director, earned the usual plaudits from critics but – despite its grand-scale ambition and a career-best performance from the late Philip Seymour Hoffman – failed to connect with audiences and recoup much of its budget. Having openly discussed his struggle to get another film made in the wake of its commercial failure, Kickstarter funding represented relative freedom for Kaufman and Johnson, who were eventually approached by Paramount Studios. “I thought it was a great experience,” Kaufman reflects. “And if we do it again, we’d love to have the same kind of freedom, and we’d love to have a bit more money – that would make things comfortable in a way that might not have been the last time.” Still, making an animation in which a day of work translates to just one second of movement was never going to be entirely comfortable. While his co-director had earned his stripes on Adult Swim’s dark claymation comedy Moral Orel, animation represented a new frontier for Kaufman, a natural experimentalist. Just how hands-on did he get?

“Animation is stigmatised in America, at least as something that’s for children. And I believe that it’s a medium for storytelling like any other” Duke Johnson

With the exception of Thewlis and Leigh’s affecting performances as Michael and Lisa, all of the other characters in Anomalisa’s painstakingly detailed world are voiced by Tom Noonan, who offers only minor variations between male and female or adult and child. The key to the film’s visual power is in its minuscule renderings of the subtleties of human emotion, as well as the cripplingly mundane course of everyday society’s expectations and interactions. A contrary and initially surreal style to witness in stop-motion, this vision reaches its affecting peak during an extended sex scene that’s so intimate and uncomfortable it fortunately demolishes all risk of comparison to Team America: World Police’s absurd puppet fornication. Johnson refers to conversations he and producer Dino Stamatopoulos had prior to Anomalisa, expressing a desire “to use stop motion to explore more adult stories and more sophisticated emotional ideas and characters.” And while the occasional European or Japanese

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Interview: John Thorp animation might eventually find success in the US film market, either re-dubbed or backed with significant awards buzz marketing, ‘adult’ animation is more often than not relegated to television in the West. Might more sophisticated animation eventually find a future in mainstream cinema? “I’m not an expert on the production of animation,” responds Johnson. “I can say that I agree, that animation is stigmatised in America, at least as something that’s for children. And I believe that it’s a medium for storytelling like any other.” In the race for the aforementioned best animated feature statuette, Anomalisa makes an unusual but satisfying bedfellow to fellow nominee Inside Out, another widely acclaimed and equally moving study of emotional life, albeit from a radically different and unashamedly commercial perspective. Johnson understands the comparison, but seeks to stress the gulf between Disney’s cash cow, Pixar, and his and Kaufman’s vast undertaking. “Pixar is a corporation that makes films that appeal to general audiences, which specifically means all ages,” explains Johnson. “And that immediately separates their film from our film, which is decidedly only for adults. And Inside Out had made billions of dollars and has been seen by millions of people, and ours has been seen by a small audience and was made for a hundred dollars in a garage in Burbank. To date, it has made one million dollars. And I think if there’s going to be change in that regard and the possibility for art films to be animations for adults, then that will probably be based on whether our film makes money.” Written just over a decade ago, one aspect of Anomalisa might have seemed less resonant had it been written more recently. Near the beginning of the film, Michael nervously attempts to get in contact with a face from his past by means audience members won’t have used in years: scrambling through a phonebook. Was it important for Kaufman, a regular on the theme of isolation, to ground his protagonists in a world without social media? “I think there’s an element of that,” Kaufman muses, but suggests the reason might be simpler: technology dates art. “If I watch an episode of Seinfeld now, and he gets his phone out, and it’s forty feet tall and got an antenna, it’s really distracting.” Anomalisa is released 11 Mar by Curzon

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Dante Lam Saved My Life As Manchester’s HOME begins its wide-reaching Hong Kong crime film season – Crime: Hong Kong Style – one writer looks back on his introduction to the city’s cinema masters, from John Woo to Wong Kar-wai

Words: Alan Bett

have a confession to make. An interest to declare, you might say. Dante Lam saved my life. Indulge this overly dramatic exaggeration a little. You see, around 15 years ago, as a young cinephile, my interest in movies was waning. I fostered a naïve and juvenile belief that I’d experienced all the silver screen had to offer. Then, while wandering Shanghai’s back streets on a trip to China, I came across a DVD shop with pirated films stacked high, wrapped in cheap photocopied covers and cellophane. Most bore only alien-looking Chinese characters. Only one title was in English. It picked me. The film was Beast Cops, its cover as exhilarating as the translation of its title was dubious, with the über-cool Anthony Wong sporting guns, shades and attitude. Co-directed by Dante Lam, this was my first true taste of Hong Kong crime cinema, spurring an obsession that lives on to this day, where the opening jingles of distributors Golden Harvest or China Star still initiate Pavlovian drooling. It’s an obsession that has introduced me to many of the legendary directors featured in Crime: Hong Kong Style, HOME’s expertly curated festival, screening from February to April at the Manchester cinema. There is something truly special about Hong Kong crime cinema. For this UK viewer, it held an exoticism lacking from the Hollywood movies I had tired of. The works of filmmakers such as John Woo, Derek Yee, Andrew Lau and Wong Jing offered an unfamiliar set of cultural norms and genre conventions alongside the breathtaking visual backdrop of Hong Kong itself. It was a tale of two cities: a bustling ant hill of traditional lives flowing around iconic modern skyscrapers and a vertical landscape of glass, steel, steam and neon. A cultural dichotomy. Of course, it was an imagined reality – one of bubble-permed femmes fatales in ankle-length trench coats and hard-guys wearing shades and crumpled suits – but I believed and chased it on initial visits to Hong Kong. There were also familiar touchstones on screen. Chow Yun-fat often embodied every recognisable action flick stereotype: for example, the match-chewing, jazz-loving cop refusing to play by the rules, named Tequila, of course, in John Woo’s Hard Boiled. It was hardly a short shuffle from Lethal Weapon or the likes, but Hong Kong cinema was always willing to shift into that higher gear. Tiger on the Beat plays by all the mismatched buddy cop rules until a duelling chainsaw fight finale, the kind of scene Hollywood filmmakers wouldn’t have the chutzpah or abandon to even consider. John Woo’s Hard Boiled was even more insane, adding a wardful of live human babies to the hospital-set carnage of its final chapter. There were always more bad guys and more bullets, from guns which refused to click empty... until the final face-off.

That Demon Within

A shop off Temple Street in Hong Kong’s densely populous Mong Kok District is where I began to chase my fix, on near-annual visits, and fill my suitcase with cinematic bounty: from modern classics such as Felix Chong and Alan Mak’s Overheard trilogy (all playing at HOME, with Chong in town for a Q&A on 4 Mar), Ringo Lam’s Full Contact and Dante Lam’s Stool Pigeon, to cult classics like As Tears Go By (4 Feb), an early work from arthouse master Wong Kar-wai, who in many ways transcends the genre while still thankfully dragging his feet in its gutter. While visiting the shop, someone behind the counter thrust a film into my hands, solemnly nodded and demanded in broken English, “You must watch this.” The film was Johnnie To’s Election (21 Mar). Coincidentally enough, the shop was right opposite the night-market location of the blood-drenched opening to Ringo Lam classic City on Fire. Hong Kong is a living, breathing film set, so stumbling upon such iconic locations is less difficult than it might sound. And it’s hardly unusual to bump into crews filming in the more traditional neighbourhoods, from Yau Ma Tei to Sham Shui Po. City on Fire is perfect proof that while Hollywood crime films heavily influenced Hong Kong cinema in the 80s and 90s, there has always been a cross pollination (festival curator Andy Willis will explain this fully during the one-hour session From Hong Kong to Hollywood on 25 Feb). A young Quentin Tarantino used the film as an absolute template for Reservoir Dogs, with scenes occasionally lifted wholesale: the double-handed squib-popping gun-burst through a cop car windshield, the final Mexican standoff. And, of course, The Departed (22 Feb) – the film to finally win Martin Scorsese his best director’s Oscar – is a loose and messy remake of Andrew Lau’s tight and perfectly symmetrical

As Tears Go By

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Infernal Affairs trilogy (the first of which screens at HOME on 7 Mar). That’s not to say the Hong Kong crime film is perfect. We often only see the wheat in the UK, with the chaff sieved out, deemed undeserving of translation and transfer. There is an obsession with crime and specifically triad gangsters – it disproportionately dominates Hong Kong’s cinematic output and the films occasionally sit a little too close to their subject matter. In 1990, leading lady Carina Lau was abducted by gangsters while filming the Wong Kar-wai classic Days of Being Wild. Inappropriate pictures were forcibly taken of her as punishment for her refusal to act in a triad-backed movie. Other films are simple thug hagiographies, such as Casino, the self-financed and produced biopic of Macau godfather Broken Tooth Koi. Yet those stories based upon true crime and crims can also be carried out with style and verve – see award-winning films such as To Be Number One (13 Mar).

“In Hong Kong cinema, there’s always more bad guys and more bullets, from guns which refused to click empty...” There is a strong cultural context to this criminal fascination. The ancient triad brotherhoods flourished in post-WWII Hong Kong as flocks of migrants banded together for safety and strength. “They would talk about honour and be in situations defending their gangster boss,” Johnnie To – the godfather of Hong Kong gangster cinema – told me last year in an interview, “so it would come that they would have very heroic attributes and would start talking and acting as if they were heroes.” Legends grew from here and the film industry set them in celluloid. “In the early days of Hong Kong cinema,” he said, “a lot of stories were about heroes and heroic attributes and a lot of cinema therefore became about the gangsters and the triads, the brotherhood.”

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HOME’s festival – the biggest yet of Hong Kong film in the UK – will draw out the fans, the geeks and obsessives such as myself. Yet the genre is so exhilarating, fun and ultimately accessible that it should also baptise a fresh audience. Let HOME be that shop assistant who thrust Johnnie To’s classic film into my hands. Let them do the same for the wonderful collection of films they are offering during Crime: Hong Kong Style. Let them present Hong Kong’s biggest stars – from the internationally recognisable faces of Jackie Chan and Maggie Cheung to the connoisseur’s choices: Anthony Wong, Simon Yam and Nick Cheung. Finally, let them introduce you, through exclusive UK premiere screenings of two new films, to highly influential directors who have helped to shape the genre: Ringo Lam (Wild City, 18 Feb) and Dante Lam (That Demon Within, 1 Apr) – the man who saved my life. The full programme is available on HOME’s website. Here are three top picks alongside expert reasoning from the festival’s curator, Andy Willis: The Classic: Election “Johnnie To is one of the most important and successful filmmakers working in Hong Kong today and Election remains one of his most significant films. It was important to include one of his crime films in the season and this one is particularly interesting in the ways it intersects with issues facing Hong Kong since its reunification with the People’s Republic of China.” 21 Mar, 6.10pm The Cult Movie: As Tears Go By “Wong Kar-wai is one of Hong Kong’s best-known directors and his debut, As Tears Go By, is of particular interest for the season because it also operates as a triad movie – which is one of the most popular cycles within the crime genre in Hong Kong.” 4 Feb, 6.15pm The Forgotten Gem: Too Many Ways to Be Number 1 “I was really keen to include this as it is not well known enough by UK audiences. It is directed by longtime Johnnie To collaborator Wai Ka-fai, who is a brilliantly inventive filmmaker in his own right. It is a very dark comedy, which appeals to me, and I love the performance from lead actor Lau Ching-wan, who appears in a number of films in the season.” 15 Mar, 6.20pm Crime: Hong Kong Style runs at HOME, Manchester, Feb-Apr homemcr.org

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drink up brewing

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February 2016

The Quiet World of Moomin Sebastian Genz releases his long-awaited second album this month – nets at the ready

t feels wrong to big up Sebastian Genz too much. Here’s a guy whose inherently modest approach to making music now extends as far as the name of his second album as Moomin, landing on Smallville this month. That approach makes A Minor Thought much less a focus on the black keys and much more a quiet expression of ideas. “I like to keep things low-key,” says Genz through poor signal on an outbound train from Berlin. “I like to share my ideas, but I don’t like to shout them. I’ve never been the type of person who relies on endless praise, recognition or massive amounts of attention around what I do. Everybody expresses themselves in a different way, of course, and music is the core of my expression. I feel most comfortable when quietly working away – and that’s why I consider this record to be a minor thought.” Starting to get a feel for the personality behind Moomin, it comes as no surprise that both this album and his last effort, The Story About You, were never planned by the man himself. Having met Julius Steinhoff and Just von Ahlefeld at various events in Hamburg around 2008, Genz started plying them with all manner of tracks with no real intention of shaping them together into a collection. “Smallville really came up with the idea for both albums,” he explains. “Basically, I just make music. As long as I’m being honest with myself, that’s the most important thing; you have to trust your own handwriting. This has never changed for me, and it never will. I don’t work with deadlines or with a concept of how something should sound at all. I passed the guys a collection of tracks that I felt comfortable with and they picked their favourites before helping

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Interview: Daniel Jones

to put them all in some sort of logical order.” In terms of “handwriting,” one of the clearest signatures of the Moomin sound is certainly deft, twinkling piano lines, found frequently throughout his back catalogue. When gently pressed for an answer on the spot, Genz cites jazz composer Bill Evans as a key source of inspiration. “I love his work more than many other pianists’,” says Genz. “Not even for sampling, it just inspires my approach. “All the tracks for A Minor Thought were recorded in my studio. I’d love to be able to work while on the road, but it’s not possible for me to get the same effect using just a computer. I need my gear. As well as the samplers – this time around I’ve been getting a lot of use out of my TR drum machines. In particular, I love the 909 kick, the 808 toms and the 606 hats. Recently, I have to admit I’ve fallen in love with the Elektron Rytm. Also never underestimate freesound.org – which is where I pulled the opening seaside shore sample from.” There’s no doubt plenty of the tracks on A Minor Thought will be played out to dancefloors the world over, but part of the beauty of Moomin’s compositions is that they are also innately sofa-ready. More than that, he has a knack of generating hooks that sound so familiar on first listen, you swear you’ve heard them in a previous life – it’s an uncanny feeling that not many have the skill and sensibility to pull off. It’s worth mentioning at this point that Genz’s modest approach to doing his own thing is most likely the reason he’s only been releasing music since 2010. In fact, he’s been plugging away at his own productions since the end of the 90s, originally based in his hometown of Kiel, in northern Germany. “I started off with a

DOS program called FastTracker, and a little bit of Cubase,” he remembers, “but at that time I was more of a music lover, collector and DJ, and didn’t take my production seriously until much further down the line.

“Basically, I just make music. I don’t work with deadlines or with a concept of how something should sound at all; you have to trust your own handwriting” Sebastian Genz

“Eventually I got myself a sampler – the legendary SP-1200. The sampling time was very, very limited, so I was mainly using it to sample drums. I actually remember working with it on one of my first serious projects early on, which eventually turned into Watermelon. There’s also a really nice, old Three Dog Night riff in that track. It must have been one of my first solo releases. After that, I’m pretty sure I used the

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same sampler for Sunday Moon and You. “I also used [the SP-1200] on the new album. For the song Loop No. 1, the drums and the piano (high pass) are programmed and sequenced with the SP, and I used the S900 for the piano (low pass). Woman to Woman is a live jam with the MPC1000, the TR-707 and TR-606. I really like to combine different samplers and drum machines. The Elektron Rytm is a more recent addition – I used that for Morning Groove. Everything besides the low pass and the sax sample was arranged and sequenced with it.” As for the artwork this time around, Smallville’s Stefan Marx has outdone himself yet again. Considering Moomin’s previous covers, it’s easy to think of his music largely in terms of black and white, so it’s nice to have some warm pastels to drool over. “The cover was created out of a series of crayon drawings,” says Genz. “They were inspired by a trip Stefan took to the South Pacific in 2013, to a very small village called Munda in the Solomon Islands. He saw these patterns on a shirt an old woman was wearing during a Sunday morning church service.” Thanks and praise to that lady, then. Before ending our transmission, Genz reveals he’s moving into a new studio over the next month or two, and that there’s some good stuff to follow A Minor Thought this year. This includes a few quiet remixes, an October live date in Manchester and the tantalising prospect of an upcoming record with Jules and Just (Smallpeople). Again, there’s nothing in his disposition to suggest that these releases will be anything out of the ordinary. It’s refreshing to hear such a stone-cold pro seem so carefree in adventure – still exactly as his nickname suggests. A Minor Thought is out via Smallville on 5 Feb

THE SKINNY

Laws of Nature Amy Liptrot’s debut, The Outrun, has already marked her as a major new voice of 2016. The Skinny catches up with her days after the book’s release to talk about the restorative quality of the wilderness and the links between fiction and memoir writing Interview: Ceris Aston

my Liptrot’s The Outrun is an honest and painfully beautiful memoir of addiction, healing and hope, detailing the author’s return home after rehab and the relationships she forms with both people and place. Published by Canongate and featured as Radio 4’s book of the week, her debut has shone a spotlight on an author who details disco lights and night skies with equal eloquence. Six days after its publication, Liptrot chats to The Skinny about the process of crafting a memoir. Conversation opens with remarks about the weather, as we wait a few moments for the phone connection to steady – “I’ve only got one bar of signal,” Liptrot notes; a familiar concern for someone who grew up on Scotland’s remote Orkney isles. The island where her family farmed was known as the mainland – with the rest of Scotland and the UK known simply as ‘the south.’ Returning to the farm where she grew up, she would sit on an upturned bucket in a field to get reception, keeping connected with the rest of the world through photographs and stories shared on social media. “Part of what the book grew out of was that, when I went back to Orkney I started putting pictures of the farm and life up there on Facebook,” Liptrot recalls. “To all of my friends back in London it sounded really fascinating. That helped me to realise that it is an unusual or interesting place, and lifestyle, and maybe it’s worth writing about. “In my first year in Orkney I started doing this column for Caught by the River, a kind of nature-writing website, and all those columns have become chapters of the book – the ambergris one and the dyke-building one, lambing time – but all of those columns were much more on the nature-writing side, with the personal stuff more one brief mention. But also, when I was at the treatment centre I wrote a blog, which I just shared with a few friends, and that was another kind of starting point.” As well as these, The Outrun draws upon Liptrot’s personal diaries, which she has written since the age of eight. “A lot of people write diaries in their teenage years but rather embarrassingly I never stopped! I’ve got this big box of them in my mum’s attic. I was actually just over there and I went and looked at the box, and there was a moment of ‘ah, that’s what you were working me towards’ – all these hours in teenage bedrooms, it makes sense now. “I got the first draft down very quickly, and that might have been a little bit painful, but I think when I began redrafting it, it’s part of this piece of work rather than being about my life, if that makes sense; it was craft rather than therapy. I think it gets to a stage where I am able to separate my writing from my own experiences.” The Outrun is rooted firmly in place by

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meticulous, dazzling descriptions of Orkney’s natural landscape and its inhabitants – from the Orkney Polar Bears, braving the North Sea in swimming costumes and woollen hats, to the male corncrakes that Liptrot spent a summer listening out for and recording. ‘The oldest islanders are already familiar with the call, which was once the sound of the countryside on summer nights,’ reads one simple but poignant description. From remote Papa Westray, or Papay, Liptrot writes of life as it is and as it was, tracing London’s lines onto Orkney’s contours and vividly evoking her experience of both places. “I’ve always written directly from personal experience. In writing about place, I try to do a thing where I stop and count off – what can I smell, what can I hear, what can I feel? We tend to be visual but sometimes it pays to stop and to think about the other senses as well.” The Outrun is the largest field of the farm, ‘a stretch of coastland at the top of the farm where the grass is always short, pummelled by wind and sea spray year round.’ There, as a teenager, listening to music on her headphones, she would look out at the horizon in frustration, feeling trapped. As an adult, she pictures the scenes of shipwrecks past, the search for bodies and survivors.

“My best attempt at describing what has happened in my life is in this book” Amy Liptrot

This sense of peril pervades the book – from a collie pup disappearing over a cliff in the opening pages, to Liptrot’s open reflections on her struggle with alcoholism and the obsession of addiction. “I read an interview with Cheryl Strayed, the American writer, where she said that writing nonfiction can use the tools of fiction, which I thought was quite a good way of putting it,” Liptrot muses. “There are some parts in the book, especially when I was rewriting, when I was thinking about that, thinking about adding suspense or a kind of element of peril, parts with the threat hanging over the farm, and the idea – which was true – of the risk of me wanting or starting to drink again, the kind of things which you would find in a novel as well.”

Photo: Lisa Swarna Khanna

Reflecting on the nature of the form, she considers that “It’s a weird thing writing a memoir, it doesn’t tell that much; I mean there’s loads of stuff in my life that’s not in the book, whole jobs and boyfriends, but people reading it might get the impression that it’s my whole life. There’s a smoothing out and a giving of a narrative to things that in real life are more complex and meandering. I think there’s a distinction between memoir and autobiography. It mainly concentrates on this period, really just a year or two, after I returned to Orkney after I got out of rehab. It’s a strange thing, it gives the impression of a whole truth but really it’s just part of it.” Yet, for all this, she says, “My best attempt at describing what has happened in my life is in this book.” It is four years since Liptrot started The Outrun, and one-and-a-half since she knew she’d be published. The published memoir is the fourth draft, and Liptrot relates the pressure

BOOKS

from early readers to put more of herself into it. “So I went back the second winter and I did add in more of the personal stuff, particularly the early chapters that became more like a traditional memoir. Actually that second winter, I think I went there with 70,000 words, and after four months’ work I had 70,000 words! “When I was writing the book I had a daily word count that every day I hit, or it was a daily redraft-one-chapter-a-day schedule, six days a week. I tend to smoke roll-up cigarettes and drink Coca-Cola when I am writing, which is not very good, and get myself into quite a highly strung state of mind, because I feel as though I need this sort of edginess to write. I’ve heard that it’s possible to write without chain smoking but I am not sure if I believe that.” The Outrun is out now, published by Canongate @amy_may

Feature

Punning up that Hill Lovers of terrible puns, rejoice! Bec Hill is the founder of a unique pun-based comedy night, Pun Run, as well as an ace standup in her own right. She tells us about her new show, Caught on Tape, and turning regret into humour Interview: Jon Whiteley

“T

hat was genuinely quite a painful experience.” Bec Hill is talking about making the poster for her latest show, Caught on Tape. “It’s electrical tape that’s in my hair. It’s lots of nice colours, but removed a bit of hair when we took it out...” For all the trouble and pain, couldn’t she have just done it in Photoshop? “Where’s the fun in that?” Fun is key to understanding Hill’s cynicismproof brand of comedy. It’s strange, then, that she’s got such a downbeat mission statement for the new show. “I had one massive regret in life, which I decided I needed to try and deal with and get over,” she explains. “So I asked people on social media what their biggest regrets in life were and how they got over them, and got 297 replies. So the show’s essentially about regret and the things that we all regret, but no way near as bleak as I made that sound.” Finding the daft side of your darkest hour is no mean feat – and the material from the show is crowdsourced, which is a tricky line to walk if you don’t want to plagiarise your audience. Hill finds balance by using the stories as a launchpad. “Two or three stories in [the show] were almost entirely from the people who contacted me that were just too good for me to try to mess with. They were such great stories.” The paring down of this collected material is less documentary-style, and more like reverse-engineering observational comedy. “A lot of the show is me drawing from other people’s experience and then realising that I’ve got quite a few things in my life that are parallel to the experiences that they’ve had,” she says. Hill is not the first comic to turn to her audience for inspiration, and she won’t be the last – god knows what comedy-by-committee trash will be rolled out once the formula is picked up by lazier comics – but she’s keen to move on from it. “I think it’ll be the only mainly crowdsourced show [I do],” she says. “It’s hard to tell really – I mean, I wouldn’t not do it again. But I kind of like to tackle each show with a different approach.” Taking a different tack when creating each new show means she guarantees something a little different every time. “It means that it never gets old,” she says. “I see lots of comics who, growing up, I adored, but when I see them now, no matter how good they are, I see their formula. And that eventually starts to get a bit tiresome.” One of the ways Caught on Tape differs from Hill’s previous work is that it’s a lot more stripped back. Previous shows have been techheavy and spiked with her trademark flair for arts and crafts. “The show I did before was really fun but involved a lot of tech cues and sound cues; there were a lot more props involved,” she recalls. “So

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it was just that little bit more difficult to tour and I couldn’t do it in any sort of venue, it generally had to be in a theatre or somewhere with good sound and lighting.” Here, she’s ditched the PowerPoints and just gone for raw standup. Well, almost. “Obviously I still have the flip charts, because I’ve too small of an attention span to just speak for an hour.”

“Comedy can be hard and lonely. If you’re not in it for the love of it then it could really destroy you” Bec Hill

Hill cut her breezy style in her home town of Adelaide. “The comedy scene in Adelaide is really... it’s like a family, it’s the only way I could describe it,” she tells us. “Everyone looked out for me and was incredibly supportive and patient, really patient. Looking back on how I was when I started out, I don’t know if I’d have had time for me.” Her career took off when she was spotted at a competition and taken under

the wing of one of the judges. “He ended up mentoring me and got me to be his support act during Melbourne Comedy Festival, so I was doing five minutes opening up for him each night. He was doing a 55-minute show every night and he had way more stuff to worry about, yet he was still taking time out to sit down with me after the show.” It’s a rare bump, as she acknowledges: “I’m really thankful for that because I realise now how rare that is. I think when I was starting, I thought, ‘Oh, every new comic gets a mentor, that’s how it works,’ and it wasn’t until I was older that I realised I was incredibly fortunate.” It’s unlikely that Hill would’ve had the same leg-up if she’d started out in London. “Moving to London made me realise what the big, wide world is actually like and I had to buck up my ideas pretty quick,” she says. With the biggest standup scene outside America, the diversity of comedy in London makes it welcoming, but the sheer size of the scene makes it incredibly cutthroat. “I love watching comedy, that’s part of the reason I do it,” Hill says. “I love staying around watching the rest of the show seeing what other acts are doing, I find it inspiring. And there’s a lot of people out there who I think miss out on that, because they’re so competitive and they forget that actually the enjoyment part is that you get to work with some amazing people.” Hill has been nurturing a project of her own on the scene since 2011. Pun Run began as a oneoff gag competition, and a release valve for the sort of jokes that weren’t landing in the clubs.

COMEDY

“I tweet a lot and I found that my most popular tweets tended to be sort of really bad puns,” she explains, “but whenever I tried to tell them on stage, people hated them.” It turns out she wasn’t the only one sitting on a dearth of unappreciated puns. “I had about 20 people wanting to be on the line-up and after [the competition] finished, everyone who attended asked when the next one was, and it’s been going every couple of months since then.” The night has gone from strength to strength, touring festivals and even spawning its own rules of engagement. “They’re waiting for a different punchline, they’re not listening the same as they would if you were just telling a normal joke,” Hill says of the audience. And with a normal joke, “people will be like, OK, what’s he going to say next, where’s the pun part? And then they realise there is no pun – they get confused and so the joke falls flat.” In the cynical, career-minded scrum that is modern comedy, it’s funny to see that there’s still room for a night like this, and for an act like Hill. “Sometimes comedy can be so hard and so lonely and can really take a toll on your confidence,” she says. “I think if you’re not in it for the love of it then it could really destroy you.” But daft humour and silly fun aren’t just a shield against a cold world: they’re something to aspire to. You’ve just got to chase the fun – even if it gets stuck in your hair. Bec Hill plays The Dancehouse, Manchester, 6 Feb bechillcomedian.com

THE SKINNY

Rapid Fire Spanish livewires Hinds teach The Skinny about the effort, energy and attitude it takes to tour their debut album, Leave Me Alone ome people struggle with first impressions. Not Hinds. When the Spanish slacker-rock four-piece take to a stage, they introduce themselves with huge, genuine grins and live-wire enthusiasm. Winningly confident and infectiously energetic – and with a welcome disregard for tempo – you’d be hard pushed to believe that two years ago, they’d never played a gig. But it’s their inimitable live performances that have earned them a record label (three, in fact) and seen them burst out of tiny DIY shows in Madrid to hold court in trendy New York boroughs. Last year they became the first Spanish band to ever play a Glastonbury stage (really!), supported The Strokes at Hyde Park and finished off 2015 with a full tour of the US. There’s no doubt that their warm-hearted, sunshine-coated rock’n’roll is a perfect calling card… But don’t be fooled, there’s nothing breezy about a band that sweats it out this hard. Initially founded under the moniker Deers by Carlotta Cosials and Ana Garcia Perrote in 2011 – and then reinvigorated in 2013 – the duo released tracks Bamboo and Trippy Gum via Bandcamp the following year. They received a ton of international praise, but when they tried to take the project to a stage, they realised a few extra hands would come in, err… handy. Shortly after recruiting bassist Ade Martin and drummer Amber Grimbergen, the band were forced to change their name after a similarly titled band called dibs. Before you ask, Hinds is Spanish for a female deer (says Google translate). Characteristically, the band were unfazed. It quickly transpires that Hinds’ charm isn’t just reserved for the stage. In a rapid-fire interview punctuated by a truly cackling laugh, Cosials talks The Skinny through the most important shows they’ve played so far, and why, to Hinds, a positive attitude is everything; she is the kind of person who, instead of saying a simple ‘yes,’ shouts the affirmation three times over. We briefly discuss Hinds’ foundations, and Cosials is quick to correct any preconceptions of the band’s unusually speedy ascent to acclaim. “OK, if you’re thinking about all of the steps we’ve done… We haven’t missed any, you know. If you see our history: We release a song, labels come to watch us, then we get a booking agent, then we start a tour, then we played a festival… da da da. It’s just like a real live band!” She pauses for breath. “But the thing is the timing. What usually takes a band one month, it takes us two days.” She’s not wrong. This band are a total tour de force. In honour of their debut album, Leave Me Alone, Hinds played two release shows across two continents – in the space of 48 hours. When we speak they’ve just arrived in London, on the eve of a wholly mammoth EU tour. A simple, ‘How are you?’ receives a whopping answer. “WELL!” Cosials shouts. “Actually! So… the day before yesterday, we wake up in New York City. We take a plane, and we go straight out of the airport to play our own release party in Madrid. After playing the release party we… partied. Ha. And then the day after, we were starting this tour. So it took us to a FERRY! And that ferry took us to London… and I mean… these three days? Now I don’t know where I am anymore.” She laughs, a lot. The Skinny feels exhausted, seasick and hungover by proxy. Nothing sums up their recent success so well as Cosials’ hyper-speed recounting of their Brooklyn-based record launch. The 300-capacity show sold out spectacularly, and she cackles as she reports that they “stopped counting” after they’d received over 2000 email requests for tickets: “Impossible!” Even more spectacular

February 2016

is how, according to all accounts, the gig was a total shambles by “show” standards – and a riotous success by anybody’s party standards. “It was the craziest, wildest, most-people thing we’ve ever done!” she enthuses. “So OK, OK… everything was a mess. We were telling our label, ‘Please guys, do not worry at all. This is going to be a party. This is a release party! Of all the parties, it has to be chaos. It is expected!’”

“What usually takes a band one month, it takes us two days” Carlotta Cosials

Then, while the show was in full swing, Ade fell sick and had to leave before the encore – which they’d planned to be an audience-participation Hinds karaoke, of course. “We had to stop the gig… ‘Sorry! We’ll be back in a minute!’ We went to the backstage, and Ade’s like ‘I’m so sorry!’ Then she took a cab home, and we were like ‘What do we do now?!’ So we had this friend John, from [the band] Public Access TV, and we were like ‘Hey John, do you play bass?’ He says ‘I guess?’ ‘Really? Great!’ So we showed him in the toilet the chords of the songs and he did it! He makes it! So we go back on stage like, ‘Let’s see if this works! Who wants to come on stage and sing with us?’ Suddenly ALL the hands are UP-UP-UP! I mean, come on, karaoke is usually a thing that makes people shy. But everybody wanted to do

it! It was like a Disney movie, fighting against all the disadvantages. We had so much fun.” Phew. That’s the thing, though. No matter how many handfuls of shit hit the fan, Hinds always look like they’re having so much fun. Their live shows are rambunctious, electric, chaotic affairs that feel as homely and inclusive as a house party. With a 30-date ‘World Tour Part One: Europe and UK!’ tour running from January to March (they hit Manchester late-Feb), it begs the question: How on earth can they keep up that energy? “It’s always a tough question to answer,” Cosials says, very seriously. “Because I don’t want to say that we’re always having a great time. Every day is a different day. I am a human being exactly like you. People break my heart exactly like you… so… I think we are just good at being in a good mood. “We’ve had to learn to be completely exhausted. To hate carrying all your shit into a fucking airplane and they’re going to tell you that the guitar cannot be in the plane, and you’ll have to fight… BUT! We are always very optimistic. Life is a shit – but you can say it with a smile on your face.” It’s a universally impressive attitude, and a stern reminder that touring is no picnic. Hinds might look all smiles, but behind the scenes you’ll find nothing but fortitude and focus. The band’s social media is crammed with fans desperate to be the fifth member of Hinds’ gang – something Cosials finds faintly baffling. “It’s not that easy. I really have to tell you. Hinds is my life, completely, and in an extreme way. I’m dedicating everything, everything… every part of my brain and my heart and my sweat and my daily life to this project and… poooffff. Overwhelmed.” She considers that maybe “it’s our fault, because of the way we started.” Cosials describes their rapid rise as something “out of

reach of understanding” by the labels and management teams that they work with, and so Hinds are left to sail their own ship: “They just trust in our taste and our ideas, and our way of sharing what we’re doing with the world.” From running their own social media to directing their own videos (“and I am not a professional!”), Hinds infuse everything they touch with their special brand of street-smarts. Hinds speak your language, they’ll tell you their secrets… and then they’ll play you a total melter of a rock show. In short: mistake Hinds’ energy and enthusiasm for naivety at your peril. Cosials explains that the band, eager to learn from more experienced musicians they meet on the road, have asked a lot of questions – and received unexpected answers. “We’re getting so, so surprised about how little involved they are. We even ask about money things, like: ‘How much do you pay your sound engineer? We’re thinking about getting one.’ And they say, ‘Oh, no. I have no idea.’ But how can you not know?! Come on man, it’s your band. They say, ‘Yeah, I guess the label knows?’ But come on! It’s your business! It’s your project, it’s your baby. It’s your life!” All the elbow grease, learning curves and “table work” considered, Hinds are exactly where they deserve to be. Cosials takes a deep breath; “It’s when we go on stage…That’s the moment. That’s the moment that I am exactly where I should be, and it’s here, on this stage, with these people; this audience of London, Chicago or Berlin – I don’t care.” So you’re ready for a world tour, then? “Oh yes. Yes, yes, yes. Yes! We’re ready.” Playing Manchester Gorilla on 20 Feb and Leeds Brudenell Social Club, 22 Feb. Leave Me Alone is out now on Lucky Number hindsband.com

Photo: John Graham

Interview: Katie Hawthorne

MUSIC

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THE SKINNY

Super Freak As Queer Contact gears up to deliver its eighth annual festival celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender arts and culture in Greater Manchester, we catch up with gender outlaw and festival performer Kate Bornstein Interview: Jennifer Chamberlain

s part of LGBT month, Queer Contact Festival explores sexuality, gender, religion and history with local, national and international artists set to appear from 4 to 14 February. Performing her show On Men, Women and the Rest of Us, American writer, artist and transgender trailblazer Kate Bornstein is one of the biggest names to feature at this year’s Queer Contact. This will be Bornstein’s second time performing in Manchester, after coming to the city for a similar festival, It’s Queer Up North, way back in 1996. “Cities have personalities,” she begins. “I was only in Manchester for a week, but I’ve always carried with me the good memories of a queer community that was down-to-earth, sweet, smart and fun.” Reassured that this is very much still the case, Bornstein decided it was time to come back to perform for the people of Manchester, bringing both something old – her seminal piece – together with something new: her first ever day-long gender workshop. On Men, Women, and the Rest of Us explores the notion of a not-man, not-woman identity in a world that demands we be one or the other. An entertaining introduction to the notion of sex and gender beyond the binary, Bornstein’s autobiographical performance is a deeply moving affirmation of spirit for sex-and-gender outlaws. “I always think it is a good performance if my audience laughs, cries and gasps out loud,” she says. “I’ll be talking about my days as a phone-sex operator during my early transition in the 1980s, I’m doing a comic monologue about pronouns – “I has no gender – neither does you” – and I’ll bookend the evening with some of my favourite pieces about my mom: how I came out to her and what happened when I attended her funeral as her daughter, when most of the people at the service only knew me as her son.” Though first and foremost a performer, many of us know Kate Bornstein as a gender theorist, and her writing is taught in universities around the world. “The language of our people is always shifting, and it’s different from subculture to subculture. Here in the States, we’ve got LGBTQ – the Q stands in addition to LGBT. I’m more of a Q than I am an LGB, or even T,” she says, choosing to accept the female pronoun despite identifying neither as man nor woman. “There just aren’t enough letters for all the amazing sex-and-gender identities we assume and represent with our performance. There’s no S for S&M yet, and we probably need another G for genderqueer, and an A for asexuals, and another S for sex workers… Sigh.” Although the subject of gender and sexuality still exasperates even the most iconic LGBTQ artist, Queer Contact provides a platform for both performer and audience to explore diverse identities in a dedicated space. “Festivals like Queer Contact are so damn important: they help to forge bonds across so many of our diverse queer lives – not to

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mention our diversity of race, class, age, spirituality and so forth,” says Bornstein. “When we see each other’s performances, we learn how to give voice to the more marginalised of us. That’s what LGBTQ performance can do: give us all our distinct voices, united by our common queer family values.” It is this sense of solidarity that underpins Bornstein’s position as a self-confessed auntie and advocate for teens, freaks and outlaws. Despite being criticised for using the word ‘freak’ to describe the LGBTQ community, she wears it as a badge of honour. “I’ve been using that word since my hippie days. Back then, we were standing in opposition to the 1950s rah-rah American Dream. We freaks thought of it as an American Nightmare. I understand you’ve had your fair share of English Nightmares, from Richard III to Margaret Thatcher, and today’s dear David Cameron,” she laughs. “Freaks have always stood in opposition to right-wing, conservative politics. Why? Because most right-wing, conservative politicians see us as freaks. Calling ourselves that takes away their power to shame and humiliate us.” But for somebody who has lived for six decades bearing witness to society’s attitudes towards LGBTQ people, the tide does seem to be turning. “I see it as a wave. The very tippy-tip edge of the wave is all ‘yay trans and queer!’ That tippy edge is to the left of what’s become known as the mainstream transgender tipping point,” she explains. Perhaps one of the biggest shifts in mainstream attitudes towards transgender people came in 2015, thanks to Caitlyn Jenner’s very

public and documented transition, together with the release of films such as The Danish Girl. “Aw, I think it’s swell,” Bornstein affirms, before revealing that – spoiler! – she is a regular cast member on season two of E! TV’s I Am Cait. “It’s the first time ever that reality TV is being used for the purpose of activism, while still being really fun reality TV.”

“Oral sex is wonderful, and someone’s gotta make sure the next generation knows that!” Kate Bornstein

Yet while progress is being made, the prevailing attitude towards transgender people in virtually every part of the world is negative, which is why most of those who don’t fit the mould experience immense suffering. “The Hollywood telling is always going to be important, but it will always make the most radical of us invisible,” she says. “Disney won’t make a cartoon of me cutting on myself, or starving myself, or delighting in blowjobs on boys of all genders. Nope, Disney won’t make that.” For Bornstein, this is the reason why live queer performance is so important: “Oral sex is

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wonderful, and someone’s gotta make sure the next generation knows that!” she exclaims. “Look, we have a fuck of a lot of work to do, so we might as well be having fun while we’re doing it. That’s what my workshop at Queer Contact is about: how to have fun with your gender, as you end gender-based suffering in your day-to-day life.” A queer pioneer for transgender art and expression, Kate Bornstein is loved by LGBTQ communities old and new, near and far. At the grand age of 67, a youthful enthusiasm bursts from her every word. Perhaps this lust for life rises from the fact she didn’t think she’d be alive to do this tour, after being diagnosed with cancer – which she has since beaten thanks to a public campaign to fund her treatment – in 2013. “So here I am, living a life I never thought I’d be alive to live, and I am really looking forward to meeting and speaking with my extended English family,” she smiles. “Beyond that, I don’t know. But I do know that all roads in life lead nowhere, so I keep trying to choose the road that has the most heart and is the most fun.” While Bornstein may not know where she’s going, her no-holds-barred retelling of On Men, Women and the Rest of Us shows us where she’s been. So, in all these years at the forefront of cutting-edge thought, what’s been the key to her success? “I think it all comes down to the fact I’m so gosh-darned cute.” Kate Bornstein: On Men, Women and the Rest of Us, Contact, Manchester, 5 Feb, 8pm Kate Bornstein: My Gender Workshop, LGBT Foundation, Manchester, 6 Feb, 10am contactmcr.com/queercontact

Feature

I See Your Universe, and Raise You a Multiverse Ahead of their new solo exhibition at HOME, we talk to artists AL and AL about everything from Francis Crick’s panspermia theory (us neither) to an Alan Turing dreamscape populated by anorexic Terminators (that’s more like it)

Interview: Sacha Waldron

AL and AL - The Creator

L and AL are busy at their home just outside Manchester. “We’ve been editing. With the films we go into another universe,” says AL. “Most of the work for the show is done but we’re working on this new piece, we must have been working on it for the last 18 months now, on and off. We don’t know what day it is or what time it is.” Editing fatigue, however, does not seem to show and they are smiling, chipper even, inside my computer screen (we’re talking on Skype). They have every reason to be upbeat. On 6 February the duo open their new solo exhibition, Incidents of Travel in the Multiverse, at HOME, Manchester, which includes film installations, drawing, print and a new commission titled The Demiurge. After meeting in 1997 (apparently by chance in Derek Jarman’s garden – good art-world meta-info), AL and AL have been making films together since 2001. They often deal with sci-fi or alternate realities, imagined multi-dimensional situations, technological theories and historical moments that suggest possibilities for the future. “In one sense the stories always start with fact,” says AL, “then they become a kind of re-meditation on that fact.” “The new commission is really about Francis Crick’s panspermia theory,“ says AL, referring to the idea that microorganisms could have been sent deliberately to Earth from space to establish life, and could also be sent from Earth to other places in the universe as ‘seeds.’ “And [it’s also about] the work of nanobiophysicist Bart Hoogenboom who created the world’s first ‘real’ images of DNA. Because, of course, the images of DNA structure that we all know, no one has actually ‘seen’ the double helix, it’s not a real image. Hoogenboom has created this cantilevered needle and as the needle strokes the atoms it creates the image of the atom. He’s basically feeling them. The rub is creating an image of what it’s touching so it creates this real image of DNA in its natural environment. They are finding that they are not as perfect as we imagined.” AL and AL’s resulting film works as modern myth, following the demiurge character on board a spaceship populated by genetically modified clones travelling across the universe searching

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for a cure for death. Modern mythology and storytelling run through all of AL and AL’s work. Part of the exhibition is an ‘event horizon’ V-shaped triptych installation which includes their 2010 work Icarus at the Edge of Time (40 mins), based on Brian Greene’s children’s book. The two have been developing this into a three-screen epic space opera, which for the Manchester show will include a special live performance at the Royal Northern College of Music. “Brian is coming over to narrate live with an 80-piece orchestra,” says AL. “We’ve done that before and it’s an amazing event and a beautiful live piece.” Perhaps a central work in the Multiverse is The Creator (2012; 40 mins) which follows a dreamscape narrative in which scientist Alan Turing is visited from the future by ‘thinking machines.’ (“We prefer that term to AI,” says AL, “as to call any intelligent being artificial reminds us of the homophobia Turing suffered.”) Exploring the last days of Turing’s life before he is thought to have committed suicide (although this is much disputed), anorexic Terminator-type entities cavort, with shiny silver and breathy voices following Turing as the machines he has created become a reality. Why did the two become fascinated with Turing’s story? “Turing is really important to us. He essentially invented the computer age. You know, Steve Jobs, Microsoft, etc. have come in and built the operating systems we all work on now but without Turing it’s questionable whether we would have those computers at all. His ideas were the seed. And computers are really important to us and how we work. We make films on computers, so when we started to learn about his story many years ago we knew we definitely wanted to make a film about him in the future.” Turing’s story, of course, is not just about his contribution to the evolution of computer technology but also very much about his private life and how he was treated by society as a gay man. After a career that included cracking the Enigma code (thought to have shortened WWII by at least two years) and designing the first electronic computer, he was convicted, in 1952, under the Gross Indecency Act for homosexual

activity. Rather than go to jail he accepted a course of chemical castration, had his security clearance revoked, and suffered ongoing harassment as he was thought to be a security risk. His was found dead by his cleaner in 1954 by cyanide poisoning, a half-eaten apple next to his bed. “Obviously Turing should have been a gay superhero for us when we were growing up,” says AL. “We only learned about Turing later in life, because the law erased him from a heroic history. When the Cornerhouse commissioned us to make a film celebrating his centenary in 2012 we wanted to get away from the Cambridge professor and his twee cucumber sandwiches and get inside his futuristic sci-fi head, where he was thinking about making an intelligent machine. “It’s also fascinating to think of what he could have gone on to do with his research. Towards the end of his life he was actually bored with computers. He was working on morphogenesis in Manchester. He believed he was on

“Turing is really important to us. He essentially invented the computer age” AL and AL

the cusp of his most important theory. He made a beautiful drawing of the Fibonacci sequence inside a sunflower, numbering every seed.” A relatively new element of the Multiverse for AL and AL is the exhibition of their drawings from over the last five years. AL and AL see them as both planning-and-development tools and works in their own right, almost scores for the films. “We haven’t really shown them that much before,” says AL. “We’ve always concentrated on the video work because that’s the sort

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of meat, if you like, in one sense of what we do, or it’s the main thing we spend our time doing. When we sat down with this solo exhibition we just felt that it was time, and important, to bring out some of the processes that go into the films. Interestingly enough we were talking to Philip Glass, who’s composing the score for our new film, about that. We had just gone to see a drawing show at MoMA. He was telling us about the way he writes his music and when he showed us the score, we realised that they were like drawings. In many ways drawing is the fastest way to get an idea from your head into the world. And obviously making film is the slowest. Because of course you have to cast it, you have to build the sets, you have to light it, you have to film it, you have to grade it and you have to do the sound... There’s a million jobs to do whereas with drawing there is that immediacy.” AL and AL have used the occasion of the show at HOME to delve into and make visible the multi-layers that go into conceiving and making work. “An important part of the exhibition is a book we have just written containing different facets of conversations we’ve been having, Multiverse reports of our adventures making these films,” says AL. “You have all these strange meetings along the way and we’ve got these incredible relationships with these scientists over the last five years – they’ve inspired so many different channels of investigation. In a way those conversations are where the real work is.” The exhibition platform and the installation of a film, over a cinema release or festival screening, is also an important further layer for the two. “The whole gallery space is a place where people can have those conversations. Exhibitions can really be revelatory, life-changing moments – like the seeds of a beautiful romance or conversation. You know when you go on a date to a movie or a show, it’s a beautiful thing to have a great conversation with a lover afterwards. It’s part of the experience of your life.” Does bringing in other voices and having those outside conversations, I wonder, help keep the two stimulated in their creative and personal relationship? “I think anyone who’s been in a relationship for as long as we have, which is getting close to 20 years now – of course you change all the time and develop by the week, month, year. But we’ve always managed to seduce each other and make our conversations go in ways that are interesting to each other and obviously all these other people we’ve been able to talk to and work with are part of that development.” The HOME exhibition will be a key development in AL and AL’s career, a moment when the artists can take stock a little of all facets of their practice before they move forward with the next major project – their first full-length feature film, which will be released in 2017. The Creator feature, supported by the BFI and Creative Scotland, will take the shorter 2012 film and expand the Turing narrative. “We knew that story was right for our first feature film. We’re working up to concentrating on filming now. It’s been an amazing ride with that project, years and years.” So no rest after the exhibition opening then? AL and AL laugh. “No, not at all. We just keep going and going.” I wave a real/virtual goodbye and shut my computer to let them do just that. Incidents of Travel in the Multiverse runs at HOME, Manchester, from 6 Feb to 10 Apr homemcr.org alandal.co.uk

THE SKINNY

LI FE ST Y

“Colombia is, in many ways, a different world from the UK, so living there in turn helps you see the world differently” By British standards, Bogotá taxis are really cheap, though try not to apply British standards to costs of living in Bogotá, unless you’re lucky enough to be getting paid by British standards! Taxis have a bad reputation in Bogotá, and there have been very rare instances of kidnappings by fake taxis, so while hailing one from the street will almost always be safe, it’s even more secure to use an app like Tappsi or EasyTaxi. Also keep an eye out for unscrupulous drivers who might try to overcharge foreigners, as happens everywhere. Better than all these options: get a bike. There are hundreds of miles of cycle paths in Bogotá, and it’s mostly flat, so a bike can often take you where you want to go faster than any vehicle.

Living in Bogotá Living in Colombia’s capital as a foreigner presents little everyday challenges that pampered westerners from first world countries might not be used to. Our man in Bogotá offers an insider’s guide

Is it safe?

Words: Ally Brown

o you enjoy the integrated public transport systems of Berlin, Barcelona and San Francisco; swapping between trams, trains, buses and the metro with a swish of a magnetic card, do you? Welcome to Bogotá, where we’ve recently welcomed the innovation of the bus stop. So London can be held to ransom by its underground drivers because the city can’t function without an underground, right? Bogotá has the same population as London, yet has never had an underground. Not even a single line.

Finding an apto

Indeed, the biggest practical problem with living in Bogotá is mobility, and that’s something you can mitigate as soon as you arrive by choosing a flat carefully. How do foreigners find a flat? Use your contacts already there, the Facebook group Bogotá Short Term Rentals, or CompartoApto. com. It’s key that you get a location that’s appropriate for where you’re going to be spending most of your time. Will you be studying or working at IH or one of the central universities? Then live in La Candelaria or nearby La Macarena. Will you be working at the British Embassy, British Council, or other offices near the Zona Rosa? Then live in that area or in nearby Chapinero Alto. Will you be working in offices further north? Look in Usaquen. Will you be teaching English for an agency who are likely to send you all over the city?

February 2016

Then Chapinero is probably your best bet – it’s the area roughly halfway between central La Candelaria and Usaquen, respectively the furthest south and furthest north most foreigners will ever need to go.

Getting around town

Bogotá’s public transport system is improving, but it’s got a long way still to improve. Your choices are buseta, SITP bus, Transmilenio, or taxi. The busetas are the wee old dirty rust-buckets that cover every inch of the city, spewing black smoke. Do your best to read your destination on the placard at the front window, then hail it, anywhere, and give the driver a 2000 peso note. He might give you change – buseta prices differ by company, by route, by time – but 2000 will cover it. Because they stop anywhere, buseta journeys are slow, and because they stop everywhere, they cram as many people in as they possibly can. It’s not uncommon to see passengers hanging out of buseta doorways. If you see that, wait for the next one. The new SITP buses are more comfortable than busetas, faster because they only stop at bus stops, and safer: the card system prevents thieves getting on surreptitiously, as can’t be prevented on busetas. But they don’t go everywhere, yet. Check out sitp.gov.co to find all of the SITP routes that might ever be useful to you, and memorise them.

The other major issue in Bogotá is security, and that’s the one I get asked about most commonly. Colombia, in general, is both far, far safer than it used to be, and far more dangerous than the UK. That means it’s a lot safer than most people imagine. I lived in downtown Bogotá (La Candelaria) for 2.5 years without any problems whatsoever, and most of my friends never had problems either – but some of them did. All you can do is learn how to minimise the risk. Specifically, the risk in Bogotá is street robbery. Pickpocketing happens in crowded areas – for example, a packed Transmilenio or buseta – so keep valuables at home or in a zipped pocket, preferably not your back pocket. You’ll learn to

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be alert in the streets, especially at night, and to cross roads tactically. If you walk down the wrong street and are confronted by somebody with a knife, give them what you’ve got, it’s worth a whole lot less than your life. They will run away as soon as they’ve got something, and that’s it, over. Possession of a gun in Bogotá is a criminal offence, so guns are very unlikely to be used in a mugging. Wherever you choose to live, you will learn the areas that are better avoided: from La Candelaria, it’s Belem, Egipto and Tres Cruces on the fringes; from La Macarena, it’s La Perseverencia and Santa Fe; from Chapinero, it’s the other side of Caracas, and so on. Be smart, be alert, but don’t be paranoid.

Why live in Bogotá, then?

Because you’ll meet so many lovely Colombians, who are delighted that the outside world is finally paying positive attention to their country, and determined to show it in a positive light; because there are a lot of interesting immigrants there too, like you, who’ve all had roundabout reasons for choosing to live there; because it’s a land of opportunities, with good jobs available sooner to well-educated foreigners, and plenty of potential market gaps for entrepreneurs to explore; because from Bogotá you can travel to other, smaller, prettier and hotter places around it; because you can learn Spanish and salsa, arepas and aguardiente, reggaeton and rum. Colombia is, in many ways, a different world from the UK, so living there in turn helps you see the world differently. It’s a former Spanish colony with a pervading conservative Catholic influence, with a former slave-holding Caribbean coast, a Pacific coast, an Andean heritage, and is half-covered in Amazon jungle: and all of those peoples and cultures are in Bogotá, along with the drag queens of Chapigay, the militant leftist students of La Nacho, and the racing guinea pigs of La Septima. In Bogotá third world slums sit across the road from first world multiplexes; the road to the country’s most exclusive university is so potholed it’s like a rollercoaster, and the Presidential palace is a stones’ throw from the lawless crackdens of El Bronx. It’s a country full of warm, wonderful, loving people, and yet: that history is real, too. How do you reconcile that? Bogotá is never as straightforward as it might seem. The answer to one question is two more questions. And from facing a different set of questions comes a different way of thinking. How do you adapt to a less than perfect environment? By learning that holes in the road might give you a bump, but they’re really no obstacle to happiness. Find more insiders' guides to living abroad at theskinny.co.uk/travel

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The Transmi – buses, overland, in exclusive lanes, with stations – is the fastest way to get across the city at off-peak times only. During peak times – which means around 7-9am and 4.30-7pm – it’s packed full and a little crazy and chaotic: avoid it. The card you use for the SITP can also be used for the Transmi, finally.

BERLIN

MARRAKECH

All roads lead to the German capital this February and first up is digital art and media festival Transmediale. This year’s festival is themed Conversation Piece, a transitory space for discussion of the anxieties of late capital – aka what will we do when the machines take over?

Meryl Streep will be Jury President of 2016’s incarnation of Berlinale, which this year will be screening over 400 films. Generating most interest at this point is the first German feature-length biopic of Anne Frank, and the latest from the Coen brothers: Hollywood send-up Hail, Caesar!, starring George Clooney.

Why have an art exhibition in a gallery when you can have it in a palace? That’s the provocation of the Marrakech Biennale, which eschews ‘bare white walls’ for the rich cultural and historically charged sites of the city. Titled Not New Now, there’s an enquiry into the disappointment of an exhausted postmodernity.

11-21 Feb

Transmediale

AUSTIN

SYDNEY

One of the largest comedy festivals in the world, the 30th incarnation of the Melbourne Comedy Festival has seen it become Australia’s largest cultural event (insert ‘that couldn’t be difficult’ jokes here, that’s comedy after all). Edinburgh Comedy Award winner David O’Doherty will be in attendance, as well as a host of familiar faces including Daniel Sloss, Stephen K Amos and Sarah Millican.

SxSW, the wide-ranging Texan festival of music, film and, well, other stuff, has morphed into a leviathan of an affair, which can make its reputation as a place for discovering the Next Big Thing something of a lottery. Hoping to be spotted amongst the hordes at this year’s event are Liverpool’s very own Lapsley, and melancholic pop rockers Clean Cut Kid.

Sydney Biennale continues the trend of unconventional settings, as it puts to work a previously defunct funerary Mortuary Station. Considering the blurring of virtual and physical space, there are also a series of events in the more fluid In-Between Spaces, with full details still to be announced.

Melbourne Comedy Festival

SxSW

18 Mar-5 Jun

Photo: Lisa Hause

15-20 Mar

Marrakech Bienniale

Berlin International Film Festival

MELBOURNE 23 Mar-17 Apr

24 Feb-8 May

Sydney Bienniale

CALIFORNIA

MADRID

NEW YORK

The popularity of Coachella is such that it now takes place over consecutive weekends in April, featuring the same line-up each time. In a remarkably impressive piece of bill-booking, organisers have managed to nab the returning LCD Soundsystem and the much-mooted original line-up of Guns N’ Roses (provided they haven’t all fallen out come spring, of course).

A film festival, but with a difference: documentary storytelling is the theme of Documenta Madrid, if the name wasn’t enough of a clue. In operation since 2004, it traditionally features a host of films, both short and feature-length, with submissions coming in from across the globe. At the time of going to press, the programme is yet to be announced, so you’re best to keep your beady eyes glued to their website in anticipation.

Split between New York and London, 1:54 describes itself as a contemporary African art festival, with its title referring to the 54 nations which comprise the continent. Placing the fruits of African culture in front of an international audience, it’s a full-on festival of screenings, lectures, panel debates and more, bringing the work of over 60 artists to Brooklyn’s Pioneer Works.

15-24 Apr

27 Apr-8 May

Coachella

6-8 May

1:54 pop-Up

Documenta Madrid

BERLIN

PARIS

BARCELONA

ZURICH

‘Europe’s biggest design conference,’ they say. ‘Designers from all over the world.’ They’ve got a point too: in 2016, Typo Talk's annual gathering of graphics boffins and related clever-clogs will unite under the slogan ‘beyond design’, asking questions of the industry and the conference itself with a plethora of speakers and presentations. Perfect for designer types and design enthusiasts alike.

Another of those ‘music festivals’ you’ve heard so much about, Villette Sonique selects its line-ups from more esoteric sounds – any festival that can count The Fall, Joanna Newsom and Half Japanese among previous headliners clearly has its eyes on a very specific sort of prize. This year’s bill has yet to be announced, but rest assured it’ll be simultaneously cool as fuck and batshit mental.

No doubt you’re echoing The Skinny’s excitement as you lose your shit over this year’s Primavera line-up, but anyone looking for a different festival experience might be interested in the Barcelona festival’s sister event over in sunny Porto (9-11 Jun). Only downtempo electronica types Air have been announced thus far, but have faith in shared gene-tics: Nos Primavera Sound will be a guaranteed blast.

It’s the hundredth anniversary of radical art movement DADA’s birthplace Cabaret Voltaire in Zurich. Maybe Manifesta 11’s the 100-day birthday party, as it spreads its exhibitions around the professional workspaces of the city. Titled What People Do for Money, the Biennial itself is the work of contemporary artist Christian Jankowski, who has been picked as the curator.

Villette Sonique

18-20 Jun

In a city where the local barber will probably also be a gallery space, the Berlin Biennale is understandably a loose affair. There’s a casual approach to events organisation, or maybe an understatedly overstated irony in the website’s measured “The 9th Berlin Biennale for contemporary art may or may not include Contemporary Art.” Worst that can happen? You’re in Berlin in June. Yaldi!

The geographical origins of electronic music are too diverse to identify anything as straightforward as a spiritual home. It definitely summers in Barcelona though: Sónar is without a doubt one of the biggest names in dance festivals, and with Jean-Michel Jarre, Four Tet and Laurent Garnier lined up for 2016, it looks like they’ve got another triumphant weekend in store.

Berlin Biennale

Lifestyle

Photo: Gold SoundzIt

BERLIN

BARCELONA

4 Jun-18 Sep

11 Jun-18 Sep

Nos Primavera Sound

Manifesta 11

GDYNIA

29 Jun-2 Jul

Festival fatigue? Whatever, amateur: Poland’s greatest contribution to the festival scene is a sprawling, four-day affair, this year topped by the likes of Florence & The Machine and the all-conquering Tame Impala. Open’er claims to have originated the festival wristband system – perhaps not the factoid to have you running for your credit card, admittedly, but you can't argue with innovation.

Sónar

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Photo: Richard Manning

Typo Talk Berlin

4-6 Jun

Photo: Hugo Lima

21-27 May

Photo: Nina Stössinger

12-14 May

Photo: Katrina Sorrentino

That February darkness getting you down? We’ve selected the best cultural treats of 2016 from around the world to help you dream of sunnier adventures.

Credit: Nicholas Maigret

2-7 Feb

Open’er Festival

THE SKINNY

Photo: Martin Senyszak

International Events

BERLIN

LIVERPOOL

KARLOVY

MONTREAL

Organised as a story, Liverpool Biennial is imagined as a narrative taking place across the different “fictional spaces” of the venues. Liverpudlians, make a friend in Edinburgh or Glasgow and arrange a mutual crashing contract. That’s to say, convince a Scot to sleep on your sofa during Liverpool Biennial, and allow them to repay the favour during Edinburgh Art Festival or Glasgow International.

Eastern Europe’s answer to Cannes, Karlovy Vary takes place within a time-warped spa town at the north-west edge of the Czech Republic. The films are mint-fresh works from Europe and Asia, as well as American indie fare; the audience is made up of backpackers and filmcrazy locals.

Founded in 1983 as a French-language event, Just For Laughs added more anglocentric fare two years later and went on to become one of the world’s most renowned comedy festivals. Dates but not details have been announced for this year’s affair, but you can put money on it being near unmissable for travel-happy comedy fanatics.

Liverpool Biennial

Karlovy Vary Film Festival

KATOWICE

CROATIA

STOCKHOLM

A music festival of a distinctly alternative bent, hosted in the Polish city of Katowice, Off celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2015 with performances from indie rock demigods like Sunn O))) and Sun Kil Moon; not too shabby, all told. With five stages and a line-up including Sleaford Mods, Napalm Death and hotly-tipped college rockers Beach Slang, this looks to be one to mark in the diary.

Insider tip: when there’s no details of the line-up to hand, check the location. And WOAH, this is a good 'un – hosted in Fort Punta Christo, a 19th-century coastal fortress in Croatia’s Pula region, Dimensions is an electronic music festival with a difference. Last year’s appearances from Four Tet, Funkadelic and Floating Points should give you some idea of the bountiful treats in store.

Alan Partridge had the Swedes nailed, didn’t he? Abba. IKEA. The vegetable swede. But leaving casual xenophobia aside for one moment, let us point you in the direction of Stockholm Culture Festival, a free affair celebrating art and culture in all its diverse forms. This year the theme is the UK, so presumably they’ll get their revenge on Steve Coogan by being jarringly polite and serving nothing but warm beer and drab, grey food.

11-15 Aug

Stockholm Culture Festival

MALAWI

LONDON

TORONTO

SAO PAULO

On the banks of Lake Malawi, a multinational line-up present an eclectic, high energy bill to a diverse audience under the baking African sun and late into the dark tropical night. With profits going back into the local community, Lake of Stars offers a once in a lifetime experience to sample some Malawian hospitality beside the sparkling blue waters of the nation’s lifesource.

Set up to establish the English capital as ‘the design capital of the world’ – in with a shout, surely – the London Design Festival sees the city resplendent with events and exhibitions dotted across its many fine venues. Celebrating both homegrown and international talent, if you’ve got any interest in the broad spheres of art and design, you’d be best advised to tag along.

TIFF may be the festival at which Hollywood begins its assault on the awards season, but it’s also the most audience-friendly of the major international film festivals, with stars happy to rub shoulders with the city’s film fans in screenings. High-Rise, Sunset Song, and Anomalisa, as well as Oscar contenders Spotlight, The Martian and Room all made waves at last year’s event.

2016’s got a lot going on. If FOMO’s made you unsure of which of the many cultural horses to back, relax. Uncertainty itself is the theme of the São Paulo Biennial, and it’s considered to be the condition of the present time. Swithering and doubt are used as themes to bring together disciplines as diverse as astronomy and anthropology, as well as the work of 90 artists.

Lake of Stars

8-18 Sep

London Design Festival

10 Sep-11 Dec

Toronto International Film Festival

Photo: George Pimentel

17-25 Sep

Photo: Stuart Bannocks

30 Sep-2 Oct

São Paulo Biennial

KRAKOW

HONG KONG

UTRECHT

REYKJAVIK

Having begun in 2003 and subsequently expanded to New York, Adelaide, London and Toronto, Unsound is a Krakow-based music festival at heart. It embraces the cutting edge in a way few music festivals seem keen to match, with its line-up shrouded in mystery until right before the event.

The Hong Kong Literary Festival started in 2003 in the original Glamour Room at M on the Bund in Shanghai, and has run every year since. The festivals have attracted many local and regional authors as well as others from well over 20 countries around the world.

Utrecht in November mightn’t be too high up your list of things to do, but the intensely excellent Le Guess Who? should make it a little more pressing. It’s a city full of character and astounding buildings, while a carefully curated line-up brings together the great and good of modern alternative music. With Wilco on board to headline the 2016 affair, it’s set to be another victory for all concerned.

Originally hosted in an aircraft hangar in 1999, Iceland Airwaves has gone on to become one of the staples of the international festival calendar. Could be down to the presence of its vast showcase of Icelandic talent, could be its tendency to secure the sort of names that leave you staring longingly at the poster as you frantically check your band account… Either way a good time is a certainty.

26 Oct-8 Nov

10-13 Nov

Hong Kong International Literary Festival

2-6 Nov

Le Guess Who?

Photo: Juri Hiensch

Unsound

Photo: Camille Blake

11-18 Oct

Iceland Airwaves

TURIN

AUSTIN

RENNES

KOCHI

Turin has given much more to cinema than The Italian Job. While Italy’s most famous film festival, Venice, concerns itself with celebrities and prestige premieres, Torino Film Festival is more interested in discovering the best new artists pushing at the boundaries of cinema. It is also famed for its retrospectives – the likes of Walter Hill and John Carpenter have seen their careers championed here.

Fun Fun Fun Fest is something of an anomaly in terms of US-based music festivals, largely sticking to the tried’n’tested formula of hip-hop, electronica and alternative rock. It’s a solid policy though – 2015’s impressive bill saw the Wu-Tang Clan and D’Angelo rubbing shoulders with Jane’s Addiction, Venom and Future Islands. 2016 is bound to scale similarly dizzy heights.

Les Rencontres Trans Musicales, aka Les Transmusicales de Rennes… whatever it’s called, it delivers the goods every time. And they should really know how by now: 2016 represents the festival’s 37th year. A quick glance at last year’s bill indicates it’ll be another diverse affair.

Nestled in the southwest of India, Kochi is a port town in the state of Kerala and home to India’s first biennial art festival, the Kochi Muziris Biennale, which is this year curated by Sudarshan Shetty. According to their Wiki page they’re Tate Modern’s favourite biennale, so they must be doing something right. Enjoy some visual art from one the the world’s most vibrant contemporary scenes.

6-8 Nov

Torino Film Festival

February 2016

7-11 Dec

Fun Fun Fun Fest

Photo: Ralph Arversen

18-26 Nov

TRAVEL SPECIAL

Photo: François Philipp

Dimensions

Photo: Dan Medhurst

Photo: Anna Spies

26-30 Aug

Off Festival

Just For Laughs

12 Dec 2016-29 Mar 2017

Transmusicales

Kochi-Muziris Biennale

Photo: Anita Eldjarn

5-7 Aug

13-31 Jul

Photo: Phil Roeder

1-9 Jul

Photo: Thierry Bal

9 Jul-16 Oct

The Road to Reykjavik After a whirlwind 18 months since their arrival on the scene, Glasgow fuzz pop duo Tuff Love continue to thrive and flourish with January’s debut LP. We join them on the road to Iceland Interview: Tom Johnson

t’s 5.30 in the morning when we meet Tuff Love at Glasgow Airport. By the time we arrive back from Reykjavik two days later, the band will have travelled over 5000 kilometres in 48 hours, to play two short shows at the 2015 edition of Airwaves festival. The nucleus of the band – Julie Eisenstein (guitar, vocals) and Suse Bear (bass, vocals) – hate flying; a point reinforced by the vise-like grip upon our arm as we take off for the first of the trip’s four flights. The mood is somewhat downbeat; it’s extremely early, the gear is heavy and awkward, the Glasgow rain torrential. We’re also flown via London because the festival arranged the travel, and so a two-hour trip becomes a seven-hour trip. For a “job” as routinely idolised as ‘touring musician,’ the truth is perhaps something a lot less glitzy. Tuff Love, a band who have played Glastonbury, been lauded in the Guardian (as well as in this very publication, of course), heralded by mainstream radio, will be spending the following couple of weeks on tour in Iceland, firstly, and then across the rest of the UK. They’ll be driving themselves, carrying their own gear, selling their own merch. Some of the shows will be poorly attended; if they just get a decent bed they’ll be ecstatic. Suffice to say, an easy life it ain’t. Of course, in among all of this are the highpoints. They’re being flown to Iceland to play a specially invited showcase of some of the world’s best musicians, and for all the many vexations they don’t complain once; there are nerves and tiredness and many stresses, on this one short trip alone, but Tuff Love do as they’ve always done, they keep their head down and plough on regardless. January 2016 sees the release of Resort, the band’s debut album of sorts, which will see their three previously released EPs collated as one, and which looks set to see their music reach far greater shores. Resort also underlines everything they’ve achieved in the three years since they started making music together; this Icelandic trip is something of a flag-flying moment for all of their achievements. Rewinding somewhat to the band’s first release, the long sold-out Junk EP, you have to wonder whether this was always the plan, whether crossing oceans and conquering bigger stages was ever anticipated, or even expected. “I really just wanted to write songs,” Eisenstein says plainly of the band’s initial working. “I think our goals were always more personal, more about what we could do within the project and less about the future success of the band.” Despite the modesty, or perhaps just limited expectations given their aforementioned place within the industry, the acclaim came quickly. The Guardian came on board almost straight away, streaming the band’s debut track alongside an accompanying handwritten letter that Johnny Lynch (label boss, manager) had sent to the publication. “That was pretty nuts. It was just a mad surprise,” says Bear. “It was definitely something noticeable that happened afterwards. I think people took us seriously, like we were a real band. I guess sometimes it takes a recommendation from someone people trust, like a music journalist, for other people to listen to your music and think it’s OK.”

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Lynch’s role in Tuff Love’s development shouldn’t be understated. You probably know him best as Scottish electro-folk hero The Pictish Trail but he’s been Tuff Love’s biggest champion from the outset, to the extent that they probably wouldn’t be at the same level without him. “Johnny’s played a big role in getting people to pay attention to the band,” Eisenstein says of his influence. “There are so many gigs we’ve played that we wouldn’t have been able to if it wasn’t for him.” Bear is similarly enthusiastic about his input: “I think we’re pretty self-motivated, and once things started to kick off we wanted to take advantage of it all, but there are some things we just could never do ourselves,” she admits. “I think if we’d never met him he would still be making stuff, but he’s really helped push us forward. Lost Map [Records] as a whole has been incredible.” Left to their own devices, there would probably only be the music; they’ve only ever spoken sporadically about their own reflections, choosing instead to completely focus on the writing and the playing above anything and everything else. And it shows. Their development has been palpable and substantial; an almost effortless blossoming of their craft in the 18 months since their arrival. Resort will show this best, a snapshot of everything they’ve released thus far, from the bedroom demos that got them signed, to the latest creations that feel all the more weightier and significant.

“Confidence and productivity come in waves” Suse Bear

“Sometimes I wake up and think I can never make anything ever again,“ Bear says of their craft now, “and then the next day I wake up and I write a song or bunch of riffs and I’m on a creative roll for a week. I think confidence and productivity come in waves. I’ve felt simultaneously more and less confident with each release. I think if we’ve developed it’s from experience – as confidence is a hard thing to measure when you don’t have much time to reflect.” Eisenstein is suitably straight-shooting in her view. “I don’t know if I feel like a better songwriter now,” she says, “but I feel more confident in writing and finishing songs, and maybe I have a stronger sense of direction than I did in the past. The lyrics are important to me. It’s important for me to get them right, which I haven’t always felt like I’ve managed. It’s as difficult as it ever was, but maybe I’m more decisive now.” As with all bands at this stage of their career it’s the development that is perhaps the most important aspect – and in that regard Tuff Love are positively prospering. Latest EP Dregs is a magnificent collection of songs, showcasing more shades and textures than we’ve seen from the band before. Released on the week of their shows in Iceland, it received the most rave appraisals from fans and critics yet. While they were riding something of a wave going in to the shows in

Reykjavik, the band will be the first to admit that things didn’t quite go to plan; festivals are always a tricky beast for bands; little time, new surroundings, casual crowds and comfort zones well and truly dispensed with. “That was a hard one,” Bear is quick to confirm. “There were sound problems on stage and perhaps pressure too; a whole load of things. It wasn’t our best show, but that’s OK. We’re humans not robots and although our live shows are pretty consistent now, circumstances still sometimes don’t work in our favour.” Eisenstein had problems too: “Personally I felt like my ears were hallucinating throughout that show – it was very disorientating. It has stuck with me, and I try to learn from experiences like that.” It was obviously a difficult experience for the duo in the aftermath, especially given the unique aspect of such an experience. “We were so, so excited to get to go there and play and I felt really disappointed afterwards, like I’d let people down,” admits Bear. “I find it hard to write these things off. I felt bad about it for a whole week after for various reasons. When you’re at the stage we’re at it’s good to make the most of every opportunity you get because you never know what it might lead to, and in my head that was a big opportunity.” Such is the rollercoaster ride of being in a band like Tuff Love, however, that they didn’t have to wait long to get back on the horse. When we catch up with them a couple of weeks after the Iceland trip they’ve just closed the tour with a Glasgow show that felt like a truly celebratory homecoming. “Playing in Glasgow always feels good,” enthuses Eisenstein. “It’s nice to be around friends and to feel supported. It was the launch show for the last of our EP trio so it did feel good, like closing a chapter.”

TRAVEL SPECIAL

“We’ve not actually played in Glasgow that much this year,” Bear says of the show. “We’ve mostly been playing to new people in new cities so it was a noticeably different and positive vibe; I felt like people were actually excited to see us, which then made us more excited too. It made me feel good again.” It’s been a long year and a half for Tuff Love; heck, it’s been a long couple of weeks. Watching them play to a full, swaggering room at Glasgow’s Hug and Pint, it’s hard not to be impressed by just how far they’ve come and also the sheer resilience needed to just be a band, to put yourself on show on so many nights, weeks, and months of the year to both strangers and friends. One expects that they might appreciate a rest some time soon? “We’ve said yes to just about everything that’s come our way this year, and we’re feeling quite tired,” Bear admits. “It would be nice to take a little Tuff Love thinking break for a bit, and come back excited again.” It won’t be too long a break, however, with the band already lined up for a host of shows, most notably a batch of dates on the continent. So while precious time for writing and recording might be hard to come by, do they have any idea what they want from the resulting recordings? “I just want to write songs that people actually want to listen to,” remarks Bear, “not songs or singles that people hear on the radio which they forget about as soon as it ends. I want us to write songs that people sit and listen to at home from start to finish. If that means it takes us two years to write an album then that’s cool actually.” Resort is out now via Lost Map. Tuff Love play Trades Club, Hebden Bridge, 24 Feb lostmap.com/tuff-love

THE SKINNY

The Shadows beyond the Rainbow This LGBT History Month, our writer explains the importance of acknowledging the whole story – beyond Caitlyn Jenner and glittery weddings

Words: Toby Sharpe Illustration: Josie Sommer

alking through a gallery in New York this summer – a pastime from which most of my anecdotes seem to spring – I had the uncanny experience of art seeming more like a mirror that anything else. From the walls of an exhibition on gay life in the 80s, a horde of young, gangly men stared out at me. Awkward guys at parties, smiling nervously as they danced in and out of shot. They had so much to live for. Most of these men are dead now. They did not live for long. The AIDS epidemic, which burst into the West in the early 1980s, ravaged these fledgling communities of queer life. It grew exponentially, fed by a climate of fear and homophobia that likely seems alien to the contemporary mainstream. Despite that sense of separation from the past, it was only in 1987 that Princess Diana controversially shook hands with an HIV-positive man on camera, and it was only in 2006 that HIV-positive people were allowed to travel into the US on standard visas. We like to think that so much has changed. Recently, we’ve entered a momentous period for LGBT rights, yet we seem to be erasing our history. The American Supreme Court decision on gay marriage meant people who had never cared about LGBT liberation suddenly got a cute rainbow profile picture. LGBT history has always been a curiously amorphous narrative in the eyes of the mainstream. One could be forgiven for thinking that LGBT people leapt straight from the Stonewall riots into gloriously pink weddings with Caitlyn Jenner as the officiant. These narratives prioritise images of wealthy, white gay men and ignore the people of colour, women, and non-binary and trans individuals who suffered hugely to achieve rights for all. These groups were and are also some of the most likely to suffer from the virus, due to systemic cultures of distrust that painted the epidemic as somehow deserved.

Many LGBT people born in the 80s and 90s feel worlds away from the AIDS epidemic. This is especially problematic in a heteronormative modern Britain, where sex education in school fails to acknowledge the sex lives of queer couples. Even successful attempts to combat the virus, like PrEP (the drug cocktail which provides possibly up to 96% protection against HIV infection) are not available to the British public outside of research programmes. Instead, PrEP is painted as a party pill for bacchanalian homosexuals by the media; we are building a narrative of HIV/AIDS as a tale of the past, not the danger that it remains. As LGBT History Month rolls around once more, it concerns me that we are being encouraged to champion gay marriage as the watershed moment for gay rights, as if to somehow replace the dark parts of our collective history. We are not taught about the Stonewall riots. Historical figures, from da Vinci to Billie Holiday, have had their gender and sexual identities erased or normalised. We have to fight against the notion that gay marriage is somehow the end of the movement, and that it was asked for and freely given. Modern gay life was built on the blood, sweat, and tears of past generations. Even as Pride events become increasingly corporate, we have to remember that, as Cheryl Strayed says in her Dear Sugar columns, these events are “an explosion of love that has its roots in hate.” We cannot forget homophobia. We cannot forget the paranoia of the AIDS epidemic. We cannot forget that the 35 million people estimated to be with living with HIV worldwide are a historically recent phenomenon, not a necessary fact. Our history lives on, and it’s not just rainbows. We must continue to fight – for us, and for all those who lost their lives. tht.org.uk/sexual-health/About-HIV/Pre-exposure-Prophylaxis

Do Gentlemen Prefer Bland? Suffering from feminist fatigue on the run-up to Valentine’s Day, our Deviance editor traded in her watertight Tinder profile for that of a Disney prom queen princess. The results were repulsive

y friend is excellent at online dating. It’s not necessarily her right-swipe and bed-notch tallies that I envy – impressive though I’m sure they are. It’s more that she’s achieved the actual goal of online dating. A goal beyond sustaining a first-date conversation that isn’t about the fact you’d both liked Ryan Hemsworth on Facebook (omg!), beyond hollow one-night stands, beyond feeling like your soul has been melon-balled out and swallowed up by an undeserving bro who peacocked you with his stupid vintage shirt. Her Tinder aptitude has landed her a top-notch champ who she doesn’t even hate one bit. If online dating earned university credit, she’d be eligible for a PhD in filtering through fuckboys and Nice Guys to find dating gold. And, as her willing tutee, my online profile too exists as a set of water-tight frontiers to weed out the worst Tinder has to offer. Sort of like a Takeshi’s Castle for fuckboys. My bio contains a reference to something niche enough that only the fairest of them all might notice. There are six nice but slightly intimidating

February 2016

photographs of me; well-composed selfies, a snap of me lolling with a wide-open mouth and cake in my hand, and a shot of me flying through the air like the gangly praying mantis that I really am.

“I was crowd-surfing on a population of m’lady Tinder boys clamouring for a woman more dull than themselves” I’m sure that with an ounce of patience, this expertly crafted profile will recruit me a sensa-

tional person with the foolhardiness to take on a feminist praying mantis with a loud laugh. But at the time of writing we’re pretty damn close to 14 February, and I’ve begun to wonder my reluctance to be graceful/mild/wholesome is probably the reason Domino’s has already texted me to enquire about my Valentine’s Day plans. Would it be different if I’d been socialised into a meek angel who brushes her hair instead of braiding it, who wears blouses rather than blazers, and whose primary ambition is to be some dude’s asset? So, I did what any ordinary woman under such circumstances might do – I took a sledgehammer to my Tinder. In place, I uploaded demure photographs taken of me on tame-hair days, reading novels and baking biscuits. The niche-referencetrap also disappeared. In its place, an outline of graceful hobbies and interests fit for a Disney princess prom queen: playing the flute, drinking cranberry sodas(?), waiting for Love’s First True Kiss. I wondered whether I’d gone a little far – surely my new profile was too repulsively Victorian to pass for a real life 21st-century woman? What

DEVIANCE

Words: Kate Pasola

modern man would ever want to match with someone quite so bland and eager to marry after the first date? I needn’t have worried. Inundated with matches and ‘super likes,’ I felt as though I was crowdsurfing on a population of m’lady Tinder boys clamouring for a woman more dull than themselves. Each message telling me I had ‘beautifully sad eyes’ or that I was ‘one in a million’ was flanked by opening gambits about my cooking. Topless men quoted Sleeping Beauty at me, and a guy from Roehampton whose bio read ‘Thug Life’ requested I bring my flute to the first date. I pondered the one thing in common that these batches and batches of men shared. They were visibly refreshed by my profile’s passivity, alike in their clear contempt for an enlightened female race. My hordes of admirers proved it’s very easy to get a date on Valentine’s Day, as long as you play the game properly. But really, if being a feminazi praying mantis is wrong, I don’t wanna be right.

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did his father, my maternal grandpa and great grandfather. So it’s in my blood, really! I loved going round to the mill when I was younger, with dad, and seeing all the different processes, so I think I just absorbed it all and that’s how it started. I remember seeing the weaving looms, and I loved the dye house too. My dad and I didn’t actually make things together when I was little, mum did a lot of that with me. She taught me to sew and encouraged me to paint. I always loved being creative and it was at Northumbria that I chose to specialise in knitwear. My mentor is my father, who is a fountain of textile, knitting, weaving and business knowledge!” Apart from the encouragement and practical support, Rosie’s parents gave her another advantage by moving to Scotland when she was born. “Working in Scotland definitely keeps me focussed, I love the space you can get. It really helps to clear the head, and the mind to soar. My favourite place is probably home in the Borders, where I ride horses with my neighbour. There’s nothing like cantering through a stubble field to leave you feeling exhilarated.” Occasionally, clearing the mind is quite the necessity in a creative career, with all its ups and downs. On her path to world domination, Rosie recalls a key moment that paved the way: “When I launched the business, I remember emailing Harriet

Quick at Vogue. She very kindly put a little article and a picture on the Vogue blog. It was my first piece of press, it was such an exhilarating feeling to see my name in lights and it just made my new business feel very real to me!” Rosie also has some experience with the less glamorous side of the fashion industry, even when in one of the most glamorous of places. “Paris Fashion Week is fun but mostly hard work as I take my collection to a trade show every year, to meet buyers. The trade show is long hours and often indoors, but in the evening I always make sure to go for a delicious supper. Last year my friend Karen Mabon and I decided we needed a falafel. So we spent about two hours walking in circles in the Marais trying to find the perfect falafel… Thankfully we did find an amazing place!” All of Rosie’s efforts have made the business grow, and things look as though the next range will be sold in even more varied outlets. When asked what her new pieces will look like, she clearly shows that she has the business figured out. “I can’t say yet as it’s not out until next year – sorry! But a lot of it was inspired by my trip to Japan last year, all the crazy shops we visited, the colours and the way of dressing, it’s so considered and particular. I loved it!” rosiesugden.com

Cashmere Queen Rosie Sugden’s designs can now be found far beyond their Edinburgh origins – we find out more about a designer with a sharp eye for minutiae Words: Leonie Wolters

he accessories of Edinburgh-based knitwear designer Rosie Sugden have their fans in many places. Her work is sold at ALC in Edinburgh, Liberty and Harrods in London, and by stockists in different European countries. Soon Rosie’s cashmere creations will warm limbs even further from home, as she recently signed with a Japanese agent. Regardless of her success, she has not yet had the experience of spotting one of her own designs in the street. “I’m really annoyed I haven’t yet!” she says. “I would love to! My sister sees people in London wearing my turbans or fluor pink beanies all the time. She always sends me pictures, and they always put a smile on my face.” If Rosie were to stumble across someone in one of her pieces, the item in question would surely not escape her notice. A keen eye for the sartorial choices of fellow citizens gracing the world’s streets is a key part of what inspires her designs: “I love street style photographs by Tommy Ton, he captures the most amazing close-up details. I love love love Miroslava Duma. I just think she looks amazing in everything, I love the proportions of her clothes, she always offsets an oversized coat with miniature accessories or baggy jeans with heels. I also love Pernille Taesbeck, she has really individual style.” From all these images, Rosie distils the essential ingredients for her pieces as part of her design process. “It usually starts with colours and references I’ve collected over the year – something I’ve seen on Pinterest, or a new stitch we’ve developed at the mill. Then I draw up my initial ideas for the collection, take them to the mill and my brilliant technician programs everything for me. Quite often there will be designs we have to drop. I’m always pushing the limits of what we can do

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technically, on different machines and also handknitted. Inevitably, there are styles that don’t work, but there’s always something new each year that I’m really excited about, and that’s how the collection evolves.” Asked how certain designs can run into trouble when confronted with cold hard reality, Rosie explains: “Quite often it’s the shape in intarsia patterns that we can’t get to look right, they’re often too squat or stretched. One that took a while to get right was the heart-shaped wrist warmer. Perseverance pays off, as that’s been a best seller this season!”

“I’m always pushing the limits of what we can do technically, on different machines and also handknitted” Rosie Sudgen

Taking an idea and a skein of cashmere and turning them into a heart-shaped wrist warmer is a process that requires a lot of time and effort. Turning a little girl into a successful knitwear designer requires even more, and this process started early on in Rosie’s life: “I grew up around textiles; my father worked in the industry for 40 years, as

FASHION

THE SKINNY

Giving It Beans In the first of our new ‘Pioneers’ series – championing the do-ers, thinkers and makers behind the Northwest’s food and drink scene – we meet Heart and Graft, the roasting duo hoping to revolutionise Manchester’s coffee consumption

Interview: Tom Ingham

Food News After the fun vacuum that is January, it’s time to embrace the warm familiarity of food and booze again. Here’s the best of what February has to offer Words: Lauren Phillips

in has enjoyed something of a renaissance of late; what was formerly a drinks cabinet relic and Nana’s favourite has now become the spirit of choice. It’s something ex-bartender Leon Dalloway knew all too well when he set up The Gin Journey – a unique, immersive tour of gin joints and cocktail bars. His chauffeurdriven carriage (a posh minibus) rolls into the Northwest this month, and promises samples of specially selected premium gins, well-crafted cocktails and an insight into the history and production methods behind it all. Think of it as the coolest school trip you’ve ever been on. Various venues in Manchester and Liverpool, from 3 Feb, 6.30pm, £40, shakerattleandstir.co.uk Vegetarian favourite Amy’s Kitchen is also on the road this month. Known for their line of organic convenience food, the team are heading on tour to London, Glasgow and Manchester with new initiative Amy’s Mobile Kitchen. Direct from their nifty vintage truck, they’ll be offering hearty soups and chillies, with all profits going to local charity Back on Track, which aims to help out some of Greater Manchester’s most disadvantaged. There’ll be bread on offer from Lancashire bakery Artisan Food Works to boot. The van’s location will be revealed each day on Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #amysmobilekitchen, so keep your eyes peeled. Various venues, 16-21 Feb, @amyskitchenuk

oday, coffee is no longer ‘a means to an end’ but rather an all-encompassing part of a city’s day-to-day running. While many save reverence for baristas and the winsome way in which they serve it, it’s important to remember that it’s roasters that founded and continue to drive the Northwest’s bustling coffee culture. James Guard and Sean Fowler, despite their age difference, dovetailed neatly from their respective roles to form the coffee-roasting duo that is Manchester’s Heart and Graft. Guard’s first job was working in a high-street cafe in the mid-90s, back when it was ‘let’s go somewhere like Friends and drink coffee on a big sofa.’ Having worked in hospitality for some years with the likes of Selfridges, his lightbulb moment came when sampling Monmouth Coffee at Borough Market, which in turn led to the creation in 2012 of Coffee Circle, a humble setup comprising himself, small quantities of great coffee and a roaster in his garage. Elsewhere, Fowler was immersing himself in the technical aspects of the industry. “I started out at Lincoln and York five years ago, tasting low-grade arabicas/robustas and buying for big commercial operations – I designed a blend for Pret that they still use today,” Fowler says. “I trained there for 18 months to do the Q examination, and coincidentally I met James on my third day at Lincoln and York.” It was a work trip to the Nordic Barista Championships where he first tried an Ethiopian natural that he credits as his ‘wow’ moment. Once irreversibly enlightened by how good coffee could be, Fowler left his commercial role to pursue his love of speciality coffee in Manchester, and upon reconvening with Guard, they set out to become “Manchester’s local coffee roaster.”

February 2016

The two had been inspired by London’s coffee explosion, but Guard points out that they had to recalibrate for Manchester’s relatively undeveloped scene, which at the time only had the likes of North Tea Power and Coffee Fix pushing boundaries. “It was hard to ignore the Shoreditch trends with bright, fruit-driven espressos, but I had to build a business and Manchester just wasn’t in that space. So a lovely sweet, caramel-type espresso was an easier transition from a commercial blend for most people – basically something similar to what they were used to, but nicer; that was the idea behind Barnraiser [an espresso blend Guard initially developed for Coffee Circle]. After that I could say: now that you trust me, try something more bonkers and fruity.”

“It’s about how to get that velvety, warm, heavy coffeeness” Sean Fowler

”The progression in the industry has gone through the roof,” Fowler explains. “When I started it was almost like an arms race as to who could make the most undeveloped, sour coffee, but now it’s about the roast development and how to get that velvety, warm, heavy coffeeness. Coffeeness isn’t a word, but you know what I mean,” he laughs. “That’s the new strap line. Heart and Graft: Coffeeness.”

Buying and sourcing beans is incredibly important, but Guard believes that simply following trends won’t necessarily give you a decent coffee. “The Ethiopian Yirgacheffe is one of the cool coffees to have at the moment and I had thought ‘I’m not doing it, I’m not following the crowd,’ but when we tried some Ethiopian naturals at an importers they were just heartbreakingly good and you couldn’t not buy them. It’s a tricky roast to nail, that’s where there’s that element of how long you rest it for, how you roast it and at what temperature; that’s still a dark art.” Having made connections through Guard’s Coffee Circle days, Heart and Graft still had to develop a community that embraced such a niche business. “Roasters have a role to play in developing a coffee culture in a town or city; the vast majority of businesses need to work on the 95% of people using crap, passionless, tasteless coffee. For us it was a breakthrough to get in places like Gorilla, Trof and Blackdog Ballroom because they’re people who don’t have coffee as their main business but they’re taking it more seriously and that’s the area to grow into.” “But bad coffee will never go away,” Fowler adds. “It’s the same with beer; some people will still want crap beer for a quid. But there’s a real pride in Manchester about people who live and work locally, building things from the ground up.” Despite the UK’s tendency to swing from boom to bust, the resurgence of independent businesses in Manchester has ensured that local roasters can exist amicably and come together to make events like coffee festival Cup North a success. “You just have to be a good, local roaster who’s available,” Guard concludes. “You have to keep showing people that you’re there if they’re willing to try better coffee.” heartandgraft.co.uk

FOOD AND DRINK

The Gin Journey

Regulars at the Northwest’s many food markets might be glad to know that local favourite The Buttery has opened its very own bricks-andmortar spot at Levenshulme’s recently shuttered POD. Set up by the ingeniously named Neil Buttery, it offers a wealth of British bakes and dishes with local produce and traditional techniques at their core. As well as signature cheese scones and deep-fill pies, you can expect gems such as 19th-century lamb curry and a cassoulet with pork belly and smoked ham hock. Albert Road, Manchester, 10am-11pm, @neilbuttery You’re only five once, right? So to celebrate its half-decade, Manchester’s Port Street Beer House is going all out. Strictly, this is a belated birthday shout-out, as the main event is kicking off during the last week of January, but there’s still plenty of revelry to be had. The beer house, named CAMRA’s North Manchester Pub of the Year 2014, is hooking up with some of the city’s finest breweries, including Cloudwater, Vocation, Squawk and recent Skinny Food and Drink Survey Best Local Beer winners Track, to create five special beers for the occasion. Get your kicks now lads, it’s all downhill from here. Port Street, Manchester, from 28 Jan, @portstreetbeer

Lifestyle

Confessions of a Restaurant Worker Scrambling for returned food and dealing with customers who don’t tip: one writer looks at the realities of life as a humble restaurant server Words: Anonymous Illustration: Lottie Pencheon

“S

o what else do you do?” There it comes again, like a scalding hot plate across your hand; you sigh as you reel out the reply you’ve given 1000 times before. “Nope, just this, this is me.” The tender age of 26, staring at yourself in the mirror with your Primark shirt and Topman shoes. Worn down and torn down, much like your patience with the general public – such is the life of the humble restaurant server. Over the years I’ve been sworn at, called racist and accused of being homophobic (despite being gay). One glorious review claimed that I had an attitude akin to a ‘catwalk makeup artist.’ Sure, chances are I don’t like you, but chances are that your repeated demands for extra mayo and complaints about how your kid’s burger isn’t quite medium-rare/mediumrare-rare enough means you probably don’t like me either. The fact is, the hospitality business isn’t as bad as you think, and the horror stories are few and far between. No one spits in your food or picks their nose as an extra burger topping. On a rare occasion there’ll be a caterpillar crawling across your baby gem, or you might find a shard of shot glass in your chicken Caesar or a single hair lurking on your steak. For a genuine kitchen error, an apology and a bottle of wine will do the trick, but it’s the serial complainers you have to watch for. Each server has a mental wall in their mind of ‘arsehole customers.’ They come in week in, week out and order exactly the same dish, churning out the same complaint every week. A half-price bill here and two dishes there soon adds up; these are the people bankrupting the industry.

“On a rare occasion there’ll be a caterpillar crawling across your baby gem...” Simon Rimmer’s recent show Tricks of the Restaurant Trade is a verbal diarrhoea dossier that claims all those in hospitality are upselling, swindling demons, sent by Satan and hiding a plethora of mean tricks. Mr Rimmer claims that each restaurant has a ‘golden table’ where only the attractive customers will be sat. Sadly Simon, in my line of work you would need to find an attractive customer first.

The real tricks of the trade

You learn a great many lessons from a great many people; like how a work apron’s life can be prolonged. Covered in a week’s worth of béarnaise and kept clean with a spritz of disinfectant, you can snap your average server’s apron in half like a student’s bed sheets. Replacing uniform is only done as a necessity – you can afford some new trainers, but that tear in your work crotch can only be replaced when the Crown Jewels

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are on display. Being a server toughens you, and there’s a pack mentality of ‘all for one and one for all.’ On a busy Saturday, or an understaffed Sunday, as the ship sinks we are the musicians on the Titanic going down with it. The pack mentality comes into full flow when food is involved. Think what you will, but eating food from someone’s plate isn’t as bad as all that. On a nine-hour shift with no break, I challenge you not to eat that leftover chip winking at you. The real treat is when food is sent back and there is a Lord of the Flies scramble; you literally drop whatever may be in your possession and run. You would stab your own sister with a steak knife to get at that sent-back steak, and believe me, having worked with my sister, I’ve done this on numerous occasions.

The liquid lunch

If you think an evening customer is hard work, wait for the lunch rush. Portly men and power women flock inside; on their one-hour business lunch they play a Russian roulette of how many beers or wines they can consume before conveniently working from home in the afternoon. After making you wait all afternoon and devouring their three courses, your business luncher will summon you over to immediately pay the bill and toss a black Amex card at you, scoffing at the ‘would you like to add a gratuity’ screen. “I would tip you, but the company is paying.” They ask for the VAT receipt and you apologise that the printer has run out of paper while screwing up their precious expenses in your hand. It’s the little things that get you through. Christmas creates a sort of shell-shock syndrome; you can never quite remember what really happened in December. You think it was busy and you think you made pretty good money. Lined up at the expo like a firing squad, you patiently wait to take food out to a party of 100: a flaccid slice of turkey and a poorly endowed chipolata, accompanied by veg that has less colour than Robert Pattinson. One year, as one man attempted to urinate on the Christmas tree, a second projectile-vomited across the front mat of the restaurant. Then, while you settle in to your relaxing January months and pay off that Christmas debt, you are up to your eyes in 50% customers. A new breed unlike your businessmen, they enter and sit, scanning the menu while repeatedly showing their printed-off voucher. Two tap waters, two burgers and £10 lighter, they leave, without giving a tip. Sunday is the Lord’s day, and no one knows the pain of it more than your nocturnal hospitality worker. You may spot others, lucky to have the day off. These rare creatures will give you a sorry look of despair, blow their vodka-laden breath on you, down a shot of coffee Patron and leave a generous ‘sympathy’ tip. I can only imagine that a server’s Sunday is the equivalent of a nine-to-fiver’s Manic Monday. A Sunday finish will usually involve a trip to an allnight speakeasy – and so the cycle continues... theskinny.co.uk/food

FOOD AND DRINK

THE SKINNY

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Inside Primrose’s Kitchen With your New Year’s resolutions and that trial gym membership long expired, is it time to start drinking dried plants? Armed with smoothie boosters from Primrose’s Kitchen, The Skinny gets blending...

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itting in bed on a weekday night drinking wine and working your way through a box of chocolate-covered marzipans, you are unlikely to think of yourself as the target market for a pair of ‘superfood’ smoothie boosters. But, in the spirit of the New Year, you’ve volunteered yourself to trial a number of products made by health food company Primrose’s Kitchen, and, after a successful foray last month into the gaudy pink world of beetroot cereal, you have now been presented with two packets of rather less vibrant powder. (Still gloriously colourfully packaged, mind.) Each is a different mix of grasses, proteins, algaes and the like, to add to your juices or smoothies in a teaspoon-sized dose – on Primrose’s recommendation – one to three times a day. Made of maca, sprouted hemp protein, moringa and cordyceps mushroom (the ‘Energy’ blend), and barleygrass, wheatgrass, triphala and chlorella (the ‘Cleanse’ blend), they propose to ‘fuel you through the day’ and help with ‘rebalancing after overindulgence,’ respectively. Now, for many people, this kind of thing is quite the step up from a bowl of carrot-flavoured muesli, and readers are encouraged to research the reported side effects as well as the purported health benefits of the ingredients for themselves online. (That said, on the internet you could probably find someone allergic to moomins – better to consult your nutritionist or doctor, as the packaging itself advocates.) You decide to stick with the Energy mix, trying it in a berry smoothie made with almond nut butter and coconut milk, and in a mango, pineapple and ginger juice for added kick. Any apprehension around the flavour turns out to be unnecessary – the taste of the powder is innocuous when stirred into a thick, fruity shake – and, to be fair, you do notice a certain gain in alertness within the next short while, though whether this is down to the potentially stamina-enhancing effects of cordyceps or the triple-shot espresso you necked a few minutes beforehand is difficult to say. Honestly, one of the greatest benefits is probably that you’ve been bothered to make a fresh fruit smoothie first thing in the morning. The next stage, of course, is for it to replace that coffee... Hmmm. You can keep the marzipans, right? Look out for our March issue, where we’ll be trying Primrose’s nut butters

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THE SKINNY

RE V IE Eleanor Friedberger

Gig Highlights The big guns get firing in February with Joanna Newsom, Foals and Tame Impala all in town – but there are still gems to be found among the smaller venues

elcome, friends, to the other side of January, where it’s still mercilessly dark, gusty and harsh on the face but there are, at least, reasons to go out in it. Those reasons begin with two of Manchester’s most hotly tipped bands of recent years, who both play in Liverpool this month. PINS, jazzed from recent support slots for Sleater-Kinney, are at the O2 Academy on 16 Feb, while Money, fresh off the back of their second album, Suicide Songs, are at Leaf on Bold Street on the 12th. The latter have taken a slightly unexpected tack with their new record; where you may have expected them to go bigger, Suicide Songs feels more stripped than 2013’s debut The Shadow of Heaven, largely resting upon frontman Jamie Lee’s by turns vulnerable and brittle vocals – which have always been front and centre, but are now, often, almost naked. Another unmissable gig in Liverpool this month is, of course, the unparalleled John Grant at the Philharmonic Hall (7 Feb); tickets for that (and his date at Manchester Albert Hall, 8 Feb) appeared sold out at the time of going to press, but keep an ear out for any returns. There are, however, a handful of tickets left for Joanna Newsom at the Phil on 1 Mar; after a long time absent from these shores, her recent Halloween concert in Manchester in support of new album Divers had our reviewer bewitched: “when Sapokanikan’s dramatic unravelling has the audience this rapt, and when the processional glimmer of Leaving the City hits this hard, there’s surely a case for Divers’ material standing among her very best.” You know what to do. In Manchester it’s a month of #feelings as we find ourselves suddenly reckoning with the passage of time: apparently Tame Impala are absolutely massive now (playing Manchester Arena on 11 Feb), while those for whom early MySpace demos of Cassius and Two Steps, Twice were the soundtrack of their teens may be horrified to discover that a decade has shot

February 2016

by, and Foals are now an arena-filling prospect (at the same venue, 13 Feb). Having seemingly mastered the art of balance, closeting themselves away every couple of years to write a tightly wound album – each one a distinct progression from the last – and then touring like fuck, Yannis Philippakis and his crew have outlasted almost all of the hyped bands of the mid-noughties through a combination of genuine creative evolution and blood, sweat and tears (literally; photos of drummer Jack’s bloodied, bandaged hands aren’t rare). No need to worry that the 21,000capacity Manchester Arena outsizes them; the holy roar of latest album What Went Down’s titular track announced ‘stadium’ within its first reptilian refrain. Let’s hope for a lighters-aloft Spanish Sahara/Late Night, too.

For a similarly visceral but slightly more intimate experience, Savages are at Albert Hall on 22 Feb. Urgent, unforgiving and inspiring for it, their articulate post-punk sound has made them something of a cult watch on the live circuit over the past couple of years. On new album Adore Life, it receives an extra shot of optimism; in an interview with The Skinny on page 12, band member Fay Milton says the album is “about being strong enough to change who you want to be.” As on the record’s striking cover art, we’re sure there’ll be fists in the air all across the room. Finally, a couple of last-minute tip-offs, as reward for those dedicated enough to reach the end of this column. Fiery Furnaces co-founder Eleanor Friedberger plays from her new album New View at the Eagle Inn, Salford, on 4 Feb, though it’ll be a tricky choice for some as Trevor Powers aka Youth Lagoon plays Band on the Wall

the same evening. The young Powers was just 22 when his breakthrough record, The Year of Hibernation, helped hasten along the so-called chillwave movement; where lesser acts have since faded, the Idaho-based musician’s keening, avian vocal, knack for a tune and approachable outspokenness on Twitter keep him part of the conversation. Bookending things nicely, one of Liverpool’s outstanding experimental acts Ex-Easter Island Head play in Manchester, presenting the results of their stay at Salford’s arts complex Islington Mill as part of residency programme Samarbeta. They premiere New Music for Large Electric Ensemble – for which they have worked with a selection of local guitarists, making use of gamelan tunings, change-ringing patterns and the harmonics of mass-amplified strings – at the venue on 20 Feb.

Do Not Miss Floating Points The Ritz, 12 Feb

Photo: Nick Bojdo

Words: Laura Swift

e’s a name who seems to have been on the scene forever, as one of the heads behind London’s Plastic People club, an in-demand DJ and a frequent collaborator with Four Tet, yet Sam Shepherd aka Floating Points only released his debut album last year. And what a work it is. Five years in the making, Elaenia is an expansive and engrossing journey in compositional electronica, balling influences as wide-reaching as Kenny Wheeler, Toru Takemitsu and Moreton Subotnick into a clear whole and then blowing it apart; highlights include – as our reviewer had it – the “Tarkovskian dream sequence” of opening

MUSIC

track Nespole, and the three-part Silhouettes, “which could almost pass as a threnody with its weaving, elegiac strings and operatic vocals.” His full-band show, tonight upgraded to the Ritz from Academy 2 due to demand, easily merits your Do Not Miss pick this month as one of only a handful of dates in the UK before he heads off to the likes of Sónar Iceland; and those who fancy spending the whole evening in the company of Shepherd can head to the afterparty at Hidden, where he’ll be playing a four-hour set for a pre-Valentine’s Day do, courtesy of local party heads Lost in Space. Dreamy. [Laura Swift]

Review

Photo: Ingrid Mur

Photo: David Howarth

Ex-Easter Island Head

Laura Cannell

Everyman Bistro, 21 Jan

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With 2014 debut album Quick Sparrows Over The Black Earth, Laura Cannell announced herself as an incredibly unique and startling interpreter of music that not only harked back to Britain’s folk traditions but seemed to revive something far more primitive and earthy. This was music that seemed to emerge from the primeval bogs of the artist’s native East Anglia and, while Cannell is careful to not be overly reverential, it’s almost a shock to watch her play these stunning compositions in a venue that provides such modern innovations as electricity, toilets and draught lager rather than mead. Performing alone on a dimly lit stage, Cannell uses just fiddle and two recorders to evoke the medieval as she begins tonight’s set

with the first two tracks from her second album, Beneath Swooping Talons. All the Land Ablaze features a frankly frightening stop-start refrain while For Sorrow Salt Tears sees Cannell adopt her self-developed technique of ‘deconstructed bow,’ which adds a layer of droning dissonance to proceedings both melancholic and unsettling. On the startling Deers Bark, Cannell’s double recorder technique, in which she simultaneously blows two of the instruments, comes to the fore as she builds up a primitive, almost animalistic, layer of sound that belies the childlike reputation of the instrument. Interspersing her songs with tales of black dogs, 12th-century nuns and 5th-century repentance, Cannell is a charming and reassuring guide through this murky world. When she strides into the crowd to play set closer The Drowned Sacriston, the effect is almost as dramatic and haunting as the music itself. [Jamie Bowman]

The Maccabees

The Maccabees Albert Hall, 18 Jan

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For the record, it’s worth pointing out that the last time The Maccabees played in Manchester was May of last year, half a mile or so down the road at The Ritz. They were previewing material from Marks to Prove It, their fourth LP, at the time, but more pertinent is their appearance before that, supporting The Black Keys at the Arena, in December of 2012. If, as they so clearly intended, their third album had bridged the gap from indie rock excellence to genuine big-league belonging, they’d have pulled off quite the spectacle that night. Instead, their set – entirely comprised of the Coldplay-aping bum note that was Given to the Wild – fell desperately flat. After one record (Colour It In) that hit the twee-pop spot of the time it was made in, and another (Wall of Arms) that sounded like a well-executed pitch for one of Britain’s finest indie rock records of the decade, The Maccabees took a horribly wrong turn with Given to the Wild. Marks to Prove It, though, is a real step back in the right direction, casting off some of their

Review

Toronto punk four-piece Dilly Dally are building a reputation for themselves as experts in exploring emotions at their rawest, with vocalist Katie Monks’ rasping animalistic howl suggesting that a wound is most true when it has been allowed to fester. As dank rainwater drips onto us intermittently from The Castle’s wooden ceiling, the band’s set in support of debut album Sore never feels completely at ease and is all the better for it. Along with their grievances, Dilly Dally wear their 90s alt-rock influences on their sleeves, launching into the quick one-two punch of Snake Head and Ballin Chain. There’s a Pixies undertone to birthday girl Liz Ball’s colourful guitar lines and drummer Benjamin Reinhartz’s cavernous percussion, while Monks’ inflamed yowl

Dilly Dally

Daughter

Albert Hall, 21 Jan

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Photo: Madeleine Penfold

Laura Cannell

Photo: Stuart Moulding

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and menstrual imagery evoke Brody Dalle at her Coral Fang peak, even during Candy Mountain’s slower burn. Despite their storied hostility, Dilly Dally are a fresh and friendly bunch on stage, thumping their way through a turbulent rendition of Gender Role before following it up with the swooning Get to You. ‘The callus on my heart won’t heal… But I’m still trying,’ Monks sighs, she and Ball backing into each other in a half-aggressive, half-affectionate tussle as Ball lets rip a searing tremolo riff. On such dichotomies do Dilly Dally rest, and although funkier older single Alexander winds itself into unravelment, The Touch races and rolls with hefty sexual tension. Finally, Monks screams the count into the soaring Desire, oozing longing that is painful yet beautiful. Uncomfortable as it may be, Dilly Dally know you need one to appreciate the other. [Chris Ogden]

It’s oh so quiet… And it really is. Just as Daughter start to test their voice with second album Not to Disappear, tonight they perform an abrupt about-face. As they lunge into How – the new record’s heftiest moment – the shock is palpable: you can hardly hear them. That’s from the back where you’d expect their weighty beats, dual guitars and Elena Tonra’s voice to envelop. From the front, where you need to feel it in your chest, the live mix favours clarity over bottom end. It wafts around the hall. Aesthetic preference or baffling cock-up? Sadly, unlike Arcade Fire’s show at the Apollo a few years back, where pleas to ‘Turn it up!’ eventually saw the sound engineer flick the

switch from 6 to 10, it stays this way throughout. It makes for an uncomfortably polite evening and Daughter are – and this is surely clear by now – anything but polite. Eschewing the in-house lighting rig in favour of minimal floor spots, and playing largely from the shadows, Daughter shrink and retreat: maddening. A vast crowd remains rapt, though, and there are moments. A one-two of Winter and Smother is shattering. Shallows, that desperate and bitter hymnal, ascends. We will them on: the wrong dynamic entirely, of course, for a band who typically connect at depth. But, stymied by a presentation so unfitting, this is a show in search of a flashpoint, of an impetus that never comes. An oddball one-off? Surely. Devastating beyond words? That and more. [Gary Kaill]

previous caution. Tonight’s set seems to provide a real insight into the mindset of the Brighton five-piece; they start off noisily, with their latest album’s title track, but there’s some trepidation to their opening salvo. It’s only five or six tracks in – maybe around the point that they drop the well-loved likes of Love You Better and Young Lions – that they seem to settle down. You can sense it, too. Felix White, on guitar, is suddenly in perma-grin mode, screaming lyrics to songs he must have played thousands of times back to a feverish crowd. Orlando Weeks visibly loosens up, but the new tracks still fail to hit the spot with die-hards clearly more interested in material from Colour It In; an old-school back-to-back of Latchmere and X-Ray whips up a storm, but the following one-two to close the main set – Grew Up at Midnight and Something Like Happiness – sees a surge in bar sales. The Maccabees remain just enough fun live to mask the fact that they’re staggering, bleary-eyed, out of the wreckage that was their identity crisis of a last album; here’s hoping they can properly shake it off next time around. [Joe Goggins] Daughter

MUSIC

Photo: Mark Prime

The Castle Hotel, 23 Jan

THE SKINNY

Photo: Alexander Bell

Dilly Dally

Photo: Brian David Stevens

Track-by-Track: Meet the Humans Never one to shirk the big issues, Steve Mason meditates on love, death, UFO sightings and organising hen do’s on his exceptional new LP, Meet the Humans Water Bored

The lyrics from this were partly inspired by a friend of mine’s eight-year-old son who told me how he and his friend had been sleeping out in the garden one night in a tent. His friend had got up in the night and saw a flying saucer in the sky. He called out to my friend’s son but by the time he got out of the tent it had gone. I just imagined the aftermath of that for a kid. The trust you have at that age in things like police and government, then you grow up and you’re sitting in front of a computer that knows when you have a toilet break and it tells your boss you have been away from your desk for longer than three minutes. From the wonder of the heavens to being a lab rat in ten years.

Alive

This was the first time in years I used my melodica in a song. I used to put it on everything – especially during King Biscuit Time – but then it sat like a lightsaber at the back of Obi-Wan’s sock drawer, waiting. This started out with a very soothing sweet vocal and very run-of-the-mill lyrics. I hated them but was a bit stumped on how to sort them out. If I don’t nail the lyrics as the song is being written, I find it very difficult to go back and write them on a different day. After trying a more aggressive vocal style out, the new words came pretty easy in the control room with Craig [Potter, of Elbow] hovering over the record button. I hate pressure but sometimes it’s exactly what you need.

Alright

This started out as a weird country-and-western ballad about four years ago. I hated it, but I thought there was something in there somewhere. I had been hanging out with the drummer in a shoegaze band for a while and thought I could maybe invent a new genre. Classical Shoegaze. So I gave it a go, but the shoegaze bit is maybe too watered down. That will be cranked up for the gigs, I reckon. It’s about boys and girls having relationships that don’t last. Are we really supposed to be together forever?! Such a strange concept. Quite a big production on this, especially when Joe Duddell brings his orchestra in against the distorted guitars. Classical Shoegaze. It’ll be over by June I reckon. The NME will ruin it.

February 2016

Another Day

For the first time on any album I’ve made I got the boys in my live band together in a rehearsal room and we played through some of the songs that were going to go on there, to see how they felt and sounded in real life rather than just listening to a demo. I’m sure most bands do this but it’s not so easy for a solo artist. Because it was something I had not done for many, many years it was a bit of a revelation and a lot of fun. I’m not used to having fun so I had a double good time. There’s a bit more Joe Duddell on this one, four horn players, all recorded live and double-tracked at Blueprint in Manchester. You don’t want to go overboard with that whole horn thing, though.

“Crying on the dancefloor, that’s what I like” Steve Mason

Ran Away

are now. I think eternal consciousness is entirely possible. But it’s also just as likely that there is nothing; the computer programme just runs its course and fizzles out. Seems unlikely though, no? Considering humans have no idea what consciousness is or the nature of it, we seem very sure that there is nothing after the body dies. That’s humans for you, though, no fucking idea what they are on about. I love this song, and the melodies. I’m very happy with it. The end section was written with a friend called Iain Archer and the backing vocal is Kristina Train.

Hardly Go Through

When Craig Potter – who produced the album – heard this he didn’t like the feel and drums I had used on the demo, so we tried a few things out with the band. I really like how it’s ended up; just relentless pulsing, which is broken up by the strings in the chorus. And it just builds and builds. It was a Cameron to mix; to get the dynamics really hitting hard by the last chorus we had to start off very quiet. But not too quiet. Plus there is a hell of a lot going on: strings, guitars, bass, piano, vocals, delays, horns and many other things I can never ever, ever tell you about.

Very simple; I just tried to let this song do its thing and not throw a wall of sound at it. Sometimes you have to step back and let the thing run around the paddock on its own. Like a baby giraffe. Wobbly legs an’ all. It’s a kind of hate song, I suppose. Wishing ill on someone who cracked your heart and hopes. It’s not always a good idea to write these kind of things but I feel confident in my twisted misery. Some quite cutting things in here, but that’s OK, as long as you cloak them a little. Better to open your heart and mind right up and let the bad poison out. As Cliff Richard might say.

Through My Window

To a Door

Planet Sizes

The death song! Grab your partner by the hand and get on the dancefloor. I just wonder what it’s going to be like to die and be dead. It might be amazing. Nobody knows. I think maybe we have been sold a load of bullshit about death. Back in the olden days, people were not as frightened or squeamish about death as we all

This is my home demo with no change made whatsoever. We did think about it but the atmosphere is perfect. My voice was real croaky like an old bullfrog and I liked that as well. You have to know when to leave things alone. It’s a good break on the album swell from all the big songs and production. This was actually the first thing I recorded in my house after moving to Brighton. Maybe I was saying goodbye to Fife and the solitude I had left up there. Now I’m the party guy in Brighton. All the hen do’s come to me to organise their fun. This one was also co-written with my pal Iain Archer. Writing songs with someone else is not something I have done for around 20 years really. I missed it very much but you have to do it with the right person. I had such a productive time with Iain; it was great, writing up in the bell tower of a church in North London. Like

MUSIC

Words: Steve Mason

Quasimodo meets Veronica Lake via Jim Davidson on a good day. Iain is a vicar at the church so he always wants to put bits about some God or other in the songs. That’s the only thing we fall out about. That and where kebab meat comes from. I’m very happy with the production on this; we nailed the harmonies in the chorus and the melody has just the right amount of ‘Universal Wonderment’ in it.

Like Water

After we had recorded this with the band, it sounded like a pub rock song that no one wanted to hear. Very strange and very disappointing. I thought about scrapping it but we listened back to my demo (I demo every song fully at home) and realised I had used a loop of myself playing the drums. Just a four-bar loop, no actual live drums, so there was no dynamics from the kit at all. Everything else was rising and falling around the drums. That was the key. We made a new loop with my playing and praise Jesus in heaven and all his kebab-eating angels, it sorted it right oot. Nae bother. I suppose it’s about the reality of writing songs about your own life, not just making shit up like Chris de Burgh does. If you live it, it’s a tough thing. A bit like driving a ten-wheeler lorry in a blizzard on the A9. Southbound, obviously. Plenty of percussion on this: a cutlery drainer full of spoons, knives, forks and stolen plastic chopsticks, shaken by me.

Words in My Head

I think this started out as another moaning acoustic type of song, but I’d had enough of them so I put it through the B-Boy Trance Machine (don’t Google that) and when it came back out it had the required energy without losing the emotion. Again, praise Jesus. The vocals are from my demo. We tried to re-record them but the results were basically pish. I love using stuff from demos, though. Makes it very personal. I think at the gigs we are going to try and build this into an eight-headed Hydra machine of danceability. Crying on the dancefloor, that’s what I like. Ain’t nothing but a heartache every day. Meet the Humans is released via Double Six on 26 Feb. Playing Manchester Academy 2 on 24 Apr and Leeds Belgrave Music Hall on 25 Apr stevemasontheartist.com

Review

Album of the Month Animal Collective

Painting With [Domino, 19 Feb]

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On the face of it, at least, it seems faintly ridiculous to ever use the word ‘stale’ in relation to Animal Collective, given how pointedly they’ve always looked forward, and seldom back, over the course of their career. After 2013’s Centipede Hz, though – which failed to inspire quite like Strawberry Jam and Merriweather Post Pavilion had – there was perhaps a feeling that time out to recharge wouldn’t be a bad thing. The making of this latest LP, Painting With, sounds as if it was considerably less awkward than its predecessor. With the band regrouping as a three-piece – Josh ‘Deakin’ Dibb sits this one out – they evidently chose to focus on a more primal work. The Baltimore trio eschew their penchant for extended ambient

The Wave Pictures

A Season in Hull [Wymeswold Records, 12 Feb]

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So, how did you celebrate your last birthday? Pub was it? Dinner with friends perhaps? Sigh – how unproductive. You want to take a leaf out of the ever-prolific Dave Tattersall’s book: when his birthday last rolled around, he took the opportunity to gather the rest of The Wave Pictures and record an album start to finish, with everyone playing together live into a single microphone. This lo-fi, devil-may-care air translates well to record, with A Season in Hull capturing and accentuating the band’s characteristic camaraderie and casual, Jonathan Richman-esque charm – not least on the playfully surreal Tropical Fish and the breezy, Modern Lovers-referencing The Coaster in Santa Cruz. Admittedly, the stripped-down setup has drawbacks too, leaving the material with nowhere to hide and exposing an uncharacteristic patchiness. But given the record’s low-key genesis and release (limited edition, vinyl-only), that seems excusable, with enough flashes of genius to warrant raising a glass. [Chris Buckle] thewavepictures.com

passages, often complex in construction, and instead choose to focus on simpler pleasures; accordingly, they sound as if they’re having real fun again, from the boisterous bounce of opener FloriDada to the off-kilter strut of Spilling Guts. The sheer pace of the record barely lets up; each song imbued with a real urgency. A leaner sound frames typically abstract lyrical preoccupations – with topics as unlikely as dinosaurs, the Ukraine conflict and the USA’s North-South divide making the cut – and Animal Collective still lay down a challenge. It’s the sound of a band refreshed. [Joe Goggins] myanimalhome.net

Field Music

Nevermen

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Commontime [Memphis, 5 Feb] The Brewis brothers' first release since 2012’s Mercury Prize nominated Plumb, Commontime sees the band re-expand to include original keyboardist Andrew Moore, with extra vocals, bass touches and hints of string thrown in for good measure. Warm, meticulous and packed with the off-kilter, jaunty pop touches Field Music made their name with, there’s plenty to encourage long-serving fans of the band – but there’s very little to stop your mind from wandering. Over 14 tracks, repetitive funk riffs and chatty, conversationalist lyrics start to wear a little thin, and a lack of diversity makes for such comfortable listening that you risk all-too-comfortably tuning out. It’s a shame, too, because this hazy, samey-ness means you could risk overlooking the cinema of disorientating politico-ballad Trouble at the Lights, tucked in mid-record, or the far more fresh That’s Close Enough For Now. Mid-record, the brothers’ twin vocals ask How Should I Know If You’ve Changed? – supposedly detailing the awkwardness of school reunions, but hitting a fraction too close to home. [Katie Hawthorne]

Nevermen [Lex, Out now] Some eight years since they first teased the possibility, maverick Anticon co-founder Doseone (‘mind’), TV on the Radio’s Tunde Adebimpe (‘heart’) and ever-prolific Ipecac co-honcho Mike Patton (‘body’) emerge from the kitchen with Nevermen’s first serving. “Don’t rush the fuckin’ music,” they warned. Now to reward your patience; presented as a rule-discarding labour of love for the trio, the results are a timeless, genre-smashing work with a psychedelic soul. Inevitably, fans of any constituent member will find vivid snatches of past guises strewn across the debut’s ten tracks, but the collective whole works toward something more, determined to dart off into the unknown at every labyrinthine lyrical turn. With a complementary range and at times uncanny similarity between them, the three voices often intertwine and harmonise in ecstatic union, from Tough Towns’ roaring crescendo and the rapid fire gang chorus that underpins At Your Service to Mr Mistake’s choral calm. A refined supertrio for the ages. [John Langlands] lexprojects.com/nevermen

field-music.co.uk

Beacon

Teen

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Escapements [Ghostly International, 5 Feb]

Love Yes [Carpark Records, 19 Feb]

Working For A Nuclear Free City What Do People Do All Day? [Melodic, Out now]

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Having garnered plaudits for the spacey electronics and sweet vocal mix of 2013’s The Way We Separate, Brooklyn duo Beacon return with a more complex take on their RnB and Warp obsessions, but one which is no less captivating. The album’s title refers to timekeeping regulators in clocks, and the fascination with inexorable decay is evident in songs like Running Out and Preserve. Musically, Thomas Mullarney III’s sighing vocals float over dense rhythms and deep bass, taking their cue from the icy atmospherics of James Blake as much as the narcotic ennui of The Weeknd. Better and Worse drives forward with a soft dance pulse, while Still’s skittery build up gives way to lush melodic relief as and when it feels like it. It’s a creative licence found across the album; the sense of a band exploring their sound with a freedom that comes from not knowing the destination. A late night journey of the highest order. [Dan Pilkington]

Its sharp pop sensibilities could fool you into thinking it’s not quite as weird as it is, but don’t be fooled: Love Yes is away with the fairies and delightfully so. Teen’s off-kilter oeuvre, fuelled as ever by the wayward fancies of lead singer Teeny Lieberson, gains extra purchase here via their strongest set of songs to date. The four-piece manage an airy, radio-friendly vibe but their synth sheen is just one facet of their beguiling endeavour. Gone For Good and Example straddle so delicately the line between art pop and mainstream appeal, and reference points are all over the shop: Sparks, Jane Siberry, Tango in the Night, early Madonna. Another Man’s Woman, with a guitar break only playable with rolled-up jacket sleeves, is the silkiest stadium balladry. Beneath the surface, watchful engagement and debate inform, as ever, Teen’s literate manifesto. Uplifting and electric, Love Yes is a blast. The kids are alright and then some. [Gary Kaill]

An unwieldy moniker they may have, but Manchester’s WFANFC have always peddled a neat line in intelligent indie pop, not afraid to bounce around a little. And having maybe split up then perhaps not, they’ve returned with a record in which Madchester beats and quirky harmonies float amidst Richard Scarry technicolour (whose slightly satirical artwork depicted towns of animals enacting the mundanity of adult day-to-day). Befitting a Scarry illustration, there’s plenty of detail behind What Do People Do All Day?, from the space hopper bass of opener Bottlerocket and Motown stomp underpinning Turned Too Tight, to more reflective narratives reminiscent of The Beta Band’s less flashy material. It’s an album of shattered dreams and primary colours – “Where’s your sense of humour?” decries Blunderland – and more than once it isn’t obvious if the band are laughing with us or (in the nicest possible way) at us. [Duncan Harman]

ghostly.com/artists/beacon

carparkrecords.com/artists/teen

melodic.co.uk/wfanfc1/

Rangda

Steve Mason

Cavalier Song

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The Heretic’s Bargain [Drag City, 19 Feb]

Meet The Humans [Double Six, 26 Feb]

There’s a storm brewing. Clouds writhe and branches flail as it grows bigger and bigger, the sky turning darker by the minute, until everything suddenly dissipates – only for the process to begin all over again. This is the image evoked time and again while listening to improv rockers Rangda’s latest effort, their wiry instrumentals consisting of sinister, circuitous riffs churned over and over till they’re ready to burst. Guitarists Richard Bishop (Sun City Girls), Ben Chasny (Six Organs of Admittance) and drummer Chris Corsano thrive in the perpetual build-up, exhibiting a symbiotic chemistry as they rattle through brisk opener To Melt the Moon and meld together during a later track’s prolonged drone section. All three are considerable technicians and practice refreshing restraint; both in their playing (intricate but not showy) and their sound (sharp and dry, with few effects). The result, however, can feel like a bit of an academic exercise at times – music to be admired rather than really inhabited. [Andrew Gordon]

Steve Mason’s third solo album under his own name finds the erstwhile Fifer embracing a folktronica style familiar from those Beta Band days. There’s a move away from the man-the-barricades politics that defined 2013’s Monkey Minds In The Devil’s Time, but sharp social observations can be found on opening track Water Bored. The themes running throughout Meet the Humans are more personal reinvention and romantic reflection than the perils of neoliberalism. Mason relocated last year from London to Brighton and this new start has led to a positive outlook. ‘I know you ran away – but I’m fine, as I don’t mind,’ he tells us on Run Away, while the following To A Door is positively jaunty. These songs are strong enough to be recorded with minimal accompaniment and that instantly recognisible, hushed voice – but the best moments are when his love of electronica shines through, as on lead single Planet Sizes. Now in his early 40s, Mason sounds like an artist finally finding his creative stride. [Chris McCall]

dragcity.com/artists/rangda

stevemasontheartist.com

Review

RECORDS

Blezard [God Unknown, 22 Feb] Where to even begin with Blezard? It’s a unique collection of guitar-led sonic explorations. You’d hesitate to label it noise- or post-rock, but terms like ‘abstract’ and ‘experimental’ seem insufficient. At times impressionistic, others simply allusive, it saves its sole moment of direct, rock-‘em-sock‘em heroics for the coda of Stones For Throwing, which teases at industrial riffage and then clanks the fucker ‘til it bursts. Elsewhere we find Cavalier Song wandering inquisitively over softer terrain before galloping through undulating, discordant passages, with their giddy glee at each new discovery audible at every turn. There’s no dominant mode here; opener Anode wields pensive, Yo La Tengo-esque sweeps of cracked psych-jangle while 10-minute closer Trees is more expansive and complex, begging to be absorbed through repeat plays rather than half-chewed and swiftly swallowed. Blezard is a triumph of imagination – a wide-eyed stare at the skies, in love with sound and possibility. [Will Fitzpatrick] facebook.com/cavaliersong

THE SKINNY

So Pitted

Basia Bulat

Sarah Neufeld

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Neo [Sub Pop, 19 Feb]

Good Advice [Secret City Records, 12 Feb]

The Ridge [Paper Bag, 26 Feb]

Melodies are all well and good, but they’ll only get you so far. Sometimes all you wanna hear is something that’ll crush you into the ground. Step forward Seattle’s So Pitted: a trio for whom no riff is complete unless it fully articulates the sensation of stuffing one’s head in a blender while falling down a spiral staircase. At times (Pay Attention To Me, Rot In Hell), their chief inspiration point seems to be Nirvana’s seething grind through Devo’s Turnaround, but their gleeful dedication to deafening scree also calls to mind both No Age and TAD’s 8-Way Santa; each staring longingly at the other before smashing themselves together, skull-first. Naturally, it raises questions as to the wisdom of resurrecting grunge’s faux-nihilistic sense of bleak irony, but even if the price we have to pay is another generation of yarling, po-faced chancers, records as righteous as Neo are worth suffering for. [Will Fitzpatrick]

The Canadian singer’s fourth album is a subtle but distinct redefining of her angular pop aesthetic. Produced by Jim James of My Morning Jacket in his Kentucky studio, its Bulat’s most soulful and engaging work to date. With, as you’d expect, increased emphasis on feel and groove, Good Advice emerges as the showcase her voice was surely waiting for all along. That voice – a beautiful instrument, roughened and rangy – elevates these songs. From the crisp soul beats of In the Name Of to the haunting atmospherics of The Garden, Bulat performs with passion and authority. Ten songs and not a hint of filler. If the likes of Eleanor Friedberger and Joan as Policewoman have hooked you with their gift for advanced melodics and artful storytelling, here’s an artist whose newfound ambition puts her in their league. Don’t let this one slip by: Bulat is suddenly, finally, a serious contender. [Gary Kaill]

Sarah Neufeld’s previous outing, Never Were The Way She Was, provided a fascinating conversation between the fluid majesty of her violin and the virtuosic skronk of fellow Arcade Fire collaborator Colin Stetson’s sax; an ugly-beautiful, impressionistic symbiosis that bewitched even as it unravelled. Stetson returns here for her second solo album proper, although this time he’s firmly in the background. The Ridge uses voice and violin to paint a crisp scenery that feels like the fresh stillness of early morning countryside one moment and a jagged storm the next. The presence of Jeremy Gara on drums peppers the record with a likeable melodrama that’ll seem familiar to fans of Funeral or Neon Bible, although this particular record requires much closer listening to fully appreciate its charms. As ever, Neufeld is worth your intrigue. [Will Fitzpatrick]

subpop.com/artists/so_pitted

basiabulat.com

sarahneufeldmusic.com

Benji Hughes

El Guincho

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Songs in the Key of Animals [Merge, 5 Feb] Opening with a funky rundown of the guests at the Peacockin’ Party, including a monkey, a donkey and ‘a penguin in a tux lookin’ so deluxe’, Songs in the Key of Animals begins sounding like the Bojack Horseman concept album nobody asked for – hardly an outlandish prospect from the man whose debut was a double-album titled A Love Extreme. A subsequent track documents the friendliest shark attack on record, pairing shrill screams with whimsical synth lines, but Hughes soon leaves the animal kingdom in favour of tongue-in-cheek love songs delivered in a mellow blue-eyed soul style. More They Might Be Giants than Father John Misty, the humour is light-hearted throughout, and Hughes is a gifted arranger, breathing warmth into his knowingly pastiche compositions with a bit of tenor sax here and an interesting counter melody there. There’s even the odd genuinely poignant moment too, like melancholy instrumental Song For Nancy, making for a likable comedy album that’s more than just a piss-take – a rare breed. [Andrew Gordon] benjihughesmusic.com

Jesu / Sun Kil Moon

Hiperasia [Everlasting Records, 19 Feb]

Jesu / Sun Kil Moon [Caldo Verde Records and Rough Trade, Out now]

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Album número tres from astro-exotica producer Pablo Díaz-Reixa plays like a radio shuffling through stations. Hiperasia – named after a string of Chinese discount shops in Madrid – is an associative, jazz-like journey, studded with cyber-tropical percussion and autotuned robo-Spanish vocals, and manages to be both brusque and twitchily playful. A drummer at heart, El Guincho again turns to his fixation with repetition, building each track around their calypso loops and illuminating them with gaudy, fluorescent synth stabs, guided by some closely guarded tempo that’s sometimes difficult to tap into. It’s the capricious teases (Abdi’s eventual ascending melody ends just as it’s peaking, and just try dancing to the title track’s stop-start rhythm) that frustrate most of all, despite being entirely in keeping with the record’s distractible pace. Less exotic than his sizzling debut Alegranza!, and less outwardly tuneful than Pop Negro (nothing here resembles catchy single Bombay), Hiperasia might be a less accessible album, but it’s Díaz-Reixa at his most experimental and inventive. [George Sully]

On Last Night I Rocked the Room Like Elvis and Had Them Laughing Like Richard Pryor, Mark Kozelek recounts 13 June 2015, blow for blow, including trying to call his sister on her birthday (she eventually picks up) and reading a review online (‘Pitchfork gave me a ‘6’). He continues to read fanmail from Singapore slamming the British press reaction to a notorious London show last year. With this, we may have reached peak Kozelek. It sounds sublime, the lyrics are wonderful, and he just can’t help but needle his critics. Jesu’s crunching, industrial guitar, subtle drum machines and harmonies compliment Kozelek’s meandering, caustic tales differently to past collaborators such as The Album Leaf and Desertshore, but it works just as well, helped by star turns from the likes of Low and Will Oldham. After an infantile year in which his profile soared for the wrong reason, the music does the talking here, reminding us that for all his flaws, Kozelek has found a way to splice proclivity and excellence. [Finbarr Bermingham]

hiperasia.style

sunkilmoon.com

DIIV

Wild Nothing

Mass Gothic

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Is The Is Are [Captured Tracks, 5 Feb]

Life Of Pause [Bella Union, 19 Feb]

Mass Gothic [Sub Pop, 5 Feb]

There are more than a fair few Brooklyn bands that have a particular taste for jangly guitars and not washing. It is only a minority of these, however, where the substance is greater than the style. DIIV fall in to the latter category, peddling reverb jangles in a way that doesn’t just sound like a Cure pastiche. This second full-length offering is a sprawling continuation of their debut. While Oshin was exploratory yet managed to remain concise, Is The Is Are rambles somewhat over an unhealthily long 17 tracks. The same almost esoteric mysticism that made their debut so beguiling remains throughout, guitar lines intricately weaving around rolling bass and Zachary Cole Smith’s hazy croon; there are some gems within – the Joy Division-indebted Valentine and glorious pop of Dopamine attest to this. Repeat visits are sure to unearth more of the band’s thought process, but there’s a lingering sense that less could’ve been so much more. [Will Moss]

Life of Synth may have been a more apt title for Wild Nothing’s third record, cultivated as it is around layers of woozy electronic timbres. Nowhere is this better delineated than on opening track Reichpop, an energising, effervescent jumble that circumvents its stern title with layers of drums, marimba and a merry multitude of synth-produced pops, whirrs and bubbles. It’s a statement of intent from Wild Nothing’s architect, singersongwriter and Virginia native Jack Tatum, who lead with the group’s guitar-pop debut Gemini before sophomore album Nocturne saw the outfit evolve towards a more sophisticated, intricate sound. The evolution continues with Life of Pause, and it’s largely successful; – Tatum’s commitment to detail and texture invigorate tracks like A Woman’s Wisdom, but leave the languid title track feeling bogged down and bloated. Perhaps it isn’t quite a fully realised picture, but Life of Pause still paints a very pretty sonic landscape. [Claire Francis]

Here comes the cliché: there’s a handful of good songs on Mass Gothic – enough to constitute a strong, promising EP. A good album it is not, however, which is a shame given the alluring sound ex-Hooray for Earth frontman Noel Heroux sketches on Nice Night and Soul; a sort of downtempo indie rock with meaty, dour guitars filtered through glitchy effects. Pier Pressure and Money Counter are the other keepers, the former a patient melodic number which, sporting ethereal keys and a chopped up drum solo, could pass for a gloomy Tame Impala cut. The remainder ranges from merely bland to bloated, finding Heroux repeatedly straining to muster a convincing sense of tension. Haphazard sing-a-long Every Night You’ve Got To Save Me is just plain annoying and isn’t helped by its likeness to Future Islands’ monster tune Seasons (Waiting on You), but thankfully it’s the record’s only drastic misfire. Nevertheless, there’s still too much filler here to warrant an unqualified thumbs up. [Andrew Gordon]

diivnyc.tumblr.com

wildnothingmusic.com

subpop.com/artists/mass_gothic

Cavern of Anti-Matter

Bloc Party

Void Beats / Invocation Trex [Duophonic Records, 19 Feb]

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It’s been seven long years since Marxist ambientboogie machine Stereolab decided to go on an indefinite hiatus, leaving a small army of vinyl junkies bereft. Thankfully, for all those missing his group’s self-styled ‘space age bachelor pad’ music, Cavern of Anti-Matter sees Tim Gane return to the fray with an epic 72-minute album full of the kind of metronomic beats, Krautrock and electronica which made his previous band such an eclectic delight. Unlike Stereolab, where Laetitia Sadler’s vocals played an integral part in proceedings, the emphasis here is on stretched-out soundscapes and electronic manipulation. Opener Tardis Cymbals builds and builds upon a layer of vintage synths and jerky drumbeats while Melody in High Feedback Tones does exactly what it says on the tin. With original Stereolab drummer Joe Dilworth also involved, there’s the feel of an avant-noise supergroup when DeerHunter’s Bradford Cox and Spacemen 3’s Sonic Boom lend some typically out-there contributions. Deeply sublime. [Jamie Bowman]

Hymns [Infectious, Out now]

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It’s hard to know where to start with the 2015 version of Bloc Party. A far cry from the band that crafted one of this generation’s finest debut records in Silent Alarm, they’re consistently – and often unfavourably – associated with the period of time when they sat at the forefront of the UK indie scene. Whether that’s fair or not is perhaps a conversation for another time, but whichever way you choose to explore and consume their fifth outing, it seems that something is amiss. Lead track The Love Within opens the record and remains a bizarre mess; Kele Okereke’s distinct vocal parting for a mostly one-note synth line that causes a genuine flinch. All is perhaps not lost: Fortress is a somewhat pretty, minimal electro ballad while Different Drugs speaks for the entire record; flirting with a series of ideas before simply fading out of sight and mind. We expected so much more. [Tom Johnson]

The Top Five 1 2 3 4 5

Animal Collective Painting With

Nevermen

So Pitted

Neo

Jesu / Sun Kil Moon

Steve Mason

Meet The Humans

blocparty.com

duophonic.com

February 2016

RECORDS

Review

Photo: Sarah Cass

Neo-grunge Seattle’s So Pitted took their name from a viral YouTube video, and their noise-rock racket looks set to make waves on a similar scale. Nathan Rodriguez fills us in

f there’s one thing Nathan Rodriguez likes, it’s the word ‘conversation,’ It crops up time and again over the course of our telephone chat, betraying his fondness for dialogue and participation – which isn’t what you’d expect after listening to his band, So Pitted. Their debut album, Neo, communicates entirely through volume, texture and rhythm; a searing blast that rolls up its lyrical proclamations in a carpet of fuzz (so thick you can practically feel it), then throws the whole mess off a bridge. It’s hardcore punk slowed down to a mechanistic crunch, and rather than anything so convivial as a conversation, it feels like being furiously and incomprehensibly shouted at through thick, isolating fog. Still, we’re getting ahead of ourselves. In all likelihood, this will be the first you’ve heard of So Pitted, so you’ll be wanting to know crucial things like ‘are they any good?’ and ‘what do they sound like?’ In response to the former: yes. Very. As for the second question, we’ll defer to Rodriguez, the band’s founder member: “When people ask me how we sound,” he says, “I tell them we kinda sound like Nirvana – just to be simple.” That’s a fair assessment: there’s more than a little overlap with their Seattle home and its musical legacy (albeit with a heavy dose of Devo, PiL and similarly minded experimentalists), and indeed Neo is set for release through Sub Pop, the city’s foremost grunge outlet during the genre’s late 80s/early 90s heyday. “I just wanna give them the gist real quick,” he continues. “I definitely think we’re more than grunge but I think grunge is a part of us.” Personally, The Skinny will settle for somewhere between noise-rock and post-punk, but whichever genre traces you detect in their thoroughly enjoyable racket, there’s certainly more to their sound than Kurt Cobain worship. For one thing, there’s the name – fertile ground for discussion thanks to its origins in a viral YouTube clip, where an enthusiastic young surfer bro explains the thrill of some particularly gnarly waves. “You get the best barrels ever, dude,” he tells a baffled reporter. “You just drop in, ride the barrel and get pitted, so pitted.”

Review

Interview: Will Fitzpatrick

Unsurprisingly as residents of America’s Pacific Northwest, the band aren’t surfers themselves (“It’s not ideal for the community over here,” Rodriguez explains drily). But for all its douchey, so-lame-it’s-cool appeal, the term ‘so pitted’ works as an explanation of Neo’s viscerally joyous listening experience: it buffets and batters you even as it pushes you along. “Yeah, I think that kind of happened over time,” agrees bandmate Liam Downey. “On accident. I definitely would’ve liked it to be like that – I would’ve liked it to be more intentional – but when we first started we had no idea what we were doing. It took a good amount of time for us to grasp what we wanted to make.” Fleshed out by the metronomic muscle of drummer/vocalist Downey and guitarist Jeannine Koewler, So Pitted in its current iteration remains a relatively new prospect. Having worked through a succession of earlier line-ups before settling on the one responsible for Neo, Rodriguez explains how they all came together: “I met Liam ’cause I was a fan of his band, Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head – they were kind of a big deal, at least in Seattle; they were signed to Warner Records. I was going to a lot of his shows – I was such a fan of his – and over time we started hanging out with mutual friends. One day he just showed up at this So Pitted practice, and our other drummer couldn’t make it. So we were like, ‘OK, you wanna hang out? Wanna play drums?’ And he played, and he’s so good. It just worked out. “A couple of years after that I met Jeannine when we worked together at this clothing shop, and she was just so cool. She learned how to play guitar for our band… and she learned so fast!” The sound quickly coalesced around the nascent trio, and things quickly progressed. “I think it started happening around the time Jeannine joined the band. We joked about being on Sub Pop when we first started, but it was funnier then ’cause we sucked so much. But it does kind of make sense for us to be signed to a label like that – I remember as soon as they

showed interest in us, I was honoured, but there’s times when I was like, ‘Well, who else?’ It’s pretty cool to be part of a bigger conversation.” Talk turns to post-punk – Downey, it turns out, is a huge Devo fan, perhaps informing his factory-machine rhythms that add to the band’s sheared metallic clunk – and in particular its exploration of the relationship between man and machine, both in terms of subject matter and use of equipment. Given this influence, we suggest that it’s somehow appropriate that So Pitted should take their name from a snapshot of human experience, brought into the wider consciousness thanks to the advancements of shared technology.

“I just wanna give them the gist real quick” Nathan Rodriguez

“Yeah, I definitely noticed that. I feel good about it too. Initially it seems really tacky, but YouTube is a part of our culture. It’s pretty absurd, and it’s amazing at the same time. It’s odd ’cause that privilege is amazing, just being able to have access to any sort of entertainment, but it’s kind of funny what we end up choosing to do with that. “Lately I’ve been watching… you know that game The Sims? There’s compilation videos of the Sims catching on fire. It’s really funny to think about the people who are making these videos; the people who are spending hours of their time: they’re staging this video, they’re filming it, they upload it, they even put words with it. I wanna know who those people are!” This frivolous nature doesn’t seem apparent when scrolling through the album’s song titles: Woe, The Sickness, Holding the Void, Rot in Hell… It’s not cheery stuff. Rodriguez laughs.

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“It’s just a lot of concerns that we write about. And it’s kind of abstract at that point, it could be something as simple as a person we know, or an attitude that a group of people has… for example, Rot in Hell: that was my feelings towards co-workers that were so money-hungry. Looking back, it’s almost like stuff I’m saying to myself… like a very internal kind of thing, a very internal conversation.” In short, they’re the same concerns that register with every young punk band: life and how to live it in the face of daily frustrations. But it’s the sheer, unrepentant noise concocted by So Pitted that’s the chief reason you’ll become enraptured; a nail bomb of pent-up rage that feels palpably capable of horrifying, mutilating destruction. It’s early in the year to make this sort of claim, but we can say with confidence that in ten months’ time you’ll be looking back on Neo as one of 2016’s best debuts, by some distance. The most frightening thing about it? They think they’re capable of better. “It’s about progress, not perfection,” Rodriguez concludes. “A lot of people get lost in these tangents of what’s wrong in the world, based on what’s not perfect. And that’s true, there’s a lot that’s not perfect and I’m not trying to shut down any conversation, but you can lose a lot of your life avoiding what isn’t perfect. You could just make progress instead, in any way or form. “Like, I look at these songs that we’ve made. They’re not perfect songs by any means. There’s moments where I’m like, ‘Yeah, that’s really cool’, and there’s things I would change, parts I would sing differently, parts I would take out. But it wouldn’t be what it is if I went back and changed it. I’ll create what I wanna create next time.” Pray they never figure out what they’re doing. Until then, let’s just see where the conversation takes them next. Neo is released via Sub Pop on 19 Feb. Playing Leeds Brudenell Social Club on 8 Mar subpop.com/artists/so_pitted

THE SKINNY

Behind the Scenes: Lost Control We get some sit-down time with Black Eyes, the man behind Lost Control and Didsbury Techno Militia, to mull over the current state of the scene

rainchild of one Manchester DJ who currently goes by the name of Black Eyes, Lost Control is a night that migrates around the smallest but best clubbing spaces the city has to offer, from the Whiskey Jar basement to Q Cavern to Kraak (now known as Aatma), and guests some of the most respected and progressive DJs from all over the world, including names such as Alexander Robotnick and John Heckle. Now, to celebrate the night’s third birthday on 27 February, the acid house and techno aficionado is on the move again, taking Lost Control to Salford warehouse space Boneyard for what’s set to be one of his best lineups yet. This includes Dublin’s Automatic Tasty performing live, and support from Manchester’s Naive Melody (composed of Elliott Mess, Dan English and Tim Morrison), Francis Woof of That Amazing Thing, Leon Mitternacht of Brain Machine, Luke O’Reilly and Black Eyes himself. A seasoned member of the city’s electronic music scene and contemporary of Will Tramp, Black Eyes was a member of the Micron collective and now runs Didsbury Techno Militia. This is a somewhat covert operation, so far boasting custom-made T-shirts, which if you live in the area and know its key players, you’ll have seen popping up at various raves on your timeline... The Skinny: Hi Black Eyes. Last time we spoke you were known as Black. What prompted you to add the ‘Eyes’? Black Eyes: I changed it a while back because it’s hard to search ‘Black’ on the internet, and I got sick of people not being able to find me. That wasn’t a concern before? Not as much. The music just wasn’t ready in eyes (and ears) until now. My own production has been a journey of self-discovery because I have problems with sticking with one style, so getting an EP down hasn’t been easy. I have something coming out soon though on a new British label. More info to follow on that shortly. Your club nights are pretty eclectic. What’s your approach to making bookings? If I’m going to be honest, I just book people who I like and hope that others will too. It’s kind of like selecting records for a DJ set, but you’re selecting artists instead. If you start putting on artists

Interview: Kamila Rymajdo just for everyone else’s sake, it’s not really your own imprint anymore. You’ve been booking more live acts recently. What can we expect from Automatic Tasty? Automatic Tasty is one of my favourite producers of the last few years. He reminds me of the early sound of Warp Records which was a big part of my life when growing up. His live show is a mixture of pads and acid with dead good percussions thrown in the bowl. Sounds great. Is it safe to say you’re a veteran of the Manchester music scene? Veteran, ha, you make it sound like a war. I have learned a lot though. A lot of club nights are more concerned about getting numbers down than actually creating an experience to be remembered. This is not to say this wasn’t happening ten years ago, it’s just that a lot of spirit has been lost from going to parties these days. There are still some great ones though if you dig for them, like any format really. Phones are not good either. If only we could find a way of leaving them at the door like the weapons they are. Has the recent wave of venue closures affected you? No. I don’t like the idea of doing monthly (or regular) nights so it’s not actually too hard when I want to find a date because I just go with what’s generally available. What motivates you to keep going? As long as there is interesting music out there, and there is, I will keep putting on events. I guess everyone has a cut-off point sometime, though, for whatever reasons. I just hope I don’t lose interest any time soon. What’s been your highlight so far? Recently, seeing my friends flourish. You can always rely on your kin to deal the goods. Johnny Abstract, Rick Nicholls and Leon Mitternacht have blown my mind this past year and quite aptly, they run a night together. The Ensemble warehouse party in September was really great as well. If I could recreate that free-spirited vibe every time I did an event, it would make me happy. Lost Control w/Automatic Tasty (live) and more, The Boneyard, Salford, 27 Feb, £5

Skinned #11: Jeen Bassa [22a] The youngest of the Deenmamode bros steps up to the plate and smacks it clean from out of left field in his mix for The Skinny. Leon Thomas, The Last Poets and James Brown all make the cut... Interview: Daniel Jones

s a core member of the 22a family, Jeen Bassa posted two first-class mini albums on the label at either end of last year. The more recent of the two, Time Waves, landed at the end of November just gone, and is one of the most tightly arranged records to come out of South London in recent years. Knowing no boundaries, Bassa meshes strands of hazy jazz and soul with the gritty bounce of hip-hop, while making ripe use of spoken-word snippets from across the Seven Seas. His nimble-fingered approach proves to be an extended lesson in groove at a range of tempos – give the guy a hand and go get it. But first... yer man has been gracious enough to send through a mix that covers a hell of a lot of ground in just over half an hour. More than that is the slick, off-kilter feel that pervades so many of his productions, which leads the listening experience here too. Give it a spin at theskinny.co.uk/clubs/dj-charts – to put it bluntly, it’s just damn good. Oh my people!

The Skinny: Time Waves is sounding class. Where did you record most of it and what gear did you get the most out of? Jeen Bassa: Thanks brother! I recorded the majority of it in my house. I got a lot out of drum machines, microphones, records, and bags of herbs! Do you find yourself basing ideas for a track around vocal snippets or are they a later addition? (Discotheque, for example…) It can go either way, really. All depends on the day! When did you start producing music? I’ve been clapping my hands since I can remember, but I’ve been recording those claps for about ten years now. I mainly play drums and percussion.

Automatic Tasty

February 2016

From the outside, growing up with two super-talented bros seems like a blessing for

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your own productions. What was life like growing up in the Deenmamode household – musically and otherwise? Family is a blessing for anyone’s creativity. We are a close family, and our parents always listened to good music. Listening to music was exciting when I was growing up, and that excitement has undoubtedly carried on. Are you lot into football? If not, any other shared common ground? I lost interest in sport years back, to be honest, it’s just a distraction. The general public (including myself) put a lot of analytical, critical and creative thought into talking about trivial entertainment which doesn’t really help us as human beings. Is there a story behind your name, Jeen Bassa? Jeen comes from my birth name. My bros would call me Jeen ‘something’, and the ‘something’ would always change. Bassa appeared one day as the second part and I guess it just stuck. The word Bassa has various meanings in many different languages and slang. What are you working on this year, releases and otherwise? I’m working on a few things. I’ve been listening to a lot of bhangra so we’ll see how that plays out! Fun one: your top three hip-hop producers of all time? J Dilla, Kankick, Q-Tip. Tell us a bit about your mix... This mix is a compilation of old music and new music, which I have been listening to over the past month or so! Listen to Skinned #11: Jeen Bassa [22a] by The Skinny on Mixcloud, and at theskinny.co.uk/clubs/dj-charts Time Waves LP is out now on 22a, check it out on Bandcamp: 22amusic.bandcamp.com

Review

Good Hosts Glasgow International director Sarah McCrory talks through her plans for this year’s festival Interview: Adam Benmakhlouf

DJ Chart: AnD One of Manchester’s finest techno double acts, Andy and Dim decode their industrial musical radar Words: Andrew Bowen and Dimitri Poumplidis

Universal Indicator – Green U1 [Rephlex] None other than the dream team of Aphex Twin and Mike Dred. Raw stripped acid techno taken to the limits of minimalism. This is perfect warehouse music, so intense and powerful with very few elements. Front 242 – Moldavia [Epic] Front 242 are one of our favourite EBM/industrial bands, and this track encapsulates their unique brand of industrial beats, raw synthesis mixed with punky vocals. Front 242 have had a massive influence on a lot of electronic producers. Morton Subotnick – Silver Apples of the Moon [Nonesuch] This, from 1967, is one of the first ever commissioned pieces of electronic music by a record label, and was recorded using a modular synthesiser system. This is a highly important record for anyone making electronic music today. Ø – S-Bahn [Sähkö] Stone-cold electronics from the master, Mika Vainio. This track has an extremely haunting atmosphere due to the amount of space in the arrangement. Spaced-out pads and melodies meet laser-cut beats – absolute genius! Wu-Tang Clan – CREAM [RCA] We are big fans of the Wu-Tang, and this track is a great example of how they were all great poets and prophets of the streets. This track simply shows the money-hungry state of this world!

Review

They always spoke the truth in their lyrics, and they created their own brand of hip-hop with the killer use of classic samples in their raw production techniques. Caustic Window – Garden of Linmiri [Rephlex] A chaotic track, just like our minds! One of our favourite tracks by Aphex under his Caustic Window guise. This track is an onslaught from start to finish, it really fits into the spirit of what we try to create in our DJ sets.

practices [and] labour” being particularly significant. As another first there will also be a group exhibition in Tramway, which McCrory has co-designed along with established Glasgowbased contemporary artist Martin Boyce. It’s within this presentation that McCrory makes good on the promise that the festival includes “artists that are 24, then artists that are 83.” Representing the octogenarians is the renowned Paris-based American artist Sheila Hicks. “She is an incredible, formidable artist, who makes large-scale, incredibly seductive pieces that do have craft and artisanship at the heart of them.” Speaking also of events outside of the Director’s Programme, McCrory mentions Glasgow Sculpture Studio’s pairing of “Liz Magor, a really established and really important artist and art school lecturer in Canada, with emerging American artist Aliza Nisenbaum, whose practices have a lot in common. I think it’ll be really exciting.” Continuing and bettering an already solid reputation is the aim. But McCrory also thinks in more general terms about the city to explain the appeal of the Glasgow International. “Whenever I mention to people that I run this festival, everybody comes back with ‘Oh, I love Glasgow ... When people come up here they get looked after. It’s a really good hosting city, people know how to pull out all the stops. When we have events and openings, we work hard to make them as accessible to people, and as fun as possible.” McCrory closes with an important reminder about the festival part of the art festival: “The whole point of a festival is about also developing an atmosphere, and allowing people not just to experience the artworks but also the city. Good hosts, good drinks, lots of good places to go – it’s probably as simple as that.” GI 2016 runs 8-25 Apr glasgowinternational.org

Whitehouse – Philosophy [Very Friendly] Music for thinking. Whitehouse are one of our favourite noise acts – they have this crazy intense rawness to their music but it is immensely psychedelic at the same time. Throbbing Gristle – Discipline [Mute] Just plain lovely! TG really had a sense of the moment and a live rawness to their recordings. Discipline really has this feel of a live jam and pulls you straight into their world from the first second. A truly pioneering band that have always pushed the boundaries, from their productions to their DIY attitude when it came to making their own instruments and sound-effect boxes. Muslimgauze – Shadow of Hope Diminishing [Muslimtapes] MANCHESTER MASSIVE! One of the city’s biggest ever talents, without a doubt! We wish we would’ve had the chance to meet him! Muslimgauze was introduced to us by our friend Simon about eight years ago, and his world is almost overwhelming due to his extensive discography. A very focused and talented artist with a very special take on industrial and ethnic music. AnD play Awakenings, Victoria Warehouse, Manchester, 6 Feb awakenings.com/gb/en Aleksandra Domanovic in GoMA - Glasgow International (2014)

CLUBS / ART

THE SKINNY

Photo: Fraser Colquhoun Douglas

CJ Bolland – Nightbreed [R&S Records] CJ Bolland is a real hero of ours from when rave met techno – his tracks always have very powerful dynamics! This is one of our favourites from his first album, The 4th Sign, on R&S Records in 1992. Distorted drums meet acid basslines and dark strings.

hen the biannual Glasgow International blazes for two and a half weeks, every exhibition space is filled – and some made for purpose. From 8 to 25 April, this edition’s 18 days in Glasgow will involve over 200 artists exhibiting across the city in over 70 venues. It’s well known that Glasgow already has a healthy year-round regime of art exhibitions, talks and events – hence The Skinny’s brimming monthly and weekly round-up columns. This understandably makes hosting a biennial more complicated. “When the population of the city is 600,000, the amount of artists here is a different proportion to other places in the country,” says director Sarah McCrory. Nevertheless, briefly intensifying the city’s busy art scene is a demand consistently met by the festival. Heading into the seventh edition, McCrory has agreed to give away some of what’s in store for GI 2016. First, while the numbers of artists and venues are impressive, there’s an emphasis on variety, not just quantity. “You can go to the Southside and visit an exhibition in Tramway [major public gallery in huge former tramworks], then you can visit weird and old abandoned spaces that have been revitalised with contemporary art.” On top of that, “the diversity of practices ranges from painting exhibitions in the Mitchell Library to the performance troupe Megahammer making events at our opening. In Glasgow’s Roller Rink Rollerstop, there’s Asparagus Piss Raindrop also doing performance.” As well as showcasing many different kinds of space and artmaking, it’s also important to McCrory that GI 2016 comes as a timely event. As a way of meeting this aspiration, there’s a theme to this year’s festival. When considering this, it became important to McCrory that “a lot artists are still makers in Glasgow.” Contextualising this characteristic of art in the city, she considers the “history of the city as a post-industrial city,” with notions such as “craft, making, feminist

Flat Death

Open Eye Gallery Photographs are paired with archival material, found photographs and objects. In one image, captioned ‘Man Leaves a 1904 Page Suicide Note and Then Shoots Himself as Part of a Philosophical Exploration,’ a man stands in his swimming trunks at the beach. It is night and he stands facing the camera and lit up from the flash, rendering most of his body stark white. Elsewhere we find suicide notes, forensic evidence and X-rays of fatal injuries. The mixture of the personal (what we choose to leave behind) and what will actually be left behind (a bloody rag, twisted car metal, rotten piece of fruit) raises questions about control and, often, the lack of it. Siloquies and Soliloquies is produced in collaboration with the Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences in Portugal. It began after

Flat Death, Open Eye Gallery (2016)

Enrico David The Hepworth

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We are standing face to face with a tip-toeing bronze figure. Its bodily length, hands behind back, is leaning against the gallery wall, and it seems to be listening intently to something in the wall. Perhaps it’s the scratchings of the giant mouse inside the wall cavity, the one that laid the three droppings that are located behind the figure itself. These ‘droppings,’ small graphite balls, are scattered all over the exhibition. They serve as both punctuation and disruption, waste produced by the sculptures themselves – in fear or excitement, we wonder? This is David’s first solo exhibition since his Turner Prize nomination in 2009 and it fills Gallery 10, the largest gallery space at The Hepworth. The sculptures and drawings are full of kinetic energy and movement; some life-size, some placed on plinths or on the floor, some in yogic positions, like Life Sentences, a stick-like bearded man with multiple arms reading a book. We read later that the man is actually reading one of David’s previous catalogue essays. He is bathed in the Wakefield light pouring from the large facing window and in front of him hangs another sculpture, Proud Mary. This seems more organic, perhaps the rib cage of a dinosaur from a natural history museum. Elsewhere, a small army of figures

decreasing in height hangs from the ceiling. The toy-soldier bodies have triangle legs and manage to look menacing, without losing a certain comic appeal. They look like the both funny and unfunny joke where you pretend to walk down a flight of stairs where there is none. Their angular helmeted heads have a Cubist quality. The smaller sculptures in the exhibition are just as interesting. A favourite is a slightly phallic sculpture made from Jesmonite, graphite and copper. It seems to be a headless figure jumping from its small incorporated plinth. Copper lines spring from its figure joyously and it has the look, perhaps minus the penis, of the kind of colourful radiating sunbursts you see in religious church artwork or stained glass. There is a lot to enjoy in Enrico David’s show and it is complemented by the exhibition running along with it at The Hepworth, Wild Girl: Gertrude Hermes. More sculpture and works on paper make up the first solo consideration of the British artist’s work for more than 30 years. In both Hermes’ and David’s work we can see the links between craft and drawing, sketch and fabrication. The two artists’ work, seen alongside each other, demonstrates the breadth that can be found within a single artist’s practice and also the singularity and similarity of both. [Oliver Jack] Run ended hepworthwakefield.org

Enrico David - The Assumption of Weee (2014)

February 2016

Photo: Ted Oonk

Flat Death, Open Eye Gallery (2016)

a friend of Martins was killed and, at his funeral, the son of his friend asked Martins “What is death?” Martins’ inability to find an answer to the complex question led him to think about how he could explore this through his work and research. Jordan Baseman also worked collaboratively on his 2013 project, Deadness, which deals with photography taken by families to remember the deceased and their funerals. Interested in the relationship between embalming and death, he worked with a sociologist at the Centre for Death and Society in Bath. The images – of individuals laid out in coffins, from the Victorian era to the present day – take the form of five 35mm projections on the gallery walls. In the tradition of Victorian post-mortem photography, where the deceased are made to look alive in regular family scenes, it is often

only possible to spot the dead person by identifying the figure that is crispest. Others in the shot would have moved during the long photographic exposures of the time, appearing slightly blurry, while the dead person is completely still. In Baseman’s images, sourced from sources like online auctions, the deceased are obviously so. Their fixed facial positions are prepared by the embalmer to give the family the impression the person is not alive, but rather at peace or asleep. Baseman’s work asks the viewer why we need these kinds of mementos of death and explores how important photography can be in that process. [Sacha Waldron] Runs until 3 Apr openeye.org.uk

Works to Know by Heart: Matisse in Focus Tate Liverpool

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As the physical effects of age take hold, an artist’s work must necessarily shift and change accordingly. In 1914, at the age of 72, Henri Matisse underwent cancer surgery and was forced to spend the majority of his time in a wheelchair or confined to his bed. Primarily a painter and sculptor, he began to make collages or ‘cut-outs,’ directing his assistants in the assemblage of often large-scale works. Matisse cut and tore the paper and had his assistants arrange the pieces on the wall or floor before being stuck down. His works from this renaissance period beam with colour and abstract natural forms. One of these, The Snail (1953), is the largest of Matisse’s cut-outs and the focal point for the current exhibition at Tate Liverpool. Measuring three square metres, The Snail was completed just a year before the artist’s death. Red, blue, green and yellow squares tumble around inside the orange lozenge-coloured border. Yes, it is the snail, but it is also flags waving or a washing line, or feast-day dancers forming a circle. Due to the radically different style and colour pallete of The Snail, the Tate exhibition is split into two loose kinds of exhibition agenda. The first is to highlight the fact that, due to its delicate state, The Snail probably won’t be shown again outside London. In 2014/15 it was included in the blockbuster Matisse: The Cut-Outs at Tate Modern and MoMA, New York. This is definitely the farewell tour and an important moment when a key part of the Matisse narrative will be missing from future international exhibitions. The second strand is to highlight the development of style and subject matter in Matisse’s work, especially in his depiction of ‘the figure’ as he moved through his career and on to his

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Henri Matisse - The Snail (1953)

cut-out work. Eighty other Matisse works in painting, drawing and sculpture dating from 1899 are on view, many from the Tate’s own collection. This includes early works, such as the Impressionist colouring of the portrait of André Derain (1905), and on to Gauguin tropicality in Trivaux Pond (1916/17) and Bloomsburypowdered The Inattentive Reader (1919). Positioned in front of The Snail is small sculpture Reclining Nude II (1927). The figure’s languid position is that of the odalisque, or eroticised female, stemming from the Turkish word for chambermaid and later coming to mean harem concubine. Her body is stretched out with a pose designed to showcase every asset, a pose much used by Matisse. We see it elsewhere in the same gallery, sometimes actually reflected in the surface of The Snail’s frame, with Draped Nude (1936), in which the woman lounges in a lilac dressing gown. It is worth noticing that the shape of the main torso seems to be the most important; here the dark lines of her body are accentuated, whereas the hands are mere sketches, half thoughts. Her feet are out of the picture completely. This is true of much of Matisse’s portraiture and still life and suggests a central focus on lines of the trunk or vessel; the way a body can shift, display or contort. Looking back at The Snail, this is echoed in the curl or spiral of the mollusc. [Sacha Waldron] Runs until 2 May tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-liverpool

Review

Credit: DACS 2015

The sky is grey over Liverpool. On the road outside Open Eye a car drives over an already dead pigeon. His body is partially flattened but there are still streaks of red running through the feathers. The seagulls are circling. Inside the gallery, more grey. Oppressive battleship-grey. This is the colour that backgrounds Edgar Martins’ work from the project Siloquies and Soliloquies on Death, Life and Other Interludes. Martins is showing this new project as part of Flat Death alongside Jordan Baseman, and the two photographers explore how, as a society and individually, we deal with, reflect on and capture death. The first gallery introduces you to Siloquies and Soliloquies by way of a sculptural black paper aeroplane mounted upright on a plinth.

Photo: Ted Oonk

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Film Event Highlights February offers a constant supply of Hong Kong action and Groundhog Day on a loop Words: Simon Bland

e’ve made it through the dreary dredges of January. Well done us! Now that our bank balance is starting to recover from the Christmas splurge, we can make it to all the ace film events coming up this month. Take, for example, Crime: Hong Kong Style, HOME’s season dedicated to Hong Kong crime flicks, which boasts a selection of action-packed movies too good to miss. It all kicks off with a screening of As Tears Go By (4 Feb), the highly influential debut of director Wong Kar-wai. Released around the same time as that film was Ringo Lam’s City on Fire, the movie Tarantino borrowed wholesale from in Reservoir Dogs. While Wong has moved on to more refined fare with the likes of In the Mood for Love and The Grandmaster, Lam is still in the Hong Kong crime film racket, with stylish neo-noir Wild City (8 Feb) getting its UK premiere in Manchester. Can’t get enough of the Hong Kong crime genre? Get down to the one-hour intro to HOME’s season, presented by curator Andy Willis on 10 Feb, to get to grips with the genre’s key trends and cycles. A must for genre fanatics. You’ll also find a couple of gems at Liverpool Small Cinema, such as French drama Two Days, One Night (4 Feb), starring Marion Cotillard, which will screen as part of the Liverpool Radical Film Festival. You’ll find Cheap Thrills there too, celebrating the over-the-top mayhem of Charles Bronson’s Death Wish 3 (11 Feb). They’ll even throw in some original Cannon Films trailers circa 1985 to help you get in the mood.

True Romance

Liverpool Small Cinema are also celebrating American holiday Groundhog Day (2 Feb) with the perfect screening of Harold Ramis’ existential comedy of the same name. In the 1993 film, a sardonic TV weatherman (played by Bill Murray) inexplicably has to repeat the same day over and over again in a small town in western Pennsylvania. You should be able to sympathise with Murray’s character’s predicament at Small Cinema’s event, as they’ll be showing the film on a loop over the course of 24 hours. If the full Hogathon is too daunting, you can go for a more manageable double-bill instead. Oh yeah, there’s also February’s other holiday: Valentine’s Day. If you’re into that kind of thing, a screening of You’ve Got Mail should be perfect for a lovey-dovey evening with that special someone. Find it at FACT Liverpool on, you guessed it, 14 Feb. Like to see a little more action on your dates? Perhaps Manchester’s latest RAD screening will get your romantic juices flowing. They’ve lined up a double-bill of twisted love stories True Romance and Natural Born Killers at Gorilla (also on 14 Feb). Flowers, chocolate, gratuitous gun violence. Who said romance was dead?

Review

Bone Tomahawk

Goosebumps

Mavis!

The Green Inferno

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Director: Jessica Edwards Starring: Mavis Staples, Bob Dylan, Prince, Bonnie Raitt Released: 19 Feb Certificate: TBC

Director: Eli Roth Starring: Lorenza Izzo, Ariel Levy, Nicolás Martínez Released: 12 Feb Certificate: 18

Mavis is a celebration of Mavis Staples, the mightiest pair of lungs in family R&B group The Staple Singers. Even at 75 years old, she is a force of nature. She walks uneasily with a cane, but onstage she’s a dynamo. In the film she tells us with pride that when people first heard the Staples’ songs on the radio they would think the nine-year-old Mavis’s parts must have been sung “by a man, or a big fat woman,” and that voice has got more bassy and brilliant with age. Unfortunately, though, Edwards doesn’t trust us to recognise her subject’s talent with our own eyes and ears. Talking head after talking head is roped in to ramp up the legend. “They were as important as the Beatles,” says one contributor of The Staple Singers. “Aretha Franklin had nothing on Mavis,” says another. Let’s tone down the hyperbole, folks. Mavis herself isn’t one for blowing her story out of proportion. When asked about her fling with a pre-superstar Bob Dylan she says coyly, “We may have smooched.” If only Mavis’s director was similarly restrained. [Jamie Dunn]

While The Green Inferno is unlikely to convince Eli Roth’s many detractors that he is now a mature and technically adroit filmmaker, it is a marked improvement on his output since promising debut Cabin Fever. It’s also really quite fun – up to a point. Taking the classic 70s cannibal tribe trope and adding a 21st-century spin (self-consciously selfless, inwardly vapid university activists attempting to do good in the jungle), Roth delivers more of his patented grue and giggles schtick with minimal frills. Lorenza Izzo and Ariel Levy lead the team of disposable nubile cyphers (including former Spy Kid Daryl Sabara) on a mission to Peru to stop rainforest demolition, and it’s not long before things start to go wrong. The set-pieces are inventive and there’re a few neat surprises, but Roth loses his way and control of the tones when going for full-blown stoner comedy. It’s a consistent problem for him, and frequently hinges on a grim predilection for humiliating women in his work. If he can get rid of that rubbish (mercifully brief here), he might find those detractors dwindling. [Chris Fyvie]

Bone Tomahawk

Rams

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Director: S. Craig Zahler Starring: Kurt Russell, Richard Jenkins, Patrick Wilson Released: 19 Feb Certificate: 18

Director: Grímur Hákonarson Starring: Sigurður Sigurjónsson, Theódór Júlíusson Released: 5 Feb Certificate: 15

If you’ve been waiting ages for a verbose and bloody Western starring Kurt Russell, then you’ve just hit the jackpot. There’s a risk of Bone Tomahawk being overshadowed by Tarantino’s behemoth The Hateful Eight, but S. Craig Zahler’s strikingly confident and richly imagined debut feature is a film that deserves to be discovered and celebrated. Zahler’s background as a novelist is evident in his love of language, and the actors clearly relish his crunchy, witty, ornate dialogue, with Russell, Patrick Wilson, Matthew Fox and particularly Richard Jenkins delivering performances that rank as career highs. It’s a pleasure just to hang out with this mismatched group and enjoy the loose, Hawksian vibe as they embark on their rescue mission, although Zahler’s grasp of the tone gets a little shakier as the film moves towards its climax. The explosion of grotesque violence that ends the film will thrill some and repulse others, but if you can stomach the gore and the questionable racial politics, then Bone Tomahawk is a rare treat from a distinctive new voice. [Philip Concannon]

The sibling rivalry between two ageing sheep farmers provides the backdrop to Grímur Hákonarson’s Rams, a tender comedy about the struggle for independence in today’s economic climate. The brothers live opposite each other but haven’t spoken in years, communicating solely through notes delivered by their sheepdog. However, when an outbreak of scrapie (BSA) is discovered the authorities impose a cull, forcing the brothers into a corner. Do they stubbornly continue their feud, or resolve their differences and fight to save the deeply rooted traditions of their sheep-farming community? Hákonarson’s background in documentary filmmaking imparts this battle of wits and wills with a humanistic angle, while the austere beauty of Sturla Brandth Grøvlen’s cinematography allows the harsh Icelandic elements to articulate the external forces at play. This combination of visual lyricism and naturalism allows Rams to transcend its parochial surroundings and posit more universal questions about globalisation. A beautiful film that’s both broad in its emotional intensity, yet intimately invested in local detail. [Patrick Gamble]

A Bigger Splash

Goosebumps

Director: Luca Guadagnino Starring: Tilda Swinton, Ralph Fiennes, Matthias Schoenaerts Released: 12 Feb Certificate: 15

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Jacques Deray’s La Piscine, from 1969 – a drama of sexual jealousy and possessiveness – featured big, sexy stars (Alain Delon, Romy Schneider, Jane Birkin). Luca Guadagnino’s take on it, A Bigger Splash, is a similarly starstudded affair, though with a more aesthetically bold approach that should be familiar to anyone who saw the director’s last fiction film, I Am Love. Marianne (Swinton) is a rock star (visually recalling Bowie in one flashback) recovering from a vocal cords operation, taking it easy with filmmaker boyfriend Paul (Schoenaerts). Their peace is disrupted by the arrival of Marianne’s former producer/ex-flame Harry (Fiennes) and his young daughter Penelope (Dakota Johnson). The story from here becomes equal parts psychosexual power-play, Rossellini-esque relationship drama, Patricia Highsmith-recalling thriller, and bawdy farce. This potentially messy mix miraculously works. All four leads are great in their own way, but Fiennes steals the show with his obnoxious, brash whirlwind of an alpha-male bellend. His manic dance to The Rolling Stones’ Emotional Rescue is one of the most invigorating comic set-pieces of recent memory. [Josh Slater-Williams]

FILM

Director: Rob Letterman Starring: Jack Black, Dylan Minnette, Odeya Rush, Ryan Lee Released: 5 Feb Certificate: PG

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So, you’re making the movie version of RL Stine’s Goosebumps. Which one of his hundreds of monsters do you plump for? “All of them,” is the answer here, including a hovering poodle, murderous garden gnomes and a creepy ventriloquist dummy named Slappy. Delightfully, the series’ author is also in the mix, played by Jack Black as a cantankerous blowhard prone to boasting about his own book sales. We can understand his egomania. Stine’s writing is so potent that his creatures literally jump off the pages of his manuscripts unless they’re locked shut, which is swiftly demonstrated when the kid next door (Minnette) accidentally lets the Abominable Snowman loose in the writer’s office. Chaos – and more monsters – ensue. Even when the screen becomes awash with CGI, director Rob Letterman keeps the action grounded and the goofy jokes coming. All a story needs is “a beginning, a middle, and a twist,” says Stine at one point. Goosebumps has a whole mess of the latter, and just because you can see them coming doesn’t make them any less fun. [Jamie Dunn]

THE SKINNY

The Walk

The Friends of Eddie Coyle

Fixed Bayonets!

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Director: Robert Zemeckis Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Charlotte Le Bon, Ben Kingsley, James Badge Dale Released: Out now Certificate: PG

Robert Zemeckis’s The Walk, based on the events surrounding Philippe Petit’s 1974 high-wire walk between the World Trade Centre towers, opens with Petit (Gordon-Levitt) atop the Statue of Liberty, enthusiastically addressing the camera to expound his life story and dreams. Right off the bat, Zemeckis gets across the exact tone his film is going to be pitched at: a bio-drama filtered through the lens of broad, pop entertainment and extravagant cinematic spectacle. It definitely will not appeal to the sensibilities of many, especially those cynical of even bringing Petit’s story to the screen in this way when James Marsh’s beloved documentary Man on Wire already exists. That being said, for those who can get on Zemeckis’s wavelength, The Walk offers an array of pleasures. It is undeniably goofy in tone, but welcomingly sincere in spirit. Whimsy is laced with tragedy thanks to the unspoken, tragic epilogue of the story (i.e. what happened to the landmark 27 years later), something the very final scene alludes to in a moving, classy way. In similar vein to Marsh’s doc, the film’s first half is in the mode of light heist caper, with Petit surrounded by an entertaining band of accomplices. It’s all fun, but the actual extended set-piece of the stunt is where Zemeckis’s visual storytelling becomes truly potent and transportive. It’s a masterly example of a showman filmmaker attuned to how careful composition, movement, space and perspective can stir audiences – physically and emotionally. Extras: The above was the case in 3D on the big screen, anyway. Now out of cinemas, and an unlikely title for re-release revival, a DVD presentation seems ill-fitting for a work absolutely made for the biggest screen possible. If seeking out this unfortunate box-office bomb at home, please at least opt for the 3D Blu-ray. [Josh Slater-Williams]

Director: Peter Yates Starring: Robert Mitchum, Peter Boyle, Richard Jordan, Alex Rocco, Steven Keats Released: Out now Certificate: 15

With its washed-out colours, heavily sideburned cast and inappropriately funky incidental music, The Friends of Eddie Coyle carries all the markings of a kitschy period piece 43 years on from its original release. Any concerns about the movie’s aesthetics, however, are dispelled upon the introduction of Robert Mitchum in the title role. Playing neither a psychopath nor an embodiment of laconic cool, the star serves up a sardonic dose of impotent, middle-aged hopelessness in what could reasonably be considered his greatest role. Several renowned character actors acquit themselves admirably here, but it’s a towering performance from the veteran that lingers in the viewer’s mind. A small-time gunrunner pushed towards crime by pride and an unforgiving economic climate, Coyle has served more time than befits someone of his low status within the underworld. In his 50s and eager to dodge an impending sentence, he contemplates cooperation with the law, and finds himself manipulated by both sides. Because Coyle is little more than a blue-collar worker desperately attempting to claw his way into a position of respectability and security, he remains tragically oblivious to the intentions of his scheming associates. The Boston depicted here is a place of oppressive stasis, lacking both bright lights and comfort. Bullitt director Peter Yates delivers a slew of action-packed set pieces, but such dazzling spectacle does nothing to shake off the decidedly grimy atmosphere. Extras: A bonus video essay from critic Glenn Kenny offers further testimony as to the film’s greatness, while footage of a live interview with Yates places welcome focus on an unfairly marginalised craftsman. The Friends of Eddie Coyle has long been overdue a UK release, and Masters of Cinema have put together a typically loving and comprehensive package. [Lewis Porteous]

Director: Samuel Fuller Starring: Richard Basehart, Gene Evans, Michael O’Shea, Skip Homeier, James Dean Released: 15 Feb Certificate: PG

It’s a wonder this 1951 offering isn’t better known given the cult of James Dean, who here makes his big screen debut. While the actor barely registers in an uncredited, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it appearance, Fixed Bayonets! crackles with the emotional intensity for which he’d go on to be remembered, maverick director Samuel Fuller paving the way for a generation of restless young firebrands. A former newspaperman, Fuller is best known for his sensationalist explorations of social issues ranging from sex work to mental illness. This Korean War thriller, his second following on from the same year’s The Steel Helmet, is a patriotic tale of American derring-do, albeit one that vividly evokes the horror of military conflict. The action revolves around a 48-man platoon, left as a rear guard while the remainder of their division withdraws over an exposed bridge. Gene Evans shines as the gnarled Sergeant Rock, courageously staving off enemy attacks on snow-covered, bullet-battered hillsides, but Richard Basehart provides the film’s emotional and didactic centre. His Corporal Denno is an excellent soldier in most respects, save for an aversion to the grave responsibility that comes with issuing orders. While his characters are painted in broad strokes, as was always his tendency, the director succeeds in conveying the inner life and psychological complexities of each. What results is a blistering meditation on duty, service and responsibility. Extras: The audio commentary and specially commissioned essay that adorn this release are standard extras in the Masters of Cinema series, but do a fine job of contextualising the main feature, presented here in a crisp digital restoration. [Lewis Porteous] For more DVD reviews, go to theskinny.co.uk/film/dvd-reviews

Two’s Company As Bolton Octagon theatre plays host to a double bill of Jim Cartwright’s plays, we sit down with the actors, Katy Cavanagh and Colin Connor

he titles of Bolton Octagon’s current productions are a tad tricky to talk about. First, there is Two, the 1989 Jim Cartwright play about a Northern couple who run a pub. Next, there is its sequel, Two 2, which will receive its world premiere on 10 February and makes for all kinds of confusion when you’re ordering tickets: “Is that two for Two or just one for Two 2?” Working in the Octagon’s ticket office at the moment must be rather like living inside a Two Ronnies sketch. But while the titles can cause confusion, the casting makes perfect sense. Katy Cavanagh comes off the back of a successful stint on Coronation Street as the lovelorn Julie Carp, while Colin Connor has the sound of two Manchester Theatre Award nominations ringing in his ears. As we sit down for lunch, the actors look pretty tired. “And we’ve not even got to the really challenging bit yet,” says Cavanagh. “That will be when the first one is playing and

February 2016

Photo: Ian Tilton

Interview: Andrew Anderson

we’re rehearsing the second one.” “We’re not going to be able to speak by that point,” adds Connor. In fact, the duo continually finish each other’s sentences, much like a stereotypical old married couple – minus the bitterness. “I’ve admired her from afar, I’ve sent her fan letters,” jokes Connor. “But really, it is a brave thing to come out of Corrie and into something like this.” While that might sound like hyperbole, both plays really are a tough test for any actor. For a start, Connor and Cavanagh play seven parts apiece. Throw in some audience interaction, karaoke and a whole host of invisible props and you’ve got yourself a pretty big challenge, worlds away from the short, sharp bursts of television acting. “It is a totally different process to TV,” confirms Cavanagh, “but it is much more rewarding. You don’t get time to get your teeth into your work with TV, whereas the live thing is

electric. It has been a very healing experience – it has restored my faith in myself. When I started this process I wasn’t sure I could do it but now I know I can.” What is that process like? How does director David Thacker get the actors to feel so comfortable around one another? “He sits back and won’t interfere until he doesn’t believe you. Then he will say something,” says Connor. “You can try anything – some stuff sticks, some stuff doesn’t,” Cavanagh continues. “It’s proper playing – it gets to a place where you’re vulnerable and can take risks.” Playing and vulnerability are at the heart of both plays, which, depending on who you ask, are either fantastically funny or seriously sad. “I think it is a comedy, but at the centre is a love story between two people and the pub is their child,” says Connor. “It is one of those plays where comedy and tragedy sit right together,” agrees Cavanagh. “I

DVD / THEATRE

could come off laughing while someone watching might be crying.” So what’s next for the pair once the curtain falls on Two and Two 2? As is often the case in their profession, neither actor knows where their next gig might be; Connor plans to work on a play about his grandparents, and might restage his Manchester Theatre Award-nominated one-man play Mr Smith, while Cavanagh is also “dabbling in the dark art of writing,” and has a few TV scripts up her sleeve. But for now it’s back to the rehearsal room, to a job they both clearly love. “An awful lot of people have to do stuff they don’t want to do,” says Connor, before Cavanagh adds: “We know we’re lucky to be doing this – and enjoying every minute of it.” Two (until 6 Feb) and Two 2 (10-27 Feb), Bolton Octagon, £10.50-£27. Evening performances 7.30pm; 5pm and 2pm matinees available, see website for details octagonbolton.co.uk/theatre

Review

Book Highlights In the literary world, the month of love ushers in a spiritual guide about zombies and an examination of the body. What could be more romantic?

Words: Abby Kearney

The Gospel According to Jesus, Queen of Heaven

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ho am I? Where do I come from? What is my purpose in life?’ These are all pertinent questions at the beginning of a cold, dark new year; questions to which Vicki Bennett and Gregor Weichbrodt sought answers in their book, The Fundamental Questions. The 500-page book is a vast compilation of internet user responses to the above queries, formatted as a new-age spirituality guide. On 17 Feb a performance will take place at The Castle, with members of the audience reading from the work.

BOOK OF THE MONTH The Outrun

By Amy Liptrot

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Amy Liptrot’s The Outrun is a beautifully written memoir about alcoholism, recovery and life at the extremes. Ten years after leaving Orkney’s remote mainland for life in London, Liptrot returns to the islands where she grew up. Walking on the Outrun – the family farm’s most outlying field – she is buffeted by the wind as she reflects on her life in London, her drinking and rehabilitation. Images of Soho’s nightclubs are imposed over Orkney seascapes, as Liptrot navigates the precarious path of sobriety. Liptrot’s writing is brilliantly evocative, London’s bright and blurring colours and lights set against Orkney’s greens and greys. She walks miles across the islands, exploring their pathways and stories while digitally tracking her progress. She is thrilled by the extremes – outdoor swimming in the bitter North Sea, turning off all the lights to watch the eerie Merry Dancers (Northern Lights). Liptrot writes about the edges of things: dead sheep are disposed of via the cliff’s edge; a new tractor unattended by its owner steadily gathers speed and plummets into the sea; a collie pup disappears over in the fog. Orkney’s mysterious enchanted island Hether Blether appears and disappears. The author writes openly and with a touching clarity about her alcoholism, but insight is to be found also in her raw and powerful depictions of the natural world around her. Liptrot is a compelling new voice in memoir and nature writing. [Ceris Aston] Out now, published by Canongate, RRP £14.99

Review

Expect pronouncements like, ‘I am into zombies, and listen to everything from metal to country.’ Jonathan Meades, famed documentarian, writer and food journalist, has written and presented on topics from Brutalism and Northern Europe to vegetarianism and pigs, which were the subject of his documentary The Truth about Porkies. His recent show The Joys of Essex explores the maligned region’s history as a home to utopian communities. The idiosyncratic presenter and author will be talking at the International

Anthony Burgess Foundation on 11 Feb, as part of a series of events from Manchester Metropolitan University’s Writing School. A return trip to the Burgess Foundation is due at the month’s close, as Japanese authors Takashi Hiraide and Kyoko Yoshida debate the current state of Japanese literature 29 Feb. Hiraide’s latest work, The Guest Cat, a New York Times bestseller, sees a flagging marriage revitalised by the appearance of a stray cat and has been described as ‘measured and precise.’ Yoshida’s short-story collection, Disorientalism, contains 19 surrealist short stories, noted as humorous, weird, nightmarish and human, in turn. Make a note in the diary: February is LGBT History Month. Contact Theatre is marking the occasion with Queer Contact, an 11-day series of events celebrating LGBT arts and culture, beginning on 4 Feb. In St Chrysostom’s Church, playwright Jo Clifford performs in The Gospel According to Jesus, Queen of Heaven, which sees biblical tales retold by a transgender Jesus (14 Feb, 3pm and 8pm). And, at HOME, the Greek myth of Icarus is re-imagined, in outer space, and given a Philip Glass score in AL and AL’s Icarus at the Edge of Time (6 Feb, 8pm). On 17 Feb at The Bluecoat, two poets, Andrew McMillan and Rebecca Goss, will be reading and discussing their recent collections, which share a concern with writing the body. Andrew McMillan won the 2015 Guardian First Book Award for his collection Physical, which is set in the gyms, locker rooms and urinals of a Northern industrial city and explores the male

Under the Udala Trees By Chinelo Okparanta

In an understated author’s note sat quietly on a back page between the novel’s epilogue and its acknowledgements, Chinelo Okparanta states her ambition that Under the Udala Trees might help ‘to give Nigeria’s marginalised LGBTQ citizens a more powerful voice, and a place in our nation’s history.’ One of the most impressive things about the novel is that it effectively conveys the horror of growing up as Ijeoma does – queer in the world’s second most religious nation – without demonising her oppressors completely. The mother who tries to ‘cure’ her homosexuality with rigorous Bible study unquestionably loves her daughter. She is a bigot but she isn’t evil, just hardwired with values rooted more in dogma than humanity. At this point Okparanta’s literary skill doesn’t quite match her ambition: her writing often feels too self-consciously pretty, becoming prosaic while reaching for poetic, and there is a lack of interiority to Ijeoma which makes her liferisking romances difficult to fully connect with. At a certain point, she feels like an empty avatar going through the too-familiar tragedy of coming of age in the midst of intolerance, more than a fully realised individual. It’s an imperfect telling of an important tale. [Ross McIndoe] Out 4 Feb, published by Granta, RRP £12.99

Vicki Bennett and Gregor Weichbrodt, The Castle, Manchester, 17 Feb, 7pm, free, otherroom.org Jonathan Meades, International Anthony Burgess Foundation, Manchester, 11 Feb, 7pm, free, anthonyburgess.org Takashi Hiraide and Kyoko Yoshida, International Anthony Burgess Foundation, Manchester, 29 Feb, 7pm, free, anthonyburgess.org Queer Contact Festival, Contact Theatre and various venues, Manchester, 4-14 Feb, times and prices vary, contactmcr.com LJMU Presents: Writing the Body, The Bluecoat, Liverpool, 17 Feb, 6pm, £3(£2), thebluecoat.org.uk Helen MacDonald in conversation with Jeanette Winterson, Martin Harris Centre for Music and Drama, Manchester, 29 Feb, 6.30pm, £10 (£8), martinharriscentre.manchester.ac.uk

Nobody Told Me: Poetry and Parenthood

The High Mountains of Portugal

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By Hollie McNish

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form, anxieties about masculinity and gay love. Rebecca Goss’s Her Birth was shortlisted for the Forward Prize, and details her emotions surrounding the birth and death of her daughter, who suffered an incurable heart condition. Elsewhere, naturalist and author Helen MacDonald speaks at the Martin Harris Centre on 29 Feb. When MacDonald’s father died, she committed to becoming a keeper and trainer of goshawks, a decision she credits with helping lift her from severe depression. Her memoir of the period, H is for Hawk, which won the Samuel Johnson Prize, details her relationship with the goshawk and her mourning for her father. It also weaves in the biography of TH White, who similarly sought solace in hawkery, attempting and failing to train a goshawk by Medieval methods.

By Yann Martel

Nobody Told Me: Poetry and Parenthood chronicles three years and nine months of poet Hollie McNish’s life, from discovering she was pregnant – ‘After King’s Cross toilets / after a blue cross / after hands-in-face / with confused then laughing sobs’ – to her daughter’s first day at pre-school, aged three – ‘You seemed less bothered than me.’ A diary of poems, written in snatched moments away from her roles as mother and lover, the book offers an immediate, seemingly unfiltered insight into McNish’s life, and into her experience of motherhood. In her diary, the poet records her guilt, pain, wonder, exhaustion, frustration, joy, anger and love. There’s no photoshopping here, no smoothing out of the bags under tired eyes or images of serenely smiling mothers breastfeeding on white sofas. There’s crying from exhaustion and cracked nipples and wiping snot from noses and hiding in public loos to feed. There’s the endless barrage of judgment on how to do motherhood right. There is love: for her partner, for her family, for Little One. There is wonder. ‘It is indescribable / witnessing this small human change.’ It’s a moving and profoundly personal account. Yet at the same time, Nobody Told Me offers an insight into the shared, unspoken experiences of many mothers. McNish describes Nobody Told Me as ‘All the things I couldn’t talk about.’ It feels like time that we started talking. [Ceris Aston]

Three stories, three grieving men, three years: 1904, 1938, 1981. We begin in Lisbon in 1904, as Tomas sets off in search of an unlikely 17th-century artefact in the High Mountains. He drives one of Europe’s earliest motorcars, a fiendish and unfathomable machine that pushes him to the very edge of sanity. He finally arrives at his destination – the tiny village of Tuizelo – and collapses with exhaustion. Cut to 1938 and a pathologist’s study, late at night. From the roaming of Tomas to the closed-in world of Eusebio – we move from the backcountry to the autopsy table. A woman has travelled from Tuizelo to see him, and over the course of the night the fine line between living and dead dissolves. What follows is an unsettlingly straight version of magical realism, with all the unexplained detail of a short story. The final section finds a Canadian senator travelling back to Tuizelo, with a chimpanzee in tow. Those who’ve read Life of Pi will recognise Martel’s skill in describing relationships between human and animal worlds: this is the writer at his most involving. Among the loose thematic strands that tie these stories together – things like grief and religion – there is the single, fixed geographic point: the High Mountains of Portugal, which aren’t really mountains at all. It is an unusual novel, a vivid and uncanny adventure in storytelling. [Galen O’Hanlon]

Out 4 Feb, published by Little, Brown Book Group, RRP £13.99

Out 2 Feb, published by Canongate, RRP £16.99

BOOKS

THE SKINNY

Inspired Scribes Who are your literary heroes? Manchester-based poetry collective Stirred Poetry actively make work inspired by theirs. Here, they tell us about some of the writers they admire Interview: Holly Rimmer-Tagoe Illustration: Josie Sommer

In the pages of fiction, heroes go through a series of predetermined stages: pride, rise, fall, catharsis. And yet, throughout their inevitable decline, a glimmer of allure and appeal remains. Inspired by Stirred Poetry’s mode of creating new work by reflecting on the work of great female writers and artists, we asked members of the collective to pick their literary heroes. The Skinny’s Books team joined in, too – you can read their choices online at theskinny.co.uk/books. Stirred Poetry’s literary heroes Everybody check out the work of Keisha Thompson, the extraordinarily talented local poet and performer who wrote the acclaimed solo show I Wish I Had a Moustache, which debuted last year. Lyrical, honest and brilliant writing. [Lenni Sanders]

Live in Manchester long enough and you will have encountered the poems of Lemn Sissay. They are woven into the very structure of Manchester, most notably on pavements and buildings throughout the city. When I first moved here I lived near his poem Rain above Gemini Takeaway on Wilmslow Road, and it inspired me to change the way I write poems. Jackie Kay’s poetry is wonderful. She wrote the poetry collection The Adoption Papers (1991), and also an autobiographical novel about finding her birth parents, Red Dust Road (2010). If you are lucky enough to see her read you will never regret it. She is a delight! Rosie Garland commands the stage fully whether she is performing poetry, playing with her punk band March Violets or hosting cabaret. I learned stagecraft watching her perform. Her novels, Palace of Curiosities (2013) and Vixen

(2015), have been highly praised. She is particularly inspiring when she talks about the long, hard slog of writing, getting published, and managing to shut up her inner critic. We have been honoured to have her perform for us. [Anna Percy] Another great local talent is Newcastle-based AJ McKenna, a highly influential poet and writer whose show Howl of the Bantee premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe last year and examined the link between lad culture and hate crime. Her work is radical and political, and her articles for pop culture blog Clarissa Explains Fuck All are a joy to read. She’s clever, hard-hitting, and doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to calling society out for its messed-up views. For me, and many people, Margaret Atwood is one of the most important writers alive today.

It would be impossible to write about my literary heroes without including her. In Oryx and Crake (2003), particularly, she treads that delicate line between genre fiction and literary fiction perfectly while also predicting a way-too-accurate future for the human race. When she last visited Manchester I caught a rare glimpse of her at Piccadilly station, but didn’t approach her out of fear – what could I possibly say? But it’s still a great ambition of mine to meet her one day. [Jasmine Chatfield] From an Argentinian author who brings down the bourgeois to ‘a poisonous apple of a writer,’ find out who our Books team chose as their literary heroes over on the website: theskinny.co.uk/books Stirred Poetry’s next poetry night will take place on 29 Feb at 3MT, Manchester, 7.30pm (suggested donation £1-£2) stirredpoetry.wordpress.com

Spotlight: Amy Gledhill Meet a comedian influenced by gin – aren’t we all – and peer pressure, who’s moved to Manchester and intends to find a whale to fight Interview: Jon Whiteley

ith only a little over three years of fun under her belt, native Hullensian Amy Gledhill has collated the kind of awards portfolio that would shame a seasoned pro. In her act, she deftly balances the intelligent with the daft – she satirises misogynist hecklers by, er, honking her tits – and she’s been slaying ’em all over the country, finally making the wise decision to uproot from Pontefract and move to Manchester. Not just a solid standup, Gledhill has also been turning her Midas touch to sketch, as one half of Footstool with Nicola Redman, and is one of the minds behind The Castle Hotel’s alternative new material night, Château Le Bomb. We caught up with her to find out what makes her tick. Influences: “I would love nothing more than to wax lyrical about how I am influenced by the usual titans: Vic and Bob, Kitson, Stewart Lee, et al. But I’m probably most influenced by the perceived weighty judgement of my peers, sloe gin and Facebook videos that play without sound as you scroll down the timeline. I’ve just involuntarily watched a raccoon ride a bike: what a time to be alive.”

February 2016

First gig: “I was living in Leeds at the time, but you don’t shit where you eat, so I booked a spot in a Funny Women competition at The King’s Arms in Salford and slinked off. I remember being totally shocked anyone laughed at me, instantly loving it and regretting not doing it sooner. I ended up in the final of Funny Women alongside the likes of Sofie Hagen before my tenth gig. I have since defined what it is to plateau.” Best gig: “After much begging and blagging I managed to get on the bill at The Comedy Store in Hollywood. Ridiculous. I was introduced as the Queen of England and basically everything I said got an applause break. This was nothing to do with skill and miraculously everything to do with my Hull accent.” Worst gig: “Edinburgh festival 2014. I’m doing the first half of a two-hander with Durham Revue star David Callaghan. I hand out four party poppers. It’s difficult to say exactly what happened, but basically four people decided that mini-explosives are best opened directly into the palm of the

hand and were injured. And angry. I hadn’t said a single word at this point. I dribbled out half an hour’s worth of words after that, but I don’t think they could hear me over the sound of their contempt.” Favourite venue: “The Stand in Newcastle. The bar staff are cooler, more attractive and comedy savvy than any comedians I’ve ever met.” Best heckle: “Well, the most useful heckle I’ve ever had was when I was very new and some reet prick stings repeatedly shouted ‘Tits’ at me. It was upsetting at the time, but generated material, so, big win. I recount the event, making a very serious point that there is nothing funny about boobs, then squeeze my left breasticle and it makes a honking noise. Highbrow stuff.” Aspirations: “For my mum to have an answer other than ‘still

BOOKS / COMEDY

trying that weird-y comedy’ when Janet from next door asks what I’m doing.” What would you be doing if you weren’t doing standup? “Sitting in the audience of local standup nights giving the stage the same longing glare I give to the wettest cakes in the window of Patisserie Valerie.” What’s the largest animal you think you could beat in a fight? No weapons. “A whale. I’d fist its blowhole. Now let’s hear no more about it.” Question from past Spotlighter Will Setchell: What did you want to be at four years old? Answer in the form of a drawing. 8===D--Amy Gledhill plays Barking Tales, The Zombie Shack, Manchester, 3 Feb, and Château Le Bomb, The Castle Hotel, Manchester, 16 Feb amygledhill.co.uk

Review

Win a GoPro camera and learn to snowboard!

Win VIP tickets to Cosmosis Festival! We are giving away two VIP tickets to Cosmosis Festival Saturday 12 March 2016, Manchester. Established in 2014 the festival of alternative music and arts returns this year featuring heavyweights such as The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Sleaford Mods, The Raveonettes and Wire, plus 30 more artists over four huge stages. The festival will also include street food from Guerrilla Eats, art installations, exhibitions, mind-bending immersive experiences, lightshows, an arts and craft village, space cinema, talks and many more mystical happenings.

To celebrate the release of Point Break – in cinemas 5 Feb – Warner Bros. and Chill Factore are offering one lucky reader the chance to win a GoPro camera and learn to snowboard! In Alcon Entertainment’s fast-paced Point Break, young FBI agent Johnny Utah (Luke Bracey) infiltrates a cunning team of thrill-seeking athletes – led by the charismatic Bodhi (Edgar Ramirez) – suspected of carrying out a spate of crimes in extremely unusual ways. The film is replete with daring athleticism performed by elite athletes representing the world’s best in big-wave surfing, sheer-face snowboarding, free rock climbing, and more. Chill Factore guarantee to get you skiing or snowboarding in 2016! If you win the beginner level course, worth £150, and if you’re not slopeready by the end of it, Chill Factore will give you the extra tuition for free!*

To be in with a chance of winning, simply head to theskinny.co.uk/competitions and correctly answer this question:

The Jesus and Mary Chain released seminal album Psychocandy in what year? a) 1977 b) 1992 c) 1985 Competition closes midnight Sun 28 Feb. The festival is for 14+ only – 14-17 year olds must be accompanied by an adult. No refunds will be given for incorrectly booked tickets. Winners will be notified via email within two working days of closing and will be required to respond within 48 hours or the prize will be offered to another entrant. Our Ts&Cs can be found at theskinny.co.uk/about/terms www.cosmosisfestival.com | @cosmosisfestmcr

Point Break reinvents the 1991 hit actioner of the same name by which Oscar-winning director? a) James Cameron b) Kathryn Bigelow c) John McTiernan Competition closes midnight Sun 28 Feb. Entrants must be 16 or older. Winners will be notified via email within two working days of closing and will be required to respond within 48 hours or the prize will be offered to another entrant. Our Ts&Cs can be found at theskinny.co.uk/about/terms *See full terms and conditions on the Chill Factore website www.chillfactore.com/offers/guarantee-to-ski

Win tickets to Other Worlds festival!

Other Worlds Festival is back once again in Blackpool with another audio-visual banquet, combining local talent with artists from further afield. The sonic shindig kicks off with a whole evening curated by Tse Tse Fly, all the way from Dubai, who’s treating us to an evening of tunes from Arabic artists. We're starting strong and the fun goes on. The weekend will be packed full of live music and interactive shenanigans including performances from Richard Dawson, Gum Takes Tooth, Laura Cannell, Paddy Steer, Graham Dunning, Left Hand Cuts off the Right and more. A pass to the whole weekend of art, visual and audio costs just £30. We’ve teamed up with The Skinny to give away three packages of prizes to three lucky readers. First prize is a pair of Other Worlds Festival tickets, a Must Die Records goody bag including a selection of recent and upcoming releases, a limited Bomlito screen print (one of only five!), and a stick of our finest Blackpool rock.

Second prize is a pair of Other Worlds Festival tickets, one of those limited edition Bomlito screen prints and a stick of Blackpool rock. Third prize is one of those limited edition Bomlito prints and, you guessed it, a stick of Blackpool rock. To be in with a chance of winning, simply head to theskinny.co.uk/competitions and correctly answer this question: The oldest known computer-recorded music was recorded at the University of Manchester in 1951, on a Ferranti Mark 1. What is the recording of? a) God Save the King b) Baa Baa Black Sheep c) In the Mood d) All of the above Competition closes midnight Sun 28 Feb. Entrants must be 18 or older. Winners will be notified via email within two working days of closing and will be required to respond within 48 hours or the prize will be offered to another entrant. Our Ts&Cs can be found at theskinny.co.uk/about/terms www.otherworldsfestival.co.uk

COMPETITIONS

THE SKINNY

Manchester Music Tue 02 Feb

NIGHT & DAY’S LOCAL SHOWCASE (SOAKED + CHAOTIC FRIENDS + SID QUIRK + JENNIFER HARDY) NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £6

Live music showcase, giving a stage to local up-and-coming performers. NO GOOD BEATNIKS TRIO

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–00:00, FREE

A jam band comprising a collective of like-minded musicians who love dirty grooves and distorted jazz.

Wed 03 Feb FRED ABBOTT

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £8

The Noah and the Whale multiinstrumentalist goes it alone, having released his debut solo album, Serious Poke, in summer 2015. DE MONTEVERT (WE WERE STRANGERS)

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £4

Sweden’s Ellinor Nilsson tours what she deems her debut album (despite releasing Friends and Enemies in 2012) of darkly poetic, moody songs. STUART MCCALLUM RESIDENCY

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–00:00, FREE

Monthly experimental improv compositions from The Cinematic Orchestra’s Stuart McCallum.

Thu 04 Feb THE WINERY DOGS

O2 RITZ MANCHESTER, 19:00–22:30, £19.50

Hairy trio from LA, who like their rock big and bluesy.

HACIENDA CLASSICAL (GRAEME PARK + MIKE PICKERING + MANCHESTER CAMERATA) BRIDGEWATER HALL, 19:00–22:00, £SOLD OUT

Pioneers of the iconic Hacienda sound team up with the 40-strong Manchester Camerata to revisit their classics in a live fusion event. IAN MCCULLOCH

ST PHILIP’S CHURCH, 19:30–22:30, £18 EARLYBIRD (£20 THEREAFTER)

The iconic indie frontman performs classic Echo and The Bunnymen tracks alongside others from his own back catalogue. AUGUSTANA (ROB LYNCH)

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 19:00–22:15, £8

American alt-rock group fronted by Dan Layus. IAN MCCULLOCH

ST PHILIP’S CHURCH, 19:30–22:00, £20

A rare solo performance from the Echo & The Bunnymen front man playing his band’s classic as well as his own material. BILLY BIBBY (STALAGMITES + RYAN JARVIS)

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £6

The former Catfish and the Bottlemen guitarist eases into his solo career with a headline show. BRUJA (SONIC BLISS MACHINE + PEANESS + DEMUR )

THE CASTLE HOTEL, 19:45–23:00, FREE

A night of high-energy grunge rock from South Yorkshire, plus alt sounds from closer to home. SKAMEL

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:30–00:00, £5

TRANSATLANTIC SESSIONS

Playing a mixture of original tunes plus ska and reggae classics.

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £25.50

Sat 06 Feb

From the award-winning BBC TV series, fiddle maestro and Aly Bain and dobro legend Jerry Douglas continue to mix Celtic and Americana music. JAY PRINCE

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 19:00–23:00, £8

Mellow hip hop from the East London rapper. YOUTH LAGOON

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:30–22:30, £14

Solo project of minimal musician, Trevor Powers, making sense of his mind through music. JOHNNY SLY (FOXTALES + BETHLEHEM CASUALS + SUGAR BOOTS)

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £5

Seven-piece Manchester-based outfit comprising harp, trumpet, bass, guitar, keys, drums and loadsa lungs.

NICKI BLUHM AND THE GRAMBLERS

THE CASTLE HOTEL, 19:30–22:30, £9

The Lafayette singer-songwriter and her band hit the road with their contemporary folk, rock and psych-infused country tunes, in support of their new album. ALFIE EASTWICK

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £6

Pop-tinged electronica made by a man marching to the beat of his own drum, writing, performing, recording and producing all of his own material. DANIEL JOHN MARTIN AND THE MANOUCHETONES

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–00:30, FREE

Liverpool jazz scene regulars playing a mixture of Reinhardt/Grapelli classics plus more obscure sounds. ELEANOR FRIEDBERGER (ANDREW WASYLYK)

EAGLE INN, 19:00–22:00, £SOLD OUT

The American musician, known as one half of indie outfit The Fiery Furnaces alongside her brother, hits the UK gig circuit in support of her third album, New View.

Fri 05 Feb BOWLING FOR SOUP

MANCHESTER ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £20

A night of post-punk from a 90s fave. They embarked on a farewell tour in 2013, but seem to have changed their minds and are back for another stab. Well, how’s about it? TESSERACT

MANCHESTER ACADEMY 2, 19:00–22:30, £13

Prog-metal from the musical hotspot that is, yep, none other than Milton Keynes.

February 2016

BLACK STONE CHERRY

MANCHESTER ARENA, 19:00–22:30, £31.50

Hard rock outfit from Edmonton, Kentucky, who tour as part of the Carnival of Madness. HOZIER

O2 APOLLO MANCHESTER, 19:00–22:30, £22.50 - £29.50

LEE NELSON: SUITED AND BOOTED THE LOWRY, FROM 20:57, £23

Simon Brodkin tours his lad-abouttown character, Lee Nelson. Yep, the one that crashed Kanye’s Glasto gig. Eye roll. CHERRY GHOST (MARLIN)

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:00–22:30, £20

Cherry Ghost play a one-off concert in support of Gracie’s Fund.

Mon 08 Feb JOHN GRANT

ALBERT HALL, 19:00–23:00, £22

The American singer/songwriter (and onetime The Czars frontman) heads to Manchester in support of his third album, Grey Tickles, Black Pressure. MAHALIA

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 19:00–23:00, £6

The voice behind Rudimental track We The Generation debuts her own stuff from her first, recently released, EP. ANDA UNION

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:30–22:30, £15

Anda Union’s haunting harmonies and vibrant strings evoke the endless beauty of the Mongolian grasslands, combining throat singing and longsong with horse head fiddles; they bring this powerful ancient music to life as never before.

Tue 09 Feb SUEDE

ALBERT HALL, 19:00–22:30, £SOLD OUT

The Brett Anderson-led alternative rockers continue to ride the wave of their reunion. LUCERO

THE RUBY LOUNGE, 19:30–23:00, £14

Melodic gruff-punk from the States, being touted as Memphis’ answer to Bruce Springsteen. BLACK PEAKS

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 19:00–23:00, £10

The Brighton-based tech-rockers take a trip up North ahead of releasing their debut album, Statues.

Irish soul-meets-blues one-manband, aka Andrew Hozier-Byrne, who joined his first band at the tender age of 15.

NIGHT & DAY’S LOCAL SHOWCASE (WEAL + LOFTHOUSE + CRACKED VINYL)

MANCHESTER ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £25.60

Live music showcase, giving a stage to local up-and-coming performers.

NME AWARDS TOUR 2016

The annual tour rolls into town with headliners Bloc Party, joined by Drenge, Rat Boy and Bugzy Malone. THE BEAUTIFUL NORTH (MANCHESTER CAMERATA)

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £14

Poetry and readings meet classical music, paying homage to moorland landscapes of the Peak District, the highlands of Scotland and more. ALTAR FLOWERS (PLASTIC HOUSE + CONTROL OF THE GOING + MINT)

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £6

Alternative goth-pop from the Manchester-based quartet. FIELD MUSIC

FOPP, 15:00–16:00, FREE WITH ALBUM PURCHASE

In-store gig from the Mercury Prize-nominated brothers Brewis, who perform their new album, Commontime, released the day before on 5 Feb. JAMES BROWN IS ANNIE

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–01:00, £5

Jazz-funk group, who take their name from an Eddie Murphy Saturday Night Live sketch. PARTISAN (WONDERLAND TRIP + NEW TERMINAL BOY)

EAGLE INN, 19:30–23:00, £2

Mancunian rock group, whose founding member, Stuart Armstrong, has previously supported the likes of Nine Black Alps, Baby Shambles, Status Quo and The Damned.

Sun 07 Feb JACK JONES

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 19:30–22:00, £29.50

The American jazz singer revisits the life of his friend Frank Sinatra through the late crooner’s back catalogue of hits.

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £6

SCARLETTE

THE CASTLE HOTEL, 19:30–22:30, TBC

Having ditched the Scarlette Fever moniker to join the one-name crew (hey, Madonna and Bono!), the pop-rocker returns with her latest album, Attack of the 6ft Woman. BARNS COURTNEY (BARRON, YOUNG WAR)

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £6

The singer-songwriter tours his latest album, Glitter and Gold, following support slots for the likes of Ed Sheeran and The Libertines with his approachable blues rock. THE DIRTY BOMB

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–00:00, FREE

Intrumental funk four-piece from near Liverpool.

Wed 10 Feb MONEY

O2 RITZ MANCHESTER, 19:00–22:30, £11

The Manchester outfit, signed to Bella Union, take to the road for a UK and European tour in support of second LP Suicide Songs. RAFAL LUC

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 13:10–14:00, £11.50 (£9.50)

Poland native and London Royal Academy of Music graduate Rafal Luc plays a midday concert of classical accordion music. LUCERO

THE RUBY LOUNGE, 19:30–23:00, £14

Melodic gruff-punk from the States, being touted as Memphis’ answer to Bruce Springsteen. LOYLE CARNER (REBEL KLEFF)

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 19:00–23:00, £10

The MC from South London performs additional dates in the wake of his debut sellout tour.

WILLIAM MCCARTHY OF AUGUSTINES NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £SOLD OUT

Augustines’ Billy McCarthy hits us up as part of his first solo tour, where tunes are joined by stories and musings. OKAY KAYA

THE CASTLE HOTEL, 19:30–22:30, £6

New York-based Norwegian artist of the dreamy acoustica variety. EMILY FRANCIS TRIO

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–00:00, FREE

Contemporary take on the jazz trio format, bringing in influences from prog-rock, jazz-rock, 70s jazz-funk and soul. NZCA LINES

SOUP KITCHEN, 19:30–22:00, £7

Leading lad Michael Lovett is joined by Charlotte Hatherley (Bat For Lashes, Ash) and Sarah Jones (Hot Chip) as he returns with new album, Infinite Summer.

Thu 11 Feb TAME IMPALA

MANCHESTER ARENA, 18:30–22:30, £17.50 - £25

Alternative rock project of Aussie chap Kevin Parker and chums, known for their psychedelic and groove-laden melodic rock soundscapes. STEWARD FRANCIS

THE PLAZA STOCKPORT, 20:00–22:00, £17.50

The suave Canadian comedian tours his Pun Gent show. GREG DULLI

GORILLA, 18:00–22:00, £18.50

An evening with American rock musician Greg Dulli, known for his work in The Afghan Whigs, The Twilght Singers and The Gutter Twins.

FADERHEAD

LITTLE SIMZ

THE RUBY LOUNGE, 19:00–23:00, £13

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 19:00–22:30, £9

EBM from Hamburg’s Faderhead, who allegedly sounds like the Incredible Hulk having sex with Paris Hilton. We’re not sure either.

Experimental English rapper with high profile fanz including Kendrick Lamar and Jay Z.

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:00–22:00, £8

A CELEBRATION OF GRAEME MILES (THE UNTHANKS + THE YOUNG’UNS + THE WILSONS)

NIGHT & DAY’S LOCAL SHOWCASE (HOLY MATRIMONY + MOLLY WARBURTON + STEPH BALL)

A biennial concert celebrating songwriter Graeme Miles, while also raising money for the Graeme Miles Bursary.

THE LOTTERY WINNERS

Indie-pop group that was born in Salford and raised on romance.

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £6

Live music showcase, giving a stage to local up-and-coming performers. FLOATING POINTS

O2 RITZ MANCHESTER, 19:30–22:30, £12.50

The UK-based DJ, producer and musician gears himself up for what will without doubt be a sell-out show, packed with house, techno, soul and disco sounds. END OF THE TRAIL RECORDS AT THE CASTLE (FREEDOM OF THE CITY + KANTEEN + SPEARS + WE SIGNAL FIRE + THE MIND AT LARGE)

THE CASTLE HOTEL, 19:30–22:30, £5 - £6

The indie label hosts a night showcasing up-and-coming groups from the North. FLOATING POINTS

O2 RITZ MANCHESTER, FROM 19:00, £12.50

The UK-based DJ, producer and musician gears himself up for what will without doubt be a sell-out show, packed with house, techno, soul and disco sounds. RANDY SCOTT AND RANDY SUEDE

GULLIVERS, 12:00–14:00, £13

Cherry Suede’s two Randys perform an intimate night of songs and stories, taking on a slightly gentler sound in their 2016 Up Close and Personal tour.

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:00–22:30, £15

WILL VARLEY

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £8

The rambling folk singer, who walked over 500 miles along England’s south coast with a guitar on his back, heads back out on the road for a series of new dates. QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: OUR LADY J

CONTACT THEATRE, FROM 20:00, £10 - £15

The US singer-songwriter celebrates the most romantic weekend of the year with songs that may be inspired by conventional gospel music, but are far from traditional. FOALS

MANCHESTER ARENA, 19:00–22:30, £19.50 - £29.50

The Oxford rock ensemble tour their new LP, What Went Down, which reached #3 in them there charts, no less. GUN OUTFIT

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £7 - £8

Modest LA rock ‘n’ roll from a group of art film lovers and makers, driven by a moody, lo-fi Americana sound that also works well for fans of Sonic Youth. SPEAKEASY BOOTLEG BAND

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–01:00, £5

A heady combo of jazz, jive, Harlem swing and more.

RACHMANINOV, MAHLER + SHOSTAKOVICH

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £13

The Hallé; orchestra perform works by Rachmaninov, Mahler and Shostakovich, joined by renowned baritone Roderick Williams.

Buy your tickets here: bit.ly/animal-collective-ritz

Incognito bring an electric atmosphere and a mastery of their songs, a perfect celebration of over 30 years of music making.

EAGLE INN, 19:00–23:00, £6

The London pop-punk trio are joined by more Northernly-based names, in a show from the good people of Carefully Planned.

Fri 12 Feb HURTS

MANCHESTER ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £19.50

Synthpop duo made up of Theo Hutchcraft and Adam Anderson. ALL TIME LOW

MANCHESTER ARENA, 18:00–22:00, £27.50

Chirpy American punk-popsters, all fast-paced and fizzy with hooks. THE HACIENDA (DAVID MORALES + KENNY DOPE + GRAEME PARK + MIKE PICKERING + HERBIE SACCANI)

ALBERT HALL, 22:00–04:00, FROM £20

FAC 51 The Hacienda returns to Albert Hall in tow with DJ and producer David Morales, while Masters at Work’s Kenny Dope makes his FAC 51 debut. HACIENDA CLASSICAL (GRAEME PARK + MIKE PICKERING + MANCHESTER CAMERATA)

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 19:00–22:00, £SOLD OUT

Pioneers of the iconic Hacienda sound team up with the 40-strong Manchester Camerata to revisit their classics in a live fusion event. BLOOMS

SACRED TRINITY CHURCH, 19:00–23:00, £8

Dreamy lo-fi shoegaze from a rising Manchester trio, who are on the up with their sun-drenched surf-pop sound.

The LA-based musician again displays her gift for merging high concept, compositional prowess and experimentation with pop sensibility. Go marvel. !!!

SOUND CONTROL, 19:00–22:30, £11

Dance-punk outfit from Sacramento, pronounced ‘chk chk chk’ (for those that don’t speak exclamation mark.) ALLISON WEISS

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 19:00–22:30, £8

LA-based singer-songwriter known for using Kickstarter before it was cool, who’s now onto her third album. SUNFLOWER BEAN

SOUP KITCHEN, 19:30–22:30, £7.50

The low-slung psyche punk band that had Brooklyn in a spin in 2015 finally make it to Scottish shores.

Wed 17 Feb THE GOOD LIFE

THE RUBY LOUNGE, 19:30–23:00, £8.50

Indie rock from the Omaha fourpiece, who tour following last summer’s release of their first LP in eight years, Everybody’s Coming Down.

NIGHT & DAY’S LOCAL SHOWCASE (TRICK MIST + SEA FARIES) NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £6

Live music showcase, giving a stage to local up-and-coming performers. CATTLE AND CANE

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £8

Life-affirming indie-folk from the Teeside five-piece, made up of members of the prodigious Hamill family, plus Tom Chapman on drums. SAM C LESS

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–00:30, FREE

EAGLE INN, 19:30–22:30, £5

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:30–22:30, £25

THE TUTS (BABY BRAVE + GURGLES + PATTY HEARST)

JULIA HOLTER

GORILLA, 19:30–23:00, £16.50

Solitary Music Nerd presents an evening of hardcore, post-punk and more from Manchester, London and Germany.

INCOGNITO (DJ ANDREA TROUT)

Charming West London folkster, classically trained, and player of guitar, piano and cello. Part of Celtic Connections.

O2 RITZ MANCHESTER, 19:00–23:00, £22.50

The Crispian Mills-fronted postBritpoppers make their comeback with a European tour.

JUNGBLUTH + GLARUS + GROUP OF MAN

English folk singer regarded as a bit of a talented bugger on guitar, banjola and banjo.

MANCHESTER ACADEMY 3, FROM 19:30, £13.50

KULA SHAKER

The gypsy jazz guitarist heads to Matt and Phred’s.

MARTIN SIMPSON

THE LOWRY STUDIO, 20:00–22:00, £16

KING CHARLES

Tue 16 Feb

Thu 18 Feb Animal Collective O2 Ritz, Manchester, Wed 13 Apr, 7pm, £16

THE NIGHTCREATURES

Sun 14 Feb

HOLLOWAY ROAD (JESS AND THE BANDITS + DARCY)

The Hallé orchestra perform a body of mood-setting timeless love songs from the likes of Romeo and Juliet, Carmen, Tosca, Madame Butterfly and others.

SOUP KITCHEN, 19:00–22:30, £7

Aka Jack Cooper and Robert Gulston, whose country pop hails from Southend-on-Sea.

Sat 13 Feb TELEGRAM

SOUP KITCHEN, 19:00–22:30, £7

The psych-pop London foursome do their thing. MILLENCOLIN

O2 RITZ MANCHESTER, 18:00–22:30, £17.50

Jumped-up punk-rock outfit from Sweden, whose name pays homage to a skateboard trick, dude. PARKWAY DRIVE

O2 APOLLO MANCHESTER, 19:00–22:30, £21.50

Byron Bay hardcore metal quintet. LENINGRAD: MUSIC FROM THE FRONT LINE (BBC PHILHARMONIC)

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £12

An evening of Music From the Front Line, featuring works written under seige, in exile and smuggled through enemy lines.

THE WORLD IS A BEAUTIFUL PLACE AND I AM NO LONGER AFRAID TO DIE (ME WITHOUT YOU) SOUND CONTROL, 18:00–22:00, £10

The Connecticut group tour with Harmlessness, the follow-up to their 2013 debut, Whenever, If Ever.

The synth-pop master draws on his back catalogue, including renowned albums Human’s Lib and Dream Into Action. JESS GLYNNE

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:30–01:00, £5

Celebrate Mardi Gras with New Orleans classics, old school blues and more.

HOWARD JONES

ROYAL NORTHERN COLLEGE OF MUSIC RNCM, 19:00–22:30, £22.50

VALENTINE’S DAY CONCERT (THE HALLÉ)

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £20

THE BLACK TAMBOURINES

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £6

Cornish quartet channeling ‘ocean rock’ sounds from their Falmouth hometown. CHARLIE COOPER QUARTET

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 20:00–00:00, £5

A Valentine’s Day special packed with vintage soul sounds.

Mon 15 Feb

KING GIZZARD AND THE LIZARD WIZARD

GORILLA, 19:30–23:00, £13.50

Melbourne psychniks evoking the eclectic rock experimentation of Frank Zappa. WHITE DENIM

O2 APOLLO MANCHESTER, 19:00–22:30, £18.50

The wild-haired British singer/ songwriter heads out on tour, following a chart-topping 2015. MARINA & THE DIAMONDS

MANCHESTER ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £22

Marina Lambrini Diamandis plays under her stage name, knocking out the new-wave pop hits. THE KERRANG! TOUR 2016

ALBERT HALL, 19:00–22:30, £18.50

Sum 41 headline the celebration of scuzz and rock horns. LUCY SPRAGGAN

GORILLA, 19:00–23:00, £SOLD OUT

Little Lucy Spraggan, of X Factor fame, now a fully fledged touring musician making ‘flop’ that’s folk meets hip-hop for the uninitiated. SUM 41

ALBERT HALL, 19:00–23:00, £SOLD OUT

The Canadian pop-punk group headlines the 2016 Kerrang Tour, fittingly tying in with the band’s 20th anniversary.

SOH-YON KIM AND MAKSIM ŠTŠURA

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 13:10–14:00, £11.50 (£9.50)

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, FROM 19:00, £17.50

The South Korean violinist and Estonian pianist combine for a midday concert.

CLASSICAL EVOLUTION DOES…

The Canadian death metal gods take to the UK to spread some of their usual mayhem.

Genre-spanning Texans, omnivorously squeezing as many diverse influences as possible into every track. NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, FREE

An eclectic evening of live classical music, original compositions and improvisation in a sociable and informal setting.

KATAKLYSM

SOUND CONTROL, 18:30–22:00, £18

SANGO (SPZRKT)

THE RUBY LOUNGE, FROM 20:00, £10.50

Seattle-born, Michigan-based producer unveiling his debut album of soul-influenced hip hop.

THE JAPANESE HOUSE THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 19:00–23:00, £8

Dark and dreamy synth-heavy soundscapes from the 20-year-old solo artist less cryptically known as Amber Bain. STUFF (DJ JOE W)

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:30–22:30, £12

Five-piece live band mixing electronic, jazz and future funk. NYTCLUB (SECRET FAMILY)

EAGLE INN, 19:30–22:30, £6

Electronic pop from the hotly tipped Liverpool foursome.

NIGHT & DAY’S LOCAL SHOWCASE (NOVUSTORY + MORE TBC) NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £6

Live music showcase, giving a stage to local up-and-coming performers.

MANCHESTER’S IMPROVING DAILY (EDWARD II + JENNIFER REID) CENTRAL LIBRARY, 18:30–22:00, £20

English roots musical collective Edward II release a collection of rare and historic songs, known as the Manchester Broadside Ballads, ALISTAIR GRIFFIN

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £10

The traditional folk artist goes on tour with a host of new songs to boot. JOHNNY HUNTER QUARTET

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–00:30, FREE

Drummer Johnny Hunter and his three musicians explore both the freedoms and challenges in playing without a harmony instrument.

Fri 19 Feb TONIGHT ALIVE

O2 RITZ MANCHESTER, FROM 18:30, £15

Aussie rock ensemble led by ballsy young songstress Jenna McDougall and her inimitable soaring contralto. SHUGGIE OTIS

MANCHESTER CLUB ACADEMY, FROM 19:00, £20

Rhythm and blues legend, playing a rare spate of shows with his new band. ROSIE LOWE

SOUP KITCHEN, FROM 19:30, £8

The London songstress plays a set of new material. MYSTERY JETS

GORILLA, FROM 18:30, £SOLD OUT

The London indie-pop quintet tour their most recent LP. THE FOUR SEASONS (LA SERENISSIMA)

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £17

Vivaldi’s most famous violin concerti fills the Bridgewater Hall, courtesy of acclaimed period instrument group La Serenissima. ENSIFERUM

SOUND CONTROL, 18:00–22:00, £18

Helsinki power/death/folk metal, with lyrical inspiration taken from Viking legends. SPRING KING

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 19:30–22:15, FREE

Tarek Musa-fronted local lo-fi pop punk outfit, riding an increasingly big wave of hype after playing at SXSW last summer. OZRIC TENTACLES (PROJECT RNL)

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:30–22:30, £16

The psychedelic space rockers tour their extensive back catalogue of albums that spans their 30+ years of music-making. BLUEBIRD KID CLARK (LITTLE MAMMOTHS + HOWARD ROSE)

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £7

The blues five-piece return with new material following a hiatus.

WE’RE NO HEROES (DANTEVILLES + ATLAS EYES )

FALLOW CAFE, 19:45–23:00, FREE

The Manchester leg of the UK tour for Cardiff trio We’re No Heroes. RICH HOMIE QUAN

MANCHESTER ACADEMY 2, FROM 19:00, £25

The up and coming American rapper embarks on his first ever UK tour. THE NIX (THE SISTERS)

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £5

The local indie-rock five-piece launch their debut EP, Luna. PORTMANTEAU

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:30–01:00, £5

Funk, soul and hip hop sounds from the Leeds-based nine-piece band.

Sat 20 Feb THE SHERLOCKS

MANCHESTER ACADEMY 3, 18:30–22:00, £7

Sheffield indie-rock unit made up of two sets of brothers.

Listings

Manchester Music HINDS (PUBLIC ACCESS TV) GORILLA, 18:30–22:00, £10

The hotly tipped Madrid lo-fi garage outfit tour their debut release.

CITY AND COLOUR (LUCY ROSE)

ALBERT HALL, 19:00–23:00, £SOLD OUT

Canadian Dallas Green’s alter ego, under which he makes some rather lovely acoustic folk rock sounds. Support from the equally lovely Lucy Rose.

MUSIC FOR THE MIND AND SOUL (SUDESHNA BHATTACHARYA + KOUSIC SEN)

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 13:00–14:00, £14 (£12)

The lute-like sarod is played alongside the tabla, as part of Milapfest’s Indian classical music series. RHAPSODY IN BLUE (BBC PHILHARMONIC)

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £12

A night that looks set to spark minds with musical vibrance, as Gershwin’s smouldering classic is played alongside Stravinsky’s The Firebird and others. THE CROOKES (MISTY MILLER)

SOUND CONTROL, 19:00–22:00, £8

Jangly guitar-led pop outfit from Sheffield, who take to the stage in support of latest LP Lucky Ones. C DUNCAN (TOM LOW)

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 19:30–22:30, £9

Glasgow-based muso, composing e’er beautiful choral harmonies and acoustic instrumentation in his bedroom-studio set-up. GOGO PENGUIN (DAUDI MATSIKO)

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:30–22:30, £15

Acoustic-electronica trio from Manchester recently signed to France’s Blue Note Records. EX-EASTER ISLAND HEAD

ISLINGTON MILL, 19:30–23:00, £6

EEIH culminate their Samarbeta residency at the Mill with a live show featuring their newlycomposed Large Electric Ensemble. COLOUR OF SPRING (THING + DEJA VEGA + GRAVE DIGGERS UNION )

THE CASTLE HOTEL, 19:45–23:00, FREE

Leeds-based shoegaze outfit inspired by everything from C86 to My Bloody Valentine and The Cure. CAGE THE ELEPHANT

O2 RITZ MANCHESTER, FROM 18:30, £15

The Kentucky rockers follow up 2013's Melophobia with their fourth studio album, Tell Me I'm Pretty, produced by Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys and The Arcs. TERRY CHRISTIAN’S MAD MANC CABARET

THE DANCEHOUSE THEATRE, 19:30–23:00, £15

Variety show hosted by absolute madd’un Terry Christian, featuring John Bramwell, Misha B, Mike Garry, Thick Richard, Meany and Mike Sweeney. THE CASTAWAYS

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–01:00, £5

Ska, rocksteady, reggae and jazz from the Mel Howard-led group. INHEAVEN

SOUP KITCHEN, 19:00–22:00, £7

Favourites of The Strokes’ Julian Casablancas hailing from South East London, serving up rich and morose indie rock.

Sun 21 Feb TWENTY ONE PILOTS

MANCHESTER ACADEMY, 19:00–22:00, £16.50

Ohio-born synthpop duo on the Fueled by Ramen roster. ALEXANDER ARMSTRONG

OPERA HOUSE, 19:30–22:30, £26.25 - £36.25

The Pointless host and voice of Dangermouse adds to his repertoire by touring his debut album. BOY & BEAR

MANCHESTER CLUB ACADEMY, 19:30–22:30, £13.50

Sydney-based indie quintet deftly mixing driving indie-folk sounds with dainty choral harmonies. SECTION BOYZ

GORILLA, FROM 19:00, £9.50

A MOBO award-winning rap group, the South Londoners have recently been making waves on the UK hip hop circuit.

Listings

THE JOY FORMIDABLE

SHEARWATER

WHITE

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, FROM 19:00, £15

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £12

SOUP KITCHEN, 19:00–22:00, £7

RYLEY WALKER AND DANNY THOMPSON

Sat 27 Feb

Singer-songwriter Ryley Walker is joined by double bassist Danny Thompson, who has previously performed with the likes of Bert Jansch, Tim Buckley, Nick Drake and John Martyn.

O2 RITZ MANCHESTER, 18:30–22:00, £16

BAND ON THE WALL, 11:30–14:30, £5 - £6

Hardworking female-fronted Welsh trio and their atmospheric indie rock, heavy on melody but with plenty of driving, sinewy riffs.

Austin’s Jonathan Meiberg and co tour their latest album, taking to the road with a neat blend of folk, psych and indie rock.

THE LOWRY: LYRIC THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, £29.50 - £39.50

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £3

PAUL CARRACK

Sheffield-born singer, songwriter and former frontman of Ace, Squeeze and Mike and The Mechanics.

GOGO PENGUIN (DAUDI MATSIKO)

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:30–22:30, £15

Acoustic-electronica trio from Manchester recently signed to France’s Blue Note Records.

TWIST HELLIX (FLOOD MANUAL + KATE GAMBHIR + JAMES KRUMAN)

THE CASTLE HOTEL, 19:30–22:30, TBC

Electronic alt-pop outfit from Newscastle, stopping off in Manchester as part of their winter tour. RNCM POPULAR MUSIC DEGREE STUDENTS

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 19:00–00:00, £2 - £3

A monthly showcase featuring four to five bands throughout the evening.

Mon 22 Feb HALSEY

MANCHESTER ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £18

The blue-haired electro-pop songstress tours in support of her debut album, Badlands. SAVAGES

ALBERT HALL, 19:00–23:00, £15

London-based foursome bringing the noise with their howlin’ mix of psychedelia, complete with dubtinged rhythm section. EMPRESS OF

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £9

A Now Wave show featuring the dream-pop stylings of New Yorkbased singer-songwriter Lorely Rodriguez.

Tue 23 Feb RUNRIG

O2 APOLLO MANCHESTER, 19:00–22:30, £28

The Skye band of rockers return to the live stage in celebration of the release of their new LP The Story. UPCLOSE (TINE THING HELSETH, MATTHEW HALSALL, MANCHESTER CAMERATA)

GORILLA, 19:30–23:00, £10

The second in the UpClose series, which sees trumpets, jazz and DJs collide. JESSE MALIN

SOUND CONTROL, 19:00–22:00, £12

ELEVANT (FALSE ADVERTISING + MOTHERS + DUKE MERCURY)

Liverpudlian psychedelic rockers, the brainchild of singer/songwriter/guitarist Michael Edward. KYLA BROX

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–00:00, FREE

The daughter of blues singer Victor Brox, with several albums to her name.

Thu 25 Feb ENTER SHIKARI

VICTORIA WAREHOUSE, 19:00–22:30, £23.50

More in the way of new-wave, post-hardcore politicking from the St Albans quartet. SARAH MILLICAN - OUTSIDER

O2 APOLLO MANCHESTER, 19:00–22:30, £25

The self-effacing comic touches on everything from building your own treadmill, to the practicalities of an orgy. SOPHIE ROSA + ELENA NEMTSOVA

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 13:10–14:00, £9.50 - £11.50 Cheshire-born Sophie Rosa

is joined by pianist Elena Nemtsova for a lunchtime recital featuring Beethoven, Ravel and Wieniawski. KESTON COBBLERS CLUB

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:30–22:30, £12.50

BARONESS

O2 RITZ MANCHESTER, FROM 19:00, £14

US-of-A hailing heavy metallers, traversing the line intelligently between melodic and ferocious. FATHERSON

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £7

The Kilmarnock trio do their alternative rock-meets-powerpop thing. WEDDING (RAINS + SPRINTERS )

EAGLE INN, 19:30–22:30, £7.50

Manchester/Berlin outfit, who recently released their debut selftitled EP via RIP Records. WEDDING (RAINS + SPRINTERS )

EAGLE INN, 19:30–22:30, £7.50

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:30–22:30, £12.50

JAMIE BROWNFIELD QUARTET

Jazz four-piece headed by British Jazz Awards rising star, Jamie Brownfield.

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £13

FUN LOVIN CRIMINALS

Fri 26 Feb

MANCHESTER CATHEDRAL, 19:00–22:30, £23.50

THE JAZZ SINGERS

Huey Lewis and his NYC hip-hop/ rock ensemble descend, hopefully minus the mug-smashing.

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–00:00, FREE

O2 APOLLO MANCHESTER, 19:00–22:30, £25

Wed 24 Feb RICHARD HAWLEY

O2 APOLLO MANCHESTER, 19:00–22:30, £22.50 - £32.50

The Sheffield crooner melts some hearts with his trademark luscious odes. BAIO

SOUP KITCHEN, 19:00–22:30, £10

American singer/songwriter (aka Chris Baio), best known for being the bassist for the New York City-based indie rockers Vampire Weekend. YORKSTON THORNE AND KHAN

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 19:30–23:00, £12.50

Following a 2012 experiment – where musicians from India and the UK were placed in a recording studio in Edinburgh for a week to come up with original songs – a trio of the artists unveil the fruits, amongst them Fife-dwelling folkie, James Yorkston.

SOUP KITCHEN, 19:00–22:00, £8

The half-Panamanian, half-Italian South Londoner tours his sundrenched reggae sounds. SABATON & ALESTORM

MANCHESTER ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £19

The Swedish heavy metallers join Alestorm for a co-headline UK and Europe tour. SARAH MILLICAN - OUTSIDER

O2 APOLLO MANCHESTER, 19:00–22:30, £25

The self-effacing comic touches on everything from building your own treadmill, to the practicalities of an orgy. PASSION FALLS (FAIRCHILD, LYON ROAD, TOURIST ATTRACTION)

GORILLA, 18:30–22:00, £8

Manchester's own Passion Falls play their biggest gig to date in a co-headline show with Fairchild, Lyon Road and Tourist Attractions BLOSSOMS

ALBERT HALL, 23:00–04:00, £20

THE WAVE PICTURES (THE ELWINS)

Floridian composer, arranger, vocalist, drummer and winner of the 2012 Thelonius Monk International Jazz Competition for drums.

Bi-monthly gig with backing music from the Dave Luvin Group.

KIKO BUN

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £10

The trio hit the road in support of their latest release, the formidably-titled, vinyl-only album, A Season in Hull.

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–00:00, FREE

The former frontman of 80s post-punk country-rock group Green on Red tours his most recent solo material.

One-woman band riding along on Louisa Rose Allen’s resplendent synths, industrial percussion and by-turns-searing-and-soaring vocals.

Manc mosaic-like five piece mixing pop nous with psychedelic blurriness, to everybody’s pleasure.

Manchester/Berlin outfit, who recently released their debut selftitled EP via RIP Records.

DAN STUART (FERNANDO)

FOXES

Kent-hailing, toe-tapping, indiefolk five-piece – favourites on BBC 6 Music and winners of the Rebel Playlist.

New York singer/songwriter who began playing live at the tender age of twelve, in seminal hardcore band Heart Attack. JAMISON ROSS

The Glasgow electro pop newcomers take to the stage, having just won the Best Breakthrough Act at the recent Nordoff Robbins Scotland Music Awards.

SARAH MILLICAN - OUTSIDER

The self-effacing comic touches on everything from building your own treadmill, to the practicalities of an orgy. MODERN BASEBALL

ALBERT HALL, 18:00–22:00, £SOLD OUT

TCHAMI

Sanction presents Parisian house producer Tchami, flanked by Lee Drake, Andy Shaw and Matt Wigman. GRANDBROTHERS

INTERNATIONAL ANTHONY BURGESS FOUNDATION, 19:30–22:30, £7 - £9

Classical composition with modern, experimental production and sound design from Erol Sarp and Lukas Vogel.

NARCS (LITTLE ILLUSION MACHINE + THIEVES ASYLUM + NEW LUNA )

GULLIVERS, 19:45–23:00, FREE

Rising sounds of the North, headlined by the Leeds-based alt-rock outfit. DANIEL LAND AND BAND

FAT WHITE FAMILY

MANCHESTER ACADEMY 2, FROM 19:30, £12

Increasingly notorious grot-pop troupe from London fond of the occasional on-stage strip. GRANDBROTHERS

INTERNATIONAL ANTHONY BURGESS FOUNDATION, 19:30–22:30, £7 - £9

Classical composition is combined with modern, experimental production and sound design, as Grandbrothers (aka Erol Sarp and Lukas Vogel) embark on their first major headline tour. THE BLUESWATER

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:30–01:00, £5

Award-winning group from Edinburgh, playing hard-hitting Chicago blues.

Sun 28 Feb

THE CULT (BROKEN HANDS + FABLE)

MANCHESTER ACADEMY 3, 19:30–22:30, £12

ALBERT HALL, FROM 18:00, £29.50

The Ian Astbury-led rockers tour their tenth studio album, Hidden City. ANDERSON PAAK (THE FREE NATIONALS)

THE RUBY LOUNGE, 18:00–23:00, £12.50

Ventura County native with credits as drummer, producer, vocalist, singer and songwriter throughout the hip hop and R’n’B circuits. RODINA

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:30–01:00, £5

The acid-jazz outfit return to Matt and Phred’s, armed with new music from their forthcoming third album.

ROCK AND POP SHOWCASE

Nine young bands from across the Greater Manchester region, who have been nominated by their local Music Service to take part in this showcase event. GANG OF FOUR

ISLINGTON MILL, 19:00–00:00, £15

English post-punk group, formed in 1977 in Leeds, playing a strippeddown mix of punk rock, funk and dub, with an emphasis on the social and political ills of society. FRØKEDAL

THE CASTLE HOTEL, 19:30–22:30, £0 - £5

Poetic, folk-infused minimal pop from the Norwegian artist, known also as the frontwoman of and driving force behind Harrys Gym, among others. SARAH MILLICAN - OUTSIDER

O2 APOLLO MANCHESTER, FROM 19:00, £25

The self-effacing comic touches on everything from building your own treadmill, to the practicalities of an orgy. GYPSY JAZZ

MATT AND PHRED’S JAZZ CLUB, 21:00–00:30, FREE

A night of gypsy jazz for Manchester’s Django enthusiasts.

Mon 29 Feb ALL THEM WITCHES

X AMBASSADORS

Alt-rock Americans from Ithaca, New York, whose recent album features work with Jamie N Commons and Imagine Dragons. NEW WORLD SYMPHONY (BBC PHILHARMONIC)

BRIDGEWATER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £12

Dvorak’s much-loved symphony, famous for soundtracking a Hovis ad back in the day. And in its own right, of course. FAIRPORT CONVENTION

THE LOWRY: QUAYS THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, £22

The longtime British folk-rockers draw on classic songs old and new, on the go now for nearly 50 years.

Liverpool Music Fri 05 Feb

LIVERPOOL ROCKS: BATTLE OF THE BANDS

O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £5

Elimination style competition for local up-and-comers, with a spot on the Liverpool Sound City line-up up for grabs. ALAN BURKE

STUDIO 2, 20:00–00:45, £10

The Rambling Boys of Pleasure man steps out alone. LANCASTER (INTO THE FALL + SOOTHE + PLASTIC + THE GARRISON)

MAGUIRE’S PIZZA BAR, 19:00–22:00, £3 - £5

Not exactly what they say on the tin, this rock ban is actually a Barcelona export. But, after recently relocating to the UK, they’re swinging by Sneaky’s to dip in Auld Reekie’s crowds. GRETCHEN PETERS

THE ATKINSON, 20:00–23:00, £22.50

The Nashville singer-songwriter and two-time Grammy nominee stops off in Liverpool for her 20th anniversary tour, after a busy few years appearing at Glastonbury, headling sold-out tours and supporting big names on the country and folk circuit.

THE ATKINSON, 20:00–23:00, £20 - £45

Wed 03 Feb

THE JACKOBINS (LAKE KOMO + CHEAP THRILLS + CAL RUDDY)

STUDIO 2, 19:30–23:45, £6

Local rockers with nods to Pearl Jam, The Stone and The Verve, among others. ROD PICOTT

THE ATKINSON, 19:30–22:30, £9 - £11

Folk/Americana-tinged acoustic tunes, spanning themes of hard work, heartache and the human condition. ANDA UNION

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC MUSIC ROOM, 20:00–22:30, £16.50

Thu 04 Feb BOWLING FOR SOUP

O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £20

A night of post-punk from a 90s fave. They embarked on a farewell tour in 2013, but seem to have changed their minds and are back for another stab. Well, how’s about it? THE DIRE STRAITS EXPERIENCE

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 19:30–22:30, FROM £23.50

Former Dire Straits members Chris White and Chris Whitten recreate hits from the back catalogue of the famed classic rock group. NGOD

STUDIO 2, 19:00–23:45, £5

Experimental rock from the Bradford five-piece.

BRUCKNER’S NINTH

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 19:30–22:30, FROM £14

Join violinist Esther Yoo and Liverpool’s new Conductor Emeritus Sir Andrew Davis as they fill Liverpool Philharmonic Hall with the sounds of Bruckner and Mozart. BILLY BIBBY AND BAND

STUDIO 2, 19:00–23:45, £7

The former Catfish and the Bottlemen guitarist eases into his solo career with a headline show.

MARRIED TO THE SEA (BIG SAFARI + FORT BAXTER + STEPHEN HUDSON AND THE FIAT PANDAS)

MAGUIRE’S PIZZA BAR, 20:00–22:30, £4

Rowdy, danceworthy indie pop from Liverpool, touring in support of new EP, Cold War Love.

Tue 16 Feb PINS

O2 ACADEMY, 19:30–22:30, £7

Mancunian post-punk quartet currently living out their love of the C86 sound.

Thu 18 Feb CAGE THE ELEPHANT (CHROME PONY)

O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £15

The Kentucky rockers follow up 2013's Melophobia with their fourth studio album, Tell Me I'm Pretty, produced by Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys and The Arcs. LA MER (LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA)

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 19:30–22:30, FROM £14

The Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra perform Debussy’s iconic piece, along with a world premiere of Six Lancashire Folksong Settings.

Buy your tickets here: bit.ly/manics-liverpool

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 19:30–22:30, FROM £18

RY X

Liverpool Music

The MC from South London performs additional dates in the wake of his debut sellout tour.

CARMINA BURANA (LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA)

THE DANCEHOUSE THEATRE, 19:15–22:30, £13

A Now Wave show with Aussie singer-songwriter Ry X, whose tour will be ahead of a new album.

LOYLE CARNER 24 KITCHEN STREET, 19:00–22:30, £10

Sat 06 Feb

As part of Liverpool Philharmonic Hall’s Between World series, from Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana you can expect sex, drink and, er, roasted swans.

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £SOLD OUT

Thundering psychedelica from Nashville with an underbelly of bluesy soul and Southern rock.

THE CASTLE HOTEL, 19:30–22:30, £5

London-based Daniel Land, known as the frontman for projects including Daniel Land and The Modern Painters, brings his new band to Manchester.

GORILLA, 19:00–22:00, £SOLD OUT

Witty indie-pop from the Philadelphia-based four-piece.

BAND ON THE WALL, 19:00–22:00, £14.50

THE CHRISTIANS

Big in the late 80s and early 90s with hits such as Forgotten Town, Ideal World, Born Again, Harvest for the World, What’s in a Word and more, fronted by lead singer Garry Christian.

Sun 07 Feb JOHN GRANT

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 19:30–22:30, FROM £22

The American singer/songwriter (and onetime The Czars frontman) heads to Manchester in support of his third album, Grey Tickles, Black Pressure. TOGETHER PANGEA

STUDIO 2, 19:00–23:30, £8

LA-based rock troupe out airing their new EP The Phage. THE STONE FOXES (BITE THE BUFFALO + RIVAL BONES)

MAGUIRE’S PIZZA BAR, 20:00–22:30, £7

San Francisco outfit led by the brothers Koehler, channelling the wild energy of classic blues rock and Stateside juke joints.

Mon 08 Feb PAVEL HAAS QUARTET

ST GEORGE’S HALL, 19:30–22:30, £25

A night of American and Czech music performed by the threetime Gramaphone award-winning Pavel Haas Quartet.

Tue 09 Feb ELIZA AND THE BEAR

STUDIO 2, 19:00–23:30, £10

Five piece euphoric indie pop/ rock lot hailing from London and featuring neither Eliza, nor indeed a bear.

Wed 10 Feb

PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING

O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £20

Experimental duo made up of J. Willgood Esq and his drumming companion Wrigglesworth, sampling old public information films and archive material and setting them to new music. GORDIE MACKEEMAN AND HIS RHYTHM BOYS

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC MUSIC ROOM, 20:00–22:30, £14

The Prince Edward Island group serve up old-time roots music.

Thu 11 Feb

GRAHAM BONNET BAND (EVYLTYDE) O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £16

The former Rainbow and Alcatrazz frontman returns with a new band and material.

Manic Street Preachers

Echo Arena, Liverpool, Fri 13 May, 6.30pm, £35

Fri 12 Feb HOWARD JONES

EPSTEIN THEATRE, 19:30–22:30, £22.50

The synth-pop master draws on his back catalogue, including renowned albums Human’s Lib and Dream Into Action. MONEY

LEAF, 20:00–23:00, £10

The Manchester outfit, signed to Bella Union, take to the road for a UK and European tour in support of second LP Suicide Songs. WILLIE AND THE BANDITS

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC MUSIC ROOM, 20:00–22:30, £12

Genre-spanning British ensemble mixing genres of blues, rock, Latin and folk.

Sat 13 Feb

SIXTIES’ VALENTINE: LOVE SONGS FROM THE 60S (LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA)

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 19:30–22:30, FROM £18

Conductor David Firman takes us on a romantic trip down memory lane, with a team a team of West End stars performing love hits from the 60s. Matinee performance also available. SALTWATER INJECTION (SWEET DEALS ON SURGERY + SWEET BEGGAR)

MAGUIRE’S PIZZA BAR, 20:00–22:30, TBC

Thrash punk duo whose motto is ‘Life ain’t new, punk is you, spunk on me, I’ll spunk on you!’.

Sun 14 Feb

THE WOODLAND SOCIAL (WILD ROSSA AND THE ‘88 + BEIJA FLO + OYA PAYA + MARYAN) THE BALTIC SOCIAL, 21:00–01:00, FREE

An evening of live music headlined by Wild Rossa and The ‘88, ahead of their brand new EP release.

Fri 19 Feb

LA MER (LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA)

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 19:30–22:30, FROM £14

The Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra perform Debussy’s iconic piece, along with a world premiere of Six Lancashire Folksong Settings. THE CROOKES

STUDIO 2, 19:00–23:45, £8

Jangly guitar-led pop outfit from Sheffield, who take to the stage in support of latest LP Lucky Ones. WILL VARLEY

BUYERS CLUB, 19:30–22:30, £8

The rambling folk singer, who walked over 500 miles along England’s south coast with a guitar on his back, heads back out on the road for a series of new dates.

Sat 20 Feb WALK THE MOON

O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £16

The Cincinnati lyrical indie lot come to the UK to cheer us all with their upbeat anthems. LIVERPOOL ROCKS: BATTLE OF THE BANDS

O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £5

O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £12

Elimination style competition for local up-and-comers, with a spot on the Liverpool Sound City line-up up for grabs.

JOHANN STRAUSS GALA

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 19:30–22:30, FROM £24.50

LITTLE COMETS (HIPPO CAMPUS)

Kitchen sink-styled indie-rock quartet led by the dynamic Robert Coles. LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 14:30–16:45, FROM £17

The Johann Strauss dancers and orchestra return with a brand new show on Valentine’s Day. ESTHER YOO

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC MUSIC ROOM, 20:00–22:30, £15

Join BBC Radio 3 New Generation artist Esther Yoo for a Valentine’s evening of romantic violin music.

GILBERT O’SULLIVAN

The UK and US chart topper performs a Latin-infused live show backed by a ten-piece band, in support of his new album. CATTLE AND CANE

STUDIO 2, 19:00–23:45, £6

Life-affirming indie-folk from the Teeside five-piece, made up of members of the prodigious Hamill family, plus Tom Chapman on drums.

THE SKINNY

LOOSE ENDS LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC MUSIC ROOM, 19:30–22:30, £20

A group renowned for being the first British band to ever top the US Billboard R’n’B charts.

Sun 21 Feb

FAMILY CLASSICS (LIVERPOOL, PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA, VASILY PETRENKO)

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 14:30–15:30, FROM £7

Family concert aiming to introduce younger music fans to the world of symphony orchestra, featuring works such as Ravel’s Mother Goose.

SUDESHNA BHATTACHARYA (KOUSIC SEN) THE CAPSTONE, 13:00–15:00, FREE

An afternoon of Indian music celebrating the influence of Indian music on the jazz genre. Part of Liverpool International Jazz Festival. PAN JUMBY

THE CAPSTONE, 15:00–16:00, FREE

A free concert of modern calypso, Caribbean, rumba and cha cha in The Capstone foyer for Liverpool International Jazz Festival. ARTEPHIS

THE CAPSTONE, 17:00–18:00, FREE

Mon 22 Feb

Five Manchester musicians in their early 20s perform in The Capstone foyer as part of Liverpool International Jazz Festival.

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC MUSIC ROOM, 20:00–22:30, £15

THE CAPSTONE, 18:00–19:00, FREE

MIHKEL KEREM

Embark on a musical trip to Estonia with one of the newest members of the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

Tue 23 Feb ANTON AND ERIN

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 19:30–22:30, FROM £26.50

A night of spangle, forced smiles and ballroom dancing from the well-known duo.

Thu 25 Feb PASCAL SCHUMACHER

THE CAPSTONE, 19:30–22:30, £11.50

The theatrical and genre-hopping vibraphonist and composer heads to the city as part of Liverpool International Jazz Festival. MAGICAL MOZART (LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA)

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 19:30–22:30, FROM £14

Join the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra as they take you through the works of some of history’s most famous composers: Mozart, Beethoven and Brahms. RYLEY WALKER AND DANNY THOMPSON (DANNY THOMPSON)

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC MUSIC ROOM, 20:00–22:30, £16

GRAEME WILSON QUARTET

Grame Wilson leads on tenor saxophone for a free concert in The Capstone foyer as part of Liverpool International Jazz Festival. COURTNEY PINE (ZOE RAHMAN)

THE CAPSTONE, 19:30–22:30, £11.50

One of the first black British jazz artists to rise to the top. Part of Liverpool International Jazz Festival. FLOWERS

LEAF, 20:00–23:00, £6

The Fortuna POP!-signed trio return with their second LP Everybody’s Dying to Meet You. WET WET WET

ECHO ARENA, 19:30–22:00, £42.50 - £48

Scotland’s soft-rock favourites, famous for their connections with Hugh Grant’s particularly floppyhaired era, take to the road with The Big Picture Tour. CAST (LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA)

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 19:30–22:30, FROM £25

Liverpool band Cast celebrate 20 years since the release of their album All Change, backed by the city’s Philharmonic Orchestra.

THORNE HILL (GARY QUINN + LUKE AND MEL + JEANNINE BARRY)

Singer-songwriter Ryley Walker is joined by double bassist Danny Thompson, who has previously performed with the likes of Bert Jansch, Tim Buckley, Nick Drake and John Martyn.

The country singer launches his debut album, No More Holding Back.

Fri 26 Feb

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC MUSIC ROOM, 20:00–22:30, £12

HEAVY PEANUT AND THE ROVING DUDES (WHO BROUGHT THE BEAR + WASTED LIGHTS + WRAITH)

O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £6

Birkenhead’s self-titled ‘neofunk-punk wizards’ embark on their farewell tour. PHILIP CATHERINE QUARTET

THE CAPSTONE, 19:30–22:30, £11.50

Having been at the forefront of the European jazz scene since the 1960s, the London-born guitarist performs as part of Liverpool International Jazz Festival. THE CLASSIC ROCK SHOW

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 19:30–22:30, FROM £22.50

The Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra work their way through the 20 greatest guitar riffs of all time. BREABACH

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC MUSIC ROOM, 20:00–22:30, £15

Award-winning Scottish fivepiece contemporary folk.

Sat 27 Feb RUDIMENTAL

O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £SOLD OUT

The Hackney-based quartet hit the road armed with their newest LP, blending drum and bass with soul-drenched lyrics along the way. JACK SAVORETTI

O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £SOLD OUT

The Italian-English solo acoustic singer plays a set accompanied by his trusty guitar. FAIRPORT CONVENTION

CAMP AND FURNACE, 19:30–23:00, £20

The longtime British folk-rockers draw on classic songs old and new, on the go now for nearly 50 years.

STUDIO 2, 19:00–23:30, £7

ROB HERON AND THE TEA PAD ORCHESTRA

Western swing, blues, gypsy jazz and country from the Newcastlebased band.

Sun 28 Feb JACK SAVORETTI

O2 ACADEMY, FROM 19:00, £17.50

Manchester Clubs Tue 02 Feb PSYCHEDELIC DISCO

ANTWERP MANSION, 22:00–03:00, £4 - £8

A huge midweek party to throw Manchester’s students out of exam mode and into bright lights, live art, street food and more. BAILA BALAERICA

SOUTH, 23:00–04:00, £3 - £5

One of Bristol’s leading tenor and soprano saxophonists plays as part of Liverpool International Jazz Festival. SOUND THE TRUMPET (LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA)

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL, 14:30–16:30, FROM £14

Norwegian trumpeter Tine Thing Helseth leads the way with Wagner’s Siegfried Idyll, Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto and Brahms’ Symphony No. 4.

Sat 06 Feb REMAKE REMODEL

THE RUBY LOUNGE, 23:00–03:00, £5

WEN B2B WALTON

SOUTH, 23:00–05:00, £5 - £8

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 22:00–03:00, £4.50 - £6

Fri 12 Feb

JUICY

JOSHUA BROOKS, 23:00–03:00, £1.50 - £3

All party, no bullshit night of everything from classic hip-hop to disco and funk.

Thu 04 Feb STUART RICHARDS

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NWS, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

High Jinx resident Stuart Richards brings his trademark style to the bar, offering a night of disco, funk and house. JACOB COID

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NQ, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

Everything from Dylan to Dre, the Strokes to Snoop, Bowie to the Beastie Boys - and everything in between. WEST FREE PARTY

SOUTH, 23:00–04:00, FREE - £2

Join West at South (a concept in itself, surely) for a free party this Feburary.

Fri 05 Feb STUART RICHARDS

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NQ, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

High Jinx resident Stuart Richards brings his trademark style to the bar, offering a night of disco, funk and house. INSIDE OUT (LINKWOOD)

THE WHISKEY JAR, 22:00–04:00, £10

Inside Out take up a fleeting residence at the Whiskey Jar, with Linkwood of Scottish label Firecracker Recordings in tow for everything from deep authentic modern boogie to deep, ambient house. THE DOG HOUSE

THE RUBY LOUNGE, 23:00–04:00, £4 BEFORE MIDNIGHT (£5 AFTER)

Alternative rock and metal night.

ILLUMINAUGHTY 10TH BIRTHDAY (ASTRIX + NEELIX + DELTA HEAVY + KRAFTY KUTS)

Illuminaughty make a nostalgic return to The Ritz to mark a decade in the game. BAND ON THE WALL, 23:00–03:00, £6

With Greg Thorpe (Drunk At Vogue / Off The Hook) behind the decks, expect a night of performances by Stefan Fae, Marilyn Misandry, Joshua Hubbard, Dragapella and Cheryl Martin, plus guest host Grace Oni Smith. Expect sheer, spectacular fun.

LOBSTER BOY (REDLIGHT + MAK AND PASTEMAN + MELLA DEE + NEW YORK TRANSIT AUTHORITY)

ANTWERP MANSION, 22:00–04:00, £8 - £15

The Lobster Boy tour stops off in Manchester. JACOB COID

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NWS, 23:00–03:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

Everything from Dylan to Dre, the Strokes to Snoop, Bowie to the Beastie Boys - and everything in between. TRANSMISSION FUNK PRESENTS LIVITY SOUND (PEVERELIST + KOWTOWN + TESSELA + HODGE + ALEX COULTON)

HIDDEN, 22:00–04:00, £10 - £12.50

Livity Sound showcase featuring a B2B sets along with Transmission Funk residents, Project 13 DJs and Flow Motion Duo supporting. STANTON SESSIONS (STANTON WARRIORS + CAUSE AND AFFECT + TAIKI NULIGHT)

SANKEYS, 23:00–05:00, £8 - £12

The West Country favourites join Sankeys for a night of big bass sounds.

February 2016

Two rooms packed with house and reggae clubbing potential.

Wed 03 Feb

QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: A QUEER REVUE!

THE CAPSTONE, 19:30–22:30, £11.50

The 50WEAPONS and Mister Saturday Night favourites are joined by London-based production trio Dark Sky.

A night of alternative rock’n’roll shenanigans.

THE CAPSTONE, 13:00–16:00, FREE

ANDY SHEPPARD’S HOTEL BRISTOL

SOUTH, 22:00–04:00, £5 - £8

SOUP KITCHEN, 23:00–03:00, £7.50

Bunk and Untitled present a b2b session from underground and bass DJs Wen and Walton.

O2 RITZ MANCHESTER, 21:00–05:00, £17 - £27.50

A showcase featuring sets from three Liverpool-based bads, as part of Liverpool International Jazz Festival.

BROOKLYN AND BEYOND (DARK SKY + HIDDEN SPHERES)

New club night covering danceworthy disco, hip-hop, bass and more.

The Italian-English solo acoustic singer plays a set accompanied by his trusty guitar.

LIVERPOOL JAZZ SHOWCASE (VIKTOR NORDBERG TRIO + GINGER TUNES QUARTET + THE WEAVE)

BERMUDA: THE AWAKENING (HOTT LIKE DETROIT + RICKIE RH + DUBZY + PABLO)

GIRLS ON FILM

Pink lady cocktails, disco balls, glitz and glamour a club night where you’re free to let your inner 80s child loose.

SO SOLID CREW (LISA MAFIA + ROMEO)

ANTWERP MANSION, 22:00–03:00, £4 - £12

SOUTH, 22:00–04:00, £5 - £7

Heavyweights of classic UK garage, no doubt playing to a sell-out audience this February.

MR SCRUFF KEEP IT UNREAL

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NQ, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

CLINT BOON’S DISCO RESCUE

Mixed-bag night from local DJ ledge Clint Boon. BAND ON THE WALL, 22:00–03:00, £12

Keep it Unreal with Mr Scruff at the controls all night long. GILLES PETERSON

HIDDEN, 22:00–04:00, £12 - £18

The Banana Hill boys bring the clubbing stalwart to Manchester’s favourite new venue, along with Cooly G, DJ Marfox and others. STUART RICHARDS

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NWS, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

High Jinx resident Stuart Richards brings his trademark style to the bar, offering a night of disco, funk and house. DJ EZ

ALBERT HALL, 21:00–04:00, FROM £20

One of the greatest garage DJs ever drops in for an all killer no filler set. SANKEYS SATURDAYS (EJECA + BONTAN + WADE + JACKY)

SANKEYS, 23:00–05:00, £1 - £12

Saturdays at Sankeys always means some of the biggest DJs around dropping to the longrunning club for a spin. KALUKI PRESENTS SKREAM

GORILLA, 23:00–04:00, £12 - £15

Manchester-based Kaluki bring Croydon dubstep trailblazer Skream to Gorilla.

RUM & BASS 3RD BIRTHDAY (BLONDE + KINYUME + TMAN) ANTWERP MANSION, 22:00–03:00, £4 - £12

Manchester’s well-loved party celebrates three years in the game, joined by headlining house duo Blonde. TIM WRIGHT

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NQ, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

Feel-good music via the avenues of house, garage, hip-hop, R ‘n’ B, funk, disco, soul and pop. THIRDEYE FREE PARTY (FREEMAN + FARRELLY)

JOSHUA BROOKS, 23:00–04:00, FREE - £7

Joshua Brooks take you back to where it all began with a free party. Though it’s not free after 11.300pm, FYI.

Wed 10 Feb JUICY

JOSHUA BROOKS, 23:00–03:00, £1.50 - £3

All party, no bullshit night of everything from classic hip-hop to disco and funk. MISCHIEF

SOUTH, 22:00–03:00, £4 - £5

Mischief return to South along with resident DJ Jamie Hartley.

Thu 11 Feb STUART RICHARDS

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NWS, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

High Jinx resident Stuart Richards brings his trademark style to the bar, offering a night of disco, funk and house. WORRIED ABOUT HENRY (FAZE MIYAKE + TERROR DANJAH + CHIMPO)

ANTWERP MANSION, 22:00–03:00, £3 - £7

Liverpool’s multi-genre bass night Worried About Henry take a stab at Manchester. JACOB COID

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NQ, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

Everything from Dylan to Dre, the Strokes to Snoop, Bowie to the Beastie Boys - and everything in between.

STUART RICHARDS

High Jinx resident Stuart Richards brings his trademark style to the bar, offering a night of disco, funk and house.

TRIBAL SESSIONS (DOORLY + LEE WALKER + JOZEF K + MICHAEL BIBI)

SANKEYS, 23:00–06:00, £8 - £12

The legendary Tribal Sessions return for another season of internationally acclaimed DJs and late night parties. THIRDEYE (RAFFA FL + DI CHIARA BROTHERS + RICH WAKLEY)

SOUTH, 23:00–05:00, £8 - £12

ThirdEye presents man of the moment Raffa FL, who plays a b2b set with Di Chiara Brothers after they sold out their Manchester show last year. CARAMELLO LAUNCH PARTY (AL KENT)

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 22:00–03:00, £5

Nottingham night Caramello bring the D-I-S-C-O through funk, grooves and good times, with a set from Million Dollar Disco’s Al Kent. LTJ BUKEM (MC FOX + JIM BANE + ARCATYPE)

BAND ON THE WALL, 23:00–03:00, £12.50

Early drum ‘n’ bass innovator who found the limelight in the 1990s rave scene. ANTI-VALENTINE’S KARAOKE PARTY

KOSMONAUT, 20:30–02:00, FREE

Take it back to the old school and belt out some classic ‘90s hip hop and R’n’B lurve songs (sweet serenades like The Thong Song, Bump n’ Grind and such), with a karaoke party hosted by Radio X’s Hattie Pearson. JACOB COID

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NWS, 23:00–03:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

Everything from Dylan to Dre, the Strokes to Snoop, Bowie to the Beastie Boys - and everything in between. BRIAN BRAINSTORM (VERDIKT)

JOSHUA BROOKS, 23:00–04:00, £4 - £6

Sub-Woofah ships Germany’s Brian Brainstorm in from Cologne for a UK exclusive. LOST IN SPACE VALENTINE’S PARTY (FLOATING POINTS + ADESSE VERSIONS) HIDDEN, 22:00–04:00, £12.50 - £20

Start the Valentine’s weekend lost not in the eyes of your lover, but in space with a four-hour set from UK-based DJ, producer and musician, Floating Points.

Sat 13 Feb GIRLS ON FILM

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 22:00–03:00, £4.50 - £6

STUART RICHARDS

ELECTRIC JUG

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NWS, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

High Jinx resident Stuart Richards brings his trademark style to the bar, offering a night of disco, funk and house. BREAK STUFF

THE RUBY LOUNGE, 23:00–03:00, £3

Playing exactly the sort of music you’d expect from a night named after a Limp Bizkit song.

HESSLE AUDIO (BEN UFO + PANGAEA + PEARSON SOUND) SOUP KITCHEN, 23:00–04:00, £SOLD OUT

The Hessle Audio crew drop in for a formidable night. CRASH THE WEDDING

JOSHUA BROOKS, 22:00–03:30, £4 - £5

Where the DJ is set to wedding reception tunes every. Single. Night.

SANKEYS SATURDAYS (DAN GHENACIA + CHRIS CARRIER + CAB DRIVERS + ELECTRONIQUE )

SANKEYS, 23:00–05:00, £1 - £12

Saturdays at Sankeys always means some of the biggest DJs around dropping to the longrunning club for a spin.

HIDDENEVENTS X MVSON (NONPLUS + BODDIKA) HIDDEN, 22:00–04:00, £8 - £15

Hidden continues to prove its worth alongside Manchester’s own MVSON Collective.

OH BACCHANAL (DR C + DJ CANDJA + FARO) BAND ON THE WALL, 23:00–03:00, £6

Vibes-heavy carnival spanning bashment, Trinidad carnival anthems and such. REGRESSION SESSIONS VALENTINE’S SPECIAL

ANTWERP MANSION, 22:00–03:00, £5 - £15

Antwerp is transformed into a mansion of lurve, complete with a bouncy castle, speed dating and a giant game of spin the bottle. TIM WRIGHT

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NQ, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

Feel-good music via the avenues of house, garage, hip-hop, R ‘n’ B, funk, disco, soul and pop.

TRAILER TRASH VALENTINES (SEAN P + ROB BRIGHT + CAUSA + PETE MANGALORE + PADDY STEER + TRAILER TRASH DJS)

Serving up the best of the 60s, ranging from psych and rock ‘n’ roll to britpop and soul. JACOB COID

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NWS, 23:00–03:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

Everything from Dylan to Dre, the Strokes to Snoop, Bowie to the Beastie Boys - and everything in between. KONOBA DUB VS ALIVE & STEPPIN

JOSHUA BROOKS, 22:00–04:00, £8 - £10

Bass specialists Konoba Dub and Alive & Steppin team up - or go head-to-head - for a night in the Joshua Brooks basement. PROJECT 13 (ANDY STOTT + RANDOMER + SOURCE DIRECT)

HIDDEN, 23:00–04:00, £13 - £15

The Manchester-based dub and techno producer plays live alongside London’s Randomer and drum ‘n’ bass heavyweight Source Direct. BIG NARSTIE (DJ Q + AMY BECKER)

SANKEYS, 23:00–05:00, £1 - £10

Sankeys continue their bass and grime series with one of the biggest names in the UK grime scene. CALYX AND TEEBEE

SOUTH, 23:00–04:00, £8 - £10

The two artists play a six-deck, 90-minute set accompanied by MC LX One.

Sat 20 Feb CHASE AND STATUS

ALBERT HALL, 23:00–04:00, FROM £20

Manc DJ duo and dance music’s hot property, effortlessly marrying liquid funk with rich ragga sounds, much to many a clubber’s delight. GIRLS ON FILM

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 22:00–03:00, £4.50 - £6

Pink lady cocktails, disco balls, glitz and glamour a club night where you’re free to let your inner 80s child loose. CLINT BOON’S DISCO RESCUE

SOUTH, 22:00–04:00, £5 - £7

Mixed-bag night from local DJ ledge Clint Boon. HOWLING RHYTHM

THE RUBY LOUNGE, 23:00–03:00, £5

A benefit for Community Refugee Kitchen, Calais.

The 60s soul and Motown-centric night returns for another outing, serving up even more Northern soul and funk courtesy of the Howling Rhythm residents.

Wed 17 Feb

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NWS, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

ISLINGTON MILL, 22:00–06:00, £7

JUICY

JOSHUA BROOKS, 23:00–03:00, £1.50 - £3

All party, no bullshit night of everything from classic hip-hop to disco and funk.

Thu 18 Feb STUART RICHARDS

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NWS, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

High Jinx resident Stuart Richards brings his trademark style to the bar, offering a night of disco, funk and house. JACOB COID

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NQ, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

Everything from Dylan to Dre, the Strokes to Snoop, Bowie to the Beastie Boys - and everything in between. BRAZIL 2 BOLLYWOOD (YADAVA + KENZ AND DOBSON )

SOUP KITCHEN, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Celebrate a bevvy of different cultures and rhythms, with So Flute co-founder Tadava and others spinning music of the Americas, Africa and Asia.

Fri 19 Feb EROL ALKAN

SOUP KITCHEN, 23:00–04:00, £5 - £10

STUART RICHARDS

High Jinx resident Stuart Richards brings his trademark style to the bar, offering a night of disco, funk and house. SANKEYS SATURDAYS (SHONKY + RYAN ELLIOT + EVAN BAGGS)

SANKEYS, 23:00–05:00, £1 - £12

Saturdays at Sankeys always means some of the biggest DJs around dropping to the longrunning club for a spin. CORPORATION POP

KOSMONAUT, 21:00–04:00, FREE

Kosmonaut’s basement becomes a cavern of all things pop (guilty, noise, punk and otherwise) - from Destiny’s Child, Taylor Swift and Mel C to Sex Hands, Joanna Gruesome and Trust Fund. TIM WRIGHT

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NQ, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

Feel-good music via the avenues of&nbsp;house, garage, hip-hop, R ‘n’ B, funk, disco, soul and pop. ION LUDWIG

JOSHUA BROOKS, 23:00–04:00, £7 - £10

A live set of soulful house and techno from the Berlin-based producer.

KEEPING IT GRIMY (LOGAN SAMA + NEWHAM GENERALS + P MONEY)

ANTWERP MANSION, 22:00–03:00, £6 - £12

SOUTH, 22:00–04:00, £5 - £7

The Trash founder, Bugged Out resident and all-round DJ extraordinaire takes control for the evening, well-kent for his tight productions and damn good remixes.

ANTICS (TELEGRAM + MAN MADE)

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NQ, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

ARTFUL DODGER AND SO SOLID CREW

Pink lady cocktails, disco balls, glitz and glamour &ndash; a club night where you’re free to let your inner 80s child loose. CLINT BOON’S DISCO RESCUE

Mixed-bag night from local DJ ledge Clint Boon.

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 20:00–23:00, £3

Cult indie, electronica, psychedelia, retro anthems and more from the Antics residents and guest DJs.

STUART RICHARDS

High Jinx resident Stuart Richards brings his trademark style to the bar, offering a night of disco, funk and house. WHAT HANNAH WANTS

ALBERT HALL, 21:00–04:00, £18.50

The up-and-coming female house producer takes to Albert Hall, following a spate of sell-out tours and events.

Rum & Bass hosts the Manchester leg of Logan Sama’s Keeping it Grimy tour.

Tue 23 Feb

SANKEYS, 22:00–04:00, £1 - £6

Sankeys welcomes the ultimate garage heavyweights to launch their monthly Student Sessions and for a heady dose of nostalgia for anyone who fancied themselves as a bit of a yout back in the day.

Wed 24 Feb JUICY

JOSHUA BROOKS, 23:00–03:00, £1.50 - £3

All party, no bullshit night of everything from classic hip-hop to disco and funk.

Thu 25 Feb STUART RICHARDS

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NWS, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

High Jinx resident Stuart Richards brings his trademark style to the bar, offering a night of disco, funk and house. JACOB COID

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NQ, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

Everything from Dylan to Dre, the Strokes to Snoop, Bowie to the Beastie Boys - and everything in between. 20 YEARS OF RAINY CITY MUSIC (MOTOR CITY DRUM ENSEMBLE) GORILLA, 23:00–04:00, £10

German artist Motor City Drum Ensemble helps underground deep house bods Community celebrate 20 years of Rainy City Music.

Fri 26 Feb UPTOWN

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

The best in disco, funk, boogie and party classics. KALUKI PRESENTS DARIUS SYROSSIAN (DARIUS SYROSSIAN)

GORILLA, 23:00–04:00, £12 - £15

Manchester’s Kaluki Musik returns to Gorilla, this time with a bill headlined by Darius Syrossian. PACEMAKER

NIGHT AND DAY CAFE, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Rock ‘n’ roll club night playing all the usual staples. STUART RICHARDS

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NQ, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

High Jinx resident Stuart Richards brings his trademark style to the bar, offering a night of disco, funk and house. HIDDENEVENTS (HARRI AND DOMENIC + DIXON AVENUE BASEMENT JAMS + KRYSKO)

HIDDEN, 22:00–04:00, £10 - £13

Glaswegian DJ and producer Jasper James tops another hefty bill from the Hidden stable, where he’s joined by the Subculture resident duo - one half of which being his old man. KALUKI

ALBERT HALL, 23:00–04:00, FROM £25

Manchester’s Kaluki Musik returns to Gorilla with co-headliners Joris Voorn and Eats Everything, plus Darius Syrossian, Pirate Copy and Pete Zorba. GESAMTKUNSTWERK18

ISLINGTON MILL, 22:00–06:00, £5

Eight hours, four DJs, four decks, no mercy. So underground it’s a corpse. JACOB COID

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NWS, 23:00–03:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

Everything from Dylan to Dre, the Strokes to Snoop, Bowie to the Beastie Boys - and everything in between. MAKAM (ZUTEKH + SULPHO)

JOSHUA BROOKS, 23:00–04:00, £8 - £10

Modus return to Joshua Brooks in tow with Dekmantal resident Makam.

ROBERT DIETZ + DETLEF + SYSTEM2 + LUKE WELSH SANKEYS, 23:00–05:00, £1 - £12

See the week out with another Friday sessions from Sankeys.

LIVE WIRE X MUTE (DENNEY + JEY KURMIS)

SOUTH, 23:00–05:00, £8 - £15

Mute celebrate their 5th birthday with a collab night alongside Live Wire, featuring a b2b all-nightlong set from Denney and Jey Kurmis. TOYBOY AND ROBIN PRESENTS (ALEX ADAIR)

ANTWERP MANSION, 22:00–03:00, £5 - £10

The boys host a homecoming gig following success at Rise Festival.

Sat 27 Feb GIRLS ON FILM

THE DEAF INSTITUTE, 22:00–03:00, £4.50 - £6

Pink lady cocktails, disco balls, glitz and glamour a club night where you’re free to let your inner 80s child loose.

Listings

CLINT BOON’S DISCO RESCUE SOUTH, 22:00–04:00, £5 - £7

Mixed-bag night from local DJ ledge Clint Boon. STUART RICHARDS

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NWS, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

High Jinx resident Stuart Richards brings his trademark style to the bar, offering a night of disco, funk and house.

CRAIG CHARLES FUNK ‘N’ SOUL CLUB

BAND ON THE WALL, 21:00–03:00, £16

DJ and actor Craig Charles will be manning the decks until 3am, playing his picks of funk and soul, with an array of guest spinners and live acts joining him.

CLUB BIG MUFF (FALSE ADVERTISING DJ SET + FRUIT BOMB (SINGLE LAUNCH) + LOST DAWN + MEDICS )

FALLOW CAFE, 20:00–02:00, FREE

Second instalment of new night Club Big Muff, featuring a DJ set from False Advertising and single launch from Fruit Bomb. TIM WRIGHT

BLACK DOG BALLROOM NQ, 22:00–04:00, FREE BEFORE 11PM

Feel-good music via the avenues of house, garage, hip-hop, R ‘n’ B, funk, disco, soul and pop. THE REDLIGHT (DJ SKT + MATT JAM LAMONT + ATYK)

SANKEYS, 23:00–05:00, £1 - £12

The Redlight Manchester residency continues, this time enlisting the skills of DJ SKT as headlier.

Liverpool Clubs

Thu 18 Feb

BEGINNINGS ONE

Fri 19 Feb

TBC, 22:00–04:00, £7.50 - £20

Club stalwarts Abandon Silence kick off 2016 with a hefty line-up, featuring crowd favourite Joy Orbison and Amsterdam-based Hunee, plus guests Denis Sulta, Andrew Hill, Harry Sheehan and Owain Gwyn. PIXEL80ED

BUYERS CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

A trip down ‘80s memory lane with retro tunes, big hair, fire breathing and neon, paying homage to one of history’s most ridiculous and beloved decades. RAW: SPACE 003

WILLIAMSON TUNNELS, 22:00–04:00, £SOLD OUT

An intimate underground rave housed in the Williamson Tunnels. ELEVATED

THE GARAGE, 22:00–06:00, £13 - £15

EDM, electro and tech house from Mr Belt and Wezol, Bougenvilla and others.

Sat 06 Feb

CHIBUKU SHAKE SHAKE

ARTS CLUB, 22:00–04:00, £18 - £20

Chibuku returns with a program of internationally renowned guests. HUSTLE (PHIL WEEKS)

THE MAGNET , 22:00–07:00, £8 - £14

Liverpool Clubs Tue 02 Feb LOST 1ST BIRTHDAY

THE MAGNET , 23:15–05:00, £4 - £5

Enjoy another Tuesday melting pot of house, techno, disco and garage, as Lost returns to The Magnet to celebrate a special landmark.

Wed 03 Feb

MELÉ’S MANOR (ARTWORK)

THE SHIPPING FORECAST, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £10

The night returns for its third bash, following two sell-out events last autumn.

Thu 04 Feb UNBOUND

BUYERS CLUB, 22:00–03:00, £3

A night of jazz, soul, afrobeat and tribal face-painting, with sets from Matthew Brundel, Sam, Josh Aitman, James Zaremba, Andrew Hill and more to be announced. GOLD TEETH: BEYONCE SPECIAL

ARTS CLUB, 23:00–04:00, £3 - £5

Unleash your inner diva as classic hip hop and R’n’B night Gold Teeth salutes Queen Bey.

The latest Hustle fun with another stellar line-up of selectors. ANDREW WEATHERALL

WILLIAMSON TUNNELS, 21:00–04:00, £SOLD OUT

303 throw their first party of 2016, starting things off with a bona fide bang thanks to headliner Andrew Weatherall, who plays a seven-hour set. MEINE NACHT

TBC, 21:00–02:00, £8 - £9

Kornel Kovacs and Fritz Wentink headline in a yet-to-be-revealed old police station just outside the city centre. MODULAR (MARGARET DYGAS + SCOTT GRANT + NERRAM)

BUYERS CLUB, 22:00–04:00, £12 - £15

The Modular team enjoy their first event of 2016, with special guest Margaret Dygas playing an extended set.

15 YEARS OF DISPATCH RECORDINGS CONSTELLATIONS, 22:00–04:00, £7 - £10

Worried About Henry, Sessions Faction and Sleep Less Records team up to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the drum ‘n’ bass label. FUN HOUSE

CIRCO, 21:00–04:00, FREE

A night of circus tricks to a house and classics soundtrack.

Thu 11 Feb MEDICATION

ARTS CLUB, 23:00–04:00, £6

ORIGINS

24 KITCHEN STREET, 22:00–05:00, £1 - £5

Underground house and techno set to an old school lighting concept. TRIBE (TOM PAGE + GED LEVER + BOB GUEST + THOMAS WOLF)

DISTRICT, 22:00–04:00, £3 - £5

Pounding house and techno for the party animals of Liverpool. BEGINNINGS TWO

TBC, 22:00–04:00, £7.50 - £20

Abandon Silence continue their promising streak for 2016, welcoming glitchy electronic duo Mount Kimbie to lead the party, with more to be announced.

STATK MEETS IDEAL JUICE (DJEBALI + REDA DARE) 24 KITCHEN STREET, 23:00–04:00, £7 - £12

The two clubnights join forces, bringing Circoloco favourite Djebali and Reda Dare into the mix.

Sat 20 Feb

BOMBSTRIKES BLOCK PARTY (UTAH SAINTS + FEATURECAST + MOOQEE)

24 KITCHEN STREET, 22:00–04:00, £6 - £10

Everything from glitch, drum ‘n’ bass and jungle to hip hop, bass and breakbeats. HIP HOP KARAOKE PARTY

THE SHIPPING FORECAST, 21:00–00:00, FREE

Channel your inner Snoop and get your G thang on, with this karaoke party for the hip hop heads. JAMIE TRENCH (JAMES MORGAN + JIMMY ALLEN + JAY MURT + OR:LA)

THE MAGNET , 23:00–06:00, FREE

UK house producer with releases on Tsuba, Viva Music, Kaluki, Music is Love and his own Roots for Bloom. TROMMEL (ALEX BAU)

DISTRICT, 22:00–04:00, £5 - £10

A night of truly underground techno, welcoming headliner Bavarian Alex Bau playing fourhour set. SIDETRACKED

ARTS CLUB, 23:00–04:00, £10

New house night with DJs Mark Armstrong, Jay Harvey and Mr Nicklaus.

Wed 24 Feb

JAMZ (SPOOKY + ELIJAH AND SKILLIAM)

24 KITCHEN STREET, 22:00–03:00, £7

Jamz returns to Liverpool for a night of grime, garage and bass.

Fri 26 Feb DJ SPEN

THE MAGNET , 22:00–06:00, FREE

Baltimore DJ plays, whose house and techno career dates back to the mid-80s. MOSAIC

THE SHIPPING FORECAST, 22:00–03:00, £4

The new club night launches with headliner Lauren Lo Sung.

SWEATBOX (DIMITRI VANGELIS AND WYMAN + JEWELZ AND SPARKS)

THE GARAGE, 22:00–06:00, £15 - £20

A salute to the world’s favourite Rastafarian with a night of reggae and rum punches.

Fri 12 Feb

Sweatbox return for their first night of 2016, promising more lights, lasers, video walls and more.

BUYERS CLUB, 22:00–04:00, £SOLD OUT

Fri 05 Feb

The North’s house and techno purveyors return to the city for the first time in three years, launching at their new home after huge success in Manchester and Leeds.

Sat 27 Feb

BOB MARLEY REGGAE PARTY

24 KITCHEN STREET, FROM 22:00, FREE- £5

MEDICATION

ARTS CLUB, 23:00–04:00, £6

MED settles in to its new home on Seel Street. KANAVAL DES ANIMAUX

LIVERPOOL GUILD OF STUDENTS, 21:00–03:00, £5 - £7

A night of tribal techno, house, ghetto, bass, hop hop, grime and jungle, with games, face and body painting and visuals from Ambionic Being.

RELEASE LIVERPOOL (THIRD PARTY + NEW_ID + COREY JAMES + WILL K + DENIZ KOYU) O2 ACADEMY, 22:00–03:00, £20

New club night from Release, which launched at the tail-end of last year.

MED settles in to its new home on Seel Street. SELECTIVE HEARING (BODDIKA)

MJ COLE

24 KITCHEN STREET, 23:00–04:00, £SOLD OUT

Celebrated as one of the trailblazers behind the UK’s famed garage scene.

Sat 13 Feb

RUBIX (EMERY WARMAN)

DISTRICT, 21:00–04:00, £5 - £10

Hungarian-born, London-based rising name in house and techno. VALENTINE’S DISCO BALL

THE MAGNET , 23:00–06:00, FREE

Soundtrack the&nbsp;Valentine’s weekend with the hip-wiggling, pelvis-thrusting power of disco, with Al Kent playing a special extended set. RANDALL AND GROOVERIDER

24 KITCHEN STREET, 22:00–04:00, £6 - £10

Key players of the drum ‘n’ bass and jungle scene, who roll into Liverpool for clubnight Worried About Henry.

LOST INHIBITIONS

CONSTELLATIONS, 18:00–04:00, £10 - £15

The first of five instalments of the new night, emanating a festival feeling with DJs, visuals and live acoustic sets on an outdoor garden stage. MELODIC DISTRACTION 1ST BIRTHDAY

WILLIAMSON TUNNELS, 22:00–03:00, £6 - £10

Melodic Distraction take over the Williamson Tunnels with jazzy house, sultry grooves and more to mark their first birthday.

Theatre Manchester

Contact Theatre QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: LIFE’S A DRAG

4–6 FEB, 7:00PM, £6 - £11

Artist Jez Dolan and writer Chris Hoyle present a new theatre show, as part of a year-long project exploring the history of drag in Mancheser. Loaded with sequins, feathers, lipstick and lights. QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: STUD

4–6 FEB, 9:30PM, £7 - £13

Solo show from Eilidh MacAskill, tackling her penis envy by adopting a series of manly stereotypes, while also working to attack gender binaries and masculinity from a queer female perspective. QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: KATE BORNSTEIN

5 FEB, 8:00PM – 10:00PM, £10 - £15

Tapping into her transgender life with wit, tenderness and her favourite spoken word pieces, the American author, playwright, performer and gender theorist ponders the idea of a not-man, not-woman identity in a world that demands we must be one or the other. QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: COMEDY PLAYGROUND

8 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:30PM, £7 - £13

Two hours of laughs as part of the always-brilliant Queer Contact Festival. QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: FADOUBLEGOT

9–11 FEB, 7:00PM – 12:00AM, £6 - £11

Courageous autobiographical theatre inspired by black LGBT experiences by Jamal Gerald, who focuses on finding a place where you shouldn’t have to shy away from celebrating your individuality. QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: OUTSPOKEN

9 FEB, 9:00PM, £6 - £9

Queer spoken word and literature showcase featuring Jackie Kay, Keith Jarrett, Paula Varjack, AJ McKenna, and host Adam Lowe, preceded by a workshop led by Kay earlier in the day, which is free to attend with your show ticket. QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: THE DAILY GRIND

9–11 FEB, 9:30PM, £6 - £11

A solo show by Laurie Brown exploring the complexities of love, sex and the internet in the age of dating apps, image sharing and instant communication.

QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: A PLACE CALLED HAPPINESS

10 FEB, 8:00PM, £7 - £13

Prepare to be uplifted with this new solo show from Debs Gatenby, who shares her tales from travelling the world after spending too long being fixated on ideas of happiness. QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: DANCING BEAR

11 FEB, 8:00PM, £7 - £13

Jamie Fletcher and Company present an evening of dance, live music, text and drag cabaret exploring personal integrity, social acceptance, spiritual peace and, at its core, how and who we should love. QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: MOTHER’S RUIN

12 FEB, 8:00PM, £8 - £12

Kicking off Queer Contact’s finale weekend, this loved-up special of Mother’s Ruin welcomes drag clown Mrs JonJo ‘demure as host, Anna Phylactic, Mzz Kimberley, punk poet Thick Richard, Newcastle’s Ginger Johnson and many more.

QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: FOR THE LOVE OF DRAG

15 FEB, 8:00PM, £7 - £12

With a lineup featuring names from across the UK, including Manchester’s own The Librarians and Grace Oni-Smith, this show celebrates traditional and alternative drag styles. QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: ONE MIC STAND

19 FEB, 7:00PM – 10:30PM, £4 - £7

A night of poetry, music and visual art from Young Identity Manchester, featuring a line-up of the city’s young spoken word elite.

Listings

HOME MACBETH

3–6 FEB, 7:30PM, £15 - £26.50

HOME welcomes its first Shakespeare play with a slick production from Carrie Cracknell and Lucy Guerin, which sees his famous supernatural tragedy brought to life with ambitious staging and unsettling choreography. Matinee performances also available. THE COUNTRY WIFE

4–6 FEB, 7:45PM, £6 - £10

William Wycherley’s sharp attack on social and sexual hypocrisy, greed and corruption, known for inciting both delight and scandal when first performed back in 1675. Matinee performances also available. THE BROKE ‘N’ BEAT COLLECTIVE

23-24 FEB, TIMES VARY, £7 - £13

20 Stories High and Theatre Rites combine forces for a night of hip hop, theatre and puppetry featuring beat-boxer Hobbit, B-boy Ryan Logistic Harston, singer and poet Elektric and puppeteer Mohsen Nouri. ENDGAME

25 FEB – 12 MAR, NOT 28 FEB, 29 FEB, 6 MAR, 7 MAR, 7:30PM, £15 - £26.50

Corrie’s Roy Cropper and Peter Barlow (aka David Neilson and Chris Gascoyne) star in Samuel Beckett’s absurd, macabre play about death and morality that seeks to find laughter in the darkness of life. Matinee performances also available.

International Anthony Burgess Foundation MEDEA

19–20 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £11.50 - £15

Crystallize Theatre present their latest production, a modern retelling of a classic Greek tragedy that hones in on a wife’s calculated desire for revenge against her unfaithful hubby.

Octagon Theatre TWO

21 JAN – 6 FEB, NOT SUNDAYS, TIMES VARY, FROM £10.50

A dark comedy about a local boozer with a cocktail of characters to get to grips with. Matinees also available. TWO 2

10–27 FEB, NOT SUNDAYS, 7:30PM, £10.50 - £27

The world premiere of the story that revisits the lives, loves and laughs of the regulars in Jim Cartwright’s Two, where a oncein-a-lifetime opportunity crops up for the struggling landlord and lady of the Northern boozer. Matinee performances available. THE BROKE ‘N’ BEAT COLLECTIVE

25-27 FEB, TIMES VARY, £3 - £10

Oldham Coliseum Theatre

THE PITMEN PAINTERS

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 5 FEB AND 27 FEB, 7:30PM, £13 - £21.50

A funny and moving tale based on a true story, following a group of ordinary mining men who became a working class phenomenon. Matinee performances also available.

Opera House CINDERELLA

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 5 DEC AND 3 FEB, 5:00PM – 8:00PM, FROM £11.900

Torvill and Dean star in the Opera House festive offering. You all know the story. Matinees available. CATS

30 JAN – 13 FEB, NOT 7 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, FROM £15

One of many musical sensations from Andrew Lloyd-Webber comes to the Opera House. Matinee performances also available.

GOODNIGHT MISTER TOM 23–27 FEB, 7:00PM – 9:30PM, £14.40 - £31.40

Known to most as a childhood reading list staple, the WWII-set story is now given the big stage treatment.

Palace Theatre Manchester MARY POPPINS

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 20 JAN AND 5 MAR, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, FROM £22.50

Liverpool Theatre

Liverpool Playhouse

Buyers Club

Stage adaptation of William Golding’s chilling tale about a group of schoolboys trapped on a desert island after a plane crash. As rescue looks increasingly unlikely, their behaviour becomes increasingly savage. Matinee performances also available.

LIPA SHORT PLAY FESTIVAL

20–21 FEB, 12:00PM – 3:00AM, TBC

A showcase of short plays, monologues, new writing and music from LIPA.

The magical story of the world’s favourite Nanny arriving on Cherry Tree Lane brought to the stage.

Constellations

Royal Exchange Theatre

Digital theatre merging puppetry, 3D video projection-mapping and live DJs.

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 21 JAN AND 13 FEB, 7:30PM – 9:30PM, £16

Everyman Theatre

WIT

A Pulitzer-prize winning play, Wit strikingly reflects on the frailty of existence and the complex relationship between knowledge and love. Matinees available. HUSBANDS & SONS

20 FEB – 19 MAR, NOT SUNDAYS, TIMES VARY, £8.50 - £29

A major new play starring the brilliant Anne-Marie Duff and Joe Armstrong, interweaving three of DH Lawrence’s greatest dramas to introduce us to his world of manual labour and working class pride. Matinee performances also available. THE SOLID LIFE OF SUGAR WATER

9–13 FEB, 7:30PM – 8:50PM, £10 - £12

The new play from award-winning Jack Thorne, taking us through the lives of characters Phil and Alice in a tender portrait of loss, hurt and recovery.

The King’s Arms FLESH

23 SEP, 29 SEP, 11 FEB, 12 FEB, 13 FEB, TIMES VARY, £7

Poetry, movement and music come together to tell the story of a confused twenty-something as she tried to forge a relationship with food, her body and her front door.

THE ARMY OF NOISE

17–18 FEB, 7:30PM – 12:00AM, £10

THE MASSIVE TRAGEDY OF MADAME BOVARY

5–27 FEB, NOT SUNDAYS, 7:30PM, £12 - £25

Gustave Flaubert’s seminal novel is brought to life by Peepolykus, who use a bijou cast to turn it into a comedic ride of mesmeric love scenes and handsome fellas set against Victorian patriarchal society. Matinee performances also available.

Liverpool Empire Theatre MATTHEW BOURNE’S SLEEPING BEAUTY

16–20 FEB, 7:30PM – 9:30PM, £10 £42.90

Matthew Bourne (y’know, he who is tirelessly reimagining just about every classic in theatrical existence) presents a re-telling of the classic fairytale, set to Tchaikovsky’s original score. Matinee performances also available.

LORD OF THE FLIES

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 1 DEC AND 6 FEB, 7:00PM – 9:30PM, £12.50 - £25

I AM NOT MYSELF THESE DAYS

2–6 FEB, 7:45PM – 9:00PM, £12 - £14

Set against a backdrop of 1990s New York excess, this one-man show written and performed by Tom Stuart details a double life working at an ad agency by day and drag queen by night. Matinee and early evening performances also available. I AM THOMAS

19–27 FEB, NOT SUNDAYS, 7:30PM – 9:30PM, £10 - £28

A comedy that’s seeping with black humour and songs, flitting between 17th-century Edinburgh and the present day to tell the tale of a man in the wrong place at the wrong time. Matinee and earlier performances available.

Royal Court Theatre

BRICK UP THE MERSEY TUNNELS

29 JAN – 5 MAR, NOT SUNDAYS, 8:00PM – 10:30PM, £13

Ten years after Ann Twacky first met Dickie Lewis, the Liverpool comedy returns for a 2016 run. Matinees also available.

Buy theatre tickets here: theskinny.co.uk/whats-on

SCRIPTS ALOUD

28 SEP, 22 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:30PM, £5

An evening of new short plays performed with script in hand. FRANCA

22 FEB, 23 FEB, 25 FEB, TIMES VARY, £8 - £10

One-woman show performed in Italian with English subtitles, delving into women’s rights and sexual violence against women. DOE

8 FEB, 7:30PM – 9:30PM, £5

Following the success of the monthy Scripts Aloud nights, Manchester ADP present their first full-length play, depicting the lives of several victims of rape. ONE FLESH

29 FEB – 1 MAR, 7:30PM – 9:30PM, £9

A play by Naomi Sumner exploring what it means to love, honour and obey as Esther and Natalie try and win the approval of those they care about for their relationship.

The Lowry SHREK THE MUSICAL

2–20 FEB, 7:00PM – 9:30PM, £34

Stage adaptation of the family favourite; expect green faces. Matinee performances also available. A GIRL IS A HALF-FORMED THING

4–6 FEB, TIMES VARY, £16 - £18

The multi award-winning stage adaptation of Eimear McBride’s acclaimed novel, following the inner narrative of a girl from the womb to 20 years old.

The Lowry Studio

I KNOW ALL THE SECRETS IN MY WORLD

24 FEB, TIMES VARY, £10 - £12

A play about what happens when speaking is impossible, following a father and son in their familial home. IN THE VICE LIKE GRIP OF IT

24 FEB, 8:00PM – 10:00PM, £10 - £12

A new play exploring the relationship between citizens and the state - what with us being in the age of constant surveillance and all.

TheSkinnyMag

THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 5 JAN AND 6 FEB, TIMES VARY, FROM £10

The latest incarnation of the favourited rock’n’roll musical arrives in the Northwest. Matinees also available. THE GLENN MILLER STORY

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 2 NOV AND 5 MAR, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

Tommy Steele leads a 16-piece orchestral cast to tell the story of Glenn Miller, who vanished over the English Channel as he flew to Paris to entertain the troops during the Second World War. Matinee performances also available. IMPOSSIBLE

9–13 FEB, 7:30PM – 9:30PM, £13.90 - £48.90

Death-defying stunts, technological trickery, live stage illusions and close-up magic (basically, a bunch of seemingly ‘impossible’ stuff) combine as some of the world’s biggest illusionists take to the stage. Matinee performances also available. AVENUE Q

22–27 FEB, 7:30PM – 9:30PM, £10 £43.90

Tony Award-winning production set in downtown New York, featuring brightly-coloured puppetry, people and catchy tunes from the same guy behind the songs of Disney’s Frozen. You’ve been warned. Matinee performances also available.

St George’s Hall THE ALICE EXPERIENCE

5–19 FEB, 10:00AM – 4:00PM, £5 - £12

A large-scale, immersive production from In Another Place, taking over St George’s Hall with a walk-through experience of Lewis Carroll’s classic, magical tale.

Studio 2

THE SECRET CIRCUS

29 JAN, 12 FEB, 1 APR, 13 FEB, 7:00PM – 11:45PM, £5

Poetry, performance art, dance, music, and Burlesque! Don’t forget your feathers and top-hats.

The Brindley EDUCATING RITA

9–13 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:30PM, £12 - £13

A heartwarming comedy by Willy Russell, famous for its depiction of Liverpudlian working class life and the subsequent film adaptation starring Julie Walters and Michael Caine. SUNNY RUNNY RUNCORN

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 7 AUG AND 27 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:30PM, TBC

A comedy about Runcorn and its people.

The Capstone CIRCUMSTANCES

23 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:30PM, £5 - £7

Triple bill of high octane contemporary danc etheatre works exploring how we interact with people, spaces and objects.

THE SKINNY

The Lantern Theatre SHOES

1–2 FEB, 7:45PM, £8 - £10

Physical theatre written and directed by Lina Jankauskaite, using the language of the body to explore how we fulfil our dreams. THE CLEVEREST THIEF

12 FEB, 7:30PM, £8 - £10

A solo show starring Libby Wattis exploring how Dementia is in many ways the worst burglar of them all, stealing everything including the ability to remember what’s been taken. THE RUBY SLIPPERS

20–21 FEB, TIMES VARY, £10

The world premiere of a new comedy written by Emma Culshaw and David Paul, urging you to step into the Ruby Slippers nightclub for an evening of rioutous drag performances and pure glamour. FRANCA

22 FEB, 23 FEB, 25 FEB, TIMES VARY, £8 - £10

One-woman show performed in Italian with English subtitles, delving into women’s rights and sexual violence against women.

Unity Theatre

I KNOW ALL THE SECRETS IN MY WORLD

10 FEB, 11 FEB, TIMES VARY, £10 - £12

A play about what happens when speaking is impossible, following a father and son in their familial home. THE BROKE ‘N’ BEAT COLLECTIVE

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 4 FEB AND 27 FEB, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

11–13 FEB, 7:30PM, £4.50 - £9

A LIPA production of the gritty, perennial NYC musical based on Puccini’s opera, La Bohème, which follows a group of creative types living in the East Village, in the shadows of the late-1980s HIV/ AIDS epidemic. Matinee performances also available. SALIGIA

26–27 FEB, 7:30PM, £3 - £6

A dance production exploring the seven deadly sins (pride, envy, gluttony, lust, wrath, greed and sloth, FYI), where the choreography spans a range of dance styles while also using the idea of sins and virtues and stimuli. Matinee performances available.

Manchester Comedy Tue 02 Feb

XS MALARKEY (JOHN ROBERTSON + ABOGOLIAH SCHAUMAN + LIAM PICKFORD + JACK EVANS) PUB/ZOO, 19:00–22:00, £3 - £5

The rather ace comedy night continues with the usual Tuesday night shenanigans.

Thu 04 Feb

STAND UP THURSDAY (ROGER MONKHOUSE + SEAN COLLINS + MC PAUL THORNE)

THE COMEDY STORE, 20:00–22:00, £8 - £12

Cheat life and get that Friday feeling one day early with a night of comedic delight from some circuit funny folk. THURSDAY NIGHT LIVE (PHIL ELLIS + JOHN HASTINGS + KIERAN LAWLESS + DYLAN GOTT + JEFF INNOCENT)

THE FROG AND BUCKET COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £7 - £13

Watch four top class comics, sat comfortably at a table while enjoying your comedy with food and drinks.

Manchester Comedy Fri 05 Feb

THE BEST IN STAND UP (ROGER MONKHOUSE + PIERRE HOLLINS + ANDY WATSON + SEAN COLLINS + MC PAUL THORNE)

THE COMEDY STORE, 20:00–22:00, £12 - £18

Regular night of stand up with a line-up of five top circuit comedians.

BARREL OF LAUGHS (PHIL ELLIS + JOHN HASTINGS + STEVE HARRIS + JEFF INNOCENT)

THE FROG AND BUCKET COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:30, £10 - £19

Watch four top class comics, sat comfortably at a table while enjoying your comedy with food and drinks, followed by Frog and Bucket’s classic cheesy disco until late.

Sat 06 Feb

THE BEST IN STAND UP (ROGER MONKHOUSE + PIERRE HOLLINS + ANDY WATSON + SEAN COLLINS + MC PAUL THORNE)

THE COMEDY STORE, 19:00–21:00, £16 - £22

Regular night of stand up with a line-up of five top circuit comedians.

THE BEST IN STAND UP (ROGER MONKHOUSE + PIERRE HOLLINS + ANDY WATSON + SEAN COLLINS + MC PAUL THORNE)

THE COMEDY STORE, 21:30–23:30, £16 - £22

Regular night of stand up with a line-up of five top circuit comedians.

BARREL OF LAUGHS (PHIL ELLIS + JOHN HASTINGS + STEVE HARRIS + JEFF INNOCENT)

THE FROG AND BUCKET COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:30, £13 - £20

Watch four top class comics, sat comfortably at a table while enjoying your comedy with food and drinks, followed by Frog and Bucket’s classic cheesy disco until late. BEC HILL

THE DANCEHOUSE THEATRE, 20:00–23:00, £8

The Barry Performer’s Choice Award for Best Show at the Edinburgh Fringe a few years back prepares for another assault up north.

GROUP THERAPY (JOHNNY VEGAS + TOM LITTLE + FOXDOG STUDIOS)

GORILLA, 19:00–22:00, £20

Group Therapy kick off 2016 with some comedic oomph, enlisting Johnny Vegas to mark not only their first gig of the year, but also his first headline show for some time.

Sun 07 Feb KING GONG

THE COMEDY STORE, FROM 19:30, £4 - £6

A night of stand-up from some fresh-faced comics trying to break on to the circuit &ndash; be nice. TIFF STEVENSON

THE LOWRY STUDIO, 20:00–22:00, £10 - £12

The English comedian, known for starring on Mock The Week, Drunk History and more, tours her latest show, Made Man. NICK THUNE

TIGER LOUNGE, 19:30–22:30, £8

Take advantage of a unique comic treat from Group Therapy, as they welcome the Seattle-born comedian for his only UK gig outside of London.

Mon 08 Feb DALISO CHAPONDA

THE LOWRY STUDIO, 20:00–22:00, £10 - £12

The African comedian presents a celebration of loneliness, bitterness, heartbreak and bad kissing ahead of the big V day. DALISO CHAPONDA

THE LOWRY STUDIO, 20:00–22:00, £10 - £12

The African comedian presents a celebration of loneliness, bitterness, heartbreak and bad kissing ahead of the big V day. FAT VIRGINS (DAN NICHOLAS)

GULLIVERS, 19:30–22:30, £4

The Quippodrome crew return for 2016 under a brand new moniker but with the same, wonderfully weird madcap humour. Just plumped up.

February 2016

Tue 09 Feb

XS MALARKEY (MARK WATSON + EVELYN MOK + PETER BAZELY + BOOTLEG MARK CHAPMANS)

PUB/ZOO, 19:00–22:00, £3 - £5

The rather ace comedy night continues with the usual Tuesday night shenanigans.

Wed 10 Feb

KATIE MULGREW AND HAYLEY ELLIS

EAGLE INN, 19:00–22:00, £3.50

Two of the local circuit’s favourite comedians perform their Edinburgh previews.

Thu 11 Feb

STAND UP THURSDAY (CAREY MARX + SEAN COLLINS + MC JASON COOK) THE COMEDY STORE, 20:00–22:00, £8 - £12

Cheat life and get that Friday feeling one day early with a night of comedic delight from some circuit funny folk.

THURSDAY NIGHT LIVE (RAY BRADSHAW + CHRIS MCCAUSLAND + JO D’ARCY + ADAM ROWE + ROGER MONKHOUSE)

Sun 14 Feb

VALENTINE’S COMEDY SPECIAL (ALUN COCHRANE + JUSTIN MOORHOUSE + JASON COOK + DANNY MCLOUGHLIN) THE COMEDY STORE, 19:30–21:00, £12 - £18

Cast aside the sentimental tripe and celebrate Valentine’s Day with a good dose of laughs. STEVE HALL

THE LOWRY: QUAYS THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, £12

One third of sitcom group We Are Klang, Steve Hall hits out alone with his Zebra tour.

Tue 16 Feb

XS MALARKEY (BEASTS + JAMES VEITCH + TOM WRAGG + RAHUL KOHLI)

PUB/ZOO, 19:00–22:00, £3 - £5

The rather ace comedy night continues with the usual Tuesday night shenanigans.

BARREL OF LAUGHS (JON MAYOR + SMUG ROBERTS + JOHN SCOTT + STEVE SHANYASKI) THE FROG AND BUCKET COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:30, £10 - £19

Watch four top class comics, sat comfortably at a table while enjoying your comedy with food and drinks, followed by Frog and Bucket’s classic cheesy disco until late. RICHARD HERRING

THE LOWRY: QUAYS THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, £18

The variety show, featuring Paul Foot and more, makes its way to Manchester following sell-out success in the capital at Union Chapel.

bit.ly/joe-lycett-liverpool

Joe Lycett: That’s The Way A-Ha A-Ha Joe Lycett Epstein Theatre, Liverpool, Thu 30 Jun, 8pm, £15.50

THE BEST IN STAND UP (CAREY MARX + SEAN COLLINS + CHRIS MCCAUSLAND + CRAIG MURRAY + MC JASON COOK)

THE COMEDY STORE, 20:00–22:00, £12 - £18

Sat 13 Feb

THE BEST IN STAND UP (CAREY MARX + SEAN COLLINS + CHRIS MCCAUSLAND + CRAIG MURRAY + MC JASON COOK)

THE COMEDY STORE, 19:00–21:00, £16 - £22

Regular night of stand up with a line-up of five top circuit comedians.

THE BEST IN STAND UP (CAREY MARX + SEAN COLLINS + CHRIS MCCAUSLAND + CRAIG MURRAY + MC JASON COOK)

THE COMEDY STORE, 21:30–23:30, £16 - £22

Regular night of stand up with a line-up of five top circuit comedians.

BARREL OF LAUGHS (RAY BRADSHAW + CHRIS MCCAUSLAND + PETER BRUSH + ROGER MONKHOUSE) THE FROG AND BUCKET COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:30, £13 - £20

Watch four top class comics, sat comfortably at a table while enjoying your comedy with food and drinks, followed by Frog and Bucket’s classic cheesy disco until late. BEST OF BUZZ COMEDY

WATERSIDE ARTS CENTRE, 20:00–22:30, £10 - £12

The Waterside’s regular comedy night, featuring one of the UK comedy circuit’s up and coming stars.

THE LAUGHTER FACTOR (PAUL SMITH)

XS MALARKEY (FIN TAYLOR + PATRICK TURPIN + EDD HEDGES + THOM BEE)

PUB/ZOO, 19:00–22:00, £3 - £5

Wed 24 Feb THE LOWRY: LYRIC THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, £15.50 - £35

The Farnworth comedian takes a sec from matchmaking to return to the tour circuit. No likey? No li— ugh, forget it.

STAND UP THURSDAY (ROB DEERING + PAUL THORNE + MC STEPHEN GRANT) THE COMEDY STORE, 20:00–22:00, £8 - £12

Cheat life and get that Friday feeling one day early with a night of comedic delight from some circuit funny folk.

THE FROG AND BUCKET COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £7 - £13

Fri 12 Feb

Wed 17 Feb SIMON EVANS

THE LOWRY: QUAYS THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, £15 - £17

Expect heartfelt rants from the host of BBC Radio 4’s Goes to Market, as he details his recent immersion in economics.

GEIN’S FAMILY GIFTSHOP’S TROPHY COLLECTION

THE LOWRY STUDIO, 20:00–22:00, £12

The award-winning sketch comedy trio embark on their debut UK tour, following successes at Edinburgh Festival Fringe and with their own BBC radio series.

Thu 18 Feb

STAND UP THURSDAY (JEFF INNOCENT + STEVE ROYLE + MC MANDY KNIGHT)

THE COMEDY STORE, 20:00–22:00, £8 - £12

Cheat life and get that Friday feeling one day early with a night of comedic delight from some circuit funny folk. THURSDAY NIGHT LIVE (BRUCE DEVLIN + SMUG ROBERTS + ALEX SMITH + JACK BARRY + STEVE SHANYASKI)

THE FROG AND BUCKET COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £7 - £13

Watch four top class comics, sat comfortably at a table while enjoying your comedy with food and drinks. TIM FITZHIGHAM

THE LOWRY STUDIO, 20:00–22:00, £14

The multi award-winning comedian and world record holder returns, challenging himself to a series of daft stunts and dares inspired by centuries-old bets. JIMEOIN

THE DANCEHOUSE THEATRE, 20:00–23:00, £17.50

Irishman from Australia known for his amusing ramblings on Live at the Apollo, the Royal Variety Performance and others.

Fri 19 Feb

THE BEST IN STAND UP (JEFF INNOCENT + STEVE ROYLE + SEAN MEO + JARLATH REGAN + MC MANDY KNIGHT)

THE COMEDY STORE, 20:00–22:00, £12 - £18

Regular night of stand up with a line-up of five top circuit comedians.

Sat 20 Feb

THE BEST IN STAND UP (JEFF INNOCENT + STEVE ROYLE + SEAN MEO + JARLATH REGAN + MC MANDY KNIGHT)

THE COMEDY STORE, 19:00–21:00, £16 - £22

Regular night of stand up with a line-up of five top circuit comedians.

THE BEST IN STAND UP (JEFF INNOCENT + STEVE ROYLE + SEAN MEO + JARLATH REGAN + MC MANDY KNIGHT)

THE COMEDY STORE, 21:30–23:30, £16 - £22

Regular night of stand up with a line-up of five top circuit comedians.

BARREL OF LAUGHS (JON MAYOR + SMUG ROBERTS + JOHN SCOTT + STEVE SHANYASKI) THE FROG AND BUCKET COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:30, £13 - £20

Watch four top class comics, sat comfortably at a table while enjoying your comedy with food and drinks, followed by Frog and Bucket’s classic cheesy disco until late. COMEDYSPORTZ

WATERSIDE ARTS CENTRE, 18:30–22:00, £5 - £7

Comedy improv show with two teams battling it out for the biggest laughs, serving up sketches, songs and scenes with audience participation playing a key role in the development. TONY LAW

THE LOWRY: QUAYS THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, £18

The multi award-winning Canadian nonsense-maker pitches up with his particularly addictive brand of silliness.

Sun 21 Feb NEW COMEDIANS

THE COMEDY STORE, 19:30–22:30, £4

Regular night of stand up with five world-class comedians.

ANTWERP MANSION COMEDY NIGHT (PATRICK MONAHAN + STEVE RIMMER + RYAN GLEESON ) ANTWERP MANSION, 19:30–22:30, FREE

An evening of comedy headlined by the Irish-Iranian stand-up.

GARY DELANEY (IAN SMITH + LAUREN PATTISON + LIAM PICKFORD)

Tue 23 Feb

THURSDAY NIGHT LIVE (DANNY MCLOUGHLIN + SCOTT BENNETT + RACHEL FAIRBURN + TONY BASNETT + MICHAEL FABBRI)

The Sham Bodie crew get romantic in the run-up to Valentine’s Day with a loving spoonful of comedy, music, hot dogs and Blind Date. Expect a lorra lorra laughs.

Tue 02 Feb

LIVERPOOL GUILD OF STUDENTS, 19:30–22:30, £4

PADDY MCGUINNESS

THE INVISIBLE DOT

Liverpool Comedy

The star of Dead Ringers, The Impressions Show and puppet satire sketch show Newzoids performs a night of comedy, music and impressions.

OPERA HOUSE, 19:30–22:30, £20.90 - £28.90

SOUP KITCHEN, 19:30–22:30, £5

Watch four top class comics, sat comfortably at a table while enjoying your comedy with food and drinks, followed by Frog and Bucket’s classic cheesy disco until late.

THE LOWRY: QUAYS THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, £16 - £18

The rather ace comedy night continues with the usual Tuesday night shenanigans.

SHAM BODIE (KIRI PRITCHARDMCLEAN + TOM SHORT + MIRROR GORILLAS)

THE FROG AND BUCKET COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:30, £10 - £19

DEBRA STEPHENSON

The thoughtful comedian uses his 12th solo stand-up show to ponder if we’re ever really going to be content.

Buy your tickets here:

Watch four top class comics, sat comfortably at a table while enjoying your comedy with food and drinks.

BARREL OF LAUGHS (RAY BRADSHAW + CHRIS MCCAUSLAND + PETER BRUSH + ROGER MONKHOUSE)

The stand-up comedian from Brighton hits the road, fresh from supporting Katherine Ryan and Doc Brown on their national tours.

Thu 25 Feb

THE FROG AND BUCKET COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £7 - £13

Regular night of stand up with a line-up of five top circuit comedians.

SEAN MCLOUGHLIN THE LOWRY STUDIO, 20:00–22:00, £12

Watch four top class comics, sat comfortably at a table while enjoying your comedy with food and drinks.

Fri 26 Feb

THE BEST IN STAND UP (ROB DEERING + STU GOLDSMITH + FREDRIK ANDERSSON + PAUL THORNE + MC STEPHEN GRANT)

THE COMEDY STORE, 20:00–22:00, £12 - £18

Regular night of stand up with a line-up of five top circuit comedians.

BARREL OF LAUGHS (DANNY MCLOUGHLIN + SCOTT BENNETT + DAVID TSONOS + MICHAEL FABBRI)

THE FROG AND BUCKET COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:30, £10 - £19

Watch four top class comics, sat comfortably at a table while enjoying your comedy with food and drinks, followed by Frog and Bucket’s classic cheesy disco until late.

Sat 27 Feb

THE BEST IN STAND UP (ROB DEERING + STU GOLDSMITH + FREDRIK ANDERSSON + PAUL THORNE + MC STEPHEN GRANT)

THE COMEDY STORE, 19:30–21:30, £16 - £22

Regular night of stand up with a line-up of five top circuit comedians.

THE BEST IN STAND UP (ROB DEERING + STU GOLDSMITH + FREDRIK ANDERSSON + PAUL THORNE + MC STEPHEN GRANT)

THE COMEDY STORE, 21:30–23:30, £16 - £22

Regular night of stand up with a line-up of five top circuit comedians.

BARREL OF LAUGHS (DANNY MCLOUGHLIN + SCOTT BENNETT + DAVID TSONOS + MICHAEL FABBRI)

THE FROG AND BUCKET COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:30, £13 - £20

Watch four top class comics, sat comfortably at a table while enjoying your comedy with food and drinks, followed by Frog and Bucket’s classic cheesy disco until late. ELIS JAMES AND JOHN ROBINS

THE LOWRY: QUAYS THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, TBC

Join the double act of Radio X (the slightly evil-sounding reincarnation of XFM) as they take us through their favourite anecdotes.

Sun 28 Feb NEW STUFF

THE COMEDY STORE, 19:30–22:30, £4

Stand-up from fresh-faced comics trying to break on to the circuit; play nice.

Circuit regular and master of the one-liner.

Wed 03 Feb

THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE, 20:00–22:00, £3 - £5

A monthly event giving comics the chance to try out new material before the weekend shows it helps if you think of yourself as a comedic guinea pig.

THE WITTY COMMITTEE (MIKE MILLING + ROB MITCHELL + JACK GLEADLOW + BARBIE MUGABE + SIMON WOZNIAK + HANNAH PLATT + MC MARK WHALLEY) CONSTELLATIONS, 20:00–22:30, £3

New comedy showcase for the circuit’s best up-and-coming names.

Thu 04 Feb

BOILING POINT (JEFF INNOCENT + LEE PEART + JOHN GORDILLO + MC PAUL SMITH)

THE CROWN HOTEL, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £7

New and established comics take to the stage, for an evening of chuckles with their resident compere leading the way.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CENTRAL (ANDREW BIRD + NICK DOODY + EDD HEDGES + MC FREDDIE QUINNE) COMEDY CENTRAL AT BABY BLUE, 18:00–22:00, £15

Regular triple headline show, with three comics lined up to tickle your funny bone. SAM FLETCHER

81 RENSHAW STREET, 19:30–22:00, £5 - £8

Delve into Fletcher’s silly and subversive back catalogue of jokes, physical set pieces and music, along with a collection of new material.

Fri 05 Feb

BOILING POINT (JEFF INNOCENT + EDD HEDGES + JOHN GORDILLO + MC PAUL SMITH)

HOT WATER COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £10 - £14

New and established comics take to the stage, for an evening of chuckles with their resident compere leading the way.

LAUGHTERHOUSE (STEVE SHANYASKI + JOHN LYNN + VINCE ATTA + CHRIS CAIRNS)

THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE, 20:00–22:00, £10 - £15

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LAUGHTERHOUSE (KAREN BAYLEY + STEVE SHANYASKI + VINCE ATTA + DAVE TWENTYMAN)

MATHEW STREET, 20:30–22:30, £10 - £15

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CENTRAL (ANDREW BIRD + NICK DOODY + TUDUR OWEN + MC CRAIG MURRAY) COMEDY CENTRAL AT BABY BLUE, 18:00–22:00, £15

Regular triple headline show, with three comics lined up to tickle your funny bone.

Sat 06 Feb

BOILING POINT (JEFF INNOCENT + EDD HEDGES + MC WILL DUGGAN )

HOT WATER COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £10 - £14

New and established comics take to the stage, for an evening of chuckles with their resident compere leading the way.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CELLAR (DUNCAN OAKLEY + SAM HARLAND + MC BRENDAN RILEY) THE MAGNET , 19:30–22:30, £13.50

The Liverpool Comedy Cellar features the cream of the International Comedy Circuit, up close and personal every Saturday and this week is no different.

LAUGH OUT LOUD COMEDY CLUB (RAYMOND MEARNS + MATTHEW OSBORNE + PETER OTWAY)

THE ATKINSON, 20:00–23:00, £15 - £17.50

A triple-header of comedy descends on the Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club.

LAUGHTERHOUSE (VINCE ATTA + JOHN LYNN + STEVE SHANYASKI + CHRIS CAIRNS) THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE, 20:00–22:00, £17.50

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LAUGHTERHOUSE (KAREN BAYLEY + STEVE SHANYASKI + VINCE ATTA + DAVE TWENTYMAN)

MATHEW STREET, 20:30–22:30, £17.50

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CENTRAL (ANDREW BIRD + NICK DOODY + TUDUR OWEN + MC CRAIG MURRAY) COMEDY CENTRAL AT BABY BLUE, 18:00–22:00, £15

Regular triple headline show, with three comics lined up to tickle your funny bone.

Sun 07 Feb

TESTING THE WATER (LEWIS CHARLESWORTH + MAXINE WADE + JAMES CHRISTOPHER + DANIEL TRISCOTT + CHARLENE MURRAY + SCOTT MCGILL + MC PAUL SMITH) HOT WATER COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £1.50 - £3

Showcase night for up-andcomers and undiscovered stars, offering a great value night out if you don’t mind being a comedy guinea pig.

Thu 11 Feb

BOILING POINT (PHIL CHAPMAN + MARC SMETHURST + NICK DOODY + MC PAUL SMITH)

THE CROWN HOTEL, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £7

New and established comics take to the stage, for an evening of chuckles with their resident compere leading the way.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CENTRAL (MARLON DAVIS + ANDREW O’NEILL + ELLIOT STEEL + MC LOU CONRAN) COMEDY CENTRAL AT BABY BLUE, 18:00–22:00, £15

Regular triple headline show, with three comics lined up to tickle your funny bone. DALISO CHAPONDA

THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE, 20:00–22:00, £8 - £10

The African comedian presents a celebration of loneliness, bitterness, heartbreak and bad kissing ahead of the big V day.

Fri 12 Feb

BOILING POINT (PHIL CHAPMAN + ROBYN PERKINS + NICK DOODY + MC PAUL SMITH)

HOT WATER COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £10 - £14

New and established comics take to the stage, for an evening of chuckles with their resident compere leading the way.

LAUGHTERHOUSE (GAVIN WEBSTER + MIKE NEWELL + ROGER MONKHOUSE + NEIL FITZMAURICE)

THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE, 20:00–22:00, £10 - £15

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LAUGHTERHOUSE (ROGER MONKHOUSE + GAVIN WEBSTER + MIKE NEWELL + CHRIS CAIRNS)

MATHEW STREET, 20:30–22:30, £10 - £15

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CENTRAL (MARLON DAVIS + ANDREW O’NEILL + SAM AVERY + MC LOU CONRAN) COMEDY CENTRAL AT BABY BLUE, 18:00–22:00, £15

Regular triple headline show, with three comics lined up to tickle your funny bone.

Sat 13 Feb

BOILING POINT (PATRICK MONAHAN + PHIL CHAPMAN + NICK DOODY + MC PAUL SMITH) HOT WATER COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £10 - £14

New and established comics take to the stage, for an evening of chuckles with their resident compere leading the way.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CELLAR (PATRICK MONAHAN + ADAM STAUNTON + MC BRENDAN RILEY) LIVERPOOL COMEDY CELLAR, 19:30–22:30, £13.50

The Liverpool Comedy Cellar features the cream of the International Comedy Circuit, up close and personal every Saturday and this week is no different

Listings

Liverpool Comedy LAUGHTERHOUSE (MIKE NEWELL + GAVIN WEBSTER + ROGER MONKHOUSE + NEIL FITZMAURICE) THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE, 20:00–22:00, £17.50

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LAUGHTERHOUSE (ROGER MONKHOUSE + GAVIN WEBSTER + MIKE NEWELL + CHRIS CAIRNS)

MATHEW STREET, 20:30–22:30, £17.50

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CENTRAL (MARLON DAVIS + ANDREW O’NEILL + SAM AVERY + MC LOU CONRAN) COMEDY CENTRAL AT BABY BLUE, 18:00–22:00, £15

Regular triple headline show, with three comics lined up to tickle your funny bone. THE INVISIBLE DOT PRESENTS...

EVERYMAN THEATRE, 19:30–22:00, £16 - £20

A variety show featuring five acclaimed comedians, headed up by The Boy with Tape on his Face (aka New Zealand prop comic Sam Willis) and mulleted British stand-up Paul Foot.

Sun 14 Feb

TESTING THE WATER (PHIL CHAPMAN + JOE SUTHERLAND + NICK DOODY + MC PAUL SMITH)

HOT WATER COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £1.50 - £3

Showcase night for up-andcomers and undiscovered stars, offering a great value night out if you don’t mind being a comedy guinea pig.

LAUGHTERHOUSE (JUSTIN MOORHOUSE + GAVIN WEBSTER + NEIL FITZMAURICE + CHRIS CAIRNS)

MATHEW STREET, 18:30–20:30, £15

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

Mon 15 Feb

ANOTHER COMEDY NIGHT

MAGUIRE’S PIZZA BAR, 19:30–22:30, FREE

Another night of great, free comedy at Maguire’s with host Joe Munrow and resident comedian Dave Alnwick. ANOTHER COMEDY NIGHT

MAGUIRE’S PIZZA BAR, 19:30–22:30, FREE

Another night of great, free comedy at Maguire’s with host Joe Munrow and resident comedian Dave Alnwick.

Wed 17 Feb JIMEOIN

EPSTEIN THEATRE, 19:00–22:30, £15 - £17.50

Irishman from Australia known for his amusing ramblings on Live at the Apollo, the Royal Variety Performance and others.

Thu 18 Feb

BOILING POINT (ADAM STAUNTON + ADAM ROWE + MICHAEL FABBRI + MC PAUL SMITH ) THE CROWN HOTEL, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £7

New and established comics take to the stage, for an evening of chuckles with their resident compere leading the way.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CENTRAL (STEPHEN CARLIN + JAKE LAMBERT + MC PETER OTWAY) COMEDY CENTRAL AT BABY BLUE, 18:00–22:00, £15

LAUGHTERHOUSE (ALEX BOARDMAN + STEVE GRIBBIN + TOM WRIGGLESWORTH + STE PORTER)

LAUGHTERHOUSE (LLOYD LANGFORD + KEVIN DEWSBURY + TANYALEE DAVIS + CHRIS CAIRNS)

MATHEW STREET, 20:30–22:30, £10 - £15

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CENTRAL (STEPHEN CARLIN + SCOTT BENNETT + MC PETER OTWAY) COMEDY CENTRAL AT BABY BLUE, 18:00–22:00, £15

Regular triple headline show, with three comics lined up to tickle your funny bone.

Sat 20 Feb

BOILING POINT (JAMIE SUTHERLAND + ADAM ROWE + MIKE WILKINSON + MC PAUL SMITH) HOT WATER COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £10 - £14

New and established comics take to the stage, for an evening of chuckles with their resident compere leading the way. RICHARD HERRING

EPSTEIN THEATRE, 19:00–22:30, £15

The thoughtful comedian uses his 12th solo stand-up show to ponder if we’re ever really going to be content.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CELLAR (DALISO CHAPONDA + STEVE SHANYASKI + MC BRENDAN RILEY)

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CELLAR, 19:30–22:30, £13.50

The Liverpool Comedy Cellar features the cream of the International Comedy Circuit, up close and personal every Saturday and this week is no different LAUGHTERHOUSE (TOM WRIGGLESWORTH + ALEX BOARDMAN + STEVE GRIBBIN + CHRIS CAIRNS)

THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE, 20:00–22:00, £17.50

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LAUGHTERHOUSE (STEVE GRIBBIN + ALEX BOARDMAN + TOM WRIGGLESWORTH + STE PORTER) MATHEW STREET, 20:30–22:30, £17.50

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CENTRAL (STEPHEN CARLIN + SCOTT BENNETT + MC PETER OTWAY) COMEDY CENTRAL AT BABY BLUE, 18:00–22:00, £15

Regular triple headline show, with three comics lined up to tickle your funny bone.

Sun 21 Feb

TESTING THE WATER (BEN SUTTON + TOM BATES + RAHUL SAGGAR + ADAM ROWE + DIMITRI BAKANOV + JAMES CHRISTIE + MC PAUL SMITH) HOT WATER COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £1.50 - £3

Showcase night for up-andcomers and undiscovered stars, offering a great value night out if you don’t mind being a comedy guinea pig.

Thu 25 Feb

BOILING POINT (PHILIP SIMON + ANDREW MCBURNEY + RAY PEACOCK + MC PAUL SMITH) THE CROWN HOTEL, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £7

New and established comics take to the stage, for an evening of chuckles with their resident compere leading the way.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CENTRAL (JONNY AWSUM + ROB HEENEY + ELEANOR TIERNAN + MC JESS FOSTEKEW) COMEDY CENTRAL AT BABY BLUE, 18:00–22:00, £15

Regular triple headline show, with three comics lined up to tickle your funny bone.

Fri 19 Feb

Fri 26 Feb

HOT WATER COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £10 - £14

BOILING POINT (JAMIE SUTHERLAND + ADAM ROWE + MIKE WILKINSON + MC PAUL SMITH)

New and established comics take to the stage, for an evening of chuckles with their resident compere leading the way.

LAUGHTERHOUSE (STEVE GRIBBIN + ALEX BOARDMAN + TOM WRIGGLESWORTH + CHRIS CAIRNS) THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE, 20:00–22:00, £10 - £15

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

Listings

BOILING POINT (RAY PEACOCK + DOMINIC WOODWARD + GAVIN WEBSTER + MC PAUL SMITH)

New and established comics take to the stage, for an evening of chuckles with their resident compere leading the way.

LAUGHTERHOUSE (TANYALEE DAVIS + KEVIN DEWSBURY + LLOYD LANGFORD + NEIL FITZMAURICE)

THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE, 20:00–22:00, £10 - £15

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CENTRAL (JONNY AWSUM + ROB HEENEY + KIRI PRITCHARD-MCCLEAN + JESS FOSTEKEW) COMEDY CENTRAL AT BABY BLUE, 18:00–22:00, £15

Regular triple headline show, with three comics lined up to tickle your funny bone.

Sat 27 Feb

BOILING POINT (RAY PEACOCK + DOMINIC WOODWARD + GAVIN WEBSTER + MC PAUL SMITH)

HOT WATER COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £10 - £14

New and established comics take to the stage, for an evening of chuckles with their resident compere leading the way.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CELLAR (RAYMOND MEARNS + JAMES DOWDESWELL + MC BRENDAN RILEY)

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CELLAR, 19:30–22:30, £13.50

The Liverpool Comedy Cellar features the cream of the International Comedy Circuit, up close and personal every Saturday and this week is no different

Art

Manchester Contact Theatre

QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: #MANCHESTERQUEENS

4 FEB – 16 APR, NOT SUNDAYS, TIMES VARY, FREE

A selection of portraits and posters from artist Glenn Jones (aka the Wretched Ginger Boy), inspired by the creativity and imagination of Manchester’s eclectic drag community. QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: I AM FOR YOU CAN ENJOY

4 FEB – 16 APR, NOT SUNDAYS, TIMES VARY, FREE

Using the outlets of photography, testimony and video, this exhibition is an exploration into the backgrounds, perspectives and experiences of queer black male sex workers and their clients by Khalil West and Ajamu. QUEER CONTACT FESTIVAL: GEORGE TURNS 30

4 FEB – 16 APR, NOT SUNDAYS, TIMES VARY, FREE

LAUGHTERHOUSE (TANYALEE DAVIS + KEVIN DEWSBURY + LLOYD LANGFORD + NEIL FITZMAURICE)

An exhibition of works by Manchester photographer Lee Baxter, who uses stunning imagery to tell and honour the story of HIV charity, George House Trust, now three decades into its life.

THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE, 20:00–22:00, £17.50

Islington Mill

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LAUGHTERHOUSE (KEVIN DEWSBURY + LLOYD LANGFORD + TANYALEE DAVIS + CHRIS CAIRNS)

MATHEW STREET, 20:30–22:00, £17.50

Triple headline show with a delightfully hilarious line-up of circuit funny-folk.

LIVERPOOL COMEDY CENTRAL (JONNY AWSUM + ROB HEENEY + KIRI PRITCHARD-MCCLEAN + MC JESS FOSTEKEW) COMEDY CENTRAL AT BABY BLUE, 18:00–22:00, £15

Regular triple headline show, with three comics lined up to tickle your funny bone.

Sun 28 Feb

TESTING THE WATER (MC PAUL SMITH)

HOT WATER COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £1.50 - £3

Showcase night for up-andcomers and undiscovered stars, offering a great value night out if you don’t mind being a comedy guinea pig.

CARBOOTY

7 FEB, 1:00PM – 5:00PM, FREE

Lots of local talented types including artists, designers and makers showcasing their wares for you to buy.

LAUNCH PAD: MANCHESTER SCHOOL OF ART GRADUATES 2015

12–21 FEB, NOT 15, 16, 1:00PM – 6:00PM, FREE

A selection taken from the Manchester School of Art’s 2015 degree shows for the third in the Launch Pad annual series showcasing emerging artists, including works by Nina Bristow, Tom Lambe and Aimee Walker.

Centre For Chinese Contemporary Art 30 YEARS OF CFCCA

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 4 FEB AND 30 JUN, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

The CFCCA celebrates a landmark of three decades going strong with a six-month programme of exhibitions and events from the likes of Stanley Chow, Xu Bing, Cao Fei, Lee Mingwei, Tsang Kin-wah and Susan Pui San Lok.

21 NOV – 13 FEB, NOT SUNDAYS, 10:00AM – 5:30PM, FREE

Curated by Manchester Jewellers Network, Exploring Wonderland is a showcase of work inspired by the imagination of Lewis Carroll. The exhibition features 28 makers, including jewellers, glassmakers, printmakers, paper artists and more. BEHIND CLOSED DOORS

25 FEB – 28 MAY, NOT SUNDAYS, 10:00AM – 5:30PM, FREE

An exhibition of ceramics by Verity Howard, whose slab-built ceramic forms are inspired by everyday life and feature monoprinted or stamped glimpses through a window.

National Football Museum

PITCH TO PIXEL: THE WORLD OF FOOTBALL GAMING

23 OCT – 5 JUN, TIMES VARY, FREE

by seven curators at the forefront of digital art, this exhibition promises to challenge audiences’ understanding of what art can be.

The Portico Library

THE FOUR GUARDIANS OF THE SKY

8–27 FEB, NOT SUNDAYS, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition of prints, paper sculpture and artist’s books from Syrian artist Ousama Lazkani, through which he draws on iconic characters in Chinese heritage (the dragon, phoenix, white tiger and turtle) to compare Eastern and Western cultural heritage.

Waterside Arts Centre

PUPPET MASTERS: CELEBRATING ANIMATION

24 OCT – 27 FEB, NOT SUNDAYS, TIMES VARY, FREE

A new exhibition bringing stopmotion animation to life, showcasing the work of world-renowned puppet makers Mackinnon and Saunders.

What happens when computer games, meet the beautiful game.

Find full listings & buy tickets on our site

An exhibition of photographs, drawings, collage and video by Michael Holland, all created during a month-long residency at Barcelona’s La Escocesa.

theskinny.co.uk/whats-on

MMU Special Collections

WE BUILT THIS CITY: MANCHESTER ARCHITECTS AT 150, CELEBRATING GENERATIONS OF INNOVATION

TheSkinnyMag

30 NOV – 18 MAR, NOT SUNDAYS, TIMES VARY, FREE

We Built this City profiles architectural drawings of key members of the Manchester Society of Architects alongside the historic Library collection, promoting the rich architectural history of Manchester.

Manchester Art Gallery 25–25 SEP, TIMES VARY, FREE

Hondartza Fraga’s imaginary seascapes explore our understanding of the sea, and give the focus of a seascape back to the sea. 1 DEC – 17 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Half-life of a Miracle presents a decade of photography and film by British contemporary artist Pat Flynn from 2005 to 2015 for the most comprehensive survey of his art to date. HOUSE PROUD

2–1 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Exhibition of glass, metalwork and furniture inspired by the Gallery’s pioneering Industrial Art Collection. SCHIAPARELLI AND THIRTIES FASHION

8–9 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

One of the most celebrated fashion designers of the middle twentieth century. MODERN JAPANESE DESIGN

4 DEC – 15 JAN, TIMES VARY, FREE

Thirty two designers display over one hundred pieces in a dynamic display conveying the essence of the unique Japanese design ethos. THE IMITATION GAME

13 FEB – 5 JUN, TIMES VARY, FREE

Eight international artists come together to explore machines and the imitation of life, inspired by Alan Turing’s Turing Test (refer to the Cumberbatch film for an easy way in), devised to test a computer’s ability to imitate human thought.

Liverpool Art

THE GRAND SCHEME OF THINGS

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 9 JAN AND 20 FEB, 11:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Following on from his Exploring PAPER residency over the summer, Vincent James is back to present the development of his artistic practice since his, in The Grand Scheme of Things.

Salford Museum and Art Gallery

CULTURE, BARRICADES AND BADGES

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 14 NOV AND 21 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

John Sculley photo exhibition illustrating the social and political unrest of the 1980s, the humour of family life, the passion of football, as well as the artist’s on-going admiration for the performing arts - music, dance, drama and circus.

The Holden Gallery UP/DOWN

18 JAN – 4 MAR, WEEKDAYS ONLY, TIMES VARY, FREE

A group exhibition from Andreas Gefeller, Dryden Goodwin, Noemie Goudal, Fiona Tan, Katja Strunz and Yang Zhenzhong exploring the polar perspectives of feeling up and down.

The International 3 INSTITUTION | OUTSTITUTION

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 16 DEC AND 19 FEB, 12:00PM – 5:00PM, FREE

A curated selection of work by recent graduates, identified by The International 3’s co-directors, Paulette Terry Brien and Laurence Lane during research trips to Fine Art degree shows throughout May and June 2015.

Whitworth Art Gallery TIBOR REICH

29 JAN – 1 AUG, TIMES VARY, FREE

Retrospective celebrating the centenary of Tibor Reich, a pioneering post-war textile designer, who brought modernity into British textiles in the early-to-mid 20th century.

THE WORLD OF JAPANESE COMICS

9 JAN – 14 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

FACT 11 DEC – 21 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

16 JAN – 13 NOV, TIMES VARY, FREE

New group exhibition presenting a variety of experiences and views of identity, sharing, and microcelebrity within the context of a life lived online, exploring how we act when everyone is watching.

International Slavery Museum BROKEN LIVES

26 JUN – 24 APR, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Photographs depicting the slavery that continues to exist in modern day India.

Lady Lever Art Gallery PUTTING ON THE GLITZ

VICTORIAN DREAMERS

Drawn from The Atkinson’s own collection of Victorian art, this exhibition looks at the themes of travel, storytelling, the antique past and nature. LORD STREET: PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE

23 JAN – 31 JUL, TIMES VARY, FREE

Exhibition bringing together a wide range of material including archive photographs, architectural plans as well as costume and film, to explore the heritage of the water features, gardens, glass-topped verandas and architectural buildings.

The Bluecoat

LEFT HAND TO BACK OF HEAD, OBJECT HELD AGAINST RIGHT THIGH

23 JAN – 28 MAR, TIMES VARY, FREE

16 OCT – 28 FEB, NOT 25 DEC, 26 DEC, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Group exhibition exploring how we can experience art beyond what we are able to say about it. The exhibition presents a collection of works that set out to affect the audience on a physical level, through sensations and emotions.

Merseyside Maritime Museum

23 JAN – 13 MAR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Dazzling 1930s evening gowns take centre stage in the Putting on the Glitz exhibition, revealing how the glitz and glamour of Hollywood was reflected in the fashions of the period.

ON THE WATERFRONT

25 NOV – 19 JUN, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Museum of Liverpool

POPPIES: WOMEN AND WAR

24 JUL – 5 JUN, NOT 25 DEC, 26 DEC, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Exhibition featuring striking portraits of women whose lives have been affected by conflict, from the First World War to present day. GROWING UP IN THE CITY

Paper Gallery

The Atkinson

The first major exhibition of Japanese shojo (girls’) manga in the UK in association with the Kyoto International Manga Museum.

Exhibition exploring the rich history of the Albert Dock and the changing fortunes of the waterfront, the city and port of Liverpool.

4–6 FEB, 12:00PM, FREE

HALF-LIFE OF A MIRACLE

Castlefield Gallery

EXPLORING WONDERLAND: MANCHESTER JEWELLERS NETWORK CELEBRATES 150 YEARS OF ALICE

POR FAVOR MIRA A LA IZQUIERDA

THE SEA FULL STOP

Manchester Art

Manchester The Lowry HERE RIGHT NOW Craft and Design 14RIGHT NOV – 28 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE Centre Bringing together artists selected

21 OCT – 25 SEP, NOT 25 DEC, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Photographs of Liverpool childhood over time.

ROMAN TREASURES OF CHESHIRE

13 FEB – 19 JUN, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

FALLIBLE SPACE

Solo exhibition from London-based painter, printmaker and editor Melissa Gordon, who builds the concept of an exhibition as theatre in the round by using Collision, the 1916 play by Mina Loy, as a starting point.

The Royal Standard YEAH NO I KNOW

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 22 JAN AND 7 FEB, 12:00PM – 5:00PM, FREE

A contemporary group show from Leeds-based artist-led organisation SEIZE, curated by artist-led non-profit organisation MUESLI in an artist-led space. So pretty artist-led.

Victoria Gallery and Museum EMMA GREGORY

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 16 OCT AND 2 APR, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

The former Sir John Cass, Central School of Art and UCLan presents work from her wider collection. CUNARD 175

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 15 SEP AND 26 MAR, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

The debut exhibition of two recently-discovered RomanoBritish Cheshire hoards - one, a group of Iron Age and Roman coins buried in mid-1st century AD, the other, Roman coins and jewellery buried in late-2nd century AD.

Collection of brochures, films and articles from the launch of the Cunard ship.

Ben Rivers unveils his most ambitious work to date, merging the stories of Paul Bowles and Mohammad Mrabet through film and video works.

Open Eye Gallery

Exhibition containing works from the Liverpool Medical Library and the Liverpool Athenaeum.

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 15 JAN AND 3 APR, 10:30AM – 5:30PM, FREE

25 FEB – 18 SEP, TIMES VARY, FREE

Edgar Martins presents an entirely new body of work, which presents a challenging and difficult survey into photography, records and suicide. Produced through investigation with the Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences in Portugal.

Walker Art Gallery

THE TWO EYES ARE NOT BROTHERS

25 FEB – 22 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

NICO VASCELLARI

An exhibition by Italian artist Nico Vascellari, who takes over the Whitworth’s Landscape Gallery with haunting installations, Bus de la Lum (hole of light) and Darvaza (door to hell), which interconnecto through light, shadow and soundtrack. JOHNNIE SHAND KYDD

14–21 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Photographer Shand Kydd unveils an exhibition of now-iconic black and white photos depicting figures of the international art world at play. The images will be displayed in the promenade gallery of the Whitworth. TEXTILES

14 FEB – 6 MAR, TIMES VARY, FREE

A collection of historic and contemporary textiles with an environmental edge, featuring pieces by William Morris, Lucienne Day, CFA. Voysey, Keith Vaughan, Michele Walker and Susie MacMurray. WATERCOLOURS

14–21 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Step into the world of watercolour via the skilled avenues of JMW Turner, William Blake and John Robert Cozens.

FLAT DEATH

Tate Liverpool

WORKS TO KNOW BY HEART: AN IMAGINED MUSEUM

20 NOV – 14 FEB, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, £6.60 - £8.80

Works from the Centre Pompidou, Tate and MMK collections sees over 60 major, post 1945 artworks come together from their prestigious galleries. On display will be works by Marcel Duchamp, Claes Oldenburg, Bridget Riley, Dorothea Tanning and more.

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 20 NOV AND 18 JUN, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

INSPIRED BY LIVERPOOL’S PAST

19 NOV – 28 MAR, NOT 25 DEC, 1 JAN, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Small display showing a new commission by Paul Scott, together with a selection of Liverpool ceramics from our historic collections that inspired him. PRE-RAPHAELITES: BEAUTY AND REBELLION

12 FEB – 5 JUN, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, £5 - £7

A collection of over 120 paintings highlight Liverpool’s huge role in the Pre-Raphaelite movement, which helped establish the city’s reputation as Victorian art capital of the North. Expect works from Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Ford Madox Brown and more.

2053: A LIVING MUSEUM

20–21 FEB, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

It’s out with Tate Liverpool’s An Imagined Museum and in with dance, song and spoken word, as the artworks of the exhibition are replaced by people, who creatively re-interpret the pieces that were once there to create a new living, breathing ‘museum’.

THE SKINNY

An Ode to Vic and Bob As comedy titans Reeves and Mortimer head out on their 25th anniversary tour, our Comedy editor considers Vic and Bob’s inestimable influence on those who came after them, how Shooting Stars shook up TV and why this nostalgia trip is one we should take Words: John Stansfield Illustration: Camille Smithwick

ack in the mid-90s, VHS tapes were traded among school friends like cigarettes in prison. Favours were swapped for a sneak peak at the unrated Predator, recorded-from-TV copies of Basic Instinct where the tracking went especially bad for one particular scene, and something called Animal Farm that I never saw and frankly, the very notion of it scared the heck out of me. There was one video in my tiny collection, however, that could never be swapped around. The casing was red but it was entitled Blue, just one of many throwaway jokes that made it unique and irreplaceable. It was The Smell of Reeves and Mortimer and for a short time it was my life. Comedy was a big thing in our household, mostly taken up by the Friday-night sitcoms – these were the halcyon days before panel shows littered the television schedule – split across BBC2 and Channel 4 (Cheers at 9, Red Dwarf at 9.30). But this was something completely different. While sitcoms were aimed at adults and I laughed along regardless, not understanding the simmering sexual tension between Sam and Diane, Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer were a different couple, two such nutcases spraying jokes and everything else into the ether, somehow egged on by the licence fee. It was probably for the best that I never took this video into school for trade, as I had developed quite the reputation as a ‘funny man’ by basically ripping off these two Northeastern clowns. I was obviously not the only one these two mad princes inspired. It’s impossible to think that something like The Mighty Boosh might have made it on to television without the blueprint of surreality laid down by Vic and Bob. More important than their inspirational qualities, though, was the boundaries they seemed to break while delivering just 12 episodes for Auntie Beeb. Their style was inimitable, but they also turned a lot of well-worn tropes on their heads. First off, Vic and Bob were people with accents doing weird and alternative comedy, and though this was nothing new, it was the first time people outside the Oxbridge elite had been allowed to take viewers outside of their comfort zones. Unfortunately (and this is often still the case today), unless a performer had ‘Footlights’, Cambridge University’s amateur theatrical group, on their CV, then they were lucky to get anywhere near your television set. Vic and Bob gave hope to those who were doing weird inverted comedy and they, in turn, gave breaks to their favourite acts, be it a young Steve Coogan showing up as ‘the bloke from Go West’ to Matt Lucas, who they invited to pal around with them as George Dawes, paving the way for Little Britain – a show that, love it or hate it, was a global success. With Shooting Stars, Vic and Bob were caged within the now popular panel show format but still managed to make it their own anarchic mess, by not bowing down to big guests and keeping everything as silly and pointless as possible. When Johnny Vegas was asked to be on the show, Bob asked if he’d be having a drink when

February 2016

they film. While Vegas nervously grasped for an answer that might please who was essentially his new employer, Mortimer interjected with: “’cos we are!” This devil-may-care attitude to broadcast television made Shooting Stars a joy to watch and, in freeing Johnny Vegas to be himself, Vic and Bob opened him up to wider audience who could bathe in his rambling genius.

“It’s impossible to think that something like The Mighty Boosh might have made it on to television without the blueprint of surreality laid down by Vic and Bob” Reeves and Mortimer’s most recent foray into television was the criminally underrated House of Fools, which mixed a love for old-fashioned sitcoms with the surreal non-sequiturs they had become known for. Once more, they brought in acts they loved, including the Norwegian oddball Daniel Simonsen. Though it was hardly a classic, the addition of Matt Berry and Morgana Robinson was inspired in keeping a sense of fun and mischief in what was supposed to be a straight single-camera situational comedy. This leads us to their current tour, entitled The Poignant Moments, in which the pair are re-enacting some of their most famous skits and characters. Where most reunion tours might seem like cynical cash-ins, and where popularity is almost certainly playing on nostalgia, The Smell of Reeves and Mortimer has aged phenomenally well. Alongside a proliferation of safe panel shows, throwbacks like Mrs Brown’s Boys and recycled shows such as Open All Hours and Birds of a Feather, perhaps this particular nostalgia trip – to a time when comedy was a little more daring – might reignite the sense of danger that was once evident in British television comedy. Hopefully, it will spark TV producers to be more willing to take the risks that Vic and Bob did so early on, and to commission shows that are willing to fail. They can even borrow my VHS. 25 Years of Reeves and Mortimer: The Poignant Moments is at De Montfort Hall, Leicester (5 Feb), New Theatre, Oxford (6 Feb), Regent Theatre, Ipswich (7 Feb), Cliffs Pavilion, Southend-on-Sea (8 Feb), Victoria Hall, Stoke-on-Trent (11 Feb) and Corn Exchange, Cambridge (12 Feb) theskinny.co.uk/comedy

COMEDY

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