Tag Archives: Manchester Academy

CONCERT REVIEW: Lacuna Coil – Blind Channel Live at Manchester Academy

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Finnish Nu-Metal outfit Blind Channel are our warm-up act for the night with their energetic and eclectic mix of music styles and song choices keeping the set fresh and intriguing throughout. I’m sure many attendees didn’t have a heavy metal interpretation of “Everybody” by the Backstreet Boys on their bingo card for tonight. However, when the classic bop is deployed towards the tail end of the set it’s met with a thunderous reception. Mix this with a mid-set encore that sees one-half of the vocal duo land a brief solo rap session directly followed up with a version of System of a Down’s “B.Y.O.B.”Continue reading →


Blue Oyster Cult – The Temperance Movement Live at Manchester Academy, UK

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The room is maybe a third full as The Temperance Movement start, though this quickly rises through their set. I’ve been intrigued to how good they will sound live, liking their stuff but not having previously caught them in a concert setting before and I’m pleased by how easy they make their laid back blues rock sound at this gig, with the quantity of people in at this time a good mark of respect, having seen similar sized bands struggle for one-hundred or so in this large room, one of the larger available in Manchester. The sound is good, if a touch quiet, meaning the emphasis is on clarity rather than loudness, something a number of bands I’ve seen previously in this venue fall victim to. There’s a decent level of applause for them throughout as the room approaches two thirds full, just as we get to the midpoint of their set. As the crowd grows further still, the band continue to please, with the movement of people dancing, combined with the now usual phones recording being the proof of the pudding. A strong showing from the evening’s upstarts, giving the Blue Oyster Cult a pretty high bar to hit. Continue reading →


The Damned Releasing Special Vinyl and CD Sets

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The Damned will be releasing Another Live Album From The Damned on March 10, 2015 via Four Worlds Media, a special live album recorded at Manchester Academy during their 2010 tour. It is part of their Graveyard Chronicles series that features 21 songs and explores their unreleased and rare recordings, which many rarely seen on their set lists.

the damned another live album from the damned

February 19 celebrated the 38th anniversary of the release of The Damned’s debut album, Damned Damned Damned. Four Worlds Media with Let Them Eat Vinyl celebrates the UK punk stalwarts with a series of limited and special releases, including remastered reissues, multi-disc live cds, colored double vinyl pressings, and more.

So, Who’s Paranoid was the first new album from the band in seven years on its original release in 2008. Meticulously reworked, this cd reissue (colored double-vinyl released February 10), includes three bonus songs. Finally, Tiki Nightmare: Live In London captures the band at renowned Shepherds Bush Empire in 2002 while in support of their album Grave Disorder. The band burns through album standouts plus classics “New Rose” (covered by Orange Goblin on Small Stone Records Sucking The 70’s Pt. 2, released in 2006) and “Neat Neat Neat.” The colored double-vinyl set, released February 10, features nineteen songs.

the damned so whos paranoid

In addition, The Chiswick Singles… And Another Thing is a 24-song vinyl collection that includes A- and B-sides from the band’s years with Chiswick Records. Completely restored and remastered, the colored, double-vinyl set includes career highlights “I Just Can’t Be Happy Today,” “The History Of The World Pt. 2,” “Disco Man,” “Love Song,” and “Smash It Up.” Machine Gun Etiquette is the third album from the band. Far more experimental than their previous recordings, the album blended punk, psychedelia, and pop. Both saw North American release on January 27 on limited-edition colored, 140-gram vinyl. And still to come is the June 30 North American release of the deluxe hard cover, triple-vinyl pressing of The Black Album.

With the longest stable line-up in their multi-decade history, The Damned remain vital, energized, and ready for continued years of anarchy, chaos, and destruction.

Apr 16: Sala Arena – Madrid (ES)
Apr 17: Razz 2 – Barcelona (ES)
Apr 18: Santana 27 – Bilbao (ES)
Apr 23: The Picturedrome – West Yorkshire (UK)
Apr 24: North Shore – Sunderland (UK)
Apr 25: O2 ABC – Glasgow (UK)
Apr 26: Whitby Goth Weekend – Whitby (UK)
May 16: North West Calling – Manchester (UK)
Jun 04: Phoenix – Exeter (UK)
Jun 05: Cheese and Grain – Frome (UK)
Jun 06: Roundhouse – London (UK)
Aug 08: Rebellion – Blackpool (UK)
Sep 19: Undercover Festival – Guildford (UK)

The Damned are: vocalist Dave Vanian, guitarist Captain Sensible, drummer Pinch (also of English Dogs), bassist Stu West, and keyboardist Monty Oxymoron.


On The Road…. Avatar

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Hailing from Sweden we have Avatar a twisted combination of dark circus theatrics and heavy metal. Being a fan of their music but not having witnessed them live I wasn’t sure what to expect.

The room grew silent as I waited for Avatar the tension slowly growing within the crowd. The silence was suddenly broken by the sounds of anticipation and one by one approached the stage silently greeting the crowd with a cold malicious stare from the centre of the stage robotically and dutifully moving to stand in their place. Waiting like a caged animal upon the call of their master and then came on stage greeting the crowd like a ringleader inviting them all deeper into their circus of madness and all that tension in the crowd, all that malice within the band exploded into one. Avatar (9)

And it didn’t stop there followed by ear piercing guitar solos, and an impressive vocal range drawing you in with a soft almost frail voice. But smashing into a powerful bone shaking shrieking tearing its face off in front of you to reveal its true nature.

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And at the end of the show each band member silently as before walked to the front of the stage and one by one thanked the fans. After they gathered together placed their arms around each other and took a final bow, a class act. To me it was more than a genuine and heartfelt send-off great things are rarely made of one thing, it’s when you have all the elements whether it’s Kungen and Tim Öhrström’s rock and roll sound the technical solos and hard hitting riffs. Henrik Sandelin’s rhythmic and groove inspired bass. John Alfredsson’s smashing the drums providing the heart attack rhythm to the machine. And Johannes Michael Gustaf Eckerström’s impressive vocal range entertaining and almost sadistic showmanship. Only by combining all these elements together you can only produce something as unique as Avatar.

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WORDS AND PHOTOS BY LUKE DENHAM


Suicide Silence, Stick To Your Guns, Black Tongue Added To UK Leg Of Impericon Festival 2015

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Impericon Festival have added more names to the UK leg of the 2015 run, which hits Manchester Academy on May 04, 2015. The lineup is now consisting of:

Suicide Silence (UK exclusive festival appearance)
Stick To Your Guns
Black Tongue
The Ghost Inside
Whitechapel
Deez Nuts
Adept