manchester – and so she thinks

Balls, booze and banter

admin — Tue, 16 Aug 2016 14:34:24 +0000

In Shoreditch anything can happen. Stick a bunch of old rubbish in the downstairs of a warehouse and get people to come along and pay to hit a ball around it until it falls into a hole. I guess it’s slightly more novel than asking them to hit a ball around a lawn until it drops into said hole. Crazy golf is the only kind of golf I’ve really been able to get behind, and Junkyard Golf Club just raised the bar from the course at Skegness. They’ve been quite a hit in Manchester, and now have a year long residency at Brick Lane’s Old Truman Brewery.

With three courses, (There’s Frank – Putt Up or Shit Up; we were on Pedro – Polluted Paradise, although secretly wished we’d been allocated to Helga – In Da Club, mainly for singing opportunities) there’s plenty of inventive twists on the game. Lose a ball in the washing machine, just like your sock; walk along the plank to Steven Seagull’s mouth; play pool with your golf club; and navigate slides and climbing frames.

Of course you have street food on offer, craft beer, and a cocktail menu dripping in puns. It gets pretty busy, and very loud, so isn’t the best place to catch up with mates, but does offer the opportunity for fodder to rib them with in the pub afterwards.

Open 11am-11pm every day until the end of the year. Tickets from £8.50.

Emma Jane Unsworth – Animals

admin — Wed, 05 Nov 2014 18:35:34 +0000

Life isn’t easy. Even when it doesn’t appear to be that hard. Life is what Animals, the new novel from Emma Jane Unsworth deals with, with clarity, and comically. That hazy space between teen years and adulthood, settling for and settling down, entertainment and recklessness, freedom and responsibility, and all the trappings and traumas involved within.
Living in Manchester, best friends Laura and Tyler exist in a continual cycle of hedonism, hangovers, parties and comedowns, but one thing that seem to be a constant is their unrelenting friendship. As that unwavering bond start to be tested when Laura seeks long term commitment with her partner Jim, a concert pianist, and recent teetollar, the novel explore the complexity and endurance of female friendships. Navigating life is harder than navigating the city streets in which they party, and the two girls slowly start to realise that stimulants alone will not get them through life.
But with convention and stability is personality and enjoyment really lost? Drunken exploits and wild nights out are fun to read about, but the partying never stops in this novel, and sometimes it would be nice to take a break, and the refusal to move away from relentless hedonism can make for a draining read.
Unsworth is clearly no chick lit writer, and as well as being far more than an ode to partygoing, Animals is packed with literary allusions and clever affirmations. Some of the sentences are more sobering than any of the moments experienced by the characters, and contain a strength that the individuals themselves should have, but is never fully explored.
The prose is enjoyable to read, fiery and pacy, but the plot a little lacking. When putting down the book I felt, well, nothing. Reading should not leave you with a shrug of the shoulders. But perhaps the slightly unsatisfying ending and lack of direction is deliberate. As in real life, there are no answers, and the haze continues, even as we try to find our way.

Nine Black Alps – Novokaine

admin — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 09:59:46 +0000

How long has it been? Nine Black Alps are back with their angst driven, raucous and rampaging line in brash and bold grunge, releasing new single Novokaine on Hatch Records on Dec 2nd 2013. Man, being loud and angry is good.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SaGVP29bEA&w=420&h=315]

Temple Songs – Passed Caring

admin — Wed, 21 Aug 2013 14:58:53 +0000

Passed Caring is a song full of rusted riffs, enveloping in melodies rumpled and weary vocals, whirling and whirring through its insistent beats. Building from its opening the sound is couched in complexity and ooze sixties psych. The Manchester four piece Temple Songs are signed to RIP records and prepping for heir debut album. In the meantime Passed Caring is a superb addition to the playlist. It bounces and bounds, sketchy screeches and rhythmic loops fitting like a tentative but real jigsaw. Finishing on an unnecessary flourish (we already knew it rocked), the song is out now
.

Darktown Jubilee – Stay

admin — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 13:30:49 +0000

Darktown Jubilee‘s new crowd pleasing single Stay, out on February 19th, is the first from debut album The World, The Devil & The Flesh, released February 25th. Driving guitars and a simple singalong chorus, this is MOR indie. If we tell you that they are from Manchester, influenced by The Temper Trap, and the track is mixed by Cenzo Townsend, who has also worked with The Vaccines and The Editors, you’ll have a pretty good idea of the sound.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPWt0MIIlYw]

City Reign – Ahead of Ideas

admin — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 20:36:01 +0000

Released 5th November on Car Boot Records

A voice like Roddy Woomble, a shoddy yet likeable rawness, a tip for the top from Steve Lamacq – City Reign seem to have all the elements that could propel them to success. Ahead of Ideas is the new single from their debut EP Numbers for Street Names, released on 21st November. See the video here, before pre ordering the EP…

The Words – Truth & Faith

admin — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 14:00:20 +0000

Out on November 14th 2011 through Phoenixx Records.
Reviewed by Francesca Baker.

Being from Manchester always helps a band, as though through pure osmosis they pick up musical tastes and prowess. The Words have got the talent for a winsome melody (A Thousand Times), talent for a heavy drum beat (Falling) and singalong choruses. Yet, despite really liking their debut album Truth & Faith, I am left with a feeling that something is missing.
There are a medley of band influences, but despite the number of nods to musical heritage (Opener Fog has elements of Blur, stand out Everybody’s With You (out Monday) flirts with a Black Rebel Motorcycle Club style riff, and Demons has a hint of early Kings of Leon meets Wings going on) there is never the over riding conclusion that we have met the sound of The Words. It’s not that I don’t understand. No pretentious attempt has been made to obscure the meaning of their lyrics: on Demons the refrain ‘suicide’ makes it perfectly clear, or on a more cheery note the aptly titled Head Over Heels proclaims its love to the protagonist with ‘I like your eyes, I like your hair, yeah.’
Heart and soul has clearly been poured in bucket loads into this debut album (it took six years), but only 70% of the time does it translate to the start of a truly able and promising new band, rather than well trodden indie of which Frankie & The Heartstrings et al are already trying to molest.
Uplifting and upbeat with its schismatic blend of indie, ska, rock, and country, Truth & Faith is delivered with no hint of reticence, frenetic drumming and lyrics that sound as though they are being delivered with a smile throughout. Streamlining the album of the pleasantly palatable but largely pointless tracks such as Under The Sun and Time would result in a much more compelling and convincing debut.
The Words haven’t arrived but they’re certainly heading in the right direction.