Articles by Sandra Blemster

2019 is quite a year for Richard Hawley. As well as releasing his eighth studio album Further, a musical has been released based on his songs. Standing At the Sky’s Edge premiered at his hometown, […]

This coming Saturday, March 30th Manchester plays host to a multi-venue event in aid of Manchester Mind (the not-for-profit based charity for Mental Health). All profits go straight back to Manchester Mind. The festival will […]

The Cold Water Swimmers played their debut gig in May 2018 in Manchester’s Northern Quarter area which I attended. At the time I was struck by how raw and direct they came across. Fronted by […]

Ever since the 1990s, The Brian Jonestown Massacre have released an inexhaustible discography with their psychedelic 60s soaked music. They are the brainchild of Anton Newcombe and found certain notoriety in the 2004 documentary DIG! […]

Two years on from the release of their critically acclaimed debut album Hit the Light, Ten Fe are back with their follow-up. Future Perfect, Present Tense, is due out March 8th on Some Kinda Love/PIAS […]

According to the Oxford English Dictionary Effluxion means the action of flowing out. And when Michael Benjamin Lerner aka Telekinesis first heard the word he said: “I looked it up and it felt really indicative […]

Catfish and the Bottlemen are back with their latest single Longshot. The single is released Tuesday 8th January 2019 ahead of their third album due out in the Spring. It’s been quite a ride for […]

There Is A Light That Never Goes Out is a free exhibition running at Manchester Central Library celebrating the famous history of Manchester’s music scene. Curated by photographer Jill Furmanovsky the founder of Rockarchive.com and […]

On December 7th 2018, the Manic Street Preachers release a 20th Year Collector’s Edition of their fifth album, This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours. The title comes from a part of a speech by […]

Breaking State is the follow-up album to last year’s highly awaited debut album Part 2 from Brix and the Extricated, released by Grit Over Glamour. The cover art features an iconic animation designed by Rufus […]

Danger Island is the debut solo album from singer-songwriter MOLE. A double album of 21 tracks, that has taken more than five years to make. MOLE is the solo project of Californian-born singer, songwriter and […]

Manchester indie-electronic favourites The Slow Readers Club have released a new acoustic EP, For All Here To Observe, this month on  September 14th via Modern Sky. The EP features tracks spanning across their entire career including songs, […]

Liverpool’s The Vryll Society have played the long game. In 2015 they released their debut single Deep Blue Skies on the Deltasonic label (run by the late Alan Wills who discovered the Coral). They have […]

“You begin to hyperventilate, within seconds your heart begins to race and your blood pressure spikes….” Cold Water Swimmers were formed in Manchester in February 2018 when the winter seemed to have gone on forever. They […]

Since their formation in 1981 in the Welsh town of Rhyl the Alarm has sold six million albums and managed to clock up 17 Top Fifty singles in the UK. The original members of Mike […]

Polar States release their new single Roads alongside their music video this month (24th May). This is their first release with Larry Hibbitt producer for Sundara Karma and Nothing But Thieves. This is another slice […]

The first time I came across Dunstan Doodles’ work (aka Dunstan Carter) was last March when I reviewed the Grafters OV Denton EP for XS Noize. The cover featured a picture of a boy with […]

Just before the Manics took to the stage at Manchester’s Arena last Saturday night large neon words were lit up: “The artist must train not only his eye but also his soul” which led to […]