HEAVY METAL REBORN!!!!!

Twin Atlantic are from Glasgow, Scotland and formed in early 2007.

Twin Atlantic have had a successful career thus far, having had the opportunity to take on lead support roles for many high profile bands. They have supported Aereogramme, Circa Survive, Biffy Clyro, Finch, The Fall of Troy, Thrice, Say Anything, The Smashing Pumpkins, Blink 182, The Gaslight Anthem, Taking Back Sunday, My Chemical Romance, Angels & Airwaves, Enter Shikari and The Subways.

Through these suppport roles and several headline tours of their own they have built a strong and evergrowing fan base.

Their debut, A Guidance from Colour - EP, was recorded with Romesh Dodangoda (Funeral for a Friend, Glassjaw, Kids In Glass Houses) at Long Wave Studios in Cardiff and it was released January 14th 2008. Prior to this the band’s first single Audience And Audio was released on 24th December 2007 in digital format. The EP is now out of print but can still be purchased in digital format.

What Is Light? Where Is Laughter? was released on September 29th 2008 by King Tuts Recordings. To celebrate this, the band played to a sold out crowd at King Tuts. They also performed two acoustic instore signings at the Glasgow Fopp stores whilst touring with The Subways, and in doing so gave a hint of new material and a cover of ‘Fall At Your Feet’ by Crowded House.

Twin Atlantic are:
Sam McTrusty - Guitar/ Lead vocals
Barry McKenna - Guitar/ Keyboard/ Cello/ Backing vocals
Ross McNae - Bass/ Keyboard/ Backing vocals
Craig Kneale - Drums

Nada Surf is an American alternative rock group formed in 1992. The New York band consists of Matthew Caws (guitar, vocals), Ira Elliot (drums, vocals) and Daniel Lorca (bass, vocals).

The band is best known for the song “Popular” from their 1996 album High/Low. The song reached #11 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and propelled the album to #63 on the Billboard 200. Each of the verses in “Popular” are extracted from the 1964 guide “Penny’s Guide to Teen-Age Charm and Popularity” by former teen television actress Gloria Winters - and is sarcastically spoken - initially in a calm, deadpan voice that gradually builds Kinison-style in teen angst and rage.

The follow-up effort, The Proximity Effect, failed to garner much attention. The band explains on their official website:

Nada Surf recorded The Proximity Effect in 1998 with Fred Maher (Luna, Lou Reed, Matthew Sweet). It was a mighty fine record. Elektra Atlantic], claiming they “didn’t hear a single,” asked the band to go back in the studio to hunt for one. As this was months after they’d handed the record in, the band refused and were dropped. It’s pretty safe to say, though, that Elektra didn’t appear to be “listening” very hard. The Proximity Effect was released as scheduled in Europe. Critics loved it and fans bought it. Elektra still didn’t care, but the band still did. So after wrestling the rights back, Nada Surf released The Proximity Effect stateside in 2000 on their own label, MarDev Records, and toured accordingly…

Hayseed Dixie began one innocent Summer day in 2000 when John Wheeler and Mike Daly drank roughly enough whiskey to float a battleship from the Florida Coast over to Portugal and back and decided to play around in John’s studio. Having spent the previous few years touring around with assorted country hat-acts, John had assembled a proper pile of recording equipment. Thus when he and Mike discovered in their drunken epiphany that the Lost Highway of Reverend Hank Williams and the Highway to Hell of Bishop Bon Scott were indeed the same identical stretch of tarmac, they were well and truly prepared to document this revelation in situ.

East Nashville, Tennessee in the Summer of 2000 was a proper Bohemian party place, and a few friends stopped by, drank some of John’s whiskey, and played and sang on this recording here and there, as was the custom of the times. And ten AC/DC songs were suddenly reimagined and recorded forever anew, entirely reinvented as Appalachian Mountain hillbilly rave-ups. Everyone danced (oh how they danced!) around the studio room and out onto the porch and drank more whiskey. (You should have been there. Really. You should have.)

Now, functioning well as “Exhibit A” in the demonstration of how one’s beginnings rarely know one’s ends, Hayseed Dixie have evolved into a proper force, one that most people either love, hate, or have never heard of. There isn’t really any middle ground, nor should there be. But fourteen albums - consisting of both original material and reinterpretations of previously rendered songs - and global physical *sales in excess of half a million copies, with over 1,200 live shows in 31 different countries testify: Hayseed Dixie are the undisputed creators of the musical genre, Rockgrass. There are many copycats, converts, and disciples out there. Accept no imitations.

And now, holding up their own idiosyncratic mirror to an unsettled and unsettling 2017, Hayseed Dixie offer up their 15^th studio album, a collection of both original songs and reinterpretations of R&B and Soul classics. Dance with them as they probe the queries: “Why do we still believe there is such a thing as ‘race’?” “Are concepts like ‘nations’ and ‘nationality’ really useful to people who lay bricks or perform kidney stone surgeries?” and “Why does every song always sound better with a banjo in the mix?” The boys are seeking after the root core categorical commonality that runs like an eternal golden braid throughout all of humanity. Then they will buy it a drink!

Kilimanjaro Live Presents
TARJA
PLUS SPECIAL GUESTS MY OWN GHOST

Manchester Academy 2 
Thursday 9th March 2017
Doors 7.30pm | Curfew 11pm

Tickets £17.50 advance STBF

“On The Shadow Self Tarja has got it brilliantly right … a supremely confident singer who … has found her sound” – 8/10 Metal Hammer

Tarja is very proud to announce two headline UK shows in 2017.

The UK shows will be a fantastic celebration at the end of a very successful year for Tarja. 2016 saw the release of a mini album “The Brightest Void” and her fourth studio album “The Shadow Self”, the heaviest record to date, to widespread critical acclaim. The first single (on both albums) “No Bitter End”, collected the essence of Tarja’s new work: massive guitar riffs, a driving beat and of course Tarja’s incredible vocals to create a powerful soundscape, that will be un-missable live.

The versatile singer is following up on the success of the multi-platinum and gold awarded previous records “My Winter Storm” (2007), “What Lies Beneath” (2010) and her most recent album “Colours In The Dark” (2013) which charted all over the globe including 4 Top 10 entries.

Kvelertak (meaning stranglehold or chokehold) is a six-piece black metal hardcore punk band from Stavanger, Norway. All lyrics are written in Norwegian, the band’s native language, and concerning Norse mythology/Viking folklore. As of today, the six members are: Erlend Hjelvik (vocals), Vidar Landa (guitar), Bjarte Lund Rolland (guitar), Maciek Ofstad (guitar), Marvin Nygaard (bass), and Kjetil Gjermundrød (drums). Known for their consistent, idiosyncratic sound, the band states that their main influences are rock and roll, black metal and punk.

In March 2011, Kvelertak was presented with two Spellemann Awards—a prestegious Norwegian music award similar to the American Grammy Award—for Best Newcomer and Best Rock Band

‘If you missed seeing Kate herself, Cloudbusting are the next best thing!’   Simon Mayo, BBC Radio 2

Cloudbusting have been championed by BBC ONE as one of the most authentic tributes in the world. Their passion for Kate’s music has won over sceptical fans everywhere, challenging perceptions of what a tribute band can be and resulting in sell-out performances across the UK.

‘There can only be one Kate Bush’ says vocalist Mandy Watson, who never attempts to mimic Kate on stage. ‘When you sing her music the characters in the songs take over - they are what you become, not Kate. We're just fans, amazed at this opportunity to perform this music we love so much’.

Many of Kate’s original collaborators from stage and studio have been inspired to join the band on stage, including bass player Del Palmer, drummer Preston Heyman and dancer Stewart Avon Arnold, all of whom performed with Kate on her legendary Tour of Life live shows 40 years ago.

Running Up That Hill, Wuthering Heights, Hounds of Love, Babooshka, This Woman’s Work, Wow… Cloudbusting can’t wait to whip up a storm of love for Kate’s music once again in 2019, their new show featuring all the hits you’d expect as well as many songs you wouldn’t! Accompanied by eye-popping visuals that highlight the drama of Kate’s music, a Cloudbusting concert is an event no Kate Bush fan will want to miss. In the words of Kate herself, ‘We’re Cloudbusting, daddy!’

‘I could have been listening to Kate herself!' - Preston Heyman

‘Utterly, surreally brilliant’ - Mick Wall, Classic Rock Magazine

After a year and a half on the road traversing the globe in support of his groundbreaking and critically acclaimed debut album, blkswn, Smino, the multihyphenate artist, is ready to embark on something new.

Noir is a record about the present, about life now, he says, an experience that is far more complex and challenging. He’s still writing songs every day, but now his songs reflect a changing Smino, one dealing with “adult shit.” Exponential growth is the reward. “I guess growth for me means understanding shit and being able to make music intentionally,” he says.

Music runs through his veins; it’s genetically embedded. Smino’s grandfather, father, and mother were musicians, and the rapper and singer began playing drums in his native St. Louis at an early age. After a brief stint at Columbia College and a move back to his hometown, he returned to Chicago where he connected with Classick Studios and released his first two EPs, S!ck S!ck S!ck and blkjptr. In 2017, he dropped blkswn, which Rolling Stone hailed as one of the 40 best rap albums of the year.

Noir is about intentional fun. Smino once again collaborated with trusted producers like LBoogie, Sango, and Zero Fatigue member Monte Booker. And songs—with titles like “Klink” and “Tequila Mockingbird”—offer a lighter contrast to blkswn. “If sometimes it felt like I was going off a little too much on my tangent shit, I probably didn’t pick those songs,” Smino says. That brightness permeates the record and inspires Smino’s current outlook. “Just have fun with your fucking life,” he says. “That’s really what I was doing when I was making the record: just having fun and living off my own confidence.”

Honesty gets at the heart of Smino’s new music. If blkswn saw the musician tackling the issues of the day, Noir sees him pull directly from his personal everyday truth. “I’m not trying to be like anyone else’s art,” Smino says. “I’m just trying to be the art that’s coming out of me. It’s just honest.”

Magnum guitarist Tony Clarkin is a man who seems to never stop working. He is responsible for writing all the material released by the band, and on top of that he produces their albums from the very first demo to the final mix. “As soon as an album is finished, I start to collect new ideas,” he explains. “That’s how I’ve worked since the early seventies, for me that’s the ideal method.” On their latest album, Clarkin and Magnum’s other original member, vocalist Bob Catley, prove all over again just how perfectly this established system works.

Magnum have recorded eleven new songs which feature all the traditional strengths of the British act and also live up to the band’s ambition to explore a more rock-oriented direction. “Thanks to our current record company, we enjoy full artistic freedom,” Clarkin enthuses. “SPV understand how important this is to us.We’ve not always been in such a fortunate position. During the eighties, the label we were with at the time wanted us to sound as pop-oriented as possible because they hoped for better album sales. I used to hate that, despite the success we had.”

The new album was recorded by the Magnum line-up consisting of Clarkin, Catley, keyboardist Rick Benton and drummer Lee Morris, plus their latest addition, bassist Dennis Ward (Pink Cream 69, Place Vendome, Unisonic, among others), who joined the fold to replace Al Barrow. “Unfortunately Al had to leave the band because he didn’t have enough time. He lives in the US, which had always caused organisational problems,” Clarkin explains the background of the line-up change. “Tobias Sammet of Avantasia recommended Dennis, who is a great musician and vocalist, exactly what we were looking for. His contribution to the album surpassed our wildest expectations. We’re really looking forward to touring with him.”

Talking of which: Magnum’s major European tour has been scheduled to start in March 2020, initially with a number of headlining shows, to be continued by a first-rate package together with Gotthard from Switzerland. This extremely successful collaboration first passed the litmus test a few years ago, and Clarkin, Catley & Co. are very enthusiastic: “Along with some classic numbers, we will also present four or five songs from the new release.” the band promises, providing even more reasons for their fans to mark the dates in their calendars.

LINE UP

Tony Clarkin – Guitar

Bob Catley – Vocals

Rick Benton – Keyboards

Dennis Ward – Bass

Lee Morris – Drums