/SEVEN DAYS
TODAY (FRIDAY 15) Music / Peter Hook & The Light Showing little inclination to make up with his ex-New Order bandmates, Manchester bass hero Peter Hook continues to plough a lone furrow. Tonight’s hometown show will see Hook and his backing band The Light playing classic songs from Joy Division and New Order’s Substance compilation albums.
Manchester Academy / manchesteracademy.net / 0161 832 1111 / Friday, December 15, 7pm / £26 Music / Chorlton Socialist Club featuring Dutch Uncles Proudly flying the flag for South Manchester’s lefty credentials, the Chorlton Socialist Club are staging a monthly series of gigs and events at the Chorlton Irish Centre. Tonight’s show features a headline set from one of Manchester’s finest bands, quirky art-rockers, Dutch Uncles, with support from experimental hero Aldous RH.
Chorlton Irish Club / chorltonirishclub.co.uk / 0161 881 2898 / Friday, December 15, 7.30pm / £10 Music / W.H. Lung Sounding like Hookworms as fronted by David Byrne, Manc music newcomers W.H. Lung made a stunning first impression with their debut single Inspiration! back in May. Catch them at this intimate White Hotel gig before they properly blow up in 2018.
The White Hotel, Salford / thewhitehotel.club / Friday, December 15, 7pm / £8 Theatre / Oh Yes We Are! Chorlton’s Edge Theatre is seeing out the year, as is tradition, with an original festive show written in collaboration with the Booth Centre, helping to raise the profile of homelessness and the arts. Expect plenty of humour, silly songs and all-around festive merriment with this latest show – and most important, it’s all for a wonderful cause.
The Edge Theatre & Arts Centre, Chorlton / edgetheatre.co.uk / 0161 282 9776 / Friday, December 15 and Saturday, December 16 / £6 Theatre / Cinderella It may not feature a Z-list celeb you’ve never heard of, but The Dancehouse Theatre’s festive show more than makes up for it with good old-fashioned family fun and frolics. For this year’s production, they’ve teamed up with the EightFreestyle company to stage the classic ragsto-riches story of Cinderella.
The Dancehouse / thedancehouse. co.uk / 0161 237 9753 / Friday, December 15 to Sunday, December 31 / £17.50 Comedy / St James’ at Christmas For one night only, St James’ Club - Manchester’s oldest private members club - is opening its doors for a Frog and Bucket Christmas comedy special. Stand-up and star of The Chase, Paul Sinha headlines, with support from Pete Otway and Junior Simpson.
St James’ Club / stjamesclubmanchester. org / 0161 829 3000 / Friday, December 15, 7pm / £39, book online at – frogandbucket.com Comedy / ComedySportz Pantomime Fed up of seeing the same old pantomimes year after year? Then make sure you catch this wonderful new production from the ComedySportz crew - a show which, utilising all the group’s genius improv talents, will be created before your very eyes (oh yes it is!).
Waterside Arts Centre, Sale / watersideartscentre. co.uk / 0161 912 5616 / Friday, December 15 and Saturday, December 16 / £7/£5 concs Ask most Manchester music aficionados to name a local band who ought to be more widely recognised, and there’s a good chance that they’ll utter the name I Am Kloot. In a career spanning almost two decades and six stunning albums, the Mancunian trio – led by singer-songwriter John Bramwell – build up a fervent cult following with their endearingly scuffed, impossibly poignant songs of love, lager and long, dark nights of the soul. And whilst the band flirted with the mainstream in 2010, after their fifth album Sky At Night album was nominated for the Mercury Prize, I
Contact / contactmcr.com / 0161 274 0600 / Until Wednesday, December 20 / £13/£7 concs SATURDAY 16 Clubbing / Discolypso The perfect remedy for those winter blues, the Discolypso team return to Band On The Wall for another joyous celebration of Nigerian, Ghana Afrobeat, Latin and Caribbean disco sounds. Tonight’s guests are Simon Ham and Will T with masterful live percussion from Gavin Wilkes.
Band On The Wall / bandonthewall. Am Kloot never quite managed – unlike their good friends Elbow – to make that leap to household name status.
In fairness, though, I Am Kloot always happily embraced their role of Manchester underdogs – here was a band that thrived when operating on the fringes. And no-one embodies that attitude more, surely, than the band’s frontman John Bramwell.
With I Am Kloot sadly no more, splitting last year (“There was no heavy break-up” says Bramwell), their Hyde-born singer has returned to his troubadour roots. Taking to the road with only his acoustic guitar for company, Bramwell has spent the past few Indulge in some magical clubbing nostalgia as rave hero DJ Nipper – after a decade long hiatus – returns to play a headline set at Hidden’s Secret Xmas Party. He’s joined by a stellar line-up of DJ talent including Mark XTC, Greenbins, Robbie Avery Si Frater, Pete Monsoon, Anton Stevens and more.
Hidden / hidden.club / Saturday, December 16, 10pm-4am / £15/£20 Classical / The Halle Always a massive highlight of the Manchester festive calendar, The Halle Orchestra have lined up two heart-warming Christmas carol concerts this weekend. Conductor Stephen Bell is joined by a stellar array of vocal talent (The Halle Choir, the Halle Youth and Children’s Choir) years playing intimate solo shows across Europe, from tiny pubs to Second World War underground bunkers in Germany. Those experiences have informed his debut solo album, Leave Alone The Empty Spaces, an album of bruised, poetic acoustica which has delighted both critics and fans of his old band. Playing songs from that record, and no doubt a few Kloot classics, Bramwell is back for a big hometown show at the RNCM this week – and let’s hope that second time around, John Bramwell gets the mass recognition he so deserves.
Royal Northern College of Music / rncm.ac.uk / 0161 907 5200 / Friday, December 15, 7pm / £20