Words & Photography : Ollie Hopewell
Manchester has always had an abundance of talented musicians throughout the years and most would rightly point to the likes of The Smiths, Happy Mondays, Joy Division, and Brit Pop royalty Oasis as the champions of the Manchester Scene, but if you scratch under the surface you’ll find a city teeming with a deeply diverse and talented pool of artists from all walks of life, a group that are all too often overlooked for their earlier heavyweight counterparts.
The role of catapulting these smaller bands, therefore, befalls the many venues of this great city, and our focus was held firmly on the Northern Quarter’s Off the Square on Saturday 28th September, where Scruff of the Neck’s aptly named Spotlight shined brightly on some of Manchester’s finest up-and-coming talent.
Up first were The Divine, who provided all the raucous energy we needed to really get started on proceedings; while not explicitly a Manchester band, The Divine’s somewhat chaotic mix of Aether Pop and Grunge falls perfectly into the heavier side of Manchester’s Indie scene, with the frantic performance of frontman Arda Cülcüloğlu balancing well with the controlled mayhem of bassist Louis Andrews and drummer George Baker. The trio delivered vocals reminiscent of The Strokes and Pixies while almost sadistic riffs reminiscent of Chichester’s Krautrock trio Traams crashed through the room, keeping the early crowd on their toes and firmly engaged as their all-too-short set came to a triumphant end.
Following a short interlude Sunstate took to the stage, bringing a kind and slightly nervous energy to their set which made the setting feel far more gentle and intimate as they eased their way through a light and uplifting set. While the Wilmslow-based band jokingly refer to themselves as a Backseat Lovers tribute act, no doubt there is a strong influence here, they take notes from industry stalwarts Rex Orange County and The Killers; while there are certainly sprinklings of Johnny Marr-esque riffs from lead guitarist Jack Roberts, there are also light and beaming notes of bass akin to The Smashing Pumpkins’ Today and Mayonaise from bassist Lola Pratt, notes which tie perfectly to the four piece’s self-proclaimed worst dancer Will Mills on drums, whose moves were certainly well-above average on the night.
In the middle of this cosy bed of music sits rhythm guitarist and vocal lead Matt Savage who takes influence from the earlier works of Sam Fender in his aforementioned gentle approach to singing. Sunstate’s professionalism and genuine passion for music over their 2 years of gigging translated into a tight performance which beautifully encapsulated the DIY image the quartet have worked so hard to build.
The highly anticipated Sixth Day took to the stage in a calm and relaxed manner before quickly showing off their confidence and prowess for putting on a show with an eruption of sound in the aptly named opening Say Hello, the band fast becoming crowd favourites only seconds into their set due to their energy and talent beyond their years, capitulating the audience with a sound not dissimilar to the early work of the Arctic Monkeys and The Editors which ebbed and flowed through the set.
Immediately loud and brimming with confidence, the five piece cooly rolled through their first few songs with a tight performance reminiscent of industry contemporaries Afflecks Palace, with later tracks such as Haze evoking a feeling similar to the Dogrel era of Fontaines D.C. with a slower pacing punctuated by percolating guitars whose gritty and almost haunted sound filled the air as punters danced and shimmied their way forwards to the very edge of the stage at the behest of the band.
The last time I saw Sixth Day was around Christmas 2023 where they ended their set on a brilliant cover of Step Into Christmas, and while late-September is certainly far too early to be getting into the festive spirit, it was great to see the boys focus more on their excellent catalogue of original material as they ended on the boisterous Down and Out, though there were nods to both Oasis and The Smiths during Run!, the band’s upcoming October release, with lines taken from Supersonic and You Just Haven’t Earned It Yet, Baby respectively. This was delivered in a cheeky yet eloquent manor by frontman Alex Nuttall who was flanked by his bandmates, with the brilliant Sam Wilks and Alex Nuttall (yes, there’s two of them) on guitar and bass respectively to his left, the groovy Hugh Ford to his right, and the steady hands of drummer Joe Cowling just behind him.
The atmosphere, vibes, and performance was excellent throughout the night, with the final act cementing their status as deserved headliners following an exceptional set. As much as Sixth Day captured the essence of the Manchester Scene’s past and present with their sound and style, I’d say that they are nailed on to be involved in the scene’s bright future.
© Ollie Hopewell 2024 Contact: dizzymaguk@gmail.com