1.       The Prize Draw is open to all United Kingdom residents aged eighteen (18) or over except employees of the Promoter, any associated companies, their families and anyone professionally involved in this promotion.

2.       NO PURCHASE OF ANY SORT IS NECESSARY TO TAKE PART IN THIS PRIZE DRAW. Contestants are required to enter online via the Cloggs website at www.cloggs.co.uk/page/boxfresh_comp between the start and end date detailed below.

3.       The Prize Draw opens on 3 February 2012 and the closing date is at 17.00 on 20 February 2012. No entries shall be accepted before the start date or after the closing date. Entries are limited to one (1) entry per person. Third party or bulk entries will not be accepted and illegible or altered entries or those not in accordance with the entry instructions are invalid.  No responsibility is accepted for entries which do not register on the website or for any entries which are lost, damaged or corrupted.

4.       One (1) winner will be drawn at random from all website entries received. The winner drawn will receive two (2) VIP tickets to the NME Awards Ceremony taking place on 29 February 2012 at the 02 Brixton Academy, London together with one (1) night’s accommodation at  a three (3) star hotel in London, two hundred pounds (£200) spending money and a one hundred and fifty pound (£150) Boxfresh voucher to spend on www.boxfresh.com.

Please note:

• the winner’s chosen travel companions must be over the age of eighteen (18);
• the winner and their travel companion shall be responsible for their own transportation;
• accommodation for the winner and their companion shall be on bed and breakfast basis and shall be allocated by the Promotor;
• the winner and their travel companion will be responsible for adhering to the 02 Brixton Academy and the accommodation’s Terms and Conditions;
• if the winner and/or their travel companion are asked to leave the 02 Brixton Academy and/or the accommodation and/or incur any damage charges, the Promoter will not be responsible for covering any additional costs; and
• the Promoter accepts no responsibility for the winner and/or their travel companion being refused entry to the 02 Brixton Academy and/or the accommodation and/or ejection from the 02 Brixton Academy and/or accommodation.

5.        The draw will be made by an independent person on 21 February 2012.  The winner will be notified of their success via telephone on 21 February 2012. If the winner cannot be contacted by 17.00 on 24 February 2012, the Promoter reserves the right to select an alternative winner at random and award the prize to this entry. The Promoter’s decision is final. No correspondence will be entered into.

6.        The winner and their travel companion agree to take part in post-Prize Draw publicity at the request of the Promoter. By entering the Prize Draw, contestants agree to the Promoter’s unrestricted use of any post-Prize Draw publicity for the Promoter’s own purposes in all activities including, without limitation, marketing and promotional activities worldwide including use on the promoter’s websites and social networking platforms.

7.       The prizes may be altered or varied at the Promoter’s sole discretion and substituted with prizes which, in the Promoter’s sole opinion, are suitable alternatives. No cash alternatives are available and the prizes are non-transferable.

8.       The name of the winner may be found on the Boxfresh website at www.boxfresh.com on 27 February 2012.

9.       Information regarding personal data provided in the entry forms and emails will be collected, stored and processed in a database for the purpose of managing entry into this Prize Draw. Such information will not be used for any other purpose than as stated in these Terms and Conditions or as separately accepted by you. If you have separately agreed to receive communications from the Promoter and/or Cloggs then your personal data may be used for such purposes, including direct marketing. Any personal data that you provide will be held and processed in accordance with the requirements of the 1998 Data Protection Act.

10.     The Promoter reserves the right to withdraw or amend this promotion and these terms and conditions in the event of any unforeseen circumstances outside of its reasonable control or if in its absolute discretion, consider it necessary.

11.     The Promoter reserves the right to terminate or temporarily suspend this promotion in the event of technical or other difficulties that might compromise its integrity.

12.     The Promoter reserves the right to exclude any entries which they believe to be fraudulent or based on misconduct.

13.     The Promoter and its agents accept no responsibility for difficulties experienced in submitting an entry to this prize draw.

14.     The Promoter of this Prize Draw is Boxfresh International Limited, whose principal place of business is at The Pentland Centre, Squires Lane, London, N3 2QL.

15.     By entering this prize draw, entrants agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions. All entry instructions form part of these Terms and Conditions and any entry which does not comply with the entry instruction shall be invalid.

© Boxfresh International Limited 2012

PRIZE DRAW TERMS AND CONDITIONS

The following Terms and Conditions apply to the ‘’Boxfresh NME Awards Ceremony” Prize Draw (the “Prize Draw”):

1. The Prize Draw is open to all United Kingdom residents aged eighteen (18) or over except employees of Boxfresh, any associated companies, their families and anyone professionally involved in this promotion.  

1. Entrants shall be required to vote for their favourite new band on the Boxfresh Facebook tab at www.facebook.com/boxfresh (the “Initial Entrant”).  Initial Entrants will then be required to share their vote with three (3) of their chosen Facebook friends who must also vote for their favourite band on the Boxfresh Facebook tab, once all four (4) entrants have voted, their entry shall be submitted.  Each Initial Entrant must ensure that they provide a valid email address and are contactable at this email address.

1. This Prize Draw is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. Entrants are providing their information to Boxfresh International Limited and not to Facebook. The information provided will only be used for purposes as detailed in clause 10.

1. NO PURCHASE OF ANY SORT IS NECESSARY TO TAKE PART IN THIS PRIZE DRAW.

1. The Prize Draw opens on 31 January 2012 and the closing date is at 17.00 on 22 February 2012. No entries shall be accepted before the start date or after the closing date. Entries are limited to one (1) entry per person. Third party or bulk entries will not be accepted and illegible or altered entries or those not in accordance with the entry instructions are invalid.  No responsibility is accepted for entries which do not register on the Boxfresh Facebook tab or for any entries which are lost, damaged or corrupted.

1. There shall be one (1) prize.  The winner will be drawn at random from all four (4) participant entries received on the Boxfresh Facebook tab. The Initial Entrant of the winning entry shall receive the following prizes on behalf of his/her three (3) chosen friends (the “Friends”);

• four (4) tickets to the rehearsals and NME Awards Ceremony taking place on 29 February 2012 at the 02 Brixton Academy, London for themselves and their Friends; and
• one (1) night’s accommodation for themselves and their Friends at a three (3) star hotel in London;

The Initial Entrant will also receive the following prizes for themselves:

• two hundred pounds (£200) spending money;
• two hundred pounds (£200) of Boxfresh vouchers to spend on www.boxfresh.com; and
• one (1) digital camera.

Please note:

• the Initial Entrants’ Friends must be over the age of eighteen (18);
• the winner and their Friends shall be responsible for their own transportation;
• accommodation for the winner and their Friends shall be on bed and breakfast basis and shall be allocated by Boxfresh;
• the winner and their Friends will be responsible for adhering to the 02 Brixton Academy and  the accommodation’s Terms and Conditions;
• if the winner and/or any of their Friends are asked to leave the 02 Brixton Academy and/or the accommodation and/or incur any damage charges, Boxfresh will not be responsible for covering any additional costs; and
• Boxfresh accepts no responsibility for the winner and/or their Friends being refused entry to the 02 Brixton Academy and/or the accommodation and/or ejection from the 02 Brixton Academy and/or accommodation.

1. The draw will be made by an independent person on 23 February 2012.  The winner will be notified of their success via email on 23 February 2012. If the winner cannot be contacted by 17.00 on 25 February 2012, Boxfresh reserves the right to select an alternative winner at random and award the prize to this entry. Boxfresh’s decision is final. No correspondence will be entered into.

1. The winner and their Friends agree to take part in post-Prize Draw publicity at the request of the Boxfresh. By entering the Prize Draw, contestants agree to Boxfresh’s unrestricted use of any post-Prize Draw publicity for Boxfresh’s own purposes in all activities including, without limitation, marketing and promotional activities worldwide including use on the Boxfresh websites and social networking platforms.

1. The prizes may be altered or varied at Boxfresh’s sole discretion and substituted with prizes which, in Boxfresh’s sole opinion, are suitable alternatives. No cash alternatives are available and the prizes are non-transferable.

10.  The name of the winner may be found on the Boxfresh website at www.boxfresh.com and Boxfresh Facebook tab on 25 February 2012.

11.  Information regarding personal data provided in the entry forms and emails will be collected, stored and processed in a database for the purpose of managing entry into this Prize Draw. Such information will not be used for any other purpose than as stated in these Terms and Conditions or as separately accepted by you. If you have separately agreed to receive communications from Boxfresh then your personal data may be used for such purposes, including direct marketing. Any personal data that you provide will be held and processed in accordance with the requirements of the 1998 Data Protection Act.

12.  Boxfresh reserves the right to withdraw or amend this promotion and these terms and conditions in the event of any unforeseen circumstances outside of its reasonable control or if in its absolute discretion, consider it necessary.

13.  Boxfresh reserves the right to terminate or temporarily suspend this promotion in the event of technical or other difficulties that might compromise its integrity.

14.  Boxfresh reserves the right to exclude any entries which they believe to be fraudulent or based on misconduct.

15.  Boxfresh and its agents accept no responsibility for difficulties experienced in submitting an entry to this prize draw.

16.  The promoter of this Prize Draw is Boxfresh International Limited, whose principal place of business is at The Pentland Centre, Squires Lane, London, N3 2QL.

17.  By entering this prize draw, entrants agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions. All entry instructions form part of these Terms and Conditions and any entry which does not comply with the entry instruction shall be invalid.

© Boxfresh International Limited 2012

Shane Walter is the co-founder of onedotzero, the innovative digital arts organisation he started in 1996 when he was 27. Since then, onedotzero has grown into a renowned international network and every year they travel around the world, appearing at their own festivals and partnering with many others.

When and how did you first know you wanted to be involved in digital arts?

I don’t think I woke up one day and thought I will be involved in this digital art area. It’s something that happened very organically I was and am driven by a passion and interest in art, design and entertainment. I have being working in the digital area approaching 20 years. No one ever understood what I did, and I have never had a CV. Now it is a little more understandable in today’s hybrid creative culture.

Since touring onedotzero to over 50 cities, which has been your favourite experience?

The whole thing has been an adventure, many, many highs and thankfully relatively few lows. Off the top of my head… surviving earthquakes and typhoons across Asia, 50,000 attending our Buenos Aires festival and Girls knickers thrown at me in Taipei..

In regard to onedotzero is there anything you wish you could have done differently?

Well there are always creators we wanted to work with, projects we could not get financed and festivals in cities that were dropped due to funding and sponsors falling through. All these things could have shaped or changed our future to some degree. But I don’t think I would have done anything different or could have done much more over the years. I can honestly say I have worked my butt off – so in some respects maybe having been more successful at having holidays!

What is your next big project after the adventures in motion festival at the BFI southbank?

After the London event, onedotzero_adventures in motion festival embarks on an international tour – visiting around 60 cities.

Who’s work do you most admire at this point in time?

So many names, so many disciplines, we showcase about 200 works from people i admire each year. There are many we don’t have the fortune of being involved with as well. A short burst… cross disciplinary designers Trokia, architect / designer Thomas Heatherwick, music promo directors Canada, animator David O’Reilly and coding genius Karsten Schmidt.

Which technological discovery has most influenced your work?

The Internet allowed onedotzero to be truly international. To reach new creators about what we and they were doing, research work, connect people and communicate to our partners allowed us to have this global network of events in the real world. This international perspective is vital and part of our DNA.

Which piece/installation most speaks to you or excites you and why?

Monolith from UVA I still find an exciting piece of work. Why it still excited me is how they used a fairly hard, imposing piece of LED technology and made it appear alive. It responded to your movement and proximity with sound and light – very simply. And to me it is the holy grail of interaction – it draws you in and needs no instructions, you intuitively know how to related to it and form an immediate dialogue.

What app could you never live without?

I do use many day to day to like Instagram, Echofon for twitter, etc but I can live without apps completely to be honest. What I would find hard to live without would be my notebook.

What’sthe next step for digital?

I have seen the rise of a new kind of creative force – that of the Coder. Coders or programmers were always relegated to the back room geek dens and not considered to be ‘creative’ types. Now code is in its purest form is a new raw material that artists and designers can shape and sculpt in a myriad ways to create interactive art, generative designs and stunning motion sequences.

Who is your hero and why?

Leonardo Da Vinci – the true Renaissance man. I love his hybrid practice, the idea of convergence across so many areas from art to technical innovation. His craft, skill and multi-talent are still awesomely impressive to me. His mix of art, commerce, tech, entertainment, science, invention and exploration is staggeringly inspiring. No one has come close to his achievements in any era.

Finally, any words of wisdom for our readers?

The best advice I can give is to never stop looking. A lot of people can see but never look around them. Here are a few things I have personally learned along my journey, which may or may not be useful [in no particular order]:

Trust your instinct
Be open, never stop looking
Start from a position of trust
Be honest, be yourself, don’t try to be someone else
Make friends not just contacts
Become a tourist – travel is good for you
Enjoy the journey not just the destination
Don’t stop learning, share your knowledge
Talking is good, doing is better
Learn to operate out of your comfort zone
Be interested rather than trying to be interesting
Keep a notebook
Collaboration can achieve bigger things

onedotzero_adventures in motion festival will take place on the 23 – 27 Nov 2011 at BFI Southbank

http://www.bfi.org.uk/onedotzero/

www.onedotzero.com / www.facebook.com/onedotzero / www.twitter.com/#!/onedotzero / www.bfi.org.uk/onedotzero

The boys back in the day.

Lovebox Festival is back!
Tom Findlay from Groove Armada has put together an inspired mix to get us all in the mood.

Tracklisting

Take em up – Shit Robot (Mark e Remix)
Serious – Donna Allen
Open Heart Surgery – Beth Ditto
VCR – XX (Matthew Dear Rmx)
Nutrider – Forty Thieves
Holding Back My Love – Tensnake
Knee Deep in Chic – Electric Jones
Devotion – GA’s Red Light Re-Rub
Come Closer – CFCF (Azari + III Rmx)
Live Your Life – Art Department ft Seth Troxler (ABA Theory Remix)
Yours ft Virginia – Steffie
The L Word – Deniz Kurtel
She Wants – Metronomy
Who Am I (What’s My Name) – Snoop Dogg

Tom Findlay (Groove Armada) 2011 Lovebox Weekend Jam

Available at the following Treds stores:

Weymouth, Bournemouth, Poole, Salisbury, Taunton, Portsmouth, Exeter, Swindon, Canterbury, Maidstone, Cardiff, Northhampton, Telford, Bristol, Worthing, Hereford, Truro, Worcester, Torquay, Eastbourne, Weston Super Mare, Gloucessss Gloucester, Bath,  Gloucester, Barnstaple, Sutton C-field.

Terms & Conditions Apply

1. Customers purchasing Boxfresh shoes from Treds stores from 18 April 2011 will receive a free Boxfresh t-shirt (the “Offer”).
2. The Offer is available whilst Boxfresh t-shirt stocks last and Boxfresh reserve the right to withdraw the Offer at any time.
3. No alternative product is offered and there is no cash alternative.
4. The Offer applies to Boxfresh purchases from Treds retail stores.  The Offer cannot be used for Boxfresh purchases with any other retailer or for any online purchases.
5. The Offer may not be used in conjunction with other Treds in store promotions.
6. If you return your Boxfresh shoes for whatever reason, the Offer will cease to apply. You must therefore return your free Boxfresh t-shirt with any returned Boxfresh shoes.
7. Nothing in these terms and conditions shall affect your statutory rights.
8. The Offer shall be governed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales.

Have a couple of gigs lined up this month, would be good to see you there …

14/03/11 – Kukui
3 Richmond Hill
Bournemouth, Dorset BH2 6HE

15/03/11 Upstairs @Ronnie Scott’s
47 Frith St
Westminster, London W1D 4HT

25/03/11 Element Nightclub, Southend on Sea
13-17 Alexandra Street
Southend-on-Sea
Essex
SS1 1BX

Will leave you with a taster of one of the tracks from the EP. A little bit different from my usual style, but definitely worth a listen. Thanks to the lads at True Tiger who provided the beat.

We’ll be hitting the road with Tim Burgess and Mark Collins of The Charlatans – they’ve got an amazing new EP out called Warm Sounds – see the Summer is here – and there’s sold out gigs in Wrexham, Stoke, Manchester, Leeds, Glasgow, London, Dundee, Brighton and Stockton as well as The Union Chapel in London. We reckon it may well be the most amazing venue ever but what do we know. Finn from Hatcham Social will be on drums for some songs and there’s some re-workings of some of their classic songs and some surprises too.

We’ll be letting you know from here all the tour hi jinx – Tim is DJing at some aftershow parties and Joseph Coward, Blue on Blue, Aaron Wright and our gerodie favourites The Warchers will be supporting on different nights. If you don’t hear from us just check where we were the night before and call the coastguard. We’ll hit you up with some pics n’that and if nothing too exciting happens we’ll be making shit up

Is that all we’re doing did you say? Yeah, kinda. Oh apart from the party in the grounds of the Jacobean Mansion.
The House Party is going a little upmarket but we’ll still let you come. We’ve not changed though, it’s still the best night/weekend out ever

…Ladies and gentlemen, we bring you…… The Country House Party.

All the usual goings on and much, much more – 2 days of beds to jump on, wardrobes to ransack, nick nacks to nick, Pimms to guzzle and it’s all in the grounds of a Jacobean mansion, beside a lake in 200 acres of gorgeous Cheshire countryside.

The sideboard DJ booth, tea and toast in the kitchen, beauty treatments, hair styling, impromptu gigs, chappy hour every day with cocktails, snuff and cardigans.

Tim Burgess (The Charlatans)
Douglas Hart (The Jesus and Mary Chain)
Stephen Morris (Joy Division//New Order)
Mike Joyce (The Smiths//6music)
Rich Reason (Warehouse Project//Hit & Run)
Dave Haslam (The Hacienda)
Seahawks
Andy Woods (Smile)
Club Brenda
Clique
Black Cat DJs: Dean Chalkley and Si Cheeba
Howard Marks
Will Tramp!
Woody and Kwasi (Friends & Family)
Allez Allez
Tom Smith (Beatin Rythm)
The Wasted Little Deejays
Murkage Cartel
Gareth Brooks (XFM)
DrQ & Gumbo-YaYa (Free Your Soul)
Grace Brown (Same Teens)
Friends of Mine DJs
Good Vibrations
PMcQ
Craig McGee
The Disco Mums
Black Daniel DJs
Rick Cee
Vince Vega
Bernie Cheater
Ross Roberts (Don’t Die Just Yet//Rope)
Underachievers Please Try Harder
Pull Yourself Together
The Power Ballad Salad

Plus Jack B our favourite beatboxer

Howard Marks aka Mr Nice, the famous, ahem, traveller and raconteur will be along to not only DJ but he’ll be regaling us with tails of his adventures as one of the world’s most notorious drug smugglers. He’ll even let you ask him some questions, try to avoid ones about Rizla, the guys got a first class degree from Oxford in astro physics.
www.howardmarks.name

Sunday will be curated by Tim Burgess and he’s not only bringing along some of his favourite DJs he’s also bringing his favourite record shop. Vinyl junkies need fear not as a pop up version of Beatin Rythm will be, well, popping up on Sunday and Tom will be playing an afternoon set of Northern Soul foot stompers and you can even buy them if you like them
www.beatinrhythm.com

We’ll be doing bacon butties and tea and toast from the kitchen and parked outside will be our favourite ice cream van packed with the best desserts you ever did see. Feast your eyes on what we gun be doing..
www.gingerscomfortemporium.com

We want friends of ours to become friends of yours too and we’ve got Gavin Watson coming to give a tlak, show his work and take some shots, A seminal photographer for Vice and The Sunday Times whose book Skins is a photography classic. He honestly had us crying, laughing and everything in between last time. You’ll like him
www.gavinwatsonsphotography.blogspot.com

Breakfast with Yoshimi and Zaireeka – a very special playback of The Flaming Lips 1997 4 CD masterpiece. 4 separate CDs all to be played at the same time means that listening to this album is a rare but amazing thing. We’ve also got a special recording of Yoshimi Versus The Pink Robots with a commentary by Wayne Coyne

Quzimodo – Manchester’s best loved quiz well known to be 81.5% better than other pub quizzes, will be making every day a school day with their irreverant and often irrelevant take on things quizular.

On Sunday, film maker Ivana Bobic will be on hand with her stunning visuals. Ivana has worked with fashion brands such as Stella McCartney, adidas and with London-based band S.C.U.M on a series of videos called ‘SIGNALS’ which are to be released by Mute Records, as well as collaborating with the band in an ever-evolving visuals for liveshows.
Her short film ‘The Priest’ was selected for the London Short Film Festival, the East End Film Festival, Siberia Film Night, and won Best Short Film at the International Film Festival of Ireland.

Here’s what’s happened before

The Haunted House Party with guest DJs The Horors, Douglas Hart, Dave Haslam and more
http://www.myboxfresh.com/2010/11/14/house-party-7-the-haunted-house-party-in-3d/

THe House Party in London featuring The Bays (Live)
http://www.myboxfresh.com/2010/10/27/house-party-6/

Kendal Calling with Bez, 808 State, Rich Reason, Clique, Juicy and loads more
http://www.myboxfresh.com/2010/08/06/house-party-3-4-5/

Easter Sunday with Eddy Temple Morris, Allez Allez, Envy etc
http://www.myboxfresh.com/2010/04/10/what-went-on-round-our-house/

New Year’s Eve featuring The Whip, Autokratz, The Kleptones..
http://www.myboxfresh.com/2010/01/06/more-nye-magic/

Friends of Mine Festival

Featuring
The Charlatans, Black Lips, Buzzocks, A Certain Ratio, The Phantom Band, The Wedding Present, Electricity in Our Homes, Wild Palms, Howard Marks plus loads more

www.fomfest.com
3 day camping ticket £89.50

If that’s not enough, it’s not for us anyway!

The House Party will be at www.kendalcalling.com where Blondie, Echo and The Bunnymen, Cribs and loads of others will be going crazy nuts a bit like last year.

See you Tuesday!

x

With over 50 bands playing across six stages, Jabez Clegg and Krobar held host to Friends of Manchester Festival; A day showcasing the best of Manchester’s fine bunch.

Kicking off the day were The King Tree and the Roots – their powerpop smashing open the doors for the rest of the day and setting a bar for the other acts on the bill to reach.
Patterns drew one of the biggest crowds of the day with their infectious post-punk sound. With melodic electronics combined with just plain noise Patterns were one of the best sounds of the day.

Driver Drive Faster also had a billing time earlier in the day, but this didn’t stop the indie rock four piece pulling in an audience that packed out the bar stage and giving a performance filled with enough drum beats and guitar riffs to last a lifetime.

Nobody told us Ska was making a firm bid for a comeback but if The Minx and The Janice Graham Band have anything to do with it we’ll be Fred Perried up and doing that funny dance that looks like there’s a strobe on you, by Summer. The Janice Graham band come out of the blocks like a greyhound – albeit a greyhound with possibly the worst name ever – their brand of laddie, frenzied brashness lifted the early evening spirits and their brass section that wouldn’t be out of place in a Mexican mariachi ensemble, keeps them from ever sounding like too many other people.

People often mention the ‘where are they now’ file but we were introduced to the sequel of the ‘oh, there they are’ document. Jo Rose, former leader of  kings of nearly making it, Fear of Music popped up his his new solo guise and he definitely impressed. Another nearly man of the Manchester scene, Martin Cohen, from Nine Black Alps cropped up in Milk Maid who jolted us back into life before the final onslaught.
Although Wild Palms were scheduled, Jonny Brown (of Twisted Wheel) took to the stage performing an acoustic set that had every member of the laddish crowd singing along and strutting around the dance floor. After almost an hours worth of tunes, Brown left the crowd baying for more despite repeatedly “Just playing one more, yeah?”.
Where’s Strutter? followed Brown and these two acts were clearly the main highlight for the majority of the crowd’s day but, for the minority not watching Where’s Strutter? there was an unexpected (for many) surprise in store.

A quick trip downstairs took us to the acoustic stage – this little gem of a place was just next to the bar and had two unlpugged treasures while we stopped by for refreshment (did we say it was next to the bar?).  First up was Aaron Wright who played with just an acosutic guitar, his band The Aprils, obvioulsy on a night off. We’d been tipped off by Smile’s Andy Woods who spins Aaron’s song Go On Yourself most weeks down at The Star and Garter. The fragile beauty of his voice was balanced with the robust knockabout nature of somgs like Trampoline. Most of them had the kind of bar room singalonga terrace choruses that we like to join in on when this refreshed.

Girl Peculiar was next and these had come highly recommnded by, or rather, totally raved about by 6Music’s Marc Riley. Hard to pigeonhole but easy to love -  Jenny played on her own and with a cellist and it wasn’t just the Red Stripe that made it seem like we were being carried away by her swashbuckling adventuresome take on folk with songs  like Angel Groupie Girl and Secrets.

This surprise was Brown Brogues. The two brothers created a slow, menacing and intriguing noisy rock sound that had the packed out room wrapped up in every drum beat. With between song banter consisting of snippets of the Spice Girls being crooned down the mic, Brown Brogues seemed to be enjoying their set as much as the crowd.

Jim Noir followed and showed us what he’s been doing since his kind of hit, Eany Meany. An ever present on the Manchester music scene who might be due an Elbow/ I Am Kloot style promotion at some point. Catchy songs the milkman can whistle with an underlying darker side moved us into mathrock territory but with enough dirty guitar to keep the lads happy. Jim then popped up on drums for Silverclub making something of a supergroup. Well, we spotted a Sister of Transistor on keyboards so it’s hardly Cream but we were impressed. The Whip had been tempted out of their studio hideaway where they have just completed their second album. Bruce had threatened just to play the album in full for their DJ set. We were hopeful but it wasn’t to be – we sussed out that he sneaked a couple in and they were sounding on top form
With a packed out pub, the day turned into night and with some of Manchester’s finest DJ’s ending Friends of Manchester the stage is now set for the summer follow up – Friends of Mine Festival. Bigger and better than Friends of Manchester, and in a country park, what more could you want?

Words by Grace Brown and Alex Silver

Pictures By Craige Barker Inc: Girl Peculiar, Janis Graham Band, Wheres Strutter, Lowline, Last Party,  and  Aaron Right,

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