Tag: Black Sabbath

Manchester Venue 139 – Maxwell Hall

I am returning this week to the tale of the 2024 Sounds from the Other City Festival (SFTOC). Within Salford University between 1964 and 2004 there was a thriving venue in the University grounds called Manchester Maxwell Hall. The Maxwell building containing the aforementioned hall was officially opened in 1961 by Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip. The upper hall staged the gigs with a capacity of 1000 seating and a balcony above of a further 220 capacity. I once sat in that very balcony area whilst attending one of my talented wife Gill’s many graduation ceremonies.

The opening band to play on the 25th of March 1964 was Dave Berry and the Cruisers at a cost of six shillings, they were so named based on the lead singer’s admiration of Chuck Berry. They are not to be confused with Marvin Berry and the Starlighters, the fictional musician and Chuck’s cousin from the original Back to the Future movie!  Other acts to play there include The Who, Black Sabbath, U2, New Order, The Kinks, James and of course The Smiths!

Marvin Berry and the Starlighters. Image Credit backtothefuture.wikia.com

One story goes along the lines that Paul McCartney and the Wings rolled up in a van in 1972 and asked if they could play as the band had just recently formed and were engaged on a practice tour. The tickets were priced at 50p with half going to the band and the other half to the University. Blondie also famously graced the stage in 1978 and there is an iconic picture that only emerged in 2017 with Debbie Harry draped in the actual poster for the gig.

In the 1990’s the allure of the venue waned due to the introduction of competing venues in the city with Charlatans having the honour of playing the final gig there on 20th December 2004. There then followed an utterly mystifying gap of fifteen years before an extensive refurbishment plan was touted within the £800m Salford Crescent Masterplan to restore the venue to its former glory but like many other schemes I assume it was then scuppered by the pandemic.

Debbie Harry embracing Salford Uni. Image Credit blogs.salford.ac.uk

Five years later the venue was belatedly chosen as one of the locations within the 2024 edition of SFTOC, which rekindled talk of possibly rebooting the venue. The layout of the venue reminded me of Whitehaven Civic Hall.

On the day we attended we saw a jaunty slightly surreal Welsh six piece called Melin Melyn (translates as Yellow Mill). They sing in their native language and have been cited alongside other artists in a movement named ‘Cool Cymru 2.0’. The driving force of the band are the original members Gruff Glyn alongside Garmon Rhys, who also double up as a pair of professional actors, the former garnering credits in Dr Who, Poldark and the Royal Shakespeare Company.  Their music I would describe as a pot pourri of folk and surf rock.

Maintaining the Welsh theme, we also caught the end of Gruff Rhys (of Super Furry Animals) headline set who was promoting his latest solo album ‘Sadness Sets Me Free’. He is ambidextrous and somewhat bizarrely plays left-handed on an upside down right handed guitar. He has tried his hand at scripting opera and also provides vocals to the Mogwai track ‘Dial: Revenge’ off their Rock Action album. He curtailed his show with a nod to Bob Dylan’s video for Subterranean Homesick Blues via the usage of cue cards with audience prompts for applause etc.      

Maxwell Hall. Image Credit bbc.com

There has been a spate of other venues in the near vicinity including a former horse racing track at a site called Castle Irwell which was sold onto the University in 1960’s. It first evolved as a student village and then the old racecourse members stand was converted into the popular Pavilion Bar and Nightclub (known locally as the Pav) under the ownership of the Students Union.

Bands to have played gigs the Pav include Texas, Pulp and Atomic Kitten before its closure in 2009. The village at Castle Irwell subsequently closed in 2015 after a half of century of providing housing for approximately 40k students. Sadly, a year later there was an arson attack which created such a huge fire that at one point 50 firefighters were in situ utilising pumped water from the nearby River Irwell. Housing has since sprung up on that original site. 

Pulp flyer from their 1992 show. Image Credit pulpwiki.net

There were also events at the Student Unions Building in the 1970’s and 1980’s but the only recorded gig I could track there was a performance by Heart! I am sure there must have been other higher quality gigs there. The final one to note is the Salford College of Technology where local legends Joy Division once graced the stage in 1978.

Bolton Venues 2 to 7

This week I am concluding the tale of my attendance at the muti-venue Right to Roam festival in Bolton town centre in July 2023. Outside of a side door of the Market Hall brings you to the outdoor Bolton Patio Stage containing its own bar area. Initially we saw Minatore, a stoner duo from Nottingham comprised only of drums and guitar but that did not stop them making a mighty din with their Black Sabbath riffs.

Next up was The Empty Page, a punky band from Manchester who have just released their second album ‘Imploding’ which was recorded at Eve Studios in Stockport. The final act was Dirty Blonde, a Manchester female duo whose grungy sound channelled early Blondie and Yeah Yeah Yeahs, I thoroughly enjoyed their set.  

The Bolton Main Stage was located on the Victoria Square outside the Town Hall, the square being one of the first parts of town to be pedestrianised and they hold an annual Buskers Ball there. It was an area suitable for a large capacity but unfortunately was sparsely attended especially just before A Certain Ratio’s headline set as we noted when walking past later heading back to the station. We caught the Katie West Band performing on the stage, Katie undertook her apprenticeship playing wash tub bass and piano in New Orlean’s French Quarter, then was in a duo called Truckstop Honeymoon before creating her current combo.

Right to Roam. dekyas.com

The intermittent monsoon conditions were a challenge all day, especially when sallying over to the outermost point of the festival, Bolton Northern Monk Brewery. On an outdoor pop-up stage an act called Helle were performing and in a coincidental nod to the brewery’s home in Leeds, the noisy four-piece punk band were also from the same Yorkshire city.

The weather was quite frankly awful by this point, and I had oodles of sympathy for the band on stage in those conditions as most punters were sheltering in or as near as possible to the covered brewery room.

The next venue was Bolton Octagon Theatre. The Octagon was opened in 1967 and the concept of the first flexible professional theatre in the UK was initially the brainchild of five students and their college lecturer Robin Pemberton-Billing.  This included facets of design, music, dance, film, repertory theatre, schools, education and daytime availability.

The Octagon Theatre. Image Credit uk.sports.yahoo.com

It was paid for by a combination of a large public fundraising appeal and a couple of council grants. Since it opened, around 3.5m people have passed through the doors and luminaries such as Danny Boyle and Maxine Peake learnt their trade there. 

We headed up to the small theatre room and the band on stage were called Percy who were formed in York in 1996. They still have two remaining founding members of Colin Howard and Andy Wiles and they also employed ex-Housemartin Hugh Whitaker on drums between 1997 and 2004. They provided some quirky intriguing post-punk and have just released their latest album ‘New Phase’.

Being a Northern lad and following strictly the Lancashire Hotpots advice, a chippy tea is a requisite requirement now and then and we satisfied that craving with a nosh fest at the award-winning Bolton Olympus Fish and Chips Restaurant. Whilst hoovering up my mushy peas, we were treated to a soothing set from the house pianist.

2023 Right to Roam bill. Image Credit righttoroambolton.com

The final venue on the roster was the rock pub Bolton Alma Inn situated on Bradshawgate which is over 170 years old. In 1979, the building was purchased by Burtonwood brewery who then bought out the fine arts shops next door to extend the pub. A large fireplace and range was discovered during this refurbishment which subsequently provided the site with Grade 2 listed status. They have live music on every weekend and Caliban and Raging Speedhorn have played there.

We caught up with the other chaps in attendance who were ensconced in the south facing beer garden where the stage was positioned. First up was local noiseniks Bandit followed by some self-styled ‘cosmic punk’ from Londoners Waco who have garnered support slots with Slaves, Anti-Flag and Juliette Lewis & The Licks.

The final and standout band was Riskee and the Ridicule, who are a vibrant inclusive grime punk band from Kent. They have been in existence since 2011 and recently released their fourth album ‘Platinum Statue’ and are finally receiving some overdue attention. There was a logistical challenge for us as we returned to the Alma from another venue just before their set and could not gain access as it was packed to the rafters. However, there was a novel alternative as we could watch them through a fence at the side of the venue, and thankfully the rains stayed away for the duration of their set.