Tag: Manchester Deaf Institute Lodge

2024 Gigs – Part 3

I always manage to catch some random performances in venues around Oxford Road train station prior to heading home. One such venue is Manchester Grand Central where in May I saw a band called Level Up, in September I witnessed Throwback, in October I caught Ben from the Block and a month later Warrington act Pray for Mojo. The latter combo provided a pleasing slab of psych rock in the vein of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard.  

The other venue in that vicinity is the old stalwart Manchester Thirsty Scholar. I visited the Scholar in August and October where I saw a couple of double acts called Alvin and Rob and Sid and Benny. Jenny Jazz followed at the tail end of October.

My final attendance in December was part of the Year’s End Festival on a monsoon style rainy day where first up on stage were a noisy garage rock band called Redchecks. They are a Welsh act who are now based in Manchester, but somewhat confusingly formed in Glastonbury in 2021.

Scatterchild. Image facebook.com

The other performers were locals Scatterchild who had recently released their debut album ‘An Everyday Landscape’. It was possibly the busiest I have seen the pub in all my visits, and we snuggled into a spot perched on the bar. It turned out be my last gig there prior to the recently rebadging of the hostelry into O’Connells Irish pub, still thankfully staging live music.

Another venue of the Year’s End festival roster was Manchester Retro Bar Downstairs Stage. It was only my third visit to the cellar and as it transpired my last as the venue is now closed for good after a thirty-five-year tenure. It is due to be demolished soon to make way for the Sister regeneration project which aims to generate 10,000 jobs and 1500 new homes.  

Retro however are still aiming to relocate and set up in a new site and are apparently exploring possible locations in this regard. The band on stage were called Wren and they cut a very heavy presence with their noisy sludge metal and it is the kind of music your Granny may love!  

The final festival venue to reference was further down Oxford Road at Manchester Deaf Institute Lodge. The first act I saw was Meelik who were most definitely the first ever band I have seen from Estonia. I then undertook some research on famous bands from the northernmost of the Baltic states and the intriguing name that caught my eye was the punk band called Bedwetters!

Meelik. Image Credit escbubble.com

Meelik fall more into the indie genre and are literally a high school band formed originally by their guitarist, Rain. Confidence in their musical ability was initially gained after winning one of their school song competitions. They had a break from 2011 to 2022 before reforming and entering their national Eurovision Song Contest qualifiers where they obtained a fourth place. On stage they wore school uniforms though they avoided Angus Young comparisons by the virtue of them wearing long pants! They were rather quirky, and I enjoyed the portion that I saw of their set.

The other act was Nadia Sheikh who is a Spanish/British singer and songwriter now based out of London. She self-released a slew of singles prior to obtaining a coveted 19 date support slot for Stereophonics on a sold out tour including dates at Manchester and Cardiff Arena. She had a heartfelt expressive voice which was overlaid over an indie backdrop sound.

There were also acts playing in the Manchester Deaf Institute Music Hall. First up was Kynsy who was probably my favourite performer of the whole day. Outside of her stage non de plume name she is known by her family as Dublin born, now London based lass Ciara Lindsey. She gained her musical stripes as a teen in an all-female rock band before branching out as a solo artist and received many favourable reviews. I liked her soulful voice and heartfelt tunes, and she reminded me of Hatchie.   

Kynsy. Image Credit NME.com

The other artist playing was Orphan Boy, a combo from Cleethorpes but now based in Manchester. Upon sighting them, I had a sense of déjà vu which turned out to be justified as my annals informed me that I had seen them twice before, once at the Wickerman Festival in 2008 and the other at the Mad Ferret in Preston.    

There was one additional visit to the Music Hall in August when I saw Southall, who are sometimes also known as Read Southall, reflecting the founding member who hails from Oklahoma. The sextet is strictly in the country rock mould and have released four albums in total since 2015 and the lead singer also has a likeness to the old crooner Mick Hucknall.

Although I can never reference the latter named without casting my mind back to Mark and Lard’s infantile but humorous Ancient Customs CD in 2010 where the singer, actor and comedian Bernard Wrigley (nicknamed the ‘Bolton Bullfrog’) undertook ‘Two Ronnies’ style readings on top of musical accompaniments with titles such as ‘Humping the Hucknall!

Manchester Venues 121 to 122 Deaf Institute – Part 1

One of my favourite Manchester venues is the Deaf Institute situated on Grosvenor Street off Oxford Road, almost equidistant between Manchester Oxford Road train station and the Academy venues.

The Deaf has a long history, initially being built in 1877 by a chap called John Lowe (not the darts player!) and the foundation stone laid by local MP Hugh Birtley was engraved and is still in situ. Also still inscribed over the doorway is its original name of Adult Deaf and Dumb Institute. No expense was spared at the time, and the initial build cost a princely sum of £5800. There were annual soirees arranged including the institute performing Romeo and Juliet in sign language in Hulme Town Hall as early as 1900.

Deaf institute entrance. Image Credit Tokyoindustries.com

It served an integral role in the city by helping individuals with speech and hearing difficulties. However, when the Institute moved to new premises in 1975, it resulted in the original site falling into disrepair and it lay unused, abandoned and reputedly ghostly for many years. The next activity was that planning permission was provided in 1987 to convert the building into a wine bar and bistro.

In 2006, the local promoters TROF took ownership and sensitively upgraded the building by utilising its existing grand features, including the stone gothic exterior. It was subsequently reopened in 2008 and was renamed as simply The Deaf Institute.

It is a three-tiered Grade II listed building with high, lavishly decorated rooms. The ground level is the Manchester Deaf Institute Bar which had a seating area which you could visit as a standalone bar. They had food options available, including a Sunday Vegan hangover menu, in this area they also staged DJ sets and periodically bands played there.  

Deaf Institute Bar. Image Credit headbox.com

I have seen three acts in this space, the first on 14/11/16 prior to attending a gig at Trof’s sister venue Gorilla, the performer being an acoustic singer called Rafiq B. The second gig on 05/12/21 was as part of a Record Vinyl collectors event organised by the Charlatans lead singer Tim Burgess, who is a keen advocate and supporter of the Manchester music scene.  

The band undertaking a decent acoustic set that day were Apollo Junction who are an indie band from Leeds. They formed in 2015 and within a couple of years were appearing live in session for the Janice Long show and their music has been used as the soundtrack for Match of the Day. They released their debut album ‘Mystery’ in 2019 and have since released two further albums and even played at the Tan Hill Inn (Britain’s highest pub).

What impressed me most was their engagement and inclusivity with their fans resulting in an avidness and dedication within their fanbase that you don’t witness very often, the last time I sighted that was with Hold Steady and their followers. The other band I saw there were called the Mottleys.   

Apollo Junction. Image Credit radio30org.fr

In 2022 a reorganisation took place, and the ground level area was closed as a working bar area and is now used more as a rehearsal space. The downstairs room was originally an events space that could be hired out for functions and regular club nights called Girls on Film took place there. This area has now been recalibrated into a smaller gig space called the Lodge, a venue I have not yet visited.  

Within the 2008 reopening the upper floor area was converted into the Deaf Institute Music Hall complete with a huge disco ball, parrot patterned wallpaper, raised stage and a small outdoor smoking balcony. There is an upper viewing balcony and there are wooden blocks to perch on at the rear of the venue that are reminiscent of the layout of the University of Central Lancashire’s original venue back in the 1990’s.

It has an intimate capacity of 260 and the likes of Kate Tempest, 1975 and Florence and the Machine have played there. Additionally, Johnny Marr held a residence there in 2011 when he was relaunching his solo career.

I have attended gigs there on 11 occasions, though I did miss one of my favourite bands Sennen playing an early tour date there. In retrospect, that turned out to be a blessing as speaking to them a couple of years later they outlined that it had been a promo event and they had only been allowed to undertake a very late post-midnight short set in front of an unresponsive corporate audience.