Following the closure of the old Preston Polytechnic venue back in the 90’s it took a fair period of time before a new venue was incorporated into the updated University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN).
On the original site on Fylde Road the new £6.5million venue 53 Degrees was launched in 2005, with the first gig being an AC/DC tribute band and the first proper band was a very young Subways. The venue closed in 2015 with the final gig responsibility being given to the Inspiral Carpets.
There were two separate halls, the main downstairs venue with a capacity of 1500 but in this particular blog, I am going to concentrate on the Preston 53 Degrees Club venue located upstairs with a capacity of 400.
Access was gained from the rear of the building up a flight of stairs that dropped you into a corridor reminiscent of Manchester Hop & Grape. The doorway to the left took you into the venue with bar opposite and the stage down to the right. It was a fairly intimate venue but was located in a thin level room which made viewing a challenge when it was heavily populated. The beer as at many venues was of a pretty foul quality.
I have witnessed 15 gigs there in total and my first foray there was in June 2006 to see a full roster of bands. First up were the Architects followed Komakino, a five-piece band from Derby who were a regular support band at that stage to the likes of Bloc Party and the Editors. They subsequently split up in 2008.
The main support was Love Ends Disaster! formed whilst at University in Loughborough and Nottingham. They were a decent live act and a couple of years later were receiving airplay from the likes of Colin Murray and Huw Stephens on Radio 1, when I saw them again at the Rescue Rooms in Nottingham. They subsequently disbanded in 2012.
The headline act was Cooper Temple Clause hailing from Wokingham and their first two albums in 2002/2003 received some considerable acclaim. I would put them in the post-hardcore mould, and they created a fine clattering racket!
My second visit there was on a Bank Holiday Sunday on 06/05/07 following attending Preston North End’s last game of the season where we beat Birmingham 1-0 but just missed out on the play-offs by a single point, probably a blessing in disguise!
The band on show was Mumm-Ra who I had witnessed the year before when I went to see Amusement Parks on Fire at Manchester Night and Day. They were a tad fey and lightweight for my tastes.
Three days later I went to see 65 Days of Static who I had first picked up on via their multiple inclusion in John Peel’s Festive Fifty off their 2004 debut album ‘The Fall of Math’. They are in the post rock genre but with a more electronic bent and emanate from Sheffield and are still now ploughing their trade.
They have always been good value live and were supported by Josh T Pearson from Texas who was previously in the lauded Lift to Experience. He was performed as a solo act at this time and was a slightly odd act as his singing was more in the vein of a stream of consciousness!
On 26/09/07 I went to see one of the perennial stalwarts of the last 20 years Idlewild who as ever were consistently good. They were supported by Twilight Sad who are a fellow Scottish post punk shoegaze band and they had only just released their debut album on Mogwai’s label Rock Action Records. They had a fearsome live reputation and they lived up to that mantle as a thunderously loud act.
