Live Review : Lordi + All For Metal + Crimson Veil @ Academy 2, Manchester on April 1st 2024

Metal’s inexplicable love affair with Eurovision seems to be baked into our psyche. In recent years many “big” names from our world (The Rasmus, Blind Channel, Voyager and Lords of the Lost) have taken part and even bigger names (Avantasia and Keep of Kaslin) have unsuccessfully tried to be selected for their respective home nations. This is alongside the fact that every Baltic state entry seems to sound like Evanescence and Italian alt-rockers Maneskin triumphed in 2021 with a ditty that sounded all the world like a shunt job between Rage Against The Machine and Jane's addiction.

Live Review : Dirty Honey + The Heavy North @ Academy 2, Manchester on February 8th 2024

Liverpool’s The Heavy North are a little crowded on the Academy 2 stage tonight. Squeezed in front of Dirty Honey’s drum riser, they are shoulder-to-shoulder and it’s a good job they’ve not brought any cats as there’s no space to swing them. Drums, 3 guitars, bass and keyboards make for a full sound but also a very full stage.

Live Review : Therapy? + Bokassa @ Academy 2, Manchester on December 8th 2023

Out on a Friday night? Near Christmas? Yep, but I’m not going any closer to central Manchester than Oxford Road. I’m not mad (and I don’t want to get sent to Whamhalla)! We arrive just after tonight’s support band Bokassa have walked on-stage. It is quiet, much quieter than expected, so I’m guessing everyone is still in the pub or making their way over for our headliners. I’ve heard of Bokassa but am not sure I have heard them.

Live Review : SKYND + Zetra @ Academy 2, Manchester on November 30th 2023

Main support on this tour are Zetra, and to be honest they have a tough slot to go on before such a dynamic and unique headliner…but they themselves are no ordinary band. The London two-piece are nominally Adam (guitar and vocals) and Jordan (synths and vocals) and they’ve been knocking about since 2018. In that time they’ve gathered a collection of supporters from successful bands across the scene, including Sammy from Employed to Serve.

Gig ReviewAuthor : Matt Fraser3 December 2023Manchester Academy 2SKYND, Zetra, Academy 2, Manchester, 2023, Live Review, Matt Fraser, Ryan HicksonComment

Live Review : Alcest + The Devil's Trade @ Academy 2, Manchester on October 15th 2023

Manchester has become a veritable post-metal paradise. Alongside its own burgeoning scene, we’ve got Alcest tonight, Cult of Luna passing through on Thursday and Damnation festival taking up residency in under three weeks, bringing with them Nordic Giants, Maybeshewill, and the emotionally wrought juggernaut that is Amenra (if you haven't done so, get your tickets now). However, if I'm honest I will be struggling to find 45 minutes more scintillating and mind-blowing than the ones I get to spend with tonight's opening act, The Devils Trade.

Live Review : The Winery Dogs + Scarlet Rebels @ Academy 2, Manchester on October 6th 2023

What do you call a supergroup made up of members of other supergroups? Well it turns out that the answer is The Winery Dogs. For the uninitiated, this is what Ritchie Kotzen, Mike Portnoy and the legend that is Billy Sheehan do when they are not noodling around with other projects. It is very much a muso's project, pitched at those who like their rock complex, luscious and full of virtuoso flourishes.

Live Review : Dare + FM + Tyketto @ Academy 2, Manchester on May 21st 2023

You could think of far worse ways to spend a beautiful sunny day in Manchester on a Sunday evening. It wasn't just the heat outside that needed turning down, the heat is turned up to boiling point inside the Academy 2 with blistering performances all-round from perhaps some of the most underrated AOR and melodic bands still performing and going strong some 30 plus years after their inceptions. It’s certainly a mouth-watering affair and one that goes down better than the obligatory pint of overpriced lager from the bar. If value for money is your thing, then you’ve certainly got that in spade loads on the music on offer tonight.

Live Review : Counterparts + Kublai Khan + Paleface + Dying Wish @ Academy 2, Manchester on May 5th 2023

First up are hardcore metallers Dying Wish, and I must say, it's not quite hitting the mark for me. What disappoints me the most is the lack of interesting songs and structure. Dying Wish's set feels like one continuous blur, with tracks blending together in a repetitive manner. There are no standout moments or memorable hooks that grab my attention or make me want to get lost in the music.

Live Review : Delain + Xandria @ Academy 2, Manchester on April 21st 2023

After years and years of tireless touring and recording, it looked like 2020's “Apocalypse & Chill” was going to be the record that finally propelled Delain into the big league. It had the songs, it had the exposure and it had the momentum. And then the pandemic happened and not a month into its promotional cycle we all went to hell in a handcart. Then just as the world was starting to righten itself again word came that Delain had fallen apart.

Live Review : Bloodywood + Lake Malice @ Academy 2, Manchester on March 28th 2023

There’s just the one support band tonight, but oh my what a band. It’s no secret that I’ve been championing Brighton’s Lake Malice ever since I saw them support Hacktivist last May. They blend a variety of influences and styles in a fresh, enthusiastic, characterful way both musically and visually. Once again I’m eager to catch them live and tonight they don’t disappoint.

Live Review : Haken + Between The Buried And Me + Cryptodira @ Academy 2, Manchester on March 24th 2023

Well, it's all happening this evening at the student’s union. In the main Academy, the regions punk pensioners are on day release from their respective nursing homes in order to witness the umpteenth miraculous resurrection of Stiff Little Fingers. Upstairs in the pokey Academy Three, Indie upstarts The Rolling People are repackaging Britpop for the next generation and downstairs in the club Academy…. Well to be honest I'm not sure what the fuck is happening downstairs, but it has attracted a gaggle of younglings young enough to be my grandkids, in various states of undress and off their tits on Ketamine. It's a rare beast when the metal crowd is the normal bunch, but those of us winding our way up to the old debating hall for a Haken and Between the Buried and Me double-header seem positively conservative in our attire compared to some of the revellers cavorting around the building.

Live Review : Karnivool + The Ocean @ Academy 2, Manchester on February 7th 2023

If you're looking for a band that blends the perfect mix of atmospheric and progressive metal, then look no further than The Ocean. As a band they’ve been plying their trade for over a decade with a sound that blends heavy, driving riffs with complex arrangements and a cerebral approach to song-writing. The German-based quintet are established as one of the most innovative and captivating acts in modern metal, and tonight is no exception.

Live Review : Tarja + Temperance + Beneath The Embers @ Academy 2, Manchester on February 4th 2023

You can't help but feel sorry for our Tarja. In Lisbon on the 7th of March 2020, she embarked on an envisaged mammoth tour of continental Europe to support the release of her latest album, “In the Raw”. What was meant to be a glorious celebration of her rapidly ascending profile, unceremoniously ground to a halt in Bilbao after a solitary four shows. It was the dawn of the global pandemic and borders were slamming shut all over Europe.

Live Review: Pertubator + Health @ academy 2, Manchester on November 16th 2022

A few weeks ago I was looking forward to a tasty double bill of music. A Friday night at Carpenter Brut and a Saturday at Damnation.

And then child care issues struck and I spent both nights at home instead.

So being invited to cover the spectacular Perturbator softened that blow a little. That and I have been gallivanting around Norway for the last week. I am still tired from the trip and a little bleary eyed as I am refused entry with Johann and made to join the back of the queue. “Take notes” I mouth to our Satanic Overlord as I am banished from the realm.

Live Review : Zeal & Ardor + Heriot @ Academy 2, Manchester on November 9th 2022

"Well" deadpans Zeal & Ardor frontman Manuel Gagneux midway through their set "Heriot are an angry band aren’t they!”. He goes on to admit that that anger means his band have had to up their game every night to keep up the ferocity of these fast-rising youngsters. Heriot are fuelled by rage, but it is not indignant or nihilistic fury. Theirs is peppered with passion and exasperation.

Live Review : Wargasm + Scene Queen + Knife Bride @ Academy 2, Manchester on October 26th 2022

My first thoughts on walking up to Academy 2 tonight are they really need to sort out the queuing. Again, there are two shows on tonight and although I have the privilege of walking straight in, so I don’t miss the support bands, I feel sorry for the first act, Knife Bride. They get to perform to a room that is only about a third full because everyone is still stuck outside.

Live Review : Samantha Fish + Wille and the Bandits @Academy 2, Manchester on October 16th 2022

It’s always nice to watch bands in a busy venue, and by the time I make it into the Academy 2, tonight’s support band Wille and The Bandits are already a good way into their set. Glancing round, it is indeed a near full house and it’s great to see. It’s also great to see these chaps having a blast up on the stage creating a wonderful atmosphere for everyone. Singer and frontman; ironically called Wile, is busy wringing some lovely sounds from his lap steel guitar and the crowd are thoroughly enjoying their powerhouse set.

Live Review : Hypocrisy + Septicflesh + The Agonist + Horizon Ignited @ Academy 2, Manchester on October 7th 2022

AKA – A Pain Girl goes to a Hypocrisy gig

How was your summer? Mine? Oh nothing special, caught covid and missed Metaldays in its entirety. My 13 year old came to Bloodstock and made me leave the tent before Machine Head started. Neither of them were particularly good experiences, although I did meet a lovely gorgeous doctor though. After a few months of dating I was pretty taken with him, but sadly he drove me home one day and had the Libertines and Fratellis on his Spotify. Yuck. It was never going to work.

Live Review : Polaris + Alpha Wolf + Great American Ghost + Stepson @ Academy 2, Manchester on September 18th 2022

It’s a Sunday evening, and a fairly early start at that. But that doesn’t stop the crowd filling up quickly for first-on support Stepson. The Brisbane, Australia based hardcore band set about their work with enthusiasm and vigor. Elements of Touché Amoré and Our Hollow Our Home can be seen in their sound, and their jagged guitars provide the perfect backdrop to Brock Alan Conry’s raw emotive vocals.

Live Review : Mayhem + Mortiis + Barshasketh @ Academy 2, Manchester on May 21st 2022

It used to be that an appearance by black metal legends Mayhem was a rare phenomenon, however, in recent years they have become less sporadic and more generous in their live appearances. Consequentially there has begun to be less of a feeling of “oh my god it's Mayhem!” and more of “Didn’t we see them last week?”. Saying all that, it is still third time lucky for this particular show. Originally scheduled for March 2020, it was pushed back into 2021 and then into this year. This trail of postpones means that there is a veritable air of expectation, even if the album they were meant to be promoting (“Daemon”) has long slipped from our collective consciousness.