Weather plays such a pivotal part in our lives. From the slightest change in cloud movements to the shade of dusk, it is powerful enough to change the course of each day. But for some of us, our real, felt relationship to those slightest of changes is dwindling. In an ambitious recreation of Michael Gordon’s video opera ‘Weather’, Manchester Collective have collaborated with sound expert Chris Watson and photographer Carlos Casas in an attempt to reforge our connection with nature through a multidisciplinary performance.  Manchester Collective’s WEATHER was performed at the Royal Northern ..read more

As you navigate the warren of walkways and stairwells in Afflecks Palace – the Northern Quarter’s alternative indoor market – you hear Sour Grapes’ sound-system before you see it. The DIY record label and promoter is tucked in a corner on the third floor, amongst a myriad of independent vendors, vintage boutiques and fashion traders. Every inch of space is used, with old-school paraphernalia on permanent display. Sat at a four-way desk at the far end of the room are the label’s three co-founders: Alex, Giorgio and Borja. Alex is a writer and PR specialist, Giorgio an international musician, an ..read more

Last time I called Greta Carroll, the artist who makes music as CURRENTMOODGIRL, she was sitting in a bar in Brighton drinking an Aperol spritz. This time she’s in the middle of buying Iceboy Violet’s new EP — in the middle of listening to it too, judging from the sounds crackling down the line. Carroll’s music is instrumental in the strictest sense of the word: she samples and produces all the sounds you hear herself. But while she plays multiple instruments, the flute is the only one she has had any formal training in. This was in school by jazz musician George Galway, brother of virtuoso fl ..read more

A group of care home residents take up their places in a circle in the living room. In the centre is a table with percussion instruments: bells, shakers, little drums, big drums. A music therapist joins them, playing a cheerful tune on the keyboard that addresses each resident by name.  “You might not realise if you have dementia that you’re in the session if it’s week one,” Lizzie Hoskin says. “But by week 15, you absolutely know that this is the start of the session.” She leads Manchester Camerata’s community outreach programme, bringing the orchestra into schools and care homes across ..read more

There is something magical about the dance floor of a club. From the early days of house music in Chicago, techno clubs in Detroit and Berlin, and the UK’s rave scene in the ‘90s, comes a well-documented narrative of love, joy and euphoria. The dance floor is a space synonymous with the gathering of queer bodies; people whose lives are often spent trying to find a sense of family and belonging beyond the traditional understanding of ‘home’. Historically, the nightclub has been one of the limited spaces where being openly queer was not merely tolerated, but celebrated. The club became a site of ..read more

In an interview with Loud and Quiet, Space Afrika’s Joshua Inyang and Joshua Reid were asked to talk about musicians they admire who have slipped under the radar. “Rat Heart is one of the UK’s most talented producers, hands down,” Inyang says.  “Honestly, you go and speak to anyone in Manchester. And I think every one of his releases has been pivotal for the city. He’s a guy who doesn’t care about fame, he doesn’t care about reviews, he doesn’t care about getting paid for a DJ show. But he fucking LOVES music.” I would go as far as saying Tom Boogizm is the best DJ on the planet,” Reid ad ..read more

During Rainy Miller’s teenage years, grime ripped through Preston. Kids would write their own lyrics and send for each other on beats ripped from Limewire. “In every friendship group or every estate throughout the city, there was someone who had got hold of a USB microphone or managed to jank some recording software,” he says.  The most popular MCs would become local celebrities. Miller remembers going to watch some of the older kids from his school clash at a community centre on the Brookfield estate. The scene was fuelled by Myspace, which allowed users to curate lists of their favourit ..read more

At a time when their formative moments are being stifled by the pandemic, Cathy Jain speaks to an introspective generation’s desire for authentic experiences. Sometimes we just wanna be some melodramatic teens, she reassures fans on green screen, a track from her debut EP artificial. The release explores the curiosity and naivety of youth and has earned Jain a place on NME’s list of essential emerging artists for 2022. Her sound has been described as dream-pop or alt-pop, the sort of music you listen to while staring wistfully out of the window on a long car journey. “I would accept any of tho ..read more

You may have caught Blackhaine on the cover of Crack Magazine, or modelling for Vogue Italia. He’s a multidisciplinary artist – a dancer, choreographer and MC – recently involved in the choreography of Kanye’s West’s DONDA performance in Chicago. I first came across him performing in Manchester Collective’s Dark Days, Luminous Nights film. Blackhaine, real name Tom Heyes, is from Preston and cuts a striking figure: tall, pale, imposing. The ‘haine’ is a nod to the French cult-classic film La Haine, a story of inequality and anger amongst the youth of Paris’s banlieue. It means hate in French a ..read more

“It was too personal, too deep – too dark.” This is one of the reactions that Mancunian-raised, Kenyan-born sisters Millie and Hope Katana received from industry heads on their 2019 EP Life Under Siege. With thick Lancashire accents and bold humour, the twins, who perform as The KTNA, represent a wave of artists from the city who aren’t afraid to be themselves. I spoke to Millie and Hope about their upcoming EP Resurgence, their UK tour, and how bravery in their songwriting has provided a safe space for fans throughout the pandemic. Photo: Kenny Ogunneye Infused with hip hop, punk and rock, Th ..read more