A second wave of artists has been added to the lineup for this year’s Green Island Festival, the hidden gem Manchester music festival tucked away inside a garden centre.
Genuinely one of our favourite festivals anywhere in the region, Green Island Festival 2024 is already looking set to welcome more people through its verdant doors at
Taking place for its fourth year, the fundamentally grassroots Manchester music festival takes place across three parts over at Hulme Garden Centre just on the outskirts of the city centre and has quickly become a cult classic.
Promising three spectacular days and nights this summer and championing all things new and local on the music scene, you won’t find many more diverse lineups or crowds on this year’s calendar. Speaking of, here’s a look at who they’ve added as part of their second wave:
Taking place on 15 June, 27 July and 7 September this year, Green Island 2024 is now set to welcome nearly 100 acts from Greater Manchester and beyond as well as more than 1000 festivalgoers in their biggest edition yet.
ADVERTISEMENT
Local experimental hip-hop jazz band Jointhedots have been added to the main stage in July, joining the likes of Def MaMa Def – two powerful women and rising stars of Senegal’s music scene – as well the smooth as silk R&B soul singer, Victoria Jane and contemporary jazz artist, corto.alto as headliners.
As for the other four stages spread throughout the beloved Manchester garden centre, which has served as a significant cultural hub in the Hulme neighbourhood since the Millenium, names like Ni Maxine, Ubunye the Zulu, Manchester legend of Finders Keepers Records fame, Andy Votel, upcoming DJ Jade Li and many more will be leaving their mark. Even local artist Stanley Chow is getting involved.
ADVERTISEMENT
With the Forest Stage firming itself as instant success from day one and The Bandstand stage now a permanent fixture at the garden centre even outside of the festival, this thing just keeps growing every year and it won’t stay the best-kept secret for long, so don’t miss out what is sure to be a belter.
Better still, Green Island Festival serves up great food from local independent vendors every year, plenty of sunny cocktails and alcohol-free options, places to chill like the soothing chamomile bed and so much more. Trust us, when the sun shines on this thing it is unmatched vibes.
As well as live music at NIAMOS next door, there’s also a whole host of afterparties for each of the three all-day festivals over at YES in the city centre and the organisers are encouraging everyone to donate an extra quid for every ticket sale to local charity Eat Well MCR, because they’re a sound bunch as well.
ADVERTISEMENT
In case we haven’t made it abundantly clear already, we’re very big fans of Green Island Fest not just simply because of the live music or the slightly quirky setting, but because of the all-day schedule, family-friendly approach and the immensely wholesome summery atmosphere it gives off every year.
Get yourself down there to at least one of them, if not all three, and we’ll see you there (most likely at the Forest Stage). Grab your tickets HERE.
Noel Gallagher says he’d be ‘bang up’ for an Oasis reunion… kind of
Emily Sergeant
Noel Gallagher has given fans fresh hope, yet again, after he’s admitted that he’d be “bang up” for an Oasis reunion in the future.
Well… kind of.
Considering it’s been going on for well over a decade, Manc music lovers worldwide are more than well-versed in the neverending Oasis ‘will-they, won’t-they’ reunion saga by now, with the Gallagher brothers known to dangle a carrot in front of fans’ noses at every chance they get, despite no concrete claims or plans ever materialising.
And by the sounds of things, Noel Gallagher‘s most recent reunion comments are no different either – but they are pretty funny, we will say that.
Oasis infamously parted ways for the final time back in 2009 after Noel made a shock exit following a fight with Liam at a music festival in France, and despite the constant calls for them to do so, the pair have never been seen on stage together since.
Now though, Noel reckons he’s found a way to reunite the band without actually having to reunite the band, and he’s “bang up” for it too.
We’re talking about holograms.
“I went to see that Abba show. Have you been? It’s f**king unbelievable, Noel commented as he appeared on the Matt Morgan podcast.
“An hour and a half gig, it was very, very impressive. I genuinely thought at one point that the people on the stage, which were holograms, were… they looked that real that I thought they were actors, like playing.
“The way they walk to the stage is so realistic.”
The elder Gallagher claims the key to an Oasis reunion is a hologram / Credit: ABBA Voyage
After claiming he was “very impressed” by the show and urging everyone to go and see it if they can because “it’s well worth it”, Noel then turned the topic onto Oasis and whether or not this hologram format could be the key to getting Manchester‘s most famous band back together, adding: “If anybody wants to do an Oasis one, give us a shout. I would be bang up for it.”
The current High Flying Birds frontman then also set out his conditions for the potential hologram reunion, explaining: “I’d say ‘great’, speak to that guy over there, and then come up with a figure and then he’ll relay it to me, and I’ll say either yes or no.”
Well, could this be it then? Could this actually be the key to reuniting Oasis after all these years? It’s definitely a long shot, but not something to rule out entirely, if you ask us.
As usual, only time will tell.
Featured Image – Anthony Abbott (via Flickr)
Audio
Neighbourhood Festival returns to Manchester city centre for 2024 with stellar first-wave lineup
Danny Jones
After a year’s hiatus, Neighbourhood Festival is officially returning to Manchester later this year and the first wave of the 2024 lineup is already out.
You’re in for a treat, you lot.
The city centre spin-off of Warrington’s popular Neighbourhood Weekender has become one of the most popular music festivals in the North and was sorely missed when they took a break last year, but luckily is back with a bang this fall.
Rocking up to a number of beloved Manchester music venues including the Ritz, Gorilla and Albert Hall, the all-dayer is set to be a stormer.
As you can see, there are some seriously good names on the list too, including lots of local talent like Anthony Szmierek, Seb Lowe, Balancing Act, Corella and Manc headliners, Pale Waves.
There are also lots of other acts from in and around the North West like Liverpool stars Red Rum Club, Courting and The Mysterines, as well as artists who’ve gone big on TikTok such as indie pop group Daydreamers and Bradley Simpson of The Vamps.
Other names we’ve picked out include Birmingham boys, Overpass, Brighton’s Chappaqua Wrestling and Portsmouth four-piece, Crystal Tides.
Honestly, there are so many ones to watch on the 2024 Neighbourhood Festival lineup and this is only the first wave of artists, we honestly can’t wait.
Manchester’s biggest city centre festival has welcomed all manner of names that have gone on to do massive things in the past, including the likes of Sam Fender, Declan McKenna and The Last Dinner Party; Yungblud, local lads The Lathums and many more.
With Neighbourhood Weekender also having been postponed until 2025 as the organisers looked to ‘take a break’ and fine-tune the event, seeing the city centre day festival back in the interim is music to our ears – literally.
NBHD returns to Manchester city centre on 5 October and tickets go on sale at 10am this Friday, 24 May at 9am. You can grab yours HERE.