Manc music lovers and all those new to the city, feel free to do a cartwheel of sheer excitement because one of our favourite dates on the calendar just rolled around: Neighbourhood Festival is back for 2024 and we’re here to guide you through the jam-packed day.
The much-loved noon-until-night event is Manchester’s biggest multi-venue music festival and is returning after a year off and you best believe we’ve missed it like mad. Roll on Saturday.
With more than a dozen venues to be enjoyed and over 100 artists to choose from, the only problem you’re going to face is trying to cram all your favourites into 24 hours.
But don’t worry, that’s where people like us come in. We’ve put together a helpful guide full of important info about Neighbourhood Fest 2024; from ticket prices and those pesky stage splits to where you can pick up your wristbands, we’ve got everything you need to know. Let’s have it, shall we?
Are there still tickets left for Neighbourhood Festival?
First off, if you’re wondering if you can still grab a last-minute day pass to NBHD 2024 then you’re in luck because there’s still a wave of tickets left.
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Early bird and the first tiers have inevitably sold out (it’s pretty popular this thing…) but if you’re willing to pay a few more pennies, you can still grab a third-tier wristband that will cost you just £43.45. Now that’s some seriously good value for money given the amount of talent on show.
You can pay an extra couple of quid to protect your tickets too and accessible passes also come with a plus one as part of the same price – a nice touch. You can grab your Neighbourhood tickets HERE.
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NBHD Lineup 2024
Egyptian-born alt-pop phenom, NxdiaFast-growing indie rockers, The SheratonsTwo of the first and most exciting acts of the day. (Credit: Press Images – Supplied)
As for who you’re going to be seeing at this year’s city centre festival, the Neighbourhood lineup is just as good as any year.
With the likes of Sam Fender, Pulp, Sundara Karma, Paul Heaton; The Kooks, Self Esteem, The Wombats and countless other top names having played the event in the past, they always have a job on their hands topping the year previous.
Luckily, with local acts such as Corella, Seb Lowe and Antony Szmeirek all playing big stages, not to mention other favourites like The Academic, Red Rum Club, The Sheratons lot from Leeds, and the returning Brooke Combe bolstering the all-day music festival, they’re not exactly struggling for talent.
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Even some of the newer up-and-coming names like Manc raised Nxdia playing The Deaf Institute, Salfordian Issy Sutcliffe at hidden gem Lions Den, and the now Phoebe Bridgers-signed Jasmine 4.T grabbing the Gorilla spotlight,
You can find the full Neighbourhood lineup HERE. We even got to chat with local headliners Pale Waves before the big day too:
As mentioned, music festivals might genuinely be one of the best things on the planet but one of the prevailing drawbacks is that you can’t see everyone and sometimes many of the most exciting names have to fall by the wayside to make room for another.
The lineup is a gift and a curse in a way because although it does get you excited for the big day to come around, it’s also followed by the dreaded stage splits and the realisation that a few of your favourites clash with each other – a torturous tale as old as time.
We can’t avoid it, sadly, but what we can do is make it as easy as possible for you to build the schedule that works for you the best and rather than list them all out, it’s easier to just point you in the direction of the official Neighbourhood Festival app for 2024 which you can download now.
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Simply go through the lineup and the schedule on your phone, favourite the acts you want to see and then you can look through the set times tab to figure out which acts clash with each other. Simple.
But you should definitely come and spend most of the day at ours – not that we’re biased in any way.
If you were wondering which Neighbourhood stage is the best, it’s this one, obviously…
Neighbourhood 2024 map – venues and where to pick up wristbands
Now, with a whole host of gig spaces to shuttle between, it’s handy to get a lay of the land – especially if, say, you’re a first-timer at NBHD Fest or a student new to the city and not yet familiar with where you’ll hopefully be spending many more nights filled with live music.
You can find the full list of venues, all of which are only a short walk away from one another, down below as well as a little bit of information about each of them:
O2 Ritz – Audio North’s official stage, capacity of 1,500, sprung floor for proper dance vibes
Gorilla – Legendary small-cap venue that can squeeze in around 550, one of the favourites
Albert Hall – As legendary as its counterpart in London, two tiers and fits roughly 2,290 in total
The Deaf Institute – Spread across three floors, each with plenty of character. Max cap of 300 (The Music Hall – other rooms are smaller).
The Bread Shed – Just opposite Deaf; popular student spot which can hold 480 at a push.
Revolution – Oxford Road staple bar with a gig space suitable for more intimate gigs.
Lions Den – Tucked away in the somewhat hidden Deansgate Mews neighbourhood. Just great, even with only 200 people in the gaff.
YES – Another student favourite. Multiple floors but the basement and ‘Pink Room’ will be hosting 60 people and a further 250 gig-goers, respectively.
Mother Mary’s – The old Font site, now an Irish bar with the live stage still intact. State-of-the-art sound system and can hold up to 200 people standing.
Manchester Academy 1 + 2 – Hosting the headliners and some of the bigger acts over at the student union. The second floor holds 960 and the big room over 2,500.
As for the wristband exchange, you can present your e-tickets to receive your full day pass to all of these venues at the Symphony Park reception over at Circle Square on Oxford Road. After that, all you need to do is flash it on entry to access any of the above venues. Bob’s your uncle.
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Albert Hall is one many iconic gig spaces taking part
And that should be just about everything you need to guide your way through Neighbourhood 2024; just make sure to keep your eyes on their socials as well for live updates on the day.
Whether it’s your debut festival or you’re a regular returning for the umpteenth time in a row (guilty), we can guarantee you one thing: you’re going to have an absolute blast.
Oh, and make sure to come say hello to us here at Audio North over in the Ritz – we’ll see you out on the dancefloor!
Featured Images — Press Images (supplied)/The Manc Group
Audio
Review | PinkPantheress turns Victoria Warehouse into one huge party on first night in Manchester
Emily Johnson
There was a point during Pinkpantheress’ set at O2’s Victoria Warehouse where you almost forgot you were watching someone perform an album that barely stretches past the 20-minute mark.
Instead, night one of two Manchester shows felt like one huge club night curated by one of the most exciting British artists around right now.
From the second you walked into the venue, greeted by an army of plaid, the world of PinkPantheress (real name Victoria Beverley Walker, for those who didn’t know) completely took over.
The stage itself mirrored that energy too, with a two-tier setup that allowed her to constantly move around the space, appearing and disappearing throughout the night alongside outfit changes, dramatic lighting and eventually, a pair of angel wings.
Backed by her dancers and DJ Joe, the entire show felt slick, immersive and miles away from the early days of PinkPantheress nervously clutching onto her handbag on stage like a comfort blanket. Ironically, the handbag did make a brief appearance during the evening.
It’s a reminder of just how much her performances have evolved – and evolve they have.
What could have easily been a short and simple set instead became a fully realised live show, complete with extended dance sections, rave-inspired moments, drum solos and seamless transitions that made the whole thing feel bigger than the music alone.
There’s also something undeniably British about a PinkPantheress show: the UK garage influences, the fashion, the awkward humour, and the understated confidence all combined into something that felt distinctly hers.
At one point, she paused to laugh: “It’s hot in this venue, f*** me,” which summed up the sweaty chaos of the night perfectly.
At one point, she joked that the last time she was in Manchester, she made it all the way to the final stage of Pointless, before being told she was now “too famous” to go on the show – a perfectly PinkPantheress anecdote that had the crowd laughing immediately.
By the end of the set, Victoria Warehouse felt less like a gig venue and more like the best house party you’ve ever accidentally ended up at.
And with another Manchester show still to come, it’s safe to say the party isn’t over just yet.
Review | We need NBHD Weekender every year – and so does the North West
Danny Jones
Neighbourhood Weekender returned for 2026 this late May bank holiday, and after its second consecutive edition following an admittedly brief hiatus, we’re more confident than ever that we want this music festival on the calendar every single year.
Actually, we’d go so far as to say that lots of people around the North West and beyond NEED it.
We know plenty of people are understandably wary of potential hyperbolic declarations like that, but let us explain ourselves…
For starters, getting an opportunity to see the likes of criminally underappreciated Northern names like Richard Ashcroft playing the big slot on the main stage is a good place to start.
Many of you will have no doubt seen the Wigan legend on solo tours – not to mention serving as the pitch-perfect support act for Oasis’ reunion tour last summer – but topping the bill on Saturday night of NBHD Weekender 2026 served as yet more proof that he is, in fact, a headline act.
Maybe that changed a little for lots of people post-Live ’25, but his set was one of several over the course of the two-day festival in Victoria Park that served as a reminder of just how good lots of these long-standing acts both were and still are.
Kaiser Chiefs, Razorlight, The Fratellis, Mel C, Shed Seven, and so on: they’re not just nostalgic acts that those of a certain generation get to enjoy as a throwback – they’re all still incredible, seasoned performers in their own right.
They boast a wealth of experience and aptitude for playing to live crowds that you only get by being very good at what you do for a long time. You only have to look at the countless youths who quickly realised they knew more choruses than they realised, and got to sample hearing them in person for the first time.
Strong crowds from 12 noon until curfew. (Credit: Audio North)
And then speaking of the younger, more up-and-coming section of the lineup, the next generation absolutely smashed it as well. Let’s just say there were more than a few rising stars on show.
Westside Cowboy are clearly at the start of something very special and got a healthy dose of shout-outs from punters on the day; Keo were as frenetic as everyone knew they would be, Brooke Combe was on top form as she has been every time we’ve seen her, and Cassia were class.
More Mancs rose to the challenge in the form of The Guest List’s biggest show yet, too – they were also left super humbled when we spoke to them afterwards – and fellow regional band The Royston Club were nothing short of excellent, simple as.
Hearing thousands belt out ’52’ and ‘Cariad’ at the top of their lungs was one of our highlights of the entire weekend, to be honest.
Of course, then you’ve got the likes of the already established DMA’S, who were absolutely box office and made it plain how much affection they have for “their second home” up here in this part of the UK, and Sunday’s headliners, Blossoms, have proven time and time again that they’re the real deal now.
But aside from banger after banger, it was a conversation we overheard near us during the Stopfordians’ set that helped us come to this revelation.
Somewhere between their walk-out on stage and the second/third song, a bloke and his mate behind us shared an intimate moment we felt almost rude for having accidentally eavesdropped on, right up until the point it made us well up ourselves.
Without going into too much detail, this very stereotypical-sounding Northerner dropped all pretence and confessed to his friend that he’d had a tough couple of months, and that he’d been looking forward to this for weeks – not simply because Blossoms are his favourite artist, but because he needed it.
Call it a release, that hour or so of sheer abandon, or just sharing a special music memory with his best mate: whatever it was, this evening was much more than a gig to him. People throw the phrase ‘lifesaver’ around about music a lot, and it never feels like an exaggeration in moments like this.
It was also apparent that he was a working-class Warrington native who was lucky enough for his postcode to help him afford to go to Neighbourhood Weekender and have this embrace with his pal, who was in an ideal setting to have perhaps a long overdue heart-to-heart. THIS is what it means to people.
Music is therapy, and when done in its purest form – i.e. played live to people who live and breathe the stuff – it can do more good than you’ll ever know.
Danny Jones -
3rd October 2024 
