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A huge 24-hour Hacienda House Party is being streamed live on New Year’s Eve

The blockbuster lineup is set to feature two dozen live performances from 10am on December 31 - including Moby, Graeme Park, Hacienda Classical, Carl Craig, Peter Hook, Todd terry and Soul Central.

The Manc The Manc - 28th December 2020

The world’s greatest nightclub will rise again this week – as a 24-hour Hacienda House Party is streamed live around the world on New Year’s Eve.

The blockbuster lineup is set to feature two dozen live performances from 10am on December 31 – including sets from Moby, Graeme Park, Hacienda Classical, Carl Craig, Peter Hook, Todd Terry and Soul Central.

There will also be a special tribute to the legendary “Godfather Of House” Frankie Knuckles in collaboration with The Frankie Knuckles Foundation – which will see Frankie play a set (originally recorded at Albert Hall on his last appearance in Manchester) from within a newly recreated ‘Virtual Hacienda’.

The Virtual Hacienda project has been put together by the club’s original architect Ben Kelly to create a digital replica of the nightclub and will premiere in all its glory on NYE.

Kelly commented: “When the club was open, years later, one of the greatest compliments I had from that group of clients, Factory and New Order, was that they regarded the design as timeless.

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“I think that was Tony’s [Wilson] thing, it didn’t pander to fashion or whatever trend was current. I saw it almost like a sculptural installation. Like a big art piece which I was painting. It democratised what those environments were about. It was flexible and all embracing.

“There was nothing prescribed about it. It stood the test of time as well because there was never any need to change it. The changes were all about improving the sound and lighting which came with the development of+ technology. The club was open for fifteen years, from 1982 to 1997 and they never had to change the design of the place.”

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United We Stream GM

The entire event will be hosted live on the Greater Manchester music platform United We Stream – which beamed live gigs to more than 14 million viewers during the lockdown over spring and summer.

During its initial run, United We Stream gave a stage to 338 artists and raised over £477,000 for local charities and the events scene.

The Hacienda House Party NYE is free to watch but viewers can donate via the official website, with 50% of funds raised donated to oneGM (which supports local people hardest hit by the economic impact of COVID-19) and 50% to charities Save The Children, The Frankie Knuckles Foundation and Peacemeal Manchester. 

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You can watch the Hacienda House Party NYE exclusively via the website’s event page.

The stream will also be beamed live on Facebook, Twitter, Twitch and YouTube.

The full lineup is as follows:

Live: Haçienda Classical W/ Manchester Camerata, Inner City / Phuture

DJs: Carl Craig, Danny Tenaglia, David Morales, DJ Paulette, DJ Woody, Graeme Park, Greg Wilson, Hewan Clarke, Jon Dasilva, Justin Robertson, K-Klass, Moby, Norman Jay MBE, Peter Hook, Soul Central, Sub Sub, Todd Terry, Tom Wainwright & Tony Humphries

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Five Manchester artists we’ve been listening to this month | January 2025

Danny Jones Danny Jones Manchester music you've never heard before

Happy New Year! Can you really get away with that at the end of January?… Who knows?

Either way, 2025 is underway and we just know it’s going be another fantastic 365 days for music.

If you’re new here then first off, hello – we appreciate you clicking and hope you’ll be back here on a regular basis; secondly, for those of you who joined us in 2024, you know the drill: every month we put together a list of Greater Manchester music we’ve been listening to over the past few weeks.

It is to our perennial sadness that we’ll never be able to ‘complete’ all of the music that will ever be released in the world, but we can certainly give keeping up with everything 0161 is doing and has done a good old go or so help us, almighty tunage gods! Enough pratting about, let’s get stuck in:

Five Manchester bands and artists we’ve been listening to recently

1. Casino Club

Ok, landing our inaugural artist nod of 2025 is a group we truly believe is going to go very far this year and part of what is a promising new creative boom down the road in the WN postcode area.

That’s right, we’re heading to Wigan first and foremost and giving a very big shout-out to local band, Casino Club, who are helping spearhead a new generation of music coming out of the Greater Manchester borough. This isn’t just indie rock, it’s indie rock and roll that we’re very excited about.

With rip-roaring guitar riffs that hint at everything from Green Day to Sterephonics and Catfish, as well as frontman Marcus Grimshaw’s fantastic vocals, they’ve struck an infectious and extremely listenable balance already. As for songs, there are plenty, but we’d say start with ‘The Fear’, ‘Kick a Hole Into the Sun’ and ‘Runaway’.

2. The Chameleons

Oh yeah, we do old bands too; this series is just as much about spotlighting perhaps forgotten or underrated Manc music as it is about the new blood and The Chameleons are a great example of that.

The Middleton-formed band came to the fore at the start of the 80s when so many other massive names were coming through the Greater Manchester scene, so it was hard to carve out even a slither of the spotlight let alone one rivalling the likes of The Smiths, New Order, Inspiral Carpets and so on.

But make no mistake, this lot are still going strong, with a die-hard following eagerly awaiting their new album. It might sound like a sweeping generalisation but their sound does typify that era. Most will start with ‘The Swamp Thing’ but their 1993 debut album Script From The Bridge is still their best.

3. Phoebe Green

Now up next is a singer-songwriter and chief Manc music queen in charge of ‘devastating alt-pop’: her words, not ours – though we do to tend agree and heartily recommend you give her a listen. She’s actually been going since 2016, unbelievably, but she’s gaining more and more traction year after year.

The BIMM graduate was actually born over in Lytham St Annes, Lancashire, but she’s been studying, living and making a new for herself here in Manchester for a good long while now, so yes, we’re absolutely claiming her as one of our own – especially after becoming a Neighbourhood Festival fave.

Her style has definitely evolved but, more importantly, there’s no genre she won’t put a distorted electronic twist on. At present, you’ll get notes of St Vincent, 070 Shake, MARINA and more; ‘Break My Heart’ and ‘Lucky Me’ make for the perfect starting point and ‘IDK’ was on Killing Eve. ‘Nuff said.

@ph0ebegreen ‘WHAT ARE YOU DOING’ OUT NOW ⭐️ #newmusic #altpop #synth #nostalgia #originalsong #femaleproducer ♬ What Are You Doing – Phoebe Green

4. 808 State

Our penultimate pick for January is the iconic electronic and techno outfit 808 State, who made new waves with their sound in the late 1980s, well into the 90s and are partly still going to this day.

If you’ve never come across them before, their influence on modern electronica and the wider dance music is massive, not only being labelled among the pioneers of acid house but former member Gerald Simpson (A Guy Called Gerald) went on to lay the foundations for what would go on to become jungle.

That’s right: we have them to thank for not just drum and bass but many sub-genres of electronic music as a whole. With such and varied long career (even if it’s only co-founder Graham Massey now) there’s plenty to enjoy: ‘Cübik’, ‘Spanish Heart’, and the Bicep remix of ‘In Yer Face’, just to name a few.

They took their name from the Roland TR-808 drum machine, which also played a big role in revolutionising modern music production.

5. The Falls

Last but not least, we’re giving an early seal of approval to a young bunch of lads going by ‘The Falls’ and while they might not sound anything like the predecessors from Prestwich – with which their name differs only because it’s a plural – we’re hoping they’re bound for similar success.

Hailing from Salford, this fledgling four-piece has barely even got going yet but they’ve definitely got a good feel for the indie warehouse from the off and

They’ve only released four songs thus far too, so you can get on board with these boys early doors. ‘The Millionth Time’ and ‘Waiting For Yesterday’ promise lots of solo showing off in the future, and the loose-wristed main riff on ‘My mind’ almost reminds us of the fast-paced part of ‘Shiver’ by Coldplay before turning into something very different. We look forward to seeing where they go.

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And just like that, the first Manc artists of the round-up of the year is all said and done – we hope enjoyed it and at least we’re introduced to a couple of names you haven’t come across before.

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That’s basically how it works: we’ll be back here, ‘same bat-time, same bat-place’ every month with another batch of Manchester bands, solo artists and more for you to feast your ears on.

Until next time, you can get stuck into our final round-up from 2024 down below, not to mention all the others from last year and, as always, keep your eyes peeled on Audio North for all the big and interesting music news.

Oh, and of course, if there are any Manchester artists that you think we should check out then let us know in the comments.

Catch you at the end of Feb!

Five Manchester artists we’ve been listening to this month | December 2024
Here is the last batch of exciting new Manchester artists we’re got all giddy about.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Casino Club (via X)/Jacob Whittaker (via Flickr)/Supplied

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Tom Grennan announces his biggest-ever Manchester date ahead of new album

Danny Jones Danny Jones Tom Grennan Manchester Co-op Live tickets

With a brand-new album on the way, Tom Grennan is coming back to Manchester for his most ambitious gig here yet, not to mention his biggest run of UK shows ever.

You may know him from his chart-topping singles or you may even know him from reimagining the iconic Gillette advert – either way, you’re not going to want to miss his upcoming arena tour.

Coming alongside Tom‘s fourth album, Everywhere I Went Led Me To Where I Didn’t Want To Be, and the unveiling of his new single ‘Shadowboxing’, the multi-platinum-selling artist has today announced the simply named GRENNAN ’25 tour.

Bringing his largest-ever headline shows to fans up and down the country, Tom Grennan will be making his Co-op Live debut this September.

To date, Tom has seen over 1.3 billion streams and holds a whopping nine million monthly Spotify listeners to date, already boasting a reputation as a multi-platinum-selling artist at just 29.

He was recently nominated at the BRITs for the Best Alternative/Rock Act, marking his third consecutive nod at the annual award ceremony, following Song of the Year for his international smash ‘Little Bit Of Love’ and Alternative/Rock Act in 2022.

With two number-one albums under his belt alongside sold-out arena tours and an MTV Award for Best UK Act, Grennan has made a name for himself as one of the country’s biggest artists.

‘Shadowboxing’ is the second single to be unveiled from Tom’s fourth-coming studio album (which drops on 15 August) following the release of ‘Higher’ back in September, and is the first song he and Justin Tranter wrote together.

“It represents what the whole album is about,” Tom said: “It’s about my fight with a side of me I have a lot of trouble with. It’s still a daily battle. But I’ve learned how to fight all these demons and I’m mentally and physically prepared now. I’m in athlete mode.”

You can listen to the track down below:

The ever-rising solo artist will be playing a total of 11 dates on his upcoming UK tour this autumn including a huge date at Leeds’ First Direct Arena before arriving here in Manchester on Friday, 19 September.

He was last here during the summer for the most recent Sound of the City shows at Castlefield Bowl, playing a sell-out date to well over 8,000 fans.

General admission for Tom Grennan in Manchester will be available from 10am next Friday, 7 February but official Co-op Members can access pre-sale from the same time on Wednesday (5 Feb).

You can get ready to grab your tickets HERE.

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Press Shots (supplied)

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