10 months on from their last gig and more than a year since they officially ended their hiatus, Catfish and the Bottlemen finally returned to Manchester for a sold-out show at Heaton Park, and while the reviews online have been mixed, we had a blast heading back to the fields again.
Making their Manc comeback just hours before this year’s Parklife Festival got underway, the beloved Welsh band had stirred lots of worry leading up to the day itself and, in truth, even in the moments leading up to (and after) their stage time.
Apart from their huge headline slot at Reading and Leeds, 2024 was the year of cancellations and controversy, so their fans had plenty of reason to be concerned. Nevertheless, we had faith and kept our spirits high, especially with the weather holding out.
Local legends and indie rock veterans James certainly helped on that front, delighting both die-hards watching from up on the hill and younger gig-goers who may have only heard a few of the big hits like ‘Sit Down’ – though they certainly didn’t heed that message, there was merely jumping up and down.
Some great computer-generated imagery backdropped the set.We watched this thing like a hawk.You can read our recent interview with them HERE. (Credit: Audio North)
Once the main support act had wrapped up their pretty perfectly timed set, we’ll admit, standing on that grass felt like an eternity, especially considering Catfish had us waiting an extra 15 minutes beyond their expected arrival at Heaton Park.
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You could call it fashionably late, but in this case, it saw several people around us uttering, ‘they’re not coming on any time soon’, and some even beginning to walk off.
However, they did eventually arrive just over a quarter of an hour past schedule, and the eruption of cheers from the crowd and a fair few screams from those nearest the barrier signalled what summed up the entire night: we were just so happy to have them back.
We’ve heard people debating the sound quality and taking issue with parts of Van’s performance, but we’ll just leave this here and let you decide for yourselves:
One thing’s for sure: the energy was immaculate from start to finish.
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From kicking things off with ‘Longshot’ for a limb-worthy intro, to hearing a fully acoustic version of ‘Hourglass’ as the lead singer stood alone on the dramatically lit main stage, soon to be followed up by a plethora of Parklife acts, we’d wager you they’ll remain a tough act to follow all weekend.
Other highlights included an entire park’s worth of people belting every word to ‘Kathleen’, ‘Fallout’, ‘Pacifier’ and pretty much every track they played, as well Van having the crowd repeat the chorus of ‘Cocoon’ as he hung up his guitar from the stand to deliver an ice-old mic drop.
We would’ve loved to hear a fuller set filled with the extended live versions of ‘Oxygen’, ‘Heathrow’ and ‘Glasgow’ too, especially given how many sections of pure instrumentation felt like they were going to transition into another track, but you can’t have everything, I guess.
Inflatable crocodiles and cracking flagsCredit: The Manc GroupEyes and arms wide openWe’re here to urge you not to be drawn in by TikTok reviews – as far as we’re concerned, Catfish were made to headline Heaton Park.
Sure, there might have been a few minor fluffed vocal notes and slightly over-lengthy solos here and there, but after all, it’s a rock show: we want a bit of mess.
The same goes for Van McCann himself, too; we worry that people are starting to forget what a proper rockstar is, and we’re not talking about contriving some kind of Hollywood lifestyle, but certainly getting lost in the music and trashing your guitar so hard that your face is draped in nothing but hair and sweat? Absolutely.
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All in all, we think Catfish and the Bottlemen‘s massive outdoor show at Manchester’s Heaton Park and de facto ‘comeback after the last comeback’ was a triumph and even when they’re not absolutely 10/10, they’re still bloody good value live.
As for the question of ‘are they back?’ We think so and certainly hope that ‘Showtime’ wasn’t just released as a way of signalling fans to come along for one last ride before the final curtain call.
The Pussycat Dolls announce major comeback with huge global arena tour
Daisy Jackson
Global pop icons The Pussycat Dolls have announced a major global tour, with 50+ shows across Europe and North America.
The pop icons will be performing a massive show here in Manchester as part of the tour, which kicks off this summer.
The Pussycat Dolls have been teasing their return this week, plastering hints on venues across the UK – including the Co-op Live, which displayed a pink digital ad reading ‘Don’t cha wish you knew who we’re announcing tomorrow??’
The multi-platinum pop supergroup will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of their debut record, PCD. They’ll be supported on the European leg of the tour, which will bring them to the UK in September and October, by Lil’ Kim.
The PCD Forever tour will span a whopping 53 dates, where they’ll perform their chart-topping hits including the 5x platinum Buttons, plus Don’t Cha, and Stickwitu.
The Pussycat Dolls were pop heavyweights in the 2000s, known for their electrifying choreography and live performances.
The Pussycat Dolls have announced a major global tour with a Manchester date. Credit: Rankin
Nicole Scherzinger, Kimberly Wyatt, and Ashley Roberts will be back together once again this year for what will be their biggest international run in years.
They’ll be releasing a new song for the first time since 2019 – Club Song is produced by Mike Sabbath (RAYE, Jade) and written by Nicole Scherzinger with Sabbath, Caroline Ailin (Dua Lipa) and Solly (Teddy Swims).
General tickets will go on sale from 10am on Friday 20 March, but fans can sign up for pre-sale at pcdforever.com by Monday to access tickets early.
Country 2 Country music festival is coming to Manchester next year
Danny Jones
Hold on to your cowboy hats, country fans: the smash-hit Country 2 Country music festival is coming to Manchester.
The massive live music festival specialising in all things country, folk, bluegrass, Americana and more has slowly been expanding its presence across the UK and Ireland over the last decade or so.
Starting in London at the O2 Arena, before hitting the Emerald Isle in 2015 and debuting in Scotland just three years later, it has seen some of the biggest acts from the world of country music cross the Atlantic to show off the Stateside genre, plus plenty from around the globe already immersed in the culture.
We’ll confess, even prior to the official announcement, we had a feeling this was coming when we spotted these posters dotted about in town:
Like so many of those buzzing in the comments, we cannot wait for this to come around.
With this year’s respective events taking place simultaenously place over the coming weekend, Friday, 13 to Sunday, 15 March, it’s fair to say they’ve timed the news perfectly.
Everyone from established names such as Carrie Underwood, Tim McGraw, Chris Stapleton, Kacey Musgraves, to up-and-coming bands as well as fast-rising artists working in and around the genre, like Nate Smith, Lainey Wilson and, of course, the now well and truly massive Luke Combs.
For instance, the likes of Keith Urban, Noah Rinker, Alana Springsteen – no relation – Zach Top and many, MANY more, are playing across London, the OVO Hydro in Glasgow and Belfast’s SSE Arena for the 12th edition of the now annual celebration.
Set to arrive in our city centre for the very first time, Country 2 Country (C2C) will be making its Manc debut at none other than the legendary AO Arena, where so many of the biggest names and current generation of stars alike have played.
You only have to look at recent examples like Darius Rucker last year and the ever-growing Tyler Childers, helping kick off this season of country gigs here in Manchester.
Meanwhile, as you can see for Country 2 Country music fest’s Manchester debut, it’s coming in March 2027, and they’ll be teaming up with other local gig venues and bars to turn 0161 into a little slice of Broadway – we just hope we get a bit of Austin weather to boot.
It’s fair to say that this particular part of the music industry is definitely enjoying a big boom right now, with lots of different acts dipping their toes into the bayou, if you will.
However, C2C have been flying the flag for country music over here for ages now, and with it being hailed as remaining “one of the UK’s most spectacular annual festivals” by the likes of The Express and countless, among countless other reviews, we think it’s time you give it a go.
Better still, let’s show everyone that we can do it even better up North, and here in what everyone knows is Britain’s real musical home: Greater Manchester.
Tickets will be available from 10am next Friday, 20 March, and you can sign up to get early bird pre-sale access right HERE.
Credit: Niko Moon/Luke Dyson Photography (supplied)
Danny Jones -
14th June 2025 
