Sounds of the City is back at Castlefield Bowl with a packed programme of outdoor live shows – and next on the agenda is Hozier.
Irish singer-songwriter Hozier will take to the stage in Manchester on 5 July, as part of his Unreal Unearth Tour 2023.
The Take Me To Church singer is back from a four-year hiatus, releasing EP Eat Your Young on St Patrick’s Day, which also happens to be his birthday.
His third studio album, Unreal Unearth, is due for release in August this year.
After his Castlefield Bowl gig, Hozier will embark on a further tour in December – but won’t be back in Manchester on that one.
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The stage is set canal-side in Castlefield, with other headline performances from Blossoms, Two Door Cinema Club, and Bastille still to come, as well as shows from Pulp and The Lathums already finished.
Here’s everything you need to know about Hozier at Castlefield Bowl.
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Who’s supporting Hozier?
Sounds of the City at Castlefield Bowl. Credit: Sam Neill
Hozier has two support acts joining him at Castlefield Bowl tonight.
One of which will be The Teskey Brothers, an Australian blues rock band from Melbourne.
They have three albums under their belts – Half Mile Harvest, Run Home Slow and The Winding Way – and will also be doing a signing at HMV Manchester from 5pm.
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Also joining Hozier is Victoria Canal, a rising star from Germany who has already supported some other big names, including JP Saxe and Emily King, on their tours.
Estimated stage times
Stage times haven’t yet been announced for Hozier, but based on The Lathums gig – which had the same number of support acts – these will be the rough times.
5.30pm – Doors and DJ 7pm – Support act one 8pm – Support act two 9pm – Hozier 11pm – Curfew
Tickets
Tickets for Hozier are, sadly, totally sold out.
They were initially priced at £45 including booking fee – a bargain in today’s world of concert prices.
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If you’re desperate to go, keep an eye on resale sites but make sure you’re buying from a trustworthy seller so you don’t get ripped off.
Weather forecast
Castlefield Bowl is an outdoor venue, with only a very small amount of cover by the amphitheatre seating.
The wet weather is set to mostly take a break for Hozier’s Sounds of the City gig on Wednesday night, thankfully.
Temperatures are set to peak at 18 degrees, with a low of 13 degrees, according to the Met Office.
There’s a 30% chance of light rain at 6pm, but otherwise things are looking dry if cloudy.
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Expected setlist
A previous Sounds of the City gig at Castlefield Bowl. Credit: FAC51 The Hacienda
The below is the setlist Hozier used for his gig at Piece Hall in Halifax last week.
Eat Your Young Jackie and Wilson From Eden To Be Alone Dinner & Diatribes Francesca Cherry Wine Like Real People Do All Things End Would That I Someone New Almost (Sweet Music) Angel of Small Death and the Codeine Scene Movement Take Me to Church Unknown/Nth Work Song
About Castlefield Bowl
Castlefield Bowl is an amphitheatre-style outdoor venue in the city centre.
Although all tickets are billed as unreserved standing, if you’re quick you can take a seat on the large concrete steps that curve around the stage.
Many people also take a perch up on the grassy banks at the back of the venue too.
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Castlefield Bowl is located at 101 Liverpool Road in the city centre.
The closest tram stop is Deansgate-Castlefield, which is only a six-minute walk away.
You can also walk it from the major train stations, or use the 101, 197, 255, 256, 41, 50 or X50 buses.
Olly Murs cancels Manchester gig after walking off stage six songs into huge arena show
Daisy Jackson
Olly Murs has now officially cancelled his show in Manchester tonight, a day after walking off stage just six songs into a huge arena gig.
The Heart Skips a Beat star had been performing in Glasgow last night when he abruptly stopped the show, apologised to fans, and left the stage.
The gig was cancelled around 30 minutes into his show, which is part of a huge UK arena tour that was meant to be heading to Manchester tonight.
A tearful Olly said that he was seeing a doctor last night and would update fans of the rest of his shows ‘as soon as I know anything’.
It’s now been confirmed that his gig at the AO Arena will not be going ahead.
Olly Murs said in a statement: “30 minutes into my set in Glasgow I lost my voice & unfortunately had to leave the stage midway through the show. This has never happened before and not something I take lightly.
“I’m sorry to all the fans who came out to the show last night and am forever grateful for your support.
“To everyone in Manchester and Birmingham I’m deeply sorry, but am unfortunately going to have to cancel my shows this weekend. I have contracted a respiratory infection and have been instructed to go on a strict 48 hour voice rest by the doctor to ensure no further damage to my vocal cords.
“I have been enjoying this tour so much, and am so sorry to let down my fans – but have to put my health first. I’m hoping to be fighting fit in a few days to finish this amazing 15 year celebratory tour with a bang.”
In a video he shared to Instagram last night, Olly Murs said: “Firstly I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry I had to walk off after six songs and cancel the show. I’ve never done this in 15 years.
“Most of the time as singers you can kind of get through it if your voice isn’t 100% – I walked out tonight thinking my voice was great, I maybe felt a little bit run down but I didn’t think I couldn’t do the show. I wouldn’t have come out there otherwise.
“So to walk off after six songs, as I said, I’m so sorry. As you can probably hear from my voice, I just sounded rubbish and it’s unfair for you guys that spent all that money to come and see me. You deserve the best show and me being at my best, and I’m so sorry from the bottom of my heart.
“Hopefully I can recover from this.
“I’m actually going to see a doctor tonight which is great, so I’ll give you guys an update as soon as I know anything. Obviously I wanna try my absolute best to make these shows possible at the weekend.
“So yeah, so sorry for everyone tonight, apologies from the bottom of my heart. Gutted.”
Major star pulls out of Parklife festival due to ‘scheduling conflict’
Daisy Jackson
One of the biggest attractions of this year’s Parklife festival line-up has pulled out just weeks before the event.
Rising star and TikTok sensation Lola Young will no longer be performing at the huge Manchester festival.
She’s the voice behind ‘Messy’, that song you can’t get out of your head (or off your For You Page), and has already earned herself two BRIT Award nominations.
Lola Young was one of the biggest names announced on this year’s Parklife line-up, which has headline slots from Charli XCX, 50 Cent, Jorja Smith and Peggy Gou.
She was set to perform on the Saturday of the festival, taking place on 14 and 15 June.
But Parklife has now confirmed that Lola Young has dropped out of the lineup owing to a ‘scheduling conflict’.
In a post on Instagram they wrote: “Due to an unavoidable scheduling conflict Lola Young will not be performing at Parklife 2025.
“We would like to apologise for any disappointment.
“Full set times will be published at 5pm Tuesday 20th May on the PL25 App where we will also be announcing some surprise additions to the weekend in the run up to the festival.”
Parklife will be taking place next month in Manchester – you can keep up with the latest HERE and grab final tickets HERE.
Daisy Jackson -
5th July 2023 
