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Iggy Pop announces landmark gig in Manchester next year

It's been a long old while since he's been in town.

Thomas Melia Thomas Melia - 2nd December 2024

Pivotal punk icon Iggy Pop has released a massive Manchester tour date as part of a series of UK gigs taking place in 2025.

‘The Godfather of Punk’ and all-round rockstar last visited the music capital of the North way back in 1993 where he performed at Manchester Academy more than 30 years ago.

The latest comeback gigs announced next year will see the living legend headlining the O2 Victoria Warehouse, which can host up to 3,500 avid fans and attendees.

Manchester can expect his usual on-stage antics, shirtless attire, iconic hairdo and plenty of energy. We’re no stranger to hosting some of the most iconic gigs of all time anyway, so this should be ‘She’s a Business’ as usual.

The former Stooges vocalist turned successful solo artist has been keeping himself a mainstay in pop culture featuring on the bill of ‘I Wanna Be Your Slave’ by Måneskin in 2021.

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It’s safe to say the star’s touring absence has been truly felt as this new date comes as the result of ‘overwhelming demand’ following the announcement of two other headline shows: one in London and an already sold-out Glasgow gig.

Iggy Pop’s Manchester tour date is for all his fans in the North, giving them the chance to experience his biggest anthems in an electrifying live setting and venue that never disappoints. This crowd is truly about to be ‘Livin’ on the Edge of the Night’.

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Come on, how often do you get to throw out Iggy Pop puns?

Alongside being a hugely influential voice during one of the most important and historic eras of music, in more recent times, the man born James Newell Osterberg Jr. has been advocating for upcoming artists on social media in collaboration with BBC 6 Music.

In 2010, Iggy Pop was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of his work alongside fellow bandmates The Stooges.

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This isn’t the only time Pop found himself rewarded for his work, receiving a Grammy in 2020 on behalf of his solo work titled the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’. He is a true legend not just of the genre but the music world as a whole.

Whether you’re attending for ‘I Wanna Be Your Dog’ or his more contemporary work like the raw hit ‘Frenzy’, he’s sure to roll out a selection of songs that spans his truly impressive musical career, one which dates back to the 1960s.

Iggy Pop is performing at O2 Victoria Warehouse in Manchester on Saturday, 31 May 2025 with tickets on sale from Friday, 6 December. There is also presale available for MasterCard and O2 members, as well as through the venue itself.

You can grab yours HERE.

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Featured Image – Publicity Picture (Supplied)

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First batch of special releases for Record Store Day UK 2026 announced

Danny Jones Danny Jones Record Store Day release list UK 2026

Yes, it’s nearly time for Record Store Day 2026, and the list of the first dozen or so limited edition releases here in the UK has just been announced.

With a fair few familiar and, more importantly, Northern names on there (but of course), #RSDUK26 is set to be another great one.

A total of 15 songs have been named on the lineup for this year so far, and yet again, the drops are in support of War Child, who will also be hosting a number of very special and intimate charity gigs during BRITs Week.

The two organisations have collaborated for the sixth time after having first joined forces back in 2020, and it feels like both the annual observance and its catalogue have only got better ever since.

Plenty that have caught our attention already, and there’s only more set to come…

As detailed in the post on social media, the Record Store Day team have retierated that “£1 from every single copy sold of these releases will be donated to the charity, helping to protect, educate, and stand up for the rights of the children who are living through conflict around the world.”

We quickly noticed the likes of The Cure, Fleetwood Mac, Kaiser Chiefs, Mark Knopfler and Bring Me The Horizon, just to name a few.

Once more, here is the RSD 2026 release list in full:

Record Store Day release list | 2026

  • Corinne Bailey Rae – Live In New York
  • The Cure – Greatest Hits and Acoustic Hits (compilations)
  • Divorce – Live at Get Together 2025 for War Child
  • Dr Feelgood – Oily City Confidential (OST)
  • Fleetwood Mac – The Original Fleetwood Mac (compilation)
  • James Dean Bradfield – The Great Western
  • Kaiser Chiefs – The Future Is Medieval
  • Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris – ‘All The Roadrunning’
  • Nicky Wire – Intimism
  • Primal Scream – Echo Dek
  • Rory Gallagher – Calling Card
  • Sigrid x BMTH – ‘Bad Life’
  • The Streets – Computers & Blues
  • The Vaccines – What Did You Expect…. Demos and B-sides

As always, all of these titles will be available behind the counter exclusively at indie record shops all over the country on Saturday, 18 April to celebrate Record Store Day UK 2026.

Oh, and if you need help with where to start, look no further.

15 of the best record shops in and around Greater Manchester

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Featured Images — Record Store Day UK (via X)/Audio North

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Five Greater Manchester-based artists we’ve been listening to this month | January 2026

Danny Jones Danny Jones new music artists coming out of Greater Manchester

Happy New Ye—ah, never mind, we’re well past that; however, we’re never past soaking up new music and song recommendations from the best music city in the world – we’re pretty sure that’s why they really call it Greater Manchester…

If 2026 does happen to be your first year with us, this feature is pretty self-explanatory: every month, we round up some of the best tunes and Manc-based artists you may not have heard before.

Or maybe you have, and you’ve just forgotten about them. You don’t have to be a big name or an up-and-comer here at Audio North; you make it on this list if you’re good. It really is as simple as that.

So, without further ado, let’s get stuck into our very first collection of regional artists you need to try of the year…

Five Manchester artists we’ve been listening to recently

1. Spangled

First up for 2026 is a group we’re expecting big things from this year, and hopefully plenty of new music to back it up. They’re playing a huge Ritz headline show with some other Manc bands at the end of February, and it’s sure to be a party, especially when that new single ‘Barracuda Cadillac’ kicks in.

Spangled is a name you may have already come across, and they’ve certainly been working hard over the past half a decade, but we’ve got into a real groove with them of late. Post-punk, alt-rock, or straight-up Manc indie in moments; they’re given all sorts of labels – we just call it full-tilt rock and roll.

They’ve got a great swagger about them. Frontman Ben Johnson has a bit of Rob Damiani about him; the guitar work is excellent, they do a good music video, and they’ve even got a track that sounds like ‘The Only One I Know’ by The Charlatans. We’d say start with ‘Little Tom’, ‘Human’ and ‘Drift Away’.

2. PAVÉ

Ok, off to a strong start, and while we’re hoping for those lads to finally release their first full album in the coming months, we’re hoping to see fellow rising rock project, PAVÉ, drop a proper lengthier sophomore LP sometime soon. If you fancy taking things up a notch in terms of heaviness, these are just the ticket.

Mixing plenty of distortion, electronics and wider effects to their overall sound, this four-piece (which was also formed in 2019) is great for anyone trying to keep their nu-metal and grunge-soaked younger selves alive, and they definitely know how to write a radio-friendly chorus.

Alanya Jade’s vocals soar over hard-hitting riffs and rapid drumming patterns, and the lyrics are appropriately brooding. We’d recommend their big single, ‘The Weight Of Letting Go’, another fan favourite, ‘Whatever The Cost’, and our personal favourite thus far, ‘aren’t YOU scAREd to be ALONE?’

3. Gallaher’s Green

Sticking with Manc rock but with plenty of US influences, we move on to Gallagher’s Green. Named after a cigarette brand and showing no shame in championing not only some post-Britpop, but unmistakable Americana and even country, this collective has roots in Oldham, the North West, Yorkshire and Ireland.

Their backstory and journey up to this point is as fascinating as it is moving, with founding duo Ian Gallagher and Jon Olphert first meeting whilst serving in Iraq back in 2008, before going to enjoy gigs together and eventually forming a band of musical brothers all their own.

They’ve maintained a clear mix of mainstream transatlantic sounds; it always sounds familiar, but there’s definitely more of a leaning towards the Stateside vibes. Put simply, your dad’ll LOVE these, and we mean that in the best way. ‘Just A Dream’, ‘Not My Day to Die’ and ‘Better Days’ are our standouts.

You’ll get a bit of Oasis, Shed Seven, Feeder, as well as bits of Foo Fighters, Incubus, and much more.

4. CQ Wrestling

Our penultimate pick is, quite frankly, a band that should have been named on our Greater Manchester artists of the month list AGES ago, but given they’ve had a bit of a sea change in the last couple of years or so, we held off to see what we’ve made of it.

We needn’t have worried – if anything, we’re more obsessed than ever. No longer Chappaqua but now simply CQ Wrestling, the local indie turned even grungier and more shoegaze than ever outfit definitely suits this particular writer’s general tastes, but it does help set them apart a bit more these days.

Personally, we will always have a very strong soft spot for older tunes like ‘Football’, though we do enjoy the growing aggression in 2023’s ‘Kulture’, but our favourite track at the moment is ‘Catherine Wheels’, which feels like the perfect advert for their relaunch as an even darker brand of modern alt-rock.

5. Oscar White

Finishing on a much softer note for this month, we head into February with the dulcet tones of Devon-born singer-songwriter, Oscar White, who has such a command of the acoustic guitar that we believe his intricate picking could genuinely lull a baby to sleep. Or, you know, a fully grown man…

This Manchester-based folk artist definitely enjoys dipping into the old Celtic and bardic traditions, so it feels quite quintessential for the genre, and best of all, we’re starting you off nice and easy, because he’s only got two tracks out on Spotify, but there is more to be found on his YouTube and other places online.

So, stick on ‘Debts and Dry Land’ and ‘Spencer The Rover’ – both of which show off that fingerstyle guitar, but also do a good job of showing two different ways he deploys his raspy voice – but do check out YouTube for his live version of ‘All Turned Out’ at The Whiskey Jar in NQ. Simply gorgeous.

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I mean, come on, there’s just back-to-back quality right there – not a single skipper in amongst the mix, and don’t you dare so otherwise.

And if that was your first time joining us on the monthly music round-up, firstly, welcome, and secondly, we hope you stick around all year long.

Oh, and if you’re curious to see hw we ended last year, look no further. See you next time!

Five Greater Manchester-based artists we’ve been listening to this month | December 2025

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Featured Images — Press shot (supplied)/Owen Peters Photography/Liam Maxwell (via Instagram)

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