Celebrate the Manchester music scene with the return of Independent Venue Week
The Greater Manchester music scene is one of the best in the world, no question about it, and what better way to champion our incredible city than with the return of Independent Venue Week?
Indie Venue Week 2025 kicks off on 27 January and it isn’t just a national observance, this celebration takes place over in the States too and is all about not only spotlighting both new, up-and-coming artists but also grassroots music spaces that help platform them.
The week-long music celebration concludes with one last hurrah on Sunday, 2 February, and we can’t think of anything we’d love more than to start the month on the right – by which we mean supporting local businesses and immersing ourselves in as much live music as possible.
We love it when our fellow audiophiles all band together (pun very much intended).
A total of 212 venues are taking part across the UK this year, from the tightly-packed 18-cap that is Grayston Unity in Halifax to the much fully-fledged live music halls like Troxy in East London and, of course, there are plenty of Manc rooms on the list too.
From Manchester’s newest intimate gig space, The Rat and Pigeon, to recently reinvigorated institutions such as New Century Hall and Night and Day Cafe, not to mention local small show favourites like The Castle Hotel and Gullivers, there’s some serious heritage to be soaked up.
Here’s what we’ve got on around these parts:
- The Rat & Pigeon – three-part gig series with Yasmin Coe, Martial Arts and Daffodils. (28-30th January)
- YES – post-punk band Do Nothing, alternative indie pop duo, Ten Fé, and US rapper E L U C I D. (27 and 31 Jan, 1 February)
- Gullivers – hosting Canadian singer-songwriter Julian Taylor. (30 Jan)
- Night & Day Cafe – four different gig nights including Opus Kink, The DSM IV, Willie Watson, All Now and more. (28 Jan-2 Feb)
- New Century Hall – shows by Lake St Drive, Kublai Khan and Cattle Decapitation. (28 and 31 Jan, 1 Feb)
- Rebellion – an all-day black metal festival with Barshasketh headlining. (1 Feb)
But it doesn’t stop there, with tonnes of other shows around the North West region as a whole. You can find a full list of nearby events taking place during the week down below.
Read more:
- Bright Eyes are heading back to Manchester on their new UK and European tour
- Government to introduce price cap on ticket touts and launch consultation on dynamic pricing
- World-renowned rockers Lynyrd Skynyrd announce HUGE Manchester anniversary gig
The best part about this week is that no matter if you’re based in the city centre or even just outside of Greater Manchester, there’s plenty of local talent to get stuck into.
It goes without saying that independent music venues are the lifeblood of the industry – don’t let anyone tell you any different – so supporting them not just during the week of Monday, 27 January and Sunday, 2 February but all year-round is paramount to keeping it alive and well.
You can find out more details and grab tickets for all the shows for Independent Venue Week HERE.
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Featured Images — The Manc Group