Didn’t get tickets for Oasis? How about we all just go see one of the best tribute acts in Manchester instead? Sounds like a plan, let’s do it.
Yes, unfortunately, one of the biggest downsides to one of the greatest bands of all time returning for a worldwide reunion tour is that, rather ironically, pretty much everyone on the entire planet wants a ticket.
The reality is that many of us Mancs and Oasis fans all over the country and the globe will sadly be missing out on the comeback gigs this summer. Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean we have to miss out on listening to the same iconic tunes as everyone else in a room full of other Britpop lovers.
After all, as we all know, seeing bands live is great and all that – but half the fun is jumping up and down like a loon with hundreds of other people, and these lads can certainly sort that.
🐝 Missed out on Heaton Park tickets? We've got you covered! (quite literally, this one's indoors 🌧)
That’s right, hailed as the UK’s ‘best and most authentic Oasis tribute band’, Oasi-is will be coming to the legendary Manchester Academy complex to give us locals the next best thing.
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Not only that but the highly celebrated impersonators and soundalikes will be playing the 950-cap venue on Friday, 11 July, i.e. the same night as Oasis‘ first of five hometown Manchester shows at Heaton Park.
To make things even more interesting and appealing to the die-hards who can’t be there for the real deal this summer, Oasi-is are the only tribute act to the 90s rock and roll stars that can boast using official Oasis equipment in their sets.
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Gig-goers will also be treated to authentic visuals and footage projected on the big screens behind them, and dedicated tour DJs to drum up an unrivalled recreation of their heroes, as well as shades and ‘Wellend’ haircuts so convincing you’ll soon forget it’s not the actual Gallagher brothers.
Aiming to mirror the ‘Live ’25’ tour shows as best as possible, you can expect all the classics and even a few curveballs from Standing On The Shoulders Of Giants and Dig Out Your Soul. Who knows? All we can guarantee is that we’d rather be here than just sit enviously watching clips of it at home come July.
We’re not forcing that familiar ‘no-Glasto fever’ on ourselves, we’re just going to make the best of it, thanks to Oas-is.
As if it wasn’t already a pretty great value-for-money gig, with general admission priced at just £20 (plus booking fees), you’ll also get to see an equally brilliant tribute band as well as a local legend for the support slots.
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Warming up the crowd will be the world’s premier Arctic Monkeys tribute act, Arctic Numpties, along with Manc DJ legend, Dave Sweetmore. That’ll do just fine.
Tickets are already on sale and it won’t surprise you to learn that, the genuine article or not, it’s selling really well because let’s be honest: we just want to spend the night singing our hearts out whilst jumping up and down to the hits with all our mates.
You can grab your tickets for the Oas-is’ ‘Same Hits. Same Night. Same City’ tribute show at Manchester Academy 2 HERE and, in the meantime, you might want to check out these fellow Oasis obsessives over in Japan too…
A brand new grunge and hard rock festival is kicking off in Manchester
Danny Jones
Manchester grungers, hardcore heads, and fans of all things rock, pay attention because there is a brand new festival coming to the city centre – and it has possibly the best name for a live music event we’ve heard in some time.
Ahem… let us introduce you to Broken Knees Fest.
Yes, donning a name that feels increasingly more relatable the closer we get to the wrong side of 30, Broken Knees Festival 2025 marks the inaugural edition of Manchester’s newest series of rock and grunge gigs, helping spotlight rising artists across the genres from within two crucial grassroots venues.
Very loud music inside tightly-packed, small-capacity rooms? It’s a winning formula that never fails. It’s about time we broke a sweat – here’s hoping the knees just about hold out.
Hosted in the heart of the Northern Quarter, which continues to thrive as a creative hub for new music and art of all forms, the festival will be debuting at small-cap favourites Gullivers and Castle Hotel just across the road.
As you can see, the lineup is full of up-and-coming talent within the guitar-driven space, but you can bank on more than a few bringing their die-hard fans to fill the place out to the rafters.
It doesn’t matter if you prefer punk, hardcore, grunge or another specific sub-genre found somewhere in between the ever-sprawling rock spectrum, there’s something to suit all alternative tastes at this one.
With the likes of Bohmen, Mavis, One Dimensional Creatures and Smother headlining the first-ever iteration of the festival across four stages, you can expect plenty of energy and even more noise.
Set up by the events group of the same name, Broken Knees Promotions, who help platform rock and alt acts across Greater Manchester and beyond year-round, this is more than just a festival: it’s a grassroots celebration through and through.
Best of all, if you’re interested, you don’t have to wait long because it’s kicking off next month.
Gigs go off in here. If you know, you know… (Credit: Audio North)
Broken Knees Fest 2025 is happening on the weekend of 21-22 June, and you’ll be glad to hear that, as a brand new event, prices have been kept nice and low.
The early bird window had prices starting from just £12, and although this tier has now sold out, day tickets are still only £15 while a full weekend pass will set you back £25.
Until then, why not dive into another load of new Manchester music? We round up artists from all genres each month; we’ll also confess to leaning slightly more towards the heavier stuff from time to time.
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.”
Danny Jones -
6th March 2025 
