Having recently announced a brand new album — their first in six years — and a sellout UK tour to go along with it, The Manc was lucky enough to be offered some time with Shed Seven frontman and Greater Manchester-born musician, Rick Witter.
The alternative rock and Britpop group might have been formed in York, but with Witter hailing from just down the road in Stockport and Shed Seven playing a big role in the Madchester scene of the 1990s, the band have always had a special connection to our city.
With that in mind, we were delighted to sit down with a veteran of the industry who clearly still has a lot of love for this place and has dipped back into the Manc music pool for the new record, A Matter of Time.
Shed Seven’s new album and how it came about
Asking about the six-year hiatus between this upcoming album and the previous one, Instant Pleasures, Rick joked, “It’s taken us to get to fifty years old to reach the sixth album, but we’re lazy, so there you go.
They’ve even got the local lads coming along with later this year.
“The last one was 2017, which was the first new material in 16 years, so it kind of shows that we’re not being as lazy, I guess. We shaved 10 years off this time, so if everyone’s lucky, we might have one out in about two years.”
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Returning to the same place in Spain they made the last album — the studio of producer and musician Youth (real name Martin Glover) — Rick said, “We knew we were going to get good sounds and we also knew it was going to be quite hard work.
“If you go around telling people, ‘we’re gonna go to Spain for three weeks and record an album’ people think you’ve got the best life in the world but nothing could be further from the truth. It’s like boot camp and it’s proper full on; every move is questioned, every chord is questioned, but that’s healthy because it really makes you create.”
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The 50-year-old said he and the rest of the band walked after three weeks “feeling absolutely knackered, but also elated” in the belief that they’ve come back with something “brilliant” and, judging by the first two singles, it sounds like they have.
‘F:K:H’ and ‘Kissing California’
Expressing our love for the lead tracks off the new album, ‘F:K:H‘ and ‘Kissing California‘ — an uplifting pair of songs that seemed to have tapped into their most uplifting discography whilst delivering an unmistakable Shed Seven chorus — we found that the origins of one came from simply messing about before a show.
“It’s a bit of a tongue-in-cheek joke”, he said of ‘F:K:H’. “We were in soundcheck at some point last year and Paul [Banks, lead guitarist and the band’s other chief songwriter] just started playing this riff on the stage as we were soundchecking and I’m saying to him, what’s that?
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“I just started singing one of our old B-side verses over the top of it and it just fit really well. Obviously, we didn’t want to recreate an old idea but it just seemed to fit at that moment, so we took it into the dressing room after we’d soundchecked and thought, is there any room for this?”
“Lyrically, I took it lyrically somewhere else after that but the whole bones of the song started by having a little bit of a laugh and a bit of an inter-band tongue joke. Anyone who’s a fan of us and knows that particular song, it’s called ‘Around Your House‘, they’ll know the little nod.”
Knowing it wouldn’t get radio play because of the lyrics (‘Feeling Kinda High’), Rick said they just wanted to channel The Rolling Stones; a bit of pomp and swagger and it certainly seems to have been received well online.
They’ve also teamed up with prolific UK producer Jagz Kooner, who’s worked with the likes of Primal Scream, Oasis, Kasabian and more, to create a real Happy Mondays-esque remix which we’ve probably played more than the original now, to be honest. Speaking of collaborations, this is by no means the only one they’ve had fun with of late.
Cooking up collabs with some of Britain’s best
In fact, since we mentioned the Mondays, one of the most exciting feature artists on A Matter of Time is beloved Manc songstress, Rowetta, who has delivered her trademark gospel vocals on ‘In Ecstasy’, a recording in which Rick says she was “on top form as always”.
Rowetta hasn’t just jumped on the new Shed Seven album, she’s already filmed the music video.
But the special guests don’t stop there; fans will also get to hear Laura McClure of Reverend and The Makers on the folky-pop number, of ‘Tripping With You’ and Witter’s duet with the one and only Peter Doherty on the album’s dramatic closing track, ‘Throwaways’
Refusing to give away any secrets, he only harked back to that Britpop moment and how the 90s seems to be “back in”, adding that “we wanted to kind of jump on that as much as we can before it all disappears again.”
He did also admit that “it’s quite scary how long ago that was” and that doesn’t seem that long ago that Shed Seven themselves were part of it.
Nevertheless, he did say that there’s something about that period and even how they made their records back then that they were tapping back into again this time around, even down to the pace at which they completed it.
Going back to their roots and riding the creative wave
The difference this time round, according to Rick, is that somewhat like their second album, A Maximum High — which saw them skip the dreaded ‘sophomore syndrome’ — their upcoming record came together quite quickly once the idea was hatched.
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“All of the songs on that album were quite upbeat, you know, ‘Getting Better’, ‘Going for Gold’, and this is the first album since then that we’ve kind of followed suit. We literally started writing this album in March 2022 and finished writing in December.
“Me and Paul obviously found ourselves in some kind of purple patch which was really exciting because nearly everything we were trying seemed to just fall into place. It was quite weird and a bit unheard of really, we kind of knew we were onto something good.
“Frustratingly, we had to stop writing to go and record it earlier this year; I think I actually would’ve preferred to have carried on because we were on such a good run. But, fingers crossed, when we do start writing new stuff, we can kind of pick up where we left off.
“We don’t ever sit down and discuss writing anything: we just do it. It’s just always a very natural thing. Me and Paul started writing songs together when we were 13 and we’ve always worked the same way.
Influences and Manc music memories
The clearly re-inspired Stopfordian also touched upon how the record is also infused with a lot of the same bands the boys were listening to back then, be it Simple Minds, U2 or even Duran Duran. He insists they’re only “subtle little things and it wasn’t on purpose”, but that perhaps its just come from getting older and looking back more.
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Part of that reflection is also realising that they “don’t feel like [they] have to prove anything to anybody”, noting that they have had theirs ups and downs like any group of artists but are now secure in the belief of one thing: “We’re a good band and we deserve to be doing what we’re doing.”
Witter also went on to insist that since they came up during a time in which so many great bands around here, especially, they’ve always known whether something is “good enough to show it to other people” or needs to be “put to one side until it’s fixed”. He said the same of the venues and Manc crowds too.
“We just love coming to that neck of the woods, to be honest. It’s always just a massive winner. Obviously, I’m from the area myself, so it’s always nice for me personally, but there’s just certain places that you go to play and you know that it’s just going to be a winner.”
We’ve had the pleasure of seeing Shed Seven live in Manchester more than a few times.
On the subject of what he thinks sets this city’s crowds apart from others, he went on to say, “I think it’s passion and pride. Manchester is just synonymous with great music because so many good bands have come from that area and I think the people know what’s cool and what isn’t — and they’d certainly tell you as well, which is quality.
“To be honest, we could play anywhere in the North on a drizzly Monday night and it doesn’t really matter that it’s drizzly on a Monday night because everyone inside that room is just having the best time. We wordinarily play the Academy but we’re doing Albert Hall this time and even though we’ve never actually played there, it looks amazing and we can just can’t wait.
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“It’s just an amazing place to come to and even in my downtime, obviously, I’ve still got family in Greater Manchester, so whenever I do get the chance to pop back across I always feel almost like I’m a bit back at home.”
The ‘Shoctober’ singles tour and A Matter of Time release day
If you’ve been a fan of the band long enough, you’ll know they usually tour later in the year in the storied Shed Seven ritual known as ‘Shedcember‘, with the first two tracks of the album already out, the lads have decided to pivot for a change and push everything up — including the album release date.
Initially due to drop a little later, A Matter of Time will now be releasing on 5 January 2024 and with their UK run of show already sold out, Rick says they’ll be treating it as somewhat of a “singles tour”.
Joking that this year’s event will have to be dubbed “Shoctober”, he said part of the reason behind the schedule shift is also because next year will mark be the bands 30th anniversary since the burst on to the scene with their debut album, Change Giver.
“To start the year and the very first week of our 30th anniversary year with a brand new album is great in itself but it also means that we’re going to be very busy in 2024. We’re going to be doing an awful lot of stuff, so if you’re a fan of Shed Seven, buckle up — and if you’re not, I’d go and hide somewhere.”
The Chemical Brothers’ Ed Simons on upcoming arena tour, forming in Manchester and how the city influenced them
Danny Jones
The Chemical Brothers are back and life is good. They never really went anywhere, per se, but they have a new album and a fast-selling UK arena tour, including a date right here in their musical home.
It always surprises us how many people are still unaware that the legendary electronic duo formed right here in Manchester and just how much of our city’s music influenced their unmistakable sound.
Having just released their new record, For That Beautiful Feeling — the tenth studio album in a career spanning nearly three and a half decades — it’s great to know that no matter how much they evolve, you can always spot their signature and that the Manc music scene an integral part in it.
Soon to embark on a fast-selling UK tour with a glorious homecoming at the AO Arena on 27 October, we had the immense pleasure of sitting down with one-half of The Chemical Brothers, Ed Simons, to chat all things past, present and future for one of Britain and the big beat genre’s biggest exports.
Back with more block rockin’ beats and another massive UK tour
So, how much are you looking forward to being back touring new music?
”It’s good to be going back indoors — it’s a big thing, you know, we play a lot of festivals; most of them are good but you get a much better sound [inside] and everyone’s in the same place and, hopefully, in the zone.
“[Post-Covid] A lot of people have still missed out on their first experiences of big loud music and big raucous crowds. Maybe some people are waiting to let go again and thrust into it.”
As for the album, first since 2019, what can you tell us about the direction you’ve gone in?
“Yep, well with performing live we really want to play the new music and just rest on what we’ve done before, we want to incorporate the two. It’s exciting for us. People have heard some of [the record] at summer festivals but now it’s is out there are lots of people that want to experience it for themselves.
“There’s always a core thing: some kind of secret thing between us about what we like about our music. It’s not so much a secret as it is the effect it has on other people but, hopefully, it’s evolving and the sound is still fresh. We don’t ever want people to say, ‘Oh, it’s just another Chemical Brothers record’, there has to be some quality to it.
“It’s a pretty rousing album and has the sense of people waking up again out of a long period where things still are difficult for a lot of people, but that sense of fragmentation that we went through in the lockdowns and what it’s like to come out of that.
“We made a lot of music in that period, but we’ve kind of concentrated on the stuff that feels the most rousing and has a bit of get up and provocation to feel alive again.”
The Chemical Brothers are bringing the new music to Manchester in just over a month.
Absolutely — the new singles like ‘No Reason’ definitely tap into that energy. What’s the reaction been like so far?
“Yeah, it’s been good. We had bits of and then had a sort of pressure to put it together into something we could play because we were about to DJ at fabric [in London] a few years ago at a charity gig for a friend of ours and the first time we played it at a club, even a really early version of it, you could feel it had an energy and sounded different. Great bassline too.
“It’s been rewarding and it’s been a really big live track for us this summer and we do a kind of live edit of it, which is fun and fresh.
“The track ‘Tell Me I’m Dreaming’ has also been a really big track. The visual that Flat Nose George [real name Adam Smith] and Marcus [Lyall] put together for that is really crazy, and, yeah, that’s been going down really well. I think that could be pretty huge when played indoors.
“We’ve had versions of it for a long time, but I think the first time we played it was actually at The Warehouse Project in 2021, I think? You know, when things were picking up again and it just immediately had that impact with the loops and the vocal.
“I just associate it with that WHP party in Manchester now and a few DJs have been playing it like Erol Alkan now too, so yeah, it’s kind of a big club track — a strange one but it works.”
The kind of light shows Manchester and the AO Arena can expect (Credit: The Chemical Brothers via Instagram)
Foundations in 0161 and how 90s Manchester influenced The Chemical Brothers’ sound
Definitely, and it doesn’t get much bigger than the AO Arena but what other venues have got fond memories of?
“Well, I know there’s a lot of new venues but given that we’ve been playing Manchester since 1990, we’ve done most venues. We even used to DJ at the Old Steam Brewery [later became ScuBar] which I don’t even know if that still exists [it doesn’t] but yeah we’ve played the Arena and both Warehouses over the past few years and we just love them.
“Victoria Warehouse and WHP are just amazing, you know. Manchester is our second home; we were students there and we’ve still got a lot of friends there.”
“I guess the best memory of the Arena”, Ed chuckled, “was when one of the security guards was walking us back after a said, ‘Corrr, I’ve not seen a crowd like that since Ricky Hatton was here”, adding that it’s a wise-crack that still gets brought up on tour and that all the gig staff here have a “proper good attitude”.
Not too bad a compliment, haha. What about other venues then? Any you’ve still got a soft spot for or have any lasting Manc music memories?
“Well, we were there with all the students and the early ‘Big Barn’ days at Manchester Academy, the indie disco, the house night in a house Thursday; the Wiggly Worm which Justin Robertson ran [went on to become the Millionaire Club] — we were just in and out of all those places and then ended up holding our own club nights.
“We’d hire everything from a swanky bar in town where we’d have to move all our speakers in, to setting up in Pizza Express in Didsbury where we used to go on and party as well.
Ed and Tom back when they were starting. (Credit: Ed Simons via Instagram)
Amazing. Tell us a little bit about the early days and how you and Tom [Rowland] came to meet at uni.
“Yeah, at the University of Manchester in 1989. We met really early on, pretty much the first week through a mutual friend. We were on this tiny little course on medieval history, so there weren’t many of us, and then I think we were talking about wanting to play the Haçienda, which at that time was the big thing and we’d all heard about it.
“So yeah, we just kind of became friends because we were the only people in this course and we just wanted to go to the Haçienda and I think we ended up going every Friday from September to Christmas. We were just so into the music that Mike Pickering and Graeme Park were playing, and just the whole atmosphere. We also loved buying records together.
“Tom was actually in another band at the time called Ariel, so our thing was just DJing together at first and then after making some more friends about a year into our course we started putting on these nights around town and we got really friendly with a lot of DJs who worked at Eastern Bloc like Robertson and [Richard] ‘Moonboots‘.
It always comes back to Manchester
Ed ended the chat by reiterating that, like many artists who come through here either as natives or otherwise, “there’ll always be a big Manchester connection.”
Then.Now.No matter how many years go by, the importance of those early Manchester days has never left The Chemical Brothers.
“We used to buy some really brilliant records that Moonboots would put aside for us and then when we came to London, we were suddenly DJing and playing all these cool records that no one else had heard.
“A really big part of our early career was building that bridge between Manchester and London, and, you know, we were around at the same time as The Stone Roses and we absolutely loved them — that first album had a huge influence.
“There was just that sense of if you’ve got an idea, just try and record it and get it out; there was a sort of can-do feeling about everything and we always feel indebted to that time we spent there. I think without being around all these people and artists printing a thousand white labels, we never would have been exposed to the culture and wouldn’t be coming back to the Arena 34 years later…
“Apparently the lecturer who did that medieval history course still starts his years by telling his students that they’re following in mine and Tom’s footsteps…”
Featured Image — The Chemical Brothers (via Instagram)/Wikimedia Commons
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Take That announce FOUR massive gigs at Manchester’s Co-op Live arena
Emily Sergeant
Take That are back and they’re heading out on a massive UK tour next year, with not one but FOUR Manchester dates on the lineup.
The beloved Manchester boyband are absolutely no strangers to some of our city’s biggest stages, with several record-breaking tours having taken place within the past few decades – but now, the lads are back at it again and have just been revealed as the latest headliners in the Co-op Live’s massive opening season next year.
Eagle-eyed fans will know the band have been teasing their return for a little while now, and just yesterday, light projections of their iconic logo was beamed onto venues all around the UK to signal an announcement was imminent.
But what we didn’t know was that it wouldn’t just be one, but four massive Manchester dates.
Take That’s 2024 ‘This Life On Tour’ tour has just been exclusively announced in the old-school way of live on BBC Radio 2 this morning – with Gary Barlow, Mark Owen, and Howard Donald all appearing on The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show to confirm their long-awaited return.
It’s not just a tour the trio’s announced either, as they’ve also just put out a brand-new single today too, titled ‘Windows’.
The track sees them reunite for their first original composition in over five years, and is said to tell the story of “emerging from the darkness into the light”, as it signals a new chapter for one of Britain’s best-selling bands.
The lads say their new music is ushering-in a new Take That era brimming with “energy, creativity, and a continued desire to challenge and surprise”.
As Manchester‘s newest – and soon-to-be the UK’s largest – live entertainment arena nears closer to officially opening its doors and welcoming visitors, Co-op Live has been slowly revealing the music acts set to grace the stage as part of its huge launch season jam-packed full of events – with beloved US boyband Jonas Brothers announced as the first headlining act back in July, and Eric Clapton later confirmed for his first Manchester gig in a decade.
Current US megastar Olivia Rodrigo also has two nights booked in, Irishman and former One Directioner Niall Horan will be taking to the stage, and fellow Mancs Simply Red are also making a special 40th anniversary return.
And now, it’s Take That’s turn.
JUST ANNOUNCED: Take That
Believe us, it's going to be magic. @takethat will be joined on the tour by very special guest @Ollymurs. @Coopuk Members get first in line access for tickets.
Take That will be taking to the stage at Co-op Live on 7, 8, 10 and 11 May 2024 as part of the ‘This Life On Tour’ tour.
The trio will be joined by Olly Murs as the support act in Manchester.
Once again, as part of the highly-anticipated £365 million venue’s “pioneering” partnership, Co-op members will get the chance to gain early access to tickets through a designated presale on Wednesday 27 September at 9:30am, all before the general sale takes place.
General sale tickets are available through Co-op Live from 9:30am on Friday 29 September, and you can grab them here.
Danny Jones -
19th September 2023 
