Sounds of the City is finally back at its Castlefield Bowl home with bigger lineups than ever before.
The inner-city music concert series is taking over the open-air venue for six special gigs starting in just under three weeks-time.
Since 2013, Sounds of the City has been bringing the UK’s most acclaimed artists right here to Manchester, making it somewhat of an institution here in the city.
Over the years, they’ve treated us to one-off gigs from the likes of Arcade Fire, The Kooks, James, New Order, Rag’N’Bone Man and Catfish And The Bottlemen.
Yet this year’s comeback is set to be the biggest series to date. Huge names like Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott, The Streets and Hacienda Classical will each headline a night.
But Irish powerhouse Dermot Kennedy is responsible for opening the show on 21 September. The fast-rising international star has already racked up more than 1 billion streams. Not to mention a Brit Award nomination for Best International Male.
The singer rocketed to fame following the release of his debut album ‘Without Fear’ in 2019 which sat at #1 in the Irish charts for an astonishing year and a half.
The following day on Wednesday 22 September, the insanely successful Kaiser Chiefs will be heading up their own concert at the Bowl.
With 21 years in the business, the band are still riding the peak of success with their seventh album ‘Duck’ hitting wide critical acclaim in 2019.
The band will be supported by none other than Razorlight and Manchester’s own PINS.
Wrapping up the 2021 edition on Sunday 26 September will be the Grammy, BRIT Award and Mercury Music Prize nominated Snow Patrol.
Another band with decades of experience, Snow Patrol have accumulated more than 17 billion album sales, five UK Platinum Albums and more than a billion global streams over the years.
They’ll have support from singer Lucy Blue, plus Wigan band The Lathums who have recently become the most talked about Manchester band. They’re pipped to become strong contenders for the city’s next big indie outfit.
Their headline tour at O2 Victoria Warehouse sold out within a matter of days. Meanwhile the announcement of their debut album ‘How Beautiful Life Can Be’ has been met with much anticipation.
Dates for Sounds of the City 2022 have already been set, too. This time, taking place earlier in the year across multiple dates in early summer.
Foals, Crowded House and Lewis Capaldi are already confirmed to headline their own shows between 29 June and 6 July 2022.
So with lineups of this calibre, now is your time to book! Click here for tickets.
Featured image: SOTC at Castlefield Bowl by Sam Neill
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80s icons Duran Duran are hosting a special Halloween gig at a massive Manchester venue
Danny Jones
British pop-rock legends Duran Duran are heading back to Manchester, but not just for any old gig: they’re hosting a huge Halloween special at the city’s biggest arena.
The ‘Rio’ and ‘Girls on Film’ singers are still going strong nearly five decades on, and after releasing their 16th studio album, Danse Macabre, back in October 2023, the boys have been in a somewhat gothic mood for a hot minute now.
With that in mind, the Brummy boys are sticking in that lane for a little while longer, deciding to set up an All Hallow’s Eve night just a couple of years on from the LP’s release.
Better yet, they’ve managed to book no less than the bloody Co-op Live for it too. Massive.
Duran Duran are summoning all Halloween enthusiasts to show up, dress up, and celebrate All Hallows’ Eve here in Manchester!@coopuk members get first in line for tickets Co-op Member Presale: 10:00 25 June 2025 General Sale: 10:00 27 June 2025 pic.twitter.com/7EP3qiCOnN
Encouraging all those coming along to show up in the finest fancy dress and get in the holiday spirit, the show is taking place on Halloween itself, so that’s your plans for this year sorted already.
As per an official press release, “fans can expect a one-night-only exclusive Halloween set filled with the essential hits, alongside rarely-played songs from the Duran Duran crypt.”
The first of what is now a “highly anticipated annual tradition”, ‘The Danse Macabre Halloween Party’ first began at a fabled October 31st gig at the Wynn Theatre in Las Vegas in 2022.
With that night now immortalised across 13 songs on the eponymous cult favourite record, which features new tracks, themed covers, as well as dark reimaginings of Duran Duran classics, Manchester is set for its first state of the experience.
At the risk of overusing a very easy pun, it does sound spook-tacular. Sorry not sorry.
We’re absolutely here for this era of Duran Duran.
Once again, Duran Duran make their way to Manchester’s Co-op Live arena on Friday, 31 October, setting fans up for a perfect Halloween 2025 weekend.
VIP pre-sale for official Co-op members begins this Wednesday, 25 June from 8am onwards, with general admission tickets going live to the public at 10am the following Friday (27 Jun).
From drone shows to free ice lollies – what went down at Parklife 2025
Daisy Jackson
It’s been a few days since Parklife 2025 wrapped up, and now that we’ve all caught up on sleep we’re looking back on some of the highlights you might’ve missed.
With such a stacked line-up of live music, it would be impossible to have seen everything – from that sizzling final set from Charli XCX to Morgan Seatree’s emotional hometown show, plus viral sensation Interplanetary Criminal filling Matinee and D.O.D. getting the whole Big Top dancing.
One moment that you couldn’t possibly have missed if you were on the ground at Parklife festival was a surprise drone show which dazzled overhead on Saturday night.
As rap legend 50 Cent wrapped up his huge headline set on The Valley stage, and The Hangar came alive to the sound of Pawsa, fans got an extra special treat way up in the skies.
Hundreds of drones came together in an impressive, illuminated aerial display, starting with a 10-second countdown that stopped festival-goers in their tracks.
The drones then flew in formation to create iconic shapes like a yellow JD Sports duffle bag, an adidas shoebox, and the shape of a slowly-rotating Climacool trainer – and what a trainer it is.
The adidas drone show on Saturday nightadidas handed out Climacool-branded lollies and slushies50 Cent on The Valley stageadidas handed out Climacool-branded lollies and slushies
That wasn’t the only bit of attention the Climacool footwear got at Parklife either – thankful fans were treated to free Climacool branded ice lollies and slushies on their way into the festival on Saturday.
As the sun beat down on Heaton Park (bar the odd brief downpour, classic Manchester), adidas and JD Sports arrived in an ice cream truck with the coolest drop at the festival.
There was a helping hand from social media sensation Yombo to hype up the crowd before the festival had even got started.
The Climacool has a textile lining and upper work, with a perforated midsole to allow airflow and keep your feet fresh – perfect for any city adventure (and pretty perfect for a day at Parklife, we discovered).
If the Climacool trainers have caught your eye – either in the sky, at the Climacool ice cream truck, or on social media – then the good news is you can now shop them for yourselves.
Hannah Starkie -
1st September 2021 
