Stockport’s finest, Blossoms, have started their own record label ahead of their fifth studio album and have already released the first single, as well as a truly nostalgic music video that we can’t get enough of.
The SK lads are now bigger than ever, topping the bill at Reading and Leeds, Glastonbury, and Castlefield Bowl — they even earned their hometown a shout-out from Andy Burnham before headlining Kendal Calling — and with that in mind, they’ve decided to go it alone and establish their own record company.
Naming the label ODD SK (a nod not only to the town’s postcode but a convenient combination of all the bandmates’ surnames), the five-piece has now departed Virgin EMI, who released their first four albums and are now the founders of one of the first new Stockport-based record labels in years.
If there’s one thing we know these boys love it’s bigging up their home, and as for the first song to be released off the label, their latest track ‘To Do List (After The Breakup)’ is as instant a hit as you’d expect — as the new music video that accompanies it is cosy, warm, painful and beautiful in equal measure.
Filmed in a very familiar feeling little terrace presumably somewhere in Greater Manchester’s ‘Town of Culture for 2023‘ and using a single shot of a hallway that seems you spent a dozen house parties standing in, the video tells the story of how a young couple comes together and ultimately drifts apart.
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I mean, the title does give it away but we weren’t expecting how stylised and emotional the video would be — props to the boys who helped direct it on vintage 16mm film alongside frontman Tom Odgen’s brother Ewan.
The song also features one of the band’s first-ever feature artists, with another Stockport native Findlay combining on the track to add a wonderful female vocal to balance out the two sides of the relationship being played out in the song.
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Her verses and harmonies on the chorus are just as good as Tom’s and it makes for a different approach to their usual tracks whilst still possessing that unmistakable Blossoms sound. You can hear the track in full here and believe us when we say the video really does pull on the heartstrings.
The new single is the first to be released from Blossoms’ new record label, ODD SK.
The singer-songwriter is yet to join the boys on their fledgling label, but we expect the alternative and indie specialists to start gradually snapping up local talent wherever they find it in the coming years, just as they did in signing fellow Stopfordians Fuzzy Sun to their first label attempt, Very Clever Records.
Set up with the help of distributors The Orchard and taking inspiration for the new song from Canadian poet Kaur, Tom told Rolling Stone that it’s now “full-steam ahead” on the new album after having been preoccupied with setting up his new bar for a large chunk of 2023.
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We can’t wait to hear what comes next.
If you missed our recent short stuff on how Blossoms got their name, take a look down below:
Featured Image — Supplied/Blossoms (via YouTube)/Press Image
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Embrace announce intimate live show in beloved Bury music venue
Danny Jones
British alternative veterans Embrace have announced another intimate show here in Greater Manchester, only this time it’s over in Bury at a stunning small-cap arts venue.
It’s not often you get to see such a long-standing band play outside of the city centre so far into their career, especially in gorgeous grassroots spaces like this one.
A fellow Northern outfit, they’ve often been lumped in with that ‘post-Britpop’ era of music, and plenty throw around the so-called ‘dad rock’ label, but honestly, we couldn’t care either way: they remain among the UK’s perennially underappreciated underdogs that never get old, as far as we’re concerned.
Revealing a handful of new live dates for their album launch this summer, they’ll be making just two appearances in the North West on the run.
Writing in the post, the group said: “We’ve lined up a run of exclusive UK dates in venues that are some of the smallest we’ve played in years. It’s going to be special, but capacity is extremely limited.”
As you can see, besides the Jacaranda Baltic in Liverpool, the only other place in this region where they’re set to play for this mini tour is The Met over in Bury.
One of the most beautiful gig spots, not just in the town but in all the 10 boroughs, for our money, the room only holds around 400 standing and roughly 250 seats.
For seasoned artists like this lot, who are more used to playing big festival stages and big domestic headline tours – which they’re also doing later this year – it’s sure to be a special night.
Toasting the release of their ninth studio LP, Avalanche, this spin-off on the tried and tested in-store format wouldn’t be possible without the help of local record store, Wax and Beans, who are promoting and hosting the show.
But we can’t lie, there’s something about the idea of seeing them decades on from when they first tightly-packed out crowds of this size.
If you want to be part of the Embrace album launch tour, you can get ready to grab your tickets at 10am this Friday, 27 March, right HERE. And speaking of great record shops…
Niall Horan is heading back to Manchester with a massive arena show just announced
Daisy Jackson
Niall Horan will be back in Manchester this year on a huge newly-announced European arena tour.
The former One Direction star (and chart-topper in his own right) has just announced his Dinner Party Live On Tour tour.
The tour comes in support of his upcoming fourth solo studio album, Dinner Party, which promises to be ‘cinematic and organic’.
Niall Horan will be performing at the Co-op Live in Manchester this September, along with gigs in other UK cities including Sheffield, Glasgow, and Newcastle.
He’ll then head right across Europe, playing music from his multi-Platinum-selling songbook.
Niall first shot to fame as one-fifth of One Direction, but has one of the group’s strongest solo careers, with three chart-topping albums and massive hits like Slow Hands, Heaven, and Our Song.
Niall Horan is heading back to Manchester with a massive arena show just announced
He’s also worked on some exciting collaborations with the likes of Anne-Marie, and most recently Myles Smith.
£1 from every ticket sold for Niall Horan’s Dinner Party tour will be donated to the LIVE Trust, which is dedicated to protecting, expanding, and supporting grassroots music across the UK.
Niall Horan will be at the Co-op Live in Manchester on Friday 25 September.
Tickets will go on sale from 10am on Thursday 2 April HERE.
Danny Jones -
13th October 2023 
