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Neighbourhood Weekender announces massive warm-up show with Ian Brown, Happy Mondays and more

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 7th February 2023

Neighbourhood Weekender has announced a warm-up show on the Friday before the festival proper kicks off, with the likes of Ian Brown, Happy Mondays and more already confirmed.

With Neighbourhood 2023 set for the weekend of 27-28 May as festival season gets into full swing, the increasingly popular Victoria Park-based crowd-pleaser is effectively starting a day early with their ‘Live At The Big Top’ event.

Although the local favourite has previously put on a number of performances on the Friday before the Warrington Weekender as we know it, this is the first time this event has been held and will serve as a warm-up show for the impending gig-goers.

What better way to get the party going?

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Effectively acting as a warm-up party for the main event, the North West crowd will be treated to the likes of 80s and 90s Manc music icons Ian Brown and Happy Mondays, as well Liverpool indie band Cast and up-and-coming Welsh psych-rock band, CVC, a.k.a. Church Village Collective.

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The lineup also denotes a landmark occasion, with this being the first time that Brown and Happy Mondays — two of pioneering artists of the ‘Madchester‘ scene — are sharing the same bill in their long and illustrious careers. Well, aren’t you a lucky lot?

While we’d say this is an absolute must if you truly want to make a full go of Neighbourhood Weekender, this is technically a separate event and it’s well worth attending if you can’t make it on the Saturday or Sunday for whatever reason.

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Tickets go on sale at 9.30am on Friday, 10 February. You can grab yours HERE.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Image — Ian Brown (via Wikimedia Commons)/Supplied/Happy Monday (via IG)

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Review | Snow Patrol roll back the years at Co-op Live for a mini-Manc’s first gig

Danny Jones Danny Jones Snow Patrol Co-op Live gig review Manchester

This weekend we enjoyed a new kind of live music experience: rediscovering the joy of listening to a childhood favourite by watching it through the eyes of the next generation – that was how we witnessed a fully-fledged arena return to Manchester for Snow Patrol at Co-op Live.

And it was special for lots of reasons.

Taking a little one to their first gig is something you’ll never forget and sharing a new-found connection with a band that you loved when you were their age is one of those magical things about music that we’re eternally grateful for.

You might assume the Snow Patrol crowd one skews a little older for the most part but we were pleased to see there were more than a few kids and teenagers donning tour tees, looking wide-eyed at the sheer size of the Co-op Live arena, and singing the words back better than Gary Lightbody at times.

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snow patrol manchester review
Sees the sign: ‘Race you there!’ (Credit: Audio North)

Yes, the Belfast-born frontman made a few mistakes on the night, but it did add a rather laid-back quality to what many acts might have found a daunting performance: playing a sell-out night to around 23,500 fans inside the enormous state-of-the-art venue.

But, obviously, there wasn’t even a whiff of nerves from these lads.

You don’t get to have been around for this long and become as successful as they are without being able to relax on stage and lean into those idiosyncratic perfections that feel more like private moments shared between the artist and the crowd.

The young lad sat watching it with us certainly got a kick out of it and though we might not have been able to cover his ears in time to censor some light but ever-charming swear words (it always sounds better in Irish, don’t you think?), it made for some nice banter between him and the crowd.

Big props must go to Johnny McDaid on the keys too, who besides having written for the likes of Ed Sheeran, Robbie Williams, Alicia Keys, Biffy Clyro and countless others over the years, also managed to impress by playing the majority of this entire tour after having trapped his hand in a train door. OUCH.

johnny mcdaid broken hand tour
co-op live 2025 gig reviews
Credit: The Manc Group

Not only was that little interlude up there with one of the most applause-worthy parts of the entire show, but we were always pretty blown away by what we saw, as we all as what we heard.

Be it watching a digital tree come to life, shed its leaves and then fall as petal confetti, two sheer semi-opaque paper-thin screens swirl to create the album cover art for their latest album, or kicking the gig off with ‘Take Back The City’ as a multicoloured skyline appeared behind them, it was all pretty incredible.

We even got to hear a personal favourite of ours, ‘Set Fire To The Third Bar’, complete with a virtual performance from the voice that truly makes the song: Martha Wainwright.

It was in moments like this when we turned to see a 10-year-old’s face not quite sure of what it was seeing but an open-mouthed expression confirming they were finding it as stunning as we were.

We thoroughly enjoyed going through the back catalogue and working our way right up to plenty of the songs from The Forest Is The Path – which Gary himself firmly believes is their best work yet when we interviewed him – but it was as visually stunning as it was to the gorgeous sonically.

the forest is the path tour
Up there with one of the prettiest gig snapshots in our memory.
snow patrol martha wainwright
Not quite a hologram but very cool nonetheless.
The production levels are always top-tier at Co-op Live but the Snow Patrol set was much more impressive than we expected.

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All in all, we Snow Patrol were as good as ever – it really is as simple as that.

We had the privilege of seeing an intimate date at New Century Hall back in September 2024 and it’s always fascinating to see how a scaled-down acoustic set can be transformed into a big stadium show with all the bells and whistles.

Both proved to be a brilliant way to see the contemporary rock, indie and alternative veterans, but there’s something about giving them a stage as big as this that reminds you of just how much they deserve it.

Last but not least, thanks to Co-op Live not just for having but for creating a little boy’s memory that he’ll never forget.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — The Manc Group

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Biig Piig brings home the bacon at Manchester’s New Century Hall

Clementine Hall Clementine Hall

After releasing her long-awaited debut album, Biig Piig delivered an electric performance at one of the city’s coolest venues.

Oversized satin bomber jacket slipping off her shoulders, Biig Piig aka Jessica Smyth, wasted no time jumping around the stage to an audience equally as energetic.

The Irish artist’s headline tour is in celebration of her debut album 11:11, but the night was scattered with tracks from her prolific seven-year discography.

Biig Piig has two methods to her madness which she effortlessly switches between. Her chilled-out atmospheric songs inspired by R&B and jazz alongside her club dance tracks with heavy drops and mesmerising synth.

Throughout the night we were treated to both, receiving a masterclass in finding the balance between the two.

“You guys have filled out this room. I love Manchester there is so much energy”, she says just moments after opening with track ‘4am’.

“I’m out and I’m back and I’ve missed you”, she pleads to the crowd whilst parading up and down the stage adorned with hot pink strobe lights.

Her band, which features a bassist/saxophonist and drummer, adds nice bits of detail to her songs, specifically ‘Roses and Gold’ which won itself a groovy sax solo which was met with rapturous applause.

Moments later she picks up the pace with a few welcomed dance party throwbacks, ‘Sunny’ had everyone two-stepping along with her whilst flirty ‘Favourite Girl’ transformed the venue into an underground dance party.

Ending the night with a bang was ‘Kerosene’ for which she got the crowd to get low on the ground and bounce together as one, a request which can often prove risky but one which was pulled off without hesitation.

It was clear to see the fun that Jessica, her band, and the crowd were having throughout the hour-long show.

But what’s even clearer is Biig Piig’s path to the top of dance music stardom.

Read more: A club night dedicated to the emo anthems of your youth is heading to Manchester

Featured image – The Manc Group

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