By Joanne Marsland
OFF THE SQUARE was buzzing on Saturday night with 3 Mancunian bands on the bill. JAMES HARTLEY was first up and it wasn’t just the music which gave away his roots, he kept his coat on too. Probably could have done with more volume on the mic to be honest, he’s got a great voice but it kind of got lost amongst the guitars. Definitely give him a listen though because his songs are very good.
THE CONCORDES have a more bluesy rock vibe and vocalist Amy brought a whole lotta energy to the gig, occasionally venturing into the crowd, great singer and performer. The band sounded awesome too and their latest release RUNAWAY is such a catchy song, retro rock with plenty of guitar solo.
THE MARBELLAS headlined the night and boy did the crowd love them. The songs are melodic, catchy and well written, easily influenced by THE BEATLES and OASIS so how could that not work.
Unfortunately drummer Joe was ill but his stand in for the night, also called Joe, was spot on and the whole band played a solid set including CHAINS and BRIGHTER DAYS. I strongly recommend going to see all of these bands if you are a fan of indie/rock music, I had an awesome night and met some truly nice people to top it off.
Check out some of the photos in the gallery below……
Photos by Joanne Marsland
