As you navigate the warren of walkways and stairwells in Afflecks Palace – the Northern Quarter’s alternative indoor market – you hear Sour Grapes’ sound-system before you see it. The DIY record label and promoter is tucked in a corner on the third floor, amongst a myriad of independent vendors, vintage boutiques and fashion traders.…
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Last time I called Greta Carroll, the artist who makes music as CURRENTMOODGIRL, she was sitting in a bar in Brighton drinking an Aperol spritz. This time she’s in the middle of buying Iceboy Violet’s new EP — in the middle of listening to it too, judging from the sounds crackling down the line. Carroll’s…
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A group of care home residents take up their places in a circle in the living room. In the centre is a table with percussion instruments: bells, shakers, little drums, big drums. A music therapist joins them, playing a cheerful tune on the keyboard that addresses each resident by name. “You might not realise if…
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There is something magical about the dance floor of a club. From the early days of house music in Chicago, techno clubs in Detroit and Berlin, and the UK’s rave scene in the ‘90s, comes a well-documented narrative of love, joy and euphoria. The dance floor is a space synonymous with the gathering of queer…
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In an interview with Loud and Quiet, Space Afrika’s Joshua Inyang and Joshua Reid were asked to talk about musicians they admire who have slipped under the radar. “Rat Heart is one of the UK’s most talented producers, hands down,” Inyang says. “Honestly, you go and speak to anyone in Manchester. And I think every…
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During Rainy Miller’s teenage years, grime ripped through Preston. Kids would write their own lyrics and send for each other on beats ripped from Limewire. “In every friendship group or every estate throughout the city, there was someone who had got hold of a USB microphone or managed to jank some recording software,” he says. …
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At a time when their formative moments are being stifled by the pandemic, Cathy Jain speaks to an introspective generation’s desire for authentic experiences. Sometimes we just wanna be some melodramatic teens, she reassures fans on green screen, a track from her debut EP artificial. The release explores the curiosity and naivety of youth and…
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You may have caught Blackhaine on the cover of Crack Magazine, or modelling for Vogue Italia. He’s a multidisciplinary artist – a dancer, choreographer and MC – recently involved in the choreography of Kanye’s West’s DONDA performance in Chicago. I first came across him performing in Manchester Collective’s Dark Days, Luminous Nights film. Blackhaine, real…
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“It was too personal, too deep – too dark.” This is one of the reactions that Mancunian-raised, Kenyan-born sisters Millie and Hope Katana received from industry heads on their 2019 EP Life Under Siege. With thick Lancashire accents and bold humour, the twins, who perform as The KTNA, represent a wave of artists from the…
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LayFullstop opens STiR with a prayer spoken over a muted jazztronica beat, giving thanks to God for her family, friends and the opportunities she’s been given in life. It sets an unapologetically religious tone for the rest of the mixtape and announces her new musical style, blending gospel, jazz and grime, which she broadly labels…
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