Saturday
 | | American Graffiti chic |
I used to live in Manchester and always look forward to coming back and seeing what’s changed. I visit my old haunt Love Saves The Day in its new building and see LSTD workmate Matt. It turns out his band, The Alpha Western, were the band sound tracking me getting wet at Dry Bar last night. They sounded dead good too. I see that Misty’s Big Adventure are playing at Dry Bar and manage to wangle my way into the venue to ask about guestlist. A stony faced man tells me he’s in charge and even with my nicest smile and cheeky spiel, he says there is no guestlist but I can pay £7, which isn’t an option on my budget, so it looks like we’re going to ITC Unsigned. | "A stony faced man tells me he’s in charge and even with my nicest smile and cheeky spiel, he says there is no guestlist..." | | Delegate charm deserts Natalie in her quest for free music |
First though, it's nourishment at The Soup Kitchen and then it's time for some retail therapy (if you live in a small town, Manchester is exciting) at American Graffiti (where I find the ace combo of shiny red heels and a beautiful 40s pillbox hat) and H+M (where I get bargain puffball skirt), and then it’s off round to Agent Provocateur and Vivienne Westwood to wait for Dartz! to let us know their loading time. As I gasp at the price of knickers, I get a call from a fellow delegate to tell me she is off with the others doing something illicit. Oh, how the other half live! DARTZ! call to say they’re in town and we need to meet them at 14 Lloyd Street for their soundcheck. I send Andy off to take Dartz!’s equipment and I go to Caroline’s for a restorative bath and some booze.
 | | Andy takes nourishment |
I meet up with Caroline and her fella Matt and pick up Jim and Barry (yes, she’s a girl) en route to see Dartz!. The bar is heaving when we get there but downstairs is quiet. They start up and I take some photos. As I finish and step back to stand with Caroline, I realise that the room is now rammed, and am sent flying as three photographers with bigger lenses than mine shove to the front and snap away at the band. Their set is excellent but I’m not so keen on the Fratellis, a band who sound like any other ‘post-Libs’ band.
 | | Natalie and her new shoes |
I’m right back down the front for Forward Russia, who are exciting, unpredictable and extremely loud, which is good, and then it’s the Brian Jacket Letdown who are, in fact, pretty average. We wonder whether to go clubbing at Music Box or go to a bar, and I hear from another delegate that everywhere is sold out across town, so we head for a curry, and see a monstrous queue of people outside of Music Box for Mr Scruff. I think we made the right choice.
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