Manchester: 5 of the city’s most important and influential gigs

Blossoms are playing Club NME! Ahead of their massive Wythenshawe Park show in Manchester later this summer, we’ve snapped them up to play an intimate showcase in the latest event NME will host in collaboration with new interactive platform Ladbrokes LIVE. The sold-out gig will feature a DJ set from the newly-announced Lottery Winners alongside Radio X legend Sunta Templeton at Manchester’s Club Academy – indie bangers all night long are guaranteed.

As we get ready for the February 10 show, we’re taking a journey back through some of Manchester’s most iconic and memorable gigs.

Sex Pistols, Lesser Free Trade Hall (1976)

The gig that everyone likes to claim they were at. The band’s first Manchester show at the Lesser Free Trade Hall in 1976 has been mythologised as the moment a fire was lit underneath The Smiths, Joy Division, New Order, The Fall. In reality, there were only 40 people in attendance, but the ripples of the band’s brash persona would spread far and wide in the city and throughout the British punk rock scene.

New Order, The Beach Club (1980)

New Order’s origins and success is a testament to creativity. Two months after the loss of Ian Curtis in 1980, the remaining Joy Division members – Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook and Stephen Morris – would form New Order and perform their first ever live show in Manchester to test new material. They took to The Beach Club, a night held at Oozits in Shudehill for a performance that included soon-to-be classic ‘Ceremony’ and more.

Madonna, Haçienda (1984)

Madge’s first show in Manchester took place at the infamous nightclub, but it wasn’t straightforward. She performed in front of the stage rather than on it and it was filmed for Channel 4’s The Tube. By all accounts it was a rough one – one of her dancers said it was a tough crowd – but it would prove that US pop stars knew that the city was crucial to their journey through the UK live scene.

The Stone Roses, Heaton Park (2012)

The comeback that shook the indie world… and where else could they make the return? The group’s sound was a key component of the city’s Madchester scene in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. The band’s comeback gigs in 2012 – their first with the original lineup for fifteen years – became a defining moment for the city as they took over Heaton Park for three nights on their extensive reunion tour.

One Love, Old Trafford (2017)

The story of the One Love concert in 2017 is one of resilience. Two weeks on from the terrorist attack that killed 22 fans at an Ariana Grande concert in the city, the music world rallied to put on a charity gig to honor those who lost their lives. It was a star-studded affair, with Grande, Justin Bieber, Coldplay, Miley Cyrus and hometown hero Liam Gallagher all heading to Old Trafford Cricket Ground for an emotional televised show that celebrated music in the face of adversity.

It’s back! Club NME returns together with Ladbrokes Live featuring Blossoms, Lottery Winners (DJ Set) and Sunta Templeton (DJ set). Sign up for free at Ladbrokeslive.co.uk for your chance to win tickets.

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