Academy 3 (Hop & Grape)
Photograph, 2011
Photo: Samantha Starkey

Photo of Eletrelane members onstage at Academy 3 during their brief reformation in 2011. Electrelane are a band of mostly queer women who have built an internationally successful career and often cited as an influence to groups like Warpaint and Dum Dum Girls.
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Photograph, 2012
After 10+ years reigning at the Manchester Arena, pop-princess Kylie Minogue played two intimate shows in the Academy during her 2012 anti-tour.

Photo and story submitted by Alasdair Sladen.

I can remember going to the Kylie Anti-Tour like it was yesterday! I was still living in Manchester at the time, but had been down South visiting family. Growing up in the 90s I was only allowed 2 CDs a year (Birthday and Christmas!) so my love of Kylie developed from her being someone I'd seen repeatedly on Top of the Pops until she was almost like a mate – albeit a very glamorous one. I've always felt that she's an incredibly underrated popstar with her best tracks relegated to b-sides or worse, unreleased. So when it was announced she was going to be doing a gig of just these I was very excited, especially when I managed to actually bag a ticket.

The queue snaked all the way down Oxford Road hours before it was due to start and arriving when I did I assumed I'd have a terrible view of the stage. Somehow I managed to get round the scrum by sneaking round the back and because I'm quite tall it meant I could see everything from the side at a distance.

What was most amazing about the gig was that it was a complete 'fruit machine' as to what she would perform – every song was a surprise. It was a very special experience singing along to all these brilliant tracks with other die-hards and Kylie herself, who seemed genuinely taken aback. I've been to lots of concerts at Manchester Academy but this one definitely has the pride of place in my heart.

I've still got the tshirt to prove it which I rarely wear but whenever I do, it puts a big smile on my face.
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Ticket, 2012
Kylie Minogue ticket for Anti-Tour at Academy 1. A tour of B-sides, demos and rarities for proper fans!
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Video, 2012
Kylie Minogue Stars Anti Tour live Manchester Academy 2nd April 2012
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Video, 2012
Source: YouTube
User: Orbital

Warning: This video contains strobe lighting

Cracking pro-shot footage of Orbital at the Academy, filmed for possible inclusion on a DVD to promote their Wonky album in 2012. The footage remains unreleased but you can relive the vibe and excitement of the performance in this clip.
Academy 2 (Main Debating Hall)
Photograph, 2012
Photo: Frank Ralph

Review of Azaelia Banks show at Academy 2 by Lydia Paver, Mancunion.com

Miss Banks bounces onto the aqua-lit Academy stage on the highly anticipated opening night of her Fantasea tour. Sporting a light-up Swarovski crystal bralet, the relative newcom

er started with ‘Out of Space’, which unsurprisingly, few audience members were familiar with. Despite initial microphone issues, the 21 year old managed to well and truly energise the diverse crowd of young teens, student ravers and middle aged house/hip-hop lovers.

Leaving DJ Cozmo to improvise and the audience in a state of perplexity, she then fled the stage. To our relief, Azealia reappeared to perform ‘Fierce’ with support artist Zebra Katz. With lyrics that run at 100mph, the Harlem rapper delivers line after line with unique precision; it really was amazing to witness her cut-throat lyrical style firsthand.

Miss Banks leaves the stage for the third time, forcing us to endure a performance by one of her backing dancers, ‘Bambi’. The dance act did very little in providing entertainment, as it diverged drastically from the energy-pumped performances that defined the Fantasea set. The Caribbean-influenced ‘Jumanji’ signalled her re-entrance, followed by a performance of the popular hit ‘L8R’.

The crowd went wild for her performances of ‘1991’ and ‘Luxury’, but perhaps the best reception from the crowd came during “The Azealia Banks Anthem”- ‘Liquorice’. ‘Esta Noche’ resulted in an alcohol induced rendition of the sampled chorus to ‘Get It On… Tonite’, from the 90’s R&B classic by Montell Jordan. The well-known ‘212’ provided the finale, with the sold out venue throwing cups, removing shirts and screaming “I guess that cunt getting eaten” in unison before bursting out of the venue, desperate for the cold mancunian air.
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Ticket, 2012
Story by Abigail:

A really good gig, built up expertly by the Hot Chip boys. Wended our way comfortable to the front. Fleetwood Mac's 'Everywhere' was a surprise!

Shake a Fist
And I Was a Boy From School
Don't Deny Your Heart
One Life Stand
Night & Day
Flutes
Over and Over
Look at Where We Are
These Chains
The Warning
How Do You Do?
Ready for the Floor
Everywhere
(Fleetwood Mac cover)
Hold On

Encore:
Crap Kraft Dinner
Brothers
I Feel Better
Let Me Be Him

Source: setlist.fm
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Ticket, 2012
Enigmatic American musician Sixto Rodriguez tours on the back of the film about him from this same year 'Searching for the Sugarman'.

Whether you're familiar with Rodriguez or not, you should watch this incredibly moving film!
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Video, 2012
Source: YouTube
User: Skullcandy

A short promo film following The Hives as they played the Academy on the final night of their 2012 UK tour. The footage gives a great peek behind the scenes of the venue and shows the band preparing to go on stage and meeting fans afterwards.
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Photograph, 2013
Photo: Melanie Smith (Mudkiss)
www.mudkissphotography.co...

Review: Beth Abbit for Manchester Evening News (see link)

Courtney Love will always be in the headlines. Whether it’s her recent bold claim that she found the crash site of Flight MH370, or the publicity linked to the 20th anniversary of her husband Kurt Cobain’s death - she has a knack of remaining in the public eye.

And as the original grunge rock chick, she has inspired millions of copycats, including The Distillers Brody Dalle and Shirley Manson of Garbage.

The question is whether it is her music or her mythology that makes her so fascinating.

But it becomes pretty evident during a visit to Manchester Academy that this accomplished rock chick still has plenty to offer.

"By far the best part of this appearance is Love herself, who happily plays up to her reputation with a wealth of sarcastic banter."
Clad in a black kimono, the former Hole front woman, now 49, looks every inch the rock goddess.

Rumours of a Hole reunion have sparked enthusiasm for the old material and her back catalogue of songs, including Malibu, Skinny Little Bitch and Miss World, sound as fresh and raw today as they did years ago.

Love herself is still a messy fireball of gravel voice and raw guitars, enthusiastically blasting through her latest singles, the anthemic You Know My Name and the gritty Wedding Day.

“I liked her older stuff. I liked Courtney when she was 26,” she mocks in a deliberately bad Mancunian accent, before launching into Celebrity Skin.

In her more shambolic moments, Love is helped along by a band of great musicians - including the brilliant Ginger Wildheart on guitar.

She also tests out some unusual covers, amongst them, a version of Not an Addict by 90s Belgium one-hit-wonders K’s Choice and a stripped back rendition of Leonard Cohen’s Take This Longing.

This is one of several acoustic songs in a low-key encore, although the show ends with an energetic rendition of Doll Parts.

By far the best part of this appearance is Love herself, who happily plays up to her reputation with a wealth of sarcastic banter. Ridiculous requests for Kleenex and tequila are punctuated by throaty cackles at her own jokes. In fact Courtney’s tongue is so firmly wedged in her cheek that it’s a miracle she can sing at all.

At one point, she teases: “This song is about all my fans…oh wait, no it’s not, it’s about me.”
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Photograph, 2013
Photo: Melanie Smith (Mudkiss)  
Story: Melanie Smith

First time photographing the infamous Pete Doherty, and it was absolute shambles, he was totally out of it, couldn't play or sing yet the crowd lapped it up. One of the photographers got her camera broken by Pete who had grabbed it, fortunately for her his management bought her a new replacement.
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Photograph, 2014
Photo: Manchester Evening News

A great shot from the first of Prince's surprise gigs at Manchester Academy, February 2015, with Third Eye Girl.

The first show was a blistering guitar-led rollercoaster ride through some of Prince's biggest hits and lesser known cuts from his vast back catalogue. Towards the end of the first gig, it was announced via Twitter that a second show would take place that same night at half past midnight, for fans who queued to pay on the door.

It was all a bit chaotic, though, and when the second wave of fans joined the first, they were only treated to a 15-min set (the encore of the first show).

Excerpt from Manchester Evening News:

Martin Laws, commercial operations director [at the University of Manchester Students' Union] told Emily [Heward - MEN Reporter] that Prince had had a 'change of heart' and decided to play for longer instead of playing a second show when only 150 people turned up for it.

The price had been dropped from £70 to £35 to reflect that, he added - but the reason for the reduction was not communicated to fans, who had waited for more than an hour in the rain.

"Not long after the announcement of the second show tonight they had a change of heart and another tweet went out saying they would be playing for longer and that anybody who was here inside the show already or who was in the queue was welcome," he said.

"That's why the second show was reduced to £35 and not £70.

"We have since agreed with them, immediately after the event, that it was only fair and proper that all the customers who had bought those 150 tickets and are able to produce them would be able to come in free on Saturday.

"Anybody who wishes to contact us and attend tomorrow can do so and they will get the full show."

He added: "The show was amazing and the feedback has been fantastic, it is just unfortunate that we have a maximum of 150 customers who may feel slightly disappointed."

The Saturday show, was by all accounts a blinder, and more hit-strewn than the first.

Following Prince's untimely death just over a year later, these two amazing nights have become the stuff of Manchester folklore.

Set list 1: 21/2/15
Source: setlist.fm

Funknroll
Endorphinmachine
Screwdriver
She's Always in My Hair
I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man
Guitar
Stratus
(Billy Cobham cover)
Plectrum Electrum
FixUrLifeUp
Forever in My Life
A Love Bizarre
(Sheila E. cover)
When Doves Cry
Sign “?” the Times
Hot Thing
The Most Beautiful Girl in the World
I Would Die 4 U
Purple Rain

Encore:
Let's Go Crazy
U Got the Look
Play That Funky Music
(Wild Cherry cover)

Encore 2:
The Love We Make
Electric Intercourse
Take Me With U
Raspberry Beret

Encore 3:
Musicology
Liathach
(Jo Hamilton cover)
Train in Vain
(The Clash cover)
Cause and Effect
Crimson & Clover
(Tommy James & the Shondells cover) (w/ Wild Thing chorus)

Encore 4:
Bambi

Setlist 2: 22/2/15
Source: setlist.fm

Let's Go Crazy
(Reloaded)
Guitar
Plectrum Electrum
FixUrLifeUp
Something in the Water (Does Not Compute)
(Piano)
When We're Dancing Close and Slow
(Piano)
She's Always in My Hair
Funknroll
Sign “?” the Times
Hot Thing
Forever in My Life
(Piano and bass)
I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man
Crimson & Clover
(Tommy James & the Shondells cover) (w/ Wild Thing chorus)
When Doves Cry
Alphabet St.
Nasty Girl
(Vanity 6 cover)
777-9311
(The Time cover) (Bass solo)
Housequake
I Would Die 4 U
If I Was Your Girlfriend
(instrumental)
Purple Rain

Encore:
Screwdriver
Chaos and Disorder
How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore
Starfish and Coffee
Diamonds and Pearls
The Beautiful Ones
Under the Cherry Moon
(instrumental)
Venus de Milo
Sometimes It Snows in April
Nothing Compares 2 U

Encore 2:
The Max
Play That Funky Music
(Wild Cherry cover)

Encore 3:
Take Me With U
(keyboard)
Raspberry Beret
(keyboard)
Cool
(The Time cover) (keyboard)

Encore 4:
Endorphinmachine
Bambi

Encore 5:
Colonized Mind
Cause and Effect
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Photograph, 2014
Photo: Simon Lee

A great shot of The Stranglers taken at the Academy on the final night of their 40th anniversary tour.
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Photograph, 2014
Photo: Melanie Smith (Mudkiss)
Review: Beth Abbitt for Manchester Evening News

She has the class of Marlene Dietrich, the confidence of Katherine Hepburn and the dance moves of Sammy Davis Junior.

Kicking off her Electric Lady tour at Manchester Academy, Janelle Monae is given a very warm welcome to the city.

Monáe is known for her monochrome uniform, and it’s testament to her incredible sense of style that there are several copycats here tonight. Her trademark quaff is in place and a slick of cherry red lipstick covers her lips, creating a sharp androgynous style.

A striking black and white set is matched by an equally stylish band. But the art deco stylings first seen on debut-album Archandroid have been shaken off in favour of a more 80s ‘Off The Wall’ inspired show.

Monae’s debut album Archandroid was dripping with references to old Hollywood and buzzing with art deco androids.

But The Electric Lady is a far more jazz and funk-tinged affair in which Monae collaborated with Erykah Badu, Esperanza Spalding, Prince and Solange Knowles.

She shows off with some impressive vocal acrobatics on the frenetic, sultry, sci-fi cool of Tightrope. While the sheer theatrics of Electric Lady, Giving Em What You Love, Sincerely Jane and a vibrant Jackson Five medley lay waste to any other current chart hit.

Elsewhere, on the 80s-tinged electro ballad Experience, Monae channels Janet Jackson to great effect.

It’s evident that the songstress delights in her myriad of references, but she never really loses her own identity.

There are plenty of great voices in R n’ B at the moment, but very few performers have the gumption, style and heart of Janelle Monae.

Some of her songs do feel a little busy, perhaps even self-indulgent, but you can forgive Monae her mistakes because of her sheer joyous enthusiasm.

At one point, she commands the crowd to drop to the floor while she busts some light-footed dance moves and prances as the huge crowd watch agog. This is real vaudeville stuff, and Monae knows it.

She also has the same talent for alter-egos as David Bowie, with her anarchistic time-travelling android Cindi Mayweather making Beyonce’s Sasha Fierce pale in comparison.

As a dancer, Monae moves with the effortless precision of Eleanor Powell.

She is feather light and, quite fittingly, fills the room with feathers during a mass pillow fight towards the end of her set.

It’s clear this featherweight is a big hitter and more than capable of holding court with her legion of fans and peers.
Club Academy (The Cellar)
Ticket, 2014
Sleafords were upgraded to Academy 2 on the night. Evil Blizzard supported.

The duo are known for their abrasive, minimalist musical style and embittered explorations of austerity-era Britain, culture, and working class life, delivered in Jason Williamson's thick East Midlands accent.
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Video, 2014
Source: YouTube
User: Adam Roxby

Highlights from the The Knife's Shaking the Habitual Tour performance at the Academy. The real gem in this video is during the first five minutes capturing the support act which happened to be a Deep Aerobics workout class featuring mantras, calls and response, and body movement. The crowd lap it up as you'll see in the clip. Gold.
Syd.31
Club Academy (The Cellar)
Photograph, 2015
Syd.31: Punk Industrial Electro Rave. Played Club academy and many other venues around Manchester.

Their biography states:

Syd.31 was formed by Dr Magic from an urge to create an exciting band, something he would love to go watch himself. Bored of paying big bucks to watch formulaic bands, he decided to craft angry anthems, by merging a love of hard-core punk, metal and sickly-sweet Vengboys pop. He blended it all together to put on a hell of a show, giving people something worth seeing, and give a place for the freaks to be united. Recruiting Liam C on drums and Dani Graves running samples and vox, he hit the road and vowed never to look back.

Within a few gigs and due to word of mouth Syd.31 started playing headlining underground gigs, in London and Manchester, all due to the strength of their performances. They were signed with AnalogueTrash, after negotiating with four record labels at the same time, all keen to pick them up. It is worth noting at this point, Syd.31 had not even released a demo or any tracks at all.
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Advert, 2015
A clever trade mag advert from 2015 aimed at managers, agents and promoters offering returning bands hire of the Academy at the original 1990 price. The design is based on an original and rarely seen sales sheet with the special offer prices in Sean Morgan's handwriting. Sean was the in-house artist booker for the Academy and Students' Union between 1990 and 2011.

The Academy launched their year-long series of 25th Anniversary shows on 10 October 2015 with a special show from punk legends The Buzzcocks. Other bands joining the celebrations include Garbage, Happy Mondays, Gary Newman and The Wedding Present.

With thanks to Sean Fintan Morgan
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Advert, 2015
From A$AP Rocky to Adele, Bowie to Beastie Boys, Foo Fighters to Faithless, Kylie to Korn, Lady Gaga to London Grammar, Nirvana to No Doubt, The Prodigy to Prince and Radiohead to Robbie Williams - this flyer artwork is a impressive role call of acts that have graced the Academy stage over the past 25 years.
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Photograph, 2015
Photo: Frank Ralph 

A great action shot capturing the powerful performance of Scottish band The Amorettes. Since touring in support Ash, W.A.S.P and Black Star Riders the band have built a reputation as one of the UK's best live rock acts and are celebrated for continuing the spirit of all-female hard rockers The Runaways and The Donnas.
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Video, 2015
Source: YouTube
User: Jack Fermor-Worrell

Muse brought a reduced sized version of their dazzling stadium show and squeezed it into the Academy part of their intimate 'Psycho' tour dates.
Academy 2 (Main Debating Hall)
Photograph, 2015
Photo: Melanie Smith (Mudkiss)
www.mudkissphotography.co...

Review: Shaun Ponsonby for Get Into This blog (see link)

Vintage Trouble have been around for around half a decade now. Their following seems to grow and grow, but they have only one full length album to their name, 2011’s The Bomb Shelter Sessions.

So, how have they gained such momentum? The answer is simple: they absolutely kill it live.

They are perhaps the greatest marriage of rock & soul in modern times. For a band to make their reputation almost purely on the live circuit in this day and age is pretty rare, so that should tell you what you’re in for when you go see them.

In Manchester tonight, they have opted to play with American DJ Papa Ray in lieu of a support band. This actually sets the tone well for the evening, as a 75 minute set from Ray spinning classic and obscure soul, blues, reggae and funk 7” records (“an old music file storage system”) probably chimes better with the band‘s philosophy than a local support band would.

When the band finally take to the stage, it is immediately clear who the star of the show is. Looking immaculate, Ty Taylor may be the most engaging frontman out there today. Although clearly cut from the same cloth as the James Browns and Otis Reddings from days of yore both vocally and in presentation (we weren’t surprised to learn he has gospel roots himself), he is absolutely his own identity. He is also infectious. You get caught up in his enthusiasm. And when he says “dance”, you dance. When he says “sing” you sing. You free your mind, and, indeed, your ass does follow.

It’s actually refreshing. Most of the bands this writer has seen as of late have often been too cool for school, so wrapped up in being serious musicians that they forget to enjoy themselves up there. If the band aren’t enjoying themselves, why the fuck should the audience? There is absolutely no fear of that tonight. There’s nothing cooler in this world than having a good time.

Several times during the show, Taylor jumps off stage and begins singing and dancing with the audience. During Strike Your Light, he manages to make it to the very back of the room and begins performing on to of the sound desk, with every member of the assembled still absolutely obeying his every whim.

But that’s not to diminish the rest of the band. It’s not all show here. They are solid. And although essentially playing soul music, they play it through the set up of a rock & roll band. This means that something like Pelvis Pusher, which is fundamentally a deep, grooving southern soul romp, finds a unique sound through the amplifiers.

Although critically acclaimed, they are still very much a people’s band, and this is made obvious by their decision to leave the stage not be heading backstage, but rather by jumping off the front of the stage and making their way through the crowd, directly to the merchandise stand to meet and greet.

A great band is one that you can go and see, and when in it’s all over, you turn around and exclaim: “I want to be in a band like THAT!” Vintage Trouble are one of those. It was a sweat dripping off the walls kind of night.

They’re finally releasing their second album in the summer. Keep an eye on it. They’ll be back.
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Photograph, 2015
Photo: Melanie Smith (Mudkiss)
www.mudkissphotography.co...

Review: Dylan Llewellyn-Nunes for Live4Ever blog (see link)

Public Image Ltd., and their somewhat notorious frontman John Lydon, are never too far away from hyperbole. Which is ironic, as Lydon is probably one of rock’s only protagonists who would loathe such language and sentiment. And that alone is always amusing.
But amusement aside, it’s hard not think in such terms when confronted by PiL’s live show.

It’s not that they’re breaking any new ground, they already did that some time ago. It’s not that they are rewriting the rules; they also did that quite some time ago. And it’s not that they are ageing gracefully, they are as disgraceful as ever. Lydon’s almost childlike persona and disbelief at the world around him seems somehow more authentic with age. He seems to have grown into his incredulity.

So what exactly is it they do live? In simple terms they hit hard, and they hit low. This isn’t lavish, or beautiful, and it isn’t about recreating the moment. Instead it seems more about celebrating the moment. These songs feel vibrant and relevant, whether recorded 30 years ago or yesterday.

Tracks from their most recent record mingle appropriately with more recognised classics, and it’s no short change. But as assured as new tracks like ‘Double Trouble‘ or ‘The One‘ may be, their impact does not, and may never, resonate quite as much as the moments that everyone present is there to see. To watch Lydon and PiL in full flow during classics such as ‘This Is Not a Love Song‘, ‘Rise‘ and ‘Public Image‘ is to witness when the hyperbole spills forth.

The fire that burned in these songs is still present. ‘Public Image’ is almost the pinnacle of punk, what the Sex Pistols never achieved (but should have). Still today it feels vital, harsh and brilliant. ‘This Is Not a Love Song’ is as unhinged and obtuse live as it was when it was released, ‘Rise’ as jubilant a way to finish a show as any band could ever hope for.

This is a wonderfully exciting constant; ‘Poptones‘, ‘Warrior‘ and ‘Disappointed‘ all amaze, and all bring with them the intensity and excitement that becomes the staple setting for the evening. PiL may not be as young or as central to music as they once were, but that never affects the power of what they deliver. And deliver they do, time and time again.

PiL are originators, unwavering they have stood their ground even after all these years; they know what they do isn’t for everyone, and they quite simply don’t care. It’s this attitude which makes them so exciting live. What they do isn’t about driving sales, or pleasing crowds, it’s about the music and it always has been.

And it’s this commitment to the music itself that defines the performance. It’s all commitment and attitude and that is a truly brilliant combination when achieved with the kind of style and tunes that PiL have on all the pretenders. Here, standing before a very excited Manchester crowd, are the originators, still bringing the thunder.
Academy 1 (Manchester Academy)
Photograph, 2015
Photo: Emma Gibbs

Photograph of Dave Brock onstage at the Academy during Hawkwinds's 2015 Hawktoberfest show. Since 1993 Hawkwind have played Academy venues a total of 14 times! Maybe they should be presented with a commemorative carriage clock on their 15th visit?