Cityscape Presents - 9 May line-up confirmed...

According to Brad B Wood (still love that name!) there is an international flavour to the next Cityscape Presents event here at the Octagon. The night features Denver / Manchester band Blind Atlas and Belgian singer songwriter Maxwell Watts.

Blind Atlas came together through a shared love of drinking , melancholia (probably caused by the shared love of drinking!) and the Flying Burrito Brothers. Comprising Ross Thompson (lead vocals and guitar), Adam Jones (vocals and guitar), Cameron Baxter (vocals and bass) and Christian Jacobs (vocals and drums), Blind Atlas have become familiar faces on the Manchester circuit, notching up headline slots at some of the most iconic venues in the city, as well as supporting the likes of Liam Frost and Detroit's Deadstring Brothers.

One point fans of the band will attest to is their ability to expertly combine the traditional melancholy of the classic Northern sound with the boozy soul of American alternative country. As they themselves put it:

"If we had to describe the type of music we play it would be our own version of alternative country with more of a 21st Century vibe"

And Cameron recently described the sound to one journalist as being "quite a unique conflict of British and American music styles". Hailing from Colorado, front man Ross was quick to inject his own roots into their music, making it more akin to Neil Young than Morrissey. "It's like a melancholic overload! There's this battle of Americana versus Britannia - and it's producing some really amazing music". You can hear what this battle sounds like here.

Support comes from the multi-talented Maxwell Watts and his quartet. Maxwell Watts was born and raised in Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium. His background is in classical music. His older sister a Mezzo-Soprano Opera singer, his younger sister a cellist and his mother a music and history of art teacher. He moved to Manchester (see there's the local connection!) in the late nineties to study a sound engineering course at Salford University and lived with a group of other musicians and art students from all parts of the globe: Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, Nigeria and the US. "the house became a real creative platform with open music jams. Musicians from Salford University would come in and out to join in with the grooves" says Maxwell. From this he went on to form a band, Oddness, and now has a quartet who perform Americana, folk, and jazzy acoustic sounds.

The line-up is completed by Ben McGarvey, a rising talent on the Manchester acoustic circuit whose last album. Too Busy Framing prompted the Manchester Evening News to say: "McGarvey has locked himself away in his bedroom and crafted songs of true otherworldly magic and splendour. Bursting with beautiful acoustic melodies and hooks..."

The night will be compered by comedienne Katie Mulgrew. You can listen to samples of all the acts music or get a free download here.

Brad B Wood, founder of Cityscape Records, said:

"These nights are proving to be a real success with the past three events selling out. This is another quality line-up featuring three acts I'm really happy to have found. I'm sure they'll all go down well with our regular audience."

Thanks to the Arts Council Free Theatre Tickets scheme, there are a limited number of free tickets available, for this event, to those under 26. Contact our Ticket Office (01204 520661) for more details and to book.