Scruff of the Neck - NQ Takeover

Independent promoter Scruff of the Neck is taking over the Northern Quarter for one night only, bringing their multi-venue new-music festival back to Manchester. On Friday 30 January, the NQ Takeover will turn five of the neighbourhood’s best loved grassroots spaces into a connected trail of live music, with 18 emerging artists playing across 33 Oldham Street, Gullivers, Off The Square, Stage & Radio and The Castle.

Each venue will run its own show with headliners and support acts, but the schedule has been built to make gig-hopping not just possible but encouraged. Audiences can move freely between sets, dip into different sounds, and piece together their own route across the Northern Quarter. A limited run of ‘All Access’ tickets opens the night up fully, giving festival-style entry to every performance.

This year’s line up spans indie, alt-pop, noise rock, singer-songwriters and everything between, with artists including Adult Cat, Bad Penny, Collectors., Daytrading., False Indigo, Glass Half Spilt, Halfmark, Life in Neon, Pager, Park View, Pierce O’ Brien, Stil Life, Tay Temple, The Company, The Fairway, The Sprats, Tilly Louise and Weave.

The NQ Takeover continues Scruff of the Neck’s long-standing commitment to championing new talent, supporting independent venues, and creating city-wide moments that feel rooted in Manchester’s grassroots music culture.