October is approaching, which means this months gigs have a distinctly spooky feel to them. Baked A La Ska keep the tradition going with their annual halloween show at Band on the Wall, Me Gusta Collective celebrate the day of the dead with Latin, jazz and samba, and Martin Luke Brown brings chillingly vulnerable indie to the YES Basement.
Meanwhile, over at Aviva Studios, bona fide art rockstar Marina Abramović brings a heady mix of Balkan folklore and erotica to the vast performance hangar. Colour us intrigued.
Read our guide to the best gigs and club nights in Manchester this October…
Martin Luke Brown
Leicester-born Martin Luke Brown heads to the intimate, sweaty surroundings of the YES Basement, bringing with him his sombre-yet-sweet songwriting. Performing material drawn from his second album ‘man oh man !’, expect introspective takes on masculinity, but – crucially – fun.
Ustad Noor Bakhsh, Jaubi and Amrit Kaur
Join Band On The Wall for a night of boundary-defying music, where the electric Balochi Benju of Ustad Noor Bakhsh, the genre-blending spiritual jazz of Jaubi, and the soulful, Punjabi-infused storytelling of Amrit Kaur come together to celebrate the vibrant, cross-cultural sounds of South Asia and beyond.
La Voix
RuPaul’s Drag Race star La Voix comes to Aviva Studios. Get ready for an evening filled with electrifying live performances, with La Voix’s powerhouse vocals combined with side-splitting comedy.
Echobelly at New Century
Britpop icons Echobelly are marking 30 years since the release of top five album ON with a huge UK tour. The band will perform the album in its entirety, plus greatest hits, at New Century in Manchester on Thursday 2 October.
Quantic
Will Holland’s long-running project Quantic will be landing at the Pink Room with its Latin-inspired electronica, part of a crammed European tour taking in shows in Oslo, Barcelona, Paris, Athens and Istanbul. Expect a wide-ranging DJ set guaranteed to have waistlines winding.
Shaker Loops
Manchester Collective – the ever-changing chamber music ensemble – take on John Adams’ ‘Shaker Loops’, a high-energy composition which pays homage to Shaker worship, from the 18th Century. Joining them is Christ Bryan, the Lancastrian poet in residence of The White Hotel. Sounds like an unlikely meeting? Potentially – expect a heady mix of life, death, god and industrial smog.
Diamond D All Vinyl 45 DJ Set
The iconic Diamond D brings his all vinyl DJ set to Salford. Founding member of DITC and producer Diamond D first brought a stack of seven inch records to town in 2016, and since then that night has gone down in history. This edition will be as close to an original hip hop block party you are going to get – all vinyl and all the original breaks that are the foundation of so many records you know and love.
Opera Omnia by Space Afrika and Valentin Noujaïm
Electronic music duo Space Afrika join forces with filmmaker Valentin Noujaïm on new project Opera Omnia, performed live with Manchester Camerata. Experience the UK premiere of the new film starring Axelle Fanyo with a live soundtrack from Space Afrika and award-winning Soprano Nardus Williams, followed by a reading from Dante’s Inferno and a collaborative set with Manchester Camerata featuring new, unreleased music.
Blood Incantation
Colorado psychedelic death metallers Blood Incantation land at the Albert Hall. We hope they’re prepared for what’s coming down the pike. Their most recent salvo, Absolute Elsewhere, their fourth studio album, combines bursts of controlled, technical mayhem combined with moments of unexpected serenity, voyages into the synth-based unknown. It’s a thing to behold, and should play perfectly at this gothic Manchester venue.
Katy Perry at AO Arena
One the best-selling pop artists of all time, Katy Perry arrives in the UK with her Lifetimes Tour – a spectacular career-spanning run of live shows, including all the hits from across her multi-million selling albums.
Chunky, Metrodome and Veba at the renae X Eat Well MCR fundraiser
What’s better than a rave that fills your soul with goodness? Nothing, that’s what. The magnificent Eat Well MCR, which provides free, chef-cooked meals to those in our community who need it the most (over 2,500 a month and more than 140,000 since they started in 2020), will be joining with renae for a week-night tear up. Take the Friday off and indulge yourself with sets from DJ, producer and MC Chunky, wild-haired wizard of the breakbeat Metrodome, StandbyWez and the legend that is Veba going back-to-back with Helen K, all amplified on renae’s exquisite sound system. Every £10 ticket funds 5 meals for people in need in Manchester. Do the right thing and get involved.
Marina Abramović: Balkan Erotic Epic at Aviva Studios
Experience the raw, unfiltered power of Balkan folklore in a new immersive show from the world’s most revered performance artist Marina Abramović. Her transformative work has reached millions of people – from opening the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury Festival to taking up residence in the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Now, she creates one of her most ambitious shows ever here in Manchester.
Central Line
The massively influential Brit soul icons Central Line, responsible for hits including Walking Into Sunshine, Nature Boy and Surprise Surprise, come to Manchester. Formed in London in 1978, the group embrace their original brand of analogue funk with classic sounds, rare gems and exciting new releases. This is a show not to be missed.
Sunday Club at the Pub
DJ and NTS Radio regular Finn brings his popular day party series – Sunday Club – to the pub. Not just any pub though, The Red Bull is one of Stockport’s best. He’s joined by Esqueezy and BFTT for an afternoon and evening of Garage, House and – you guessed it – Garage House. There’ll be food, there’s a great beer garden and you can be home by midnight. Perfection.
Graham Nash at The Bridgewater Hall
Graham Nash, legendary two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee and Grammy Award-winner, headlines a show in Manchester. Nash will bring his ‘More Evenings of Songs and Stories’, with special guest Peter Asher, to The Bridgewater Hall on Thursday 16 October. He will perform songs spanning his 60-year career from The Hollies to Crosby, Stills and Nash, to CSNY and his beloved solo career.
Cymande
Utterly legendary, the influence of Brit-funk icons Cymande is hard to understate. After forming in the early 70s, they went on to forge a sound their very own, combining Afro sounds with reggae, calypso, soul and jazz. Sampled by everyone from De La Soul (notably on the pivotal 3 Feet High & Rising) to Wu-Tang Clan to EPMD to The KLF, they remain a force of nature on the live circuit too. Go worship.
Oh Bey-have! – Beyoncé Orchestra at Amber’s
After the huge success of OBEY at Diecast last year, the Elemental Orchestra is back with another epic orchestral rendition of Beyonce’s greatest hits. Taking to the stage at Amber’s, the show will span Queen Bey’s 28 year discography, from Destiny’s Child all the way to Cowboy Carter, recreating iconic live performances and moments from the Beyoncé multiverse.
Beverly Glenn-Copeland with special guest Elizabeth Copeland at Aviva Studios
Witness the creative magic of Beverly Glenn-Copeland and Elizabeth Glenn-Copeland in a rare live performance at Factory International. Promising an unforgettable evening of music, the event will showcase the life partners and long-time artistic collaborators, whose work transcends genre and generation.
Joe Armon-Jones at Band On The Wall
Keyboardist, producer, songwriter and founding member of the magnificent Ezra Collective, Joe Armon-Jones headlines a solo gig at Band On The Wall this October. The BRIT award-winner released his debut solo record Starting Today in 2018, before following it up the next year with Turn To Clear View. A sought-after collaborator, this year he embarks on his biggest creative project yet – the two-part opus All The Quiet.
Confidence Man
Aussie electro-pop sensations Confidence Man take over The Warehouse Project with a full three-room rave at Depot Mayfield. Headlining their own specially-curated show, which is their only headline date of the year, the Holiday hitmakers will take over all areas of the venue, including Depot, Concourse and Archive. They will be joined on the bill by a host of fellow icons including Erol Alkan, Folamour, Hunee and loads more.
Benson Boone at Co-op Live
American singer-songwriter Benson Boone, responsible for 2024 smash hit Beautiful Things is coming to Manchester. The Washington-born Grammy-nominated artist will celebrate the release of forthcoming second studio album American heart with a headline show at Co-op Live on 27 October 2025.
The Psychedelic Furs at Albert Hall
Original post-punk icons The Psychedelic Furs will perform in Manchester this Autumn. Behind hits including Love My Way, Heaven and, of course, Pretty In Pink, fans can catch the band at the Albert Hall on Monday 27 October. They will be supported by special guest Anja Huwe, who marks her first UK shows in 15 years.
Sananda Maitreya
Award-winning musician Sananda Maitreya – formerly known as the legendary Terence Trent D’Arby – returns to the UK for his first headline tour in 23 years, including a date in Manchester. Sananda and his band, The Sugar Plum Pharaohs, will be performing songs from his iconic debut album Introducing the Hardline, through to his most recent work The Pegasus Project: Pegasus & The Swan. Catch him live at O2 Ritz on Tuesday 28 October.
Aitch
Manchester’s very own Aitch takes over The Warehouse Project for a special homecoming show. The rapper’s only headline performance of the year, the show will celebrate his latest album 4. Catch him at WHP on Wednesday 29 October.
Manchester’s Finest x Jose Cuervo presents Ian Pooley at renae
House legend Ian Pooley is set to play in Manchester for the first time in over a decade. The Berlin-based DJ and producer will be hitting sound-forward Thomas Street bar renae on 30 October for an intimate set, putting that stunning sound system through its paces. Known for his prolific Detroit and Chicago-influenced production for labels like Josh Wink’s Ovum, Rekids, Kwench and Bristol’s NRK, as well as his own label Pooledmusic, he’s also heavily influenced by Brazilian sounds, as seen on his acclaimed album Since Then, which is 25 years old this year. He’ll be joined on the decks by Rhod Parry and Jack Lydon. The night is presented in conjunction with Manchester’s Finest and Jose Cuervo Tradicional. You’ll get a free cocktail and a free slice of pizza with your ticket too. Bonus.
Baked A La Ska – Halloween
The legendary Baked A La Ska take their bloodied chainsaw to your most loved spooky classics at Band on the Wall this Halloween, the storied band’s annual dress-up mash-up. Expect hits from the spookiest ska record ever made, aka ‘Skalloween, with fancy dress very much encouraged. If you’ve not taken in this wild experience before, then you’re in for a treat. Head down to the historic NQ venue on 31 October and bring your best skank.
Club Coco: (Dia De Los Muertos Special) + Me Gusta Collective
Coco María brings her beloved Club Coco night back to Band on the Wall with a Dia De Los Muertos – Day of the Dead – Special. Expect a night of forward-thinking electronic, future Latin, jazz, samba, cumbia and more, courtesy of the genre-spanning Me Gusta.
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