Hey! Manchester promotes gigs by folk, Americana and experimental bands from around the world in Manchester, England. Read more here, see below for our latest shows, check out our previous shows, contact us, or join our mailing list, above.

Upcoming shows: Chime School... The Courettes... Douglas Dare... Will Varley... Tusks... Rachael Lavelle... Euros Childs... Romeo Stodart & Ren Harvieu... Roddy Woomble... Mikey Kenney... Blue Bendy... John Francis Flynn... Old Sea Brigade... Coruja Jones... Good News... Myriam Gendron... Rob Heron & The Tea Pad Orchestra... Tropical Fuck Storm... Kris Drever... Erland Cooper... Pokey LaFarge... Admiral Fallow... Skinny Lister... New Starts... The Sheepdogs... The Dead Tongues... Svaneborg Kardyb... Alexandra Hamilton-Ayres + James Heather... The Unthanks in Winter... Jim Moray... Josh Rouse... Emily Barker... Gratis: Sophie Jamieson... Dustin O’Halloran... Chuck Prophet... Sean Rowe... The Weather Station... Beans on Toast... Martin Kohlstedt... Nadia Reid... Danny & the Champions of the World... The Delines... Chris Brain... Heather Nova... Hayden Thorpe & Propellor Ensemble...

When: 7.30pm on Saturday 14 April 2012
Where: The Deaf Institute, 135 Grosvenor Street, Manchester M1 7HE

We’re delighted to be promoting Great Lake Swimmers’ first Manchester show in over two years.

Toronto indie-folk darlings Great Lake Swimmers return in April with New Wild Everywhere, their fifth studio album and follow up to 2009’s Juno- and Polaris-nominated album Lost Channels. Lead single Easy Come Easy Go, the most upbeat and up-tempo song in the band’s history, precedes it in January.

New Wild Everywhere captures all of the excitement and intuitive musicianship of a group at the peak of their creative powers, with 12 new tracks that reveal a depth and maturity only previously hinted at by lead singer and songwriter Tony Dekker. Produced by long-time Great Lake Swimmers collaborator Andy Magoffin, New Wild Everywhere marks the first time in the band’s history that an album was recorded in a real studio (Toronto’s Revolution Recording); past albums have been famously recorded in historic churches, castles and music venues.

Featuring the touring band from Lost Channels (long-time collaborator Erik Arnesen on banjo and guitar, along with new addition Miranda Mulholland contributing backing vocals and violin, Bret Higgins on upright bass, and Lost Channels drummer Greg Millson), New Wild Everywhere thematically picks up where the previous album left off, exploring transcendence in the natural world to describe the universal themes of love, mortality and escape.

Dekker has spent the last decade entrancing listeners with his unforgettable voice and compelling songwriting. Great Lake Swimmers have long been a word-of-mouth favourite in their home country of Canada for whom critical mass was inevitable. They’ve been regarded as a national treasure, with 2009’s Lost Channels topping the charts at CBC Radio 3 and on the iTunes Singer/Songwriter Chart. The band have received public endorsements by the likes of Feist, Robert Plant and cyclist Lance Armstrong. The latter has raved about the band on his personal website; the former two have handpicked the band to open tours, while the band have also shared the stage with Calexico, Goldfrapp and Bill Callahan of Smog.

‘Though they’re often compared to the more sugary side of Will Oldham, it’s actually a deeper-fried Americana that Great Lake Swimmers are more closely aligned with… It’s proof that they’re able to make their music ceaselessly repeatable, open to gentle tweaking and subtle extension’ – BBC Music

Support comes from Canadian singer-songwriter Barzin. Barzin has released three albums in his career, and his style has been compared to Mojave 3 and Mazzy Star. His latest album, Notes To An Absent Lover, was recorded by Don Kerr (Ron Sexsmith) and Jeremy Darby (Pink Floyd, Lou Reed), and mixed by Chad Irschick and Darryl Neudorf (Neko Case, The New Pornographers).

Tickets are available from the bar, Common (both no booking fee), Piccadilly Records, Vinyl Exchange, Seetickets.comWeGotTickets.comTicketline.co.uk and on 0871 220 0260.

Attend on: Facebook | Last.fm



All shows are 18+ unless otherwise stated.