The Ritz was already filling up before a single chord was struck. Manchester crowds know how to make a night of it, and this one had the feeling of a proper celebration. Three frontmen from three great bands, each taking the stage solo, showing exactly what makes them tick.
Ben Ottewell
Standing there with that unmistakable Gomez tone, warm, gravelly and soulful. It was stripped back but full of heart. Songs like Meet Me in the City, Notice and California reminded everyone just how solid his songwriting is. When Whippin’ Piccadilly rolled out, you could feel the room lift. How We Operate rounded off a short but sweet set that showed why Ben’s voice still stops people mid-sentence.
Tony Wright
Next up was the lads from Terrorvision, bringing a dose of Bradford humour and big heart. He had the crowd laughing between every tune, full of stories and quick wit. Songs like Sleep, Nothing to Write Home About and Get it Wrong hit that perfect mix of honesty and melody. Janette and Janine came with a story about a homeless man in Leeds drinking cider in the park, while Buried You Deeper got described as “a Bradford Bon Jovi tune” and somehow that made perfect sense. He even threw in a brilliant cover of Cannonball before closing with Shallow Pool, a proper singalong moment that brought the whole room together.
Reef
From the first riff of Feed Me, the room went off. There’s something timeless about their energy, loud, raw and loose in the best possible way. Songs like Good Feeling, Replenish and Choose to Live hit hard, and Comfort brought a big grin to every face. As they worked through Mellow, Together and Loose, it was clear the band were in the moment.
Frontman Gary Stringer paused mid-set to talk about revisiting the band’s first album. You could see it meant something to him. His voice cracked slightly as he said it was an emotional album from an emotional time, and you could feel the crowd take that in. It was one of those honest moments that reminded everyone why these songs have lasted so long.
By the time Place Your Hands landed, the crowd was one big chorus. Yer Old closed the night, and nobody wanted it to end. It wasn’t clear if the song was poking fun at the crowd, the band or just time itself, but it didn’t matter. The Ritz was bouncing and smiling from front to back.
A proper Manchester night. Three frontmen, three different worlds, and one crowd that were really happy with some time traveling.
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