Pooley's pick of the day

ANY one thinking of questioning Johnny Marr about why he decided to collaborate with firebrand West Yorkshire rockers The Cribs and not reunite The Smiths, don’t.
As the former Smiths guitarist and new Crib is simply fed up of having to dismiss inquiries about a possible reformation with Mozza and the boys.
Only on a national radio station recently he had this to say: “I sick of talking about who I collaborate with to the Nth degree – nobody ever asked Brian Eno why he worked with Talking Heads did they?!”
Fair point. You can see why the legendary axeman is irked too. It’s not as if he’s been sitting by the phone waiting for the seminal ’80s indie outfit to reform, Marr is one of the most pro-active musicians in the business.
The The, Crowded House, Electronic, Beck, The Pet Shop Boys, Billy Bragg, Oasis, The Pretenders and most recently Portland favs Modest Mouse have all utilised his expertise.
In fact, it was his decision to move to Portland, Oregon, which serendipitously brought him into the Cribs path.
The Ardwick man reportedly bumped into bassist and singer Gary Jarman at a mutual friends barbeque (Pavement’s Stephen Malkmus – how indie is that?) and things took off from there.
Dubbed ‘Britain’s biggest cult band’, The Cribs will arrive here on Friday with their best LP to date, Ignore The Ignorant, in the bag.
Positively brimming with Marr’s melodic hooks, which compliment the Jarman trio’s visceral, punk-fuelled lo-fi sound perfectly – this White and Red Rose county fusion appears to be a match made in (indie) heaven.
Read Sarah Walters’ interview with Marr, here.

THERE are deserved victory laps and then there’s Elbow.
After toiling away for the best part of two decades, suffering numerous setbacks along the way (record label exits, PR problems and loss of industry support – to name but three) – if the Chinese calendar was devised from body parts rather than a bizarre assembly of wildlife creatures, then 2008 would undoubtedly have been the year of the Elbow.
And during the proceeding 12 months the Bury veterans have finally been showered with the commercial acclaim to match the critical plaudits (all four of their LPs have garnered 9/10 in NME), played a clutch of sparkling festival shows and bagged a host of gongs to go with their Mercury Prize (Ivor Novellos and a Brit included), which have taken the imminently likable Guy Garvey and Co over ground.
Now with their tribute to late pal Bryan Glancy, The Seldom Seen Kid, well and truly given the exposure it deserves the boys will return to the studio soon to begin work on the follow-up.
But not before they play one last show at the M.E.N. Arena on Friday. Elbow at the M.E.N. Arena, I know, it was unthinkable this time last year. Sometimes nice guys do come first then… heady days indeed.
A review of the show will appear on CityLife.co.uk over the weekend.

WELL, here is it is then, the last big outdoor gig of the summer. Oasis were both ramshackle and resurgent at Heaton Park (the last time we’ll see them? I’m not so sure…), while Doves positively shimmered at Delamere.
But undoubtedly the most innovative, awe-inspiring and just plain joyous outdoor gigs of yet another meagre summer came from Take That and their sold out run at Old Trafford.
Bursting – centre stage – from a flurry of airborne balloons, Mark, Gary, Howard and Jason showed just why they’re just about the hottest ticket in the country at the moment. Could they’re comeback have gone any better? Quite simply the answer is no.
Hoping to harness the quartet’s ability to make a 50,000-capacity (and tired looking cricket ground) feel spectacular, yet intimate this Saturday will be Coldplay.
And let’s face it, with a major label and humungous ticket sales behind them, no corners will be cut.
Their arena tour, which took fourth LP, Viva La Vida, to the people last winter showed early inklings of what they had planned too.
Frontman Chris ‘Ever Ready Bunny’ Martin and the boys popped up all over the M.E.N, ensuring each segment of the crowd got their personal moment in what proved two truly euphoric nights.
Streets ahead of the wishy-washy indie they tend to get bandied in with (namely Athlete and Snow Patrol), those boys have the intelligence, heart and passion to turn anodyne spaces into communal throngs and I’m sure they’ll pull it off again this weekend.
Plus with a bright, dry day expected and the small matter of a certain Jay-Z (plus White Lies) to warm the masses up, it could well be one of THOSE great Manchester nights.
You can read a review of the show on CityLife.co.uk.

MANCHESTER, as any gig-goer worth his salt knows, is awash with burgeoning bands. There’s isn’t a night of the week when some unholy (and occasionally) holy racket isn’t emanating from a sweaty basement in an unloved part of a town.
Sadly, as with everything in this strange old world, not many things go the distance. Bands split, reform, return under a new name or simply disappear.
One of our acts who will do the former this weekend, is the grammatically challenged its a buffalo.
Their brand of countrified rock’n’roll has won a host of fans across the city, while despite stellar reviews for their LP, Don’t Be Scared, from the likes of NME – like so many before them, they never got the so-called big break many of their disciples thought they deserved.
And this Saturday it is with a heavy heart they’ll bid farewell with a show at Academy 3.
Laid on by those bods at Friends Of Mine, its a buffalo’s last waltz (they’re huge fans of The Band) should see all the city’s indie movers and shakers flocking to the Oxford Road venue for cheers, beers and perhaps a few tears to mull over just what lead singer Ben Thorley and the gang will do next.
Feel free to join ‘em for the last hurrah…

THEY’VE tried their best the good folks at Spinningfields, but Mother Nature just isn’t playing ball.
With a series of late-night film screenings plus comprehensive coverage of the Ashes lined up AND an outdoor bar, they must have thought they were on to a winner – but sketchy weather at best has meant the turnout hasn’t been what it could have been.
Thank goodness then for the PR bod who had the brainwave of locating a indoor Kro Bar at the new business district.
By hosting it in a marquee, you got the feeling of a summer festival without the need for unwelcomed umbrellas!
And by laying on a plethora of live music there on Fridays too, what better way to sink a few post-work ales?
Tonight sees the arrival of Prestwich troubadour Liam Frost to the venue.
The singer-songwriter will headline the free gig and with an aptly and defiantly named new LP to plug, We Ain’t Got No Money, Honey, But We Got Rain, due for release on September 14 – early teasers are expected.
Supporting Frost will be The Answering Machine, Jo Rose and Kathryn Edwards.
The action kicks off at 6pm – lets just hope the pitter patter of the depressingly forecast rain doesn’t drown them out!
The gig will be reviewed on CityLife.co.uk over the weekend.

IS it really nearly 10 years since Badly Drawn Boy shot from obscurity to scoop the Mercury Music Prize?
Sporter of arguably Manchester’s most famous musical hat since Reni – in the subsequent years following the triumph of his lovingly crafted alt-folk debut, The Hour Of The Bewilderbeast, that woolly creation was spotted all over town as he became a regular on the gig-going (and playing) circuit.
A real fanboy when it came to music, his success was compounded by the smash hit soundtrack to Hugh Grant’s latest cinematic vehicle, About A Boy.
And while his last three efforts (Have Your Fed The Fish? One Plus One Is One and Born In The UK) may have suffered from diminishing returns, they have still proffered such gems as All Possibilities, Year Of The Rat and Nothing’s Gonna Change Your Mind.
In an interview with our own Simon Donohue, the Bolton-born, Chorlton-based songwriter is gearing himself up for a big year in 2010, determined to have a clutch of new material strong enough to stave off the need to play Mercury Prize anniversary shows.
With a young family to raise plus another soundtrack and a fifth studio LP to pen, BDB is no longer the regular face about town he once was, so tonight’s low-key return at Spinningfields Summer Festival should be a fine opportunity to reacquaint yourself with his oeuvre and perhaps get an early insight into where the next year will take him.
And to top it all off entry is free.
Here’s hoping a great day’s work by the English bowlers at the Oval (which can be watch on Spinningfields’ big screen) will set everybody up nicely for his set too!

AFTER inadvertently headlining Athens’ huge Terra Vibe Park earlier this year, Failsworth stalwarts Puressence will play a more bijou location tonight.
The indie-rock outfit were booked to warm-up for ‘80s synth-lords Depeche Mode in Greece, but the Essex veterans were forced to pull the date when frontman Dave Gahan fell ill at the last-minute.
Now cherubic-voiced frontman James Mudriczki and Co. will play far more familiar surrounds when they take to the stage for an acoustic set at Kro’s Spinningfields bar.
The set will act as a precursor to arguably Puressence’s biggest UK tour to date, which climaxes with a show at the Apollo on November 14, where new material is rumoured to be aired.
Puressence play Kro in Spinningfields on Friday, August 14 at 8am. Free. Beat The Radar, Vinny Peculiar and Ryan Lamey support.

IF Belinda was right and heaven really is a place on earth, then Tatton Park should be the place to be this Sunday.
As not only will the former Go Gos’ new waver deliver a no doubt jaunty rendition of her best known hit, but Steel City’s synth-pop princes Heaven 17 are also on the bill.
Add a shot of Go West to the ‘80s nostalgia cocktail and you got yourself quite a pop beverage.
In fact by the time the under card draws to a close the Tatton revellers will have been treated to keyboard surfing gems like King Of Wishful Thinking, Call Me, Temptation, Circle In The Sand and Leave A Light On… Phew pop-pickers! After all that you’ll need an authentic Cinzano and lemonade waiting on ice just to help you catch your breath.
You better do it quick mind, as proceedings don’t end there.
As heading back over the Pennines to Sheffield, the synth-pop forefathers Human League will surely ring any leftover rug-cutting moves right out of you by the time school disco classics Fascination, Love Action and Don’t You Want Me are unleashed by Phil Oakey and the girls during their headline set.
New pups Lady GaGa, Little Boots and La Roux may have breathed new life into the genre in two double 09 but, as I’m sure the Cheshire set who flock to the lakeside on Sunday will witness, there’s life in these old dogs yet.

Party! At Tatton Park takes place on Sunday, August 2. Click here for more information.

FRESH from their rain-soaked set at the launch of the new Manchester City shirt last week, ska-pop scamps Kid British will celebrate the release of their debut album with another free show here on Friday.
The quartet will be signing copies of ‘It Was This Or Football – First Half’, which was released on Monday.
The action kicks-off at 6pm at HMV on Market Street and the band will remain in the store to meet fans and sign copies of the release.
Should be a tad drier than Man City’s car park too.

SIGNING a band as unpredictable as The Fall could be seen as a little foolhardy in the current economic climate.
After all the Prestwich-formed post-punk veterans are led by the notoriously trigger happy Mark E Smith, a man known to dismiss members without apparently so much as a bye or leave in the middle of tours (or even concerts!).
Their recording career has also been equally unstable, notching up releases with – at the last count – nine record labels during their 30-plus years lifespan.
Yet one thing you can’t level at Smith and which ever bunch of musical cohorts he chooses to work with at that time, is a penchant for work-shyness.
As Smith and Co have released 27 studio offerings since forming in 1976 plus various live and EP offerings – a work rate, I’m sure you’ll agree, is remarkable considering a one in two record (much like a top football striker) is generally a stellar return.
So the news of their recent union with Domino Records may be greeted with surprise.
Yet if you think a little deeper, it actually makes perfect sense.
After all, like The Fall’s first label, Rough Trade, Domino are one of the premier homes of independent music (with Franz Ferdinand and the Arctic Monkeys the jewels in their crown) and Smith is the curmudgeonly godfather of the UK’s independent music scene.
Never one to tow the line and always one to plough their own furrow, this marriage of musical convenience should allow The Fall’s latest incarnation to craft a record in a relaxed and understanding atmosphere.
According to a recent label statement The Fall will be entering the studio imminently; somewhere in the north of England to record the follow-up to last year’s Imperial Wax Solvent, with a late 2009 release a strong possibility.
Don’t be surprised if Smith and his erstwhile gang bowl you over with their new efforts like a domino come their Academy date on Saturday then.