Book now: The best gigs coming to Manchester’s Albert Hall ft. Mogwai, Caroline Polachek, The Academic and more

Starring Alex Party, Baby D, N-Trance, Phats & Small and others, 90s Baby promises ‘an unmissable evening of nostalgia-packed fun’ with a marathon bash celebrating a pivotal decade in local and global music at Albert Hall.

Armed with a musical concept for which the phrase ‘so crazy it just might work’ seems feebly inadequate, Elvana burst onto the stage from ‘the bowels of Disgraceland’ to deliver a ‘bafflingly brilliant’ (Guardian) performance splicing grunge with rock ‘n’ roll, as Elvis fronts Nirvana during an ingenious journey through both back catalogues, before finishing with a ‘whopper mash-up’ of overdrive and old school rockabilly.

One of the first acts ever to grace the Albert Hall stage, with several memorable performances in the interceding years, Mogwai return to Manchester as part of their new tour, with a setlist including beloved classics and characteristically innovative tracks from their latest album, As The Love Continues. Reforming after 25 years, during which time they garnered cult support from Trent Reznor, The Flaming Lips and Mogwai themselves, Brainiac also perform as special guests.

Featuring ‘buoyant guitar hooks and earworm melodies…coalesced with lyrics about teenage romance and tribulations in rural Ireland’, The Academic arrive at Albert Hall following the whirlwind success of their 2018 debut album, Tales from the Backseat, which hit #1 in the Irish charts and produced an extensive world tour.

Two years after the ‘lush romanticism and acrobatic vocal stylings’ of acclaimed album Pang established her as a generational singer-songwriter, Caroline Polachek performs in Manchester with a rescheduled show and her recent hit single, Bunny Is A Rider, on the setlist.