It's a glorious Bank Holiday Monday, with only the minor threat of major thunderstorms. With that in mind, it’s surely better to be  safe indoors with 4 boisterous booming bands? What better place to be than Manchester's favourite gem of a venue, The Star and Garter.

The night kicks off with a band that launches us back to the glorious sounds of 90s era Alice in Chains and Soundgarden. Delivering a glorious punch of grunge with a modern twist for today’s music fan, Cages for Preachers are a local 4 piece that delve into a place of nostalgia whilst keeping their music fresh and relevant, an incredibly clever tactic that allows them a universal appeal across the audience in the room. 

Moment of vocal harmony layered upon interesting and moody riffs and bass, the stand out moments of the set go to the groovy ‘Bury The Hatchet’ and the faster paced ‘False Idols’. An excellent and well received opening band. 

MARANG. take the night in an entirely different direction, a direction that is bound to have the musicians amongst us headbanging in appreciation. For fans of more progressive styles of heavy music, the exceptionally talented MARANG. brings the room to an awed hush with his instrumental set.

The passion for the music is evident throughout the performance, his fingers flying over the frets of his guitar as he nails the blistering jazz infused solos. A superb example of his work comes in the form of ‘Fractured Steps’, a song that soars through a euphoric beginning towards an eventual saxophone solo. What’s not to adore? 

Riding the New Nu Metal Wave (you know what I mean, bands like Anti-Clone, Ded, Tetrach…) are Weller. A lively quartet from the South East of England, they bring the energy in the room right back up to a more intense level.

With Nu Metal style bands, we’ve got a lot of elements carefully blended together to produce the final result, and listening to Weller is reminiscent of the rap vocal style you’d hear a lot in bands like Papa Roach or P.O.D. ‘Fire’ definitely showcases the catchy hooks this band has within their set. The performance is tight and honestly a lot of fun, and probably the right band to be on before the headliner. 

Finally, In Search of Sun take to the stage and the atmosphere is exuberant. The audience is a healthy mix of die hard fans who know every word and curious newcomers who are absorbing the good vibes the London band have brought with them.  

The set is wonderful, the band use the opportunity to showcase tracks from recent album “Lemon Amigos” . ‘The Fire I Play With’ has that wonderful sing a long quality that really gets the audience going, and there is tons of grooving and dancing to the tunes ‘Contagious’  and ‘Rhythm’. It’s less mosh pit music and more boogie on down, and it is mesmerising. 

Frontman Adam passionately explained to the crowd how the pandemic had massively affected them as a band, and how the new album was the outcome of their struggles throughout the difficult time. Their set tonight was so much fun, the new material works so well, and hopefully the remainder of their UK tour is a great success for them. 

Check the “In The Flesh” page for more photos!
In Search of Sun, Weller, MARANG., Cages for Preachers