Colour Me Wednesday + Baby Brave - PUKE - Retro Bar, Manchester

Tonight was my first time at Manchester's Retro Bar, and it's a great gig venue; the bands play in the basement, which provides a close, intimate setting. I'm looking forward to, hopefully, seeing more bands there in the future.

The night was kicked off by Primeministers of the United Kingdom of England (or PUKE), which is actually members of Manchester band Claw the Thin Ice playing Presidents of the United States of America. I enjoyed this version of the band, and can honestly say that, of the two cover bands I've seen in my life, they were the best!

Next up were Baby Brave who, you may remember, I fell in love with back in February when they played at The Eagle Inn. Having arrived at the venue without any time to do a soundcheck, their first couple of songs basically filled this role - at first, I thought they sounded great but, once the bass became more audible, I realised that now they sounded great.

Oyonaxx is still my favourite song of theirs, but I'm also now developing obsessions with Jitters and Rock Paper Scissors. They also played a new song which, unfortunately, I can't remember the name of now. I can tell you that it also belongs on my list of favourite Baby Brave songs.

I've been a fan of Colour Me Wednesday for a few years now, but this was my first time actually getting to see them play. They didn't disappoint, and played a good mix of material from their new EP Anyone and Everyone, their split EP with Spoonboy, and their album.

Towards the end of their set, Jennifer and Harriet commented that they were both losing their voices ("talking too much shit in the van!"), but it didn't show.

After ending their set with Purge Your Inner Tory, they came back on for an encore of Sweaters, which just happens to be my favourite song of theirs, so was pretty much a perfect end to the night!

The Selecter - Manchester Academy

2 Tone legends The Selecter played Manchester Adacemy last night as part of their Subculture tour, promoting their newest album that was released last summer.

Support tonight was from one of my favourite bands (which may make me slightly biased but, whatever, I'm right anyway), The Tuts. They've been opening for The Selecter for this whole tour, and once you've seen them play, it's easy to see why Pauline Black chose them. This was my fourth time seeing The Tuts, and they really do keep getting better every time; no matter how big or small the crowd is, they put so much passion and energy to every show they play.

Among their setlist, they played a great cover of The Bodysnatchers "Do Rock Steady" and, as it's now December, ended with their festive number "Christmas Is In The Air".

Next on stage, of course, was The Selecter, with the crowd well and truly warmed up from The Tuts infectious energy.

Their setlist perfectly interspersed newer material with the old, proving that bands can get back together and record new material that is just as good as the early stuff. The crowd reacted to each song, new and old, as though it were their favourite, skanking furiously. As Pauline Black herself said on stage, "we are not going to be a heritage band".

Among the new songs that were played, "Breakdown" was my personal favourite, with its lyrics that tackle the disproportionate number of black people who are killed by police.

We were also treated to ska-riffic cover of Patti Smith's "Because the Night" which, controversial as this may be, I actually preferred to the original.

The iconic "On My Radio" was, of course, one of the most exciting moments of their set and had everyone shouting along with its infectious chorus.

Afterwards, I headed over to the merch table, and was lucky enough to meet The Tuts (again!), and Pauline Black and Gaps Hendrickson. Everyone was really happy to chat and sign things, with Pauline making sure she personalised everything.

Tonight proved that, 35 years on from bursting onto the scene, The Selecter are still just as relevant today. If you get the chance to see them live, make sure you grab it. Unless you don't like fun, then don't.