MANCHESTER POPFEST - Trash Kit / April Magazine / Tony Jay / The Chop / Cruush and more

Name: MANCHESTER POPFEST - Trash Kit / April Magazine / Tony Jay / The Chop / Cruush and more
Start: 2026-06-28T13:00:00+01:00
Location: Withington Methodist Church

Schedule

Sun, 28 Jun, 2026 at 01:00 pm

UTC+01:00

Location

Withington Methodist Church | Manchester, EN

SUNDAY 28th JUNE, 1pm at Withington various venues (Fuel / Café Blah / Sandbar Withington / Withington Methodist Church / Withington Public Hall) - full schedule and venue info to be confirmed shortly
1pm at Withington Methodist Church - film screening of 'Cool Daddio: the Second Youth of R. Stevie Moore'
A documentary which chronicles the life and creative genius of R. Stevie Moore and his enduring impact on popular music. A reclusive figure who has recorded over 400 albums in his bedroom, R. Stevie Moore is an underground music icon and this helps uncover his legacy, independent spirit and the influences behind his art.
TRASH KIT
London/ Glasgow based band Trash Kit are Rachel Aggs, Rachel Horwood and Gil Partington. They are three deeply creative individuals who play in a multitude of other groups including Bas Jan, Sacred Paws, Shopping and Bamboo. They bring a wide range of influences, from post punk, new wave to African influences, Ray Agg's guitar playing informed by her love of guitar music from Zimbabwe. Since forming in 2009 they have released several albums and a number of singles on Upset the Rythm, this is a rare live performance and we're sure it's going to be very special.
APRIL MAGAZINE
San Francisco's April Magazine (Tough Love records) are an indie/ noise pop collective that make the most delicate and beautiful music. Imagine Sunday Morning by the Velvet Underground, meets Jesus and Mary Chain era Psychocandy and the first Nico album, where vocals float above fuzzy dreamlike slowcore, bringing to mind early Pastels and My Bloody Valentine.
TONY JAY
Michael Ramos has been a fixture of San Francisco's vibrant indie pop scene, cropping up in Flowertown, Cindy, Sad Eyed Beatniks, and early versions of April Magazine, all while maintaining his mysterious persona as Tony Jay. Beginning as a recording project in 2006 and becoming a live band in 2017, Tony Jay has released a myriad of records on labels such as Slumberland records and Galaxy Train. The single 'Perfect Worlds' perfectly captures their lofi bedroom sound, where you can hear the influence of Japanese psych folk bands like Nagisa Ni Te blend with Galaxie 500 and the 60's pop of the Shangri La's.
GALA
Gala are the Sydney based duo Grace Barr and Lali Rose. They blend a range of influences such as Appalachian folk, old time music and more modern folk. Banjo and guitar weave through stories of friendship, love and loss that has a disarming quality reminiscent of Josephine Foster or the Carousel.
CRUUSH
Manchester 4-piece Cruush have developed their sound from their early abrasive wall of sound, My Bloody Valentine esq shoegaze/ grunge to the more progressive ethereal dream pop of bands like Mazzy Star and Wednesday. Now they seamlessly blend the two, as can be heard on their latest record 'Great Dane' on Heist or Hit records. Their live performances have become legendary in Manchester and this is one not to be missed.
NELL DAVIES
Nell Davies started making music in lockdown, after reading Viv Albertine's autobiography inspired her to buy a guitar and write her first song. Her music, influenced by post-punk pop and riot grrrl, has been described as 'bubblegum punk'. Recording her songs in an old pigsty in her home in West Cornwall, her songs encapsulate the DIY ethos, bringing the energy and humour of bands like the Lovely Eggs and Kenickie, her song 'the End of the World or Whatever' has constantly been on our playlist since first hearing it and we're psyched that she will be performing at this year's event.
THE CHOP
The Chop are the Glasgow based husband & wife art-pop duo Gemma Fleet & Andrew R Doig, who have been regulars in the Glasgow DIY indie scene for some time through their involvement in bands like Dancer and Current Affairs. Inspired by the minimalist sounds of groups like the Young Marble Giants, Robert Wyatt and Broadcast, where brittle bass guitar forms flourish and gently contort beneath Fleet's always impressive narrative vocalisms, underpinned by the primitive drum machine discoveries, this is a new musical chapter and we can't wait to hear it live for the first time.
RAINY DAY CAFE
Manchester's Rainy Day Cafe is the recording project of 23-year old songwriter and producer Ben Williams, songs recorded to tape in his bedroom studio with the lo-fi garage rock sound of early Beck, Beat Happening, Half Japanese and the summery dreampop of west coast bands like Sealions and the Jeanines.
SUPERSUN
Glasgow's Supersun came to our attention following recent support slots with the BMX Bandits/ the Cords. Formed from a shared love of 60's groups like the Velvet Underground, the Byrds and Donovan, as well as Teenage Fanclub and Jesus and the Jesus and Mary chain, they organise their own DIY night called the Cabbage and are part of an exciting new scene. Led by Adam Graham, Supersun craft infectiously melodic and harmonious tunes that meld all of their influences into a sound which is very much their own. We're so happy to be bringing them to Manchester for the first time.
OORT CLOD
Formed by singer/ songwriter Patrick Glen and featuring members of Unpaid Intern, the Hipshakes, Jeuce and the Early Mornings, Manchester's Oort Clod blend 90's alternative/ indie and slacker rock, referencing the likes of Pavement and Flying Nun records as influences. Their latest record 'Cult Values', recorded at Delicious Clam in Sheffield is destined to be an underground classic, pulsing with the sounds of the Fall and 60's garage rock.
HANK BEE
Hank Bee is the musical alias of Liverpool musician Hannah Brown. On her new e.p. 'A sudden Hankering' she shows her roots in folk songs of the north east, as well as in alternative rock and an ability to write songs that show a real knack to write great lyrics wrapped around an intricate melody that have a similarly intuitive and reflective approach to artists like Daniel Johnson, Dear Nora or Cat Power.
COMMITTEE OF SLEEP
They describe themselves as a 'four piece lo-fi pop band based in the North East' and they blend shoegaze, emo, alternative rock and DIY experimentation that has it's roots in bands like Hood, Godspeed You Black Emperor and contemporaries like Duster and Ulrika Spacek.
NICHOLAS GRANT BAND
Nicholas Grant band is the musical project of the Leeds based musician of the same name, the former bassist of Leeds art-rock post-punk band Mush. The single 'Uptight' has a mid 90's jangle that recalls early Teenage Fanclub, the Lemonheads and a little bit of the Super Furry Animals thrown in for good measure. We were immediately hooked and can't wait to hear their future releases, we're super excited to see them play at Manchester Popfest this year.
New wave Karaoke
A chance to sing your favourite obscure songs, a fun finale to the festival.
Tickets available via Seetickets:
https://see.tickets/mcrpopfest