Dane Road Headline Academy 3: A Review By Sam Livermore

At their Manchester Academy 3 headlining gig, Dane Road proved that Manchester is and always will be a hub of creativity in the student and independent music scene. After support from a diverse range of independent artists and bands including Jace Campbell, a solo indie-pop artist who harkens back to some of Manchester’s finest songwriters; the 25th Hour, a five-piece who combine psychedelic instrumentals with an emotive vocal performance and the Demo, a band that managed to encapsulate everything great about Manchester’s indie history, Dane Road took to the stage to deliver a set-list that included fan-favourites, covers and unreleased gems.

After forming in Sale in 2019, Dane Road have been slowly building up a catalogue of singles and gaining traction in the Manchester independent scene. Especially, they have made a lot of fans in their hometown of Sale (whose fields on Dane Road are the namesake of the band).

They opened with ‘Otter’ - their debut single and a clear fan favourite. The song is driven forwards by a pounding drum beat that helps tie together all the hard rock elements in the song which makes it a perfect choice for an opener. After this, they moved into a cover of ‘Boys in the Better Land’ by Fontaines D.C. The energy of this song was infectious and, by the time they finished their rendition, the whole crowd was hooked.

This would then make way for some slower tracks later in the set-list. A clear highlight of these was ‘Next Train,’ performed solo by the lead singer who stood on stage alone performing with just vocals backed by a moving guitar part. However, this did not lose the band any momentum as they would soon get back into the more energetic songs that they have a particular talent for. They moved straight into ‘Mean Old Morning’ which was another highlight of the gig, featuring some of the best lyrics of any of the songs performed.

Another fan favourite came later with the song ‘Exodus,’ an unreleased single that has been gaining traction amongst the fans of the band. The crowd’s reaction to them performing the single was fantastic and it will be a big release for them.

Towards the end of the gig, they moved into performing some of their more ambitious originals. These included the one-two punch of ‘Heartbreak Child’ and ‘River’ that ended the night on a high note. In particular, ‘River,’ was the favourite song of the entire evening as it alternated between slower, psychedelic sections and more energetic and grandiose moments.

Overall, the night proved that Dane Road is a band to watch in the coming months as they continue to build up their discography and grow in the

Manchester student music scene. They mix the traditional inspirations that you would expect from an independent band growing up in Manchester, but what really makes them stand out is the way they draw on some hard rock elements to create a final product that never gets too gloomy and keeps a consistently moving energy.

They’ve set out to make themselves stand-out by focusing on creating great live shows and this gig proved that they have been very successful in this goal. I would look forward to seeing the music they release in the future, and I would recommend keeping an eye out for any gigs that they will be performing around Manchester.