When: 7.30pm on Friday 7 March 2014
Where: St Philip with St Stephen Church, Encombe Place, Salford, M3 6FJ
We’re helping Manchester’s own Patterns launch their debut album, Waking Lines.
We never really had Patterns down as masters of Acoustics and Oneirology. Bedroom dreamers maybe, a Mancunian guitar band of course, but with Waking Lines – the eagerly anticipated debut album – this is a band marking themselves out as true scientists of songcraft. With its array of field recordings, samples, original compositions and an epic haze of spellbinding loops, sonic sparks are set to fly from this thoroughly modern shoegaze-pop record.
‘The title-track is constructed from samples of bells we found in a local monastery,’ reveals singer Ciaran. ‘It’s an attempt to capture the solitude of sleeplessness and the absurd wonderings of a tired mind. It also serves as the clearest expression of the album’s themes of sleep, memory and loss.’
Patterns’ fusion of head and heart may well induce a dreamlike state but across Waking Lines’ 10 tracks, every note has been constructed with meticulous focus. This is a band who’ve always known what they wanted to achieve – a group who together and individually, have spent time honing their craft not to mention their spectacularly colourful live performances into an entity that’s indisputably Patterns.
http://vimeo.com/47647153
‘Listening to American bands like Deerhunter and Animal Collective, we learned you can be different and still be a guitar band,’ Ciaran says. ‘Once Patterns formed we knew exactly what we wanted to do with it, and recent shows have been a culmination of a lot of things, including the use of visuals and making it a real experience to come and see us play.’
Made up of foursome Ciaran McAuley (vocals/guitar/keyboards), Alex Hillhouse (bass/samplers), Jamie Lynch (drums) and Laurence Radford (guitar/samplers), the band’s unique approach is what has had DJs from Mary Anne Hobbs and BBC 6music’s Steve Lamacq foaming at the microphone. Upon hearing Patterns’ equally glistening and smouldering wall of noise, Huw Stevens picked the band to perform at Swn Festival, Rob Da Bank chose them to play at Bestival, and there have been shows all over France and Spain, not to mention a scholarly hometown show amongst the book shelves of Manchester’s John Rylands library. Already Waking Lines has been a long time coming, but it’s been well worth the wait.
Complemented by an array of psychedelic visuals, Patterns’ knack for transcending both time and space can transform even the dingiest back room of a pub into a star-filled galaxy with an array of shimmering, delicately melded guitars and evocative electronica.
‘Patterns are creating beautiful electronic drone pop that makes you feel like you’re flying’ – The Guardian
Support comes from London’s Beaty Heart, an incredibly creative electro-guitar outfit with afro-beat influences and colourful psychedelic loops. Manchester’s fast-rising minimal electro-pop two-piece U.V. will also be dazzling those down early.
St Philip with St Stephen is one of Greater Manchester’s finest Georgian buildings, dating back to 1825. The building’s Greek style is unique in Salford. It is situated just seconds from Chapel Street and less than a mile from Deansgate.
This show is a co-promotion with Northern Noise and Clash Magazine.
Buy tickets now. Tickets are also available from Common (no booking fee), Piccadilly Records, Vinyl Exchange, Seetickets.com, WeGotTickets.com, Ticketline.co.uk and on 0871 220 0260.