Featured image and gallery: Gracie Hall
Haffway starts the evening – the Nashville-born singer/songwriter’s powerful voice
commands the entire room and despite being new to most in the Deaf Institute, the
audience hangs onto his every note. His charismatic presence engages the room as he chats
freely to the crowd.
‘I Don’t Need You Anymore’ taps into the well of melancholic songs produced by many
artists from the small towns of the Bible Belt and Midwest, painting a picture of a yearning
for something that isn’t good for him.
Elle Coves then springs onto stage in a 60s-inspired tan jumpsuit, mirroring the matching cowboy
hats and boots seen scattered in the crowd. Her song ‘Lost Cowboy’ has become a fan
favourite since its release in October, with fans screaming “Don’t take me for a love-drunk
home-run kid”. Elle’s songs are so personal to her but are relatable to her predominantly
younger female audience.
Even though the room is small, her voice fills every corner; powerful and emotional. With a
cover of Taylor Swift’s ‘Is it Over Now?’ and the final bridge of ‘Out of the Woods’ thrown in
for good measure, Coves cements herself as a new indie-pop princess and someone to keep
an eye on for 2024.
Playing an unreleased song called ‘Blonde on Blonde’, which a select few girls at the front
already knew most of the words too, Elle hints at future releases and excites everyone.
Ending the set with her first single ‘Before I Fall Apart’, the room jumps with her. The song
sounds like a coming-of-age cinematic soundtrack and encapsulates how this first headline
tour will feel for 19-year-old Elle herself.
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Featured image: Press Toots and the Maytals return to Manchester for their ‘Reggae Got Soul’ 50th anniversary tour. Following their hugely successful 2025 tour, Toots and the Maytals return to Manchester to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their landmark album, Reggae Got Soul. Fronted for decades by Frederick ‘Toots’ Hibbert – named by Rolling Stone…
Featured image: Press Manchester Film Festival returned to Aviva Studios for its 12th edition, opening to a full house and setting the tone for an 11-day programme of screenings, premieres and industry events. The festival launched with a double-bill: Psychopomp, the directorial debut of Game of Thrones star Kit Harington, followed by Jan Komasa’s latest feature Good…
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