Thursday 31st January 2008 - Stars

Night Five - Manchester Academy Three - 31st January 2008 - Stars

Well, it ended as quickly as it started, with night number five of five coming to pass quicker than you can say 'You can't spell stalagmite without Jenny Owen Youngs' (which you can't - it's true!).

So, at least I was going to my last gig of the week with an idea of the band I was watching that was positive. And it was to stay so. You see, I've never held up Stars to be the prophets of a post-rock movement. They've been an occasional but welcome intrusion into my ears for a while now, and cosy in my head, so to see them put a lampshade on stage and turn the place into everyone's generic living room only added to the sense of cosy occasion. To top off that living room feeling, Julie Hesmondhalgh was in attendence and it was nice to say hello to her, both as someone who's had the surreal pleasure of serving many Coronation Street cast members their beers and wines in the past and as someone who whilst not being a Corrie fan, has an affection for Hayley (her character on the world's longest running soap-opera) - after all, who hasn't felt like having a sex-change every once in a while, just to show up women?!?!

Back to the business at hand - Stars. They performed, I listened. I enjoyed what I heard and so did a crowd well versed in their music. I also felt the need to drink large quantities of gin, which is no criticism of Stars, but rather a failing of my head to cope with much more music after a week of embracing one band after another. So I can't really tell you too much about Stars, other than to say they were good musical company at the end of a trip that taught me you can never have enough live music once you've fallen in love with the live music scene.

After five nights, all I have left to say is 'gin, gin, gin'; may your shows be blessed with talent and originality as most of mine were, and may the musical gods walk above the skies you walk below. We are stardust kids, and we are what we seek and that is most true in the music that comes to us - it is no more than a reflection of our own abilities to dream, to create and to hope.

Take care.