The band The Answer
The venue Manchester Academy
Location Manchester
Date 13/03/2012
Back in February 2009 I took Bean counter to Paris to see ACDC at the Bercy stadium. Supporting the main act that night were an Irish band by the name of the Answer. I was impressed enough by the support to decide if they ever toured the UK as a headline in their own right I would go along and see them. As luck would have it in mid March 2012 they headlined at the Manchester academy along with a support act of their own and me and BC went to see them. In fairness it should be pointed it was a double headline act but the Answer finished the night and as far as I am concerned that means topping the bill.
If you not seen or heard of the Answer they are a 4 piece full on rock outfit consisting of drums, bass, guitar and vocals with the ability to bang out a good blues track every now and then. The vocalist is a bundle of energy in the Angus Young mould of never standing still and managing to look like cousin IT from the Adams family with St Vitas dance. He dived into the audience during “Preacher” and managed to get everyone around him to sit in a circle. This sort of thing is quite normal up north and does not happen a lot in the Hammersmith Odeon. The set list consisted of something old, don’t follow me and too far gone with lots of new stuff from the revival album. As a night it was pure rock with the venue packed to the rafters enhancing the atmosphere. I was jumping up and down like an 18 year old on crack by the third song. If you have not seen this outfit, go and see them now before they reach stadium level where they will be the size of matchsticks. I am sure you will not be disappointed. Check out their website for more details http://www.theanswer.ie/
Of course the crowd had been warmed up by the previous band the Union. Formed by Luke Morley thunders ex guitarist this is a powerful rock band with a couple of albums under their belt. Check out their debut album Union and the follow up Sirens song. The vocalist (Pete Shoulder) dominates the stage with a throaty powerful voice and the ability to tell a tale. His story of how the band were stopped by the police on the way down to Manchester and probably faced a hefty fine on their return went down well. I was in party mood long before they left the stage. I had not heard of this band before but their albums are on my Xmas wish list. http://www.theuniononline.com/site/
Well before we arrived and shortly after booking the tickets the pair of us decided we would stay the night in Manchester so we could have a drink and something to eat rather than face the drive home and the associated traffic. What we required was a place not too far away from the Academy and not too noisy. And so it was that I stumbled upon the Martin Luther king hotel which fitted in with what we needed and with the price being right I booked for one night. I never gave it a moment’s thought until we arrived in the grounds of the hotel and I thought this looks like an old college or school. And so it was that I had booked us into a theological retreat. I suppose the name should have given it away but I just assumed it was a trendy name like Mandela walks which are given out randomly by the “right on” PC brigade.
I can tell you it in is fact a charming place and if you ever want peace and quiet within the inner city this is the place to go. I could see me staying there for a couple of days to recharge my batteries and unwind but probably not for much longer than that. With an epic concert and a comfortable bed it really was a great night.