On a rainy December’s evening, the Manchester outfit, Malcom, wander down to an eagerly waiting crowd of supporters at The Deaf Institute, ecstatic to play their second headline gig, supported by bands Daisychain and Little Strange.
By Ruby Henry-Dicks
The young quartet hailed from Bimm Music Institute and Manchester Metropolitan University, forming little over a year ago and remarkably selling out their headline show at Northern Quarters’ 33 Oldham Street in January.
They have three released songs at present and have already been invited to play live on the BBC introducing show following their success of singles ‘Subconscious’ and ‘C’est La Vie’.
After recently joining The Vaccines guitarist Freddie Cowan in April and playing alongside London group The Molotovs, they’re heading to Liverpool, London, Leeds and Manchester’s very own Deaf Institute tonight.
Guitarist Evan reflects on the opportunity to headline, he expresses his excitement to perform for their fans calling it “a really, really cool experience for us” with his obvious adoration for the “beautiful venue”. He hints at new and exclusive music they will be debuting tonight “We’ve got a lot more new songs out on the set that no one has heard”, his enthusiasm is infectious, “I’m excited for everyone to hear it”.
Stepping inside the historic 1878 Deaf Institute’s Music Hall room the crowd are going back in time, but not to the 19th century, but to the dramatic Indie atmosphere of the mid 00’s.
Malcom has the chance to have other artists play with their name on a banner behind them this time – “There’s a lot more showmanship to a headline – we DIY spray painted this backdrop, which you don’t get to have the luxury of doing when it’s just a support”.
First up is Daisychain, the Mancunian four-piece tackling teenage angst and love one song at a time, with their songs ‘Stay’ and ‘222’. The band executes a mashup of Chappelle Roans ‘Hot To Go’ and Sugababes’‘Push The Button’ with ease.
Lissy Nicholson, lead vocalist and guitarist, echoes Blondie with her deep, bold vocals and 70’s rock persona.
The song ‘Stay’ hits home with its catchy but carefree indie-pop style and the clever and loving lyrics of ‘222’ has the crowd feeling nostalgic.
Speaking to us they said, “We had a lot of fun and are really grateful to the lads from Malcom for letting us play!”.
Daisychain’s Instagram:
After the softness subsided, Little Strange the Mancunian alt-rock ensemble upped the tempo playing their final show this year, after a busy year being named ‘ones to watch in 2024’ by Our Sound Music.
Little Strange’s Instagram
They kick off their set with ‘Alright Now’, a gritty rock anthem, likely to ignite excitement among throngs of enthusiastic gig-lovers.
The single explodes with thunderous energy, featuring Jack Clyne’s bass and Charlie Harris’s drums creating a robust rhythm, while Olly Davis delivers powerful guitar riffs.
Frontman Jamie Thompson’s vocals soar with intense yearning, capturing listeners with a commanding performance that hints at the band’s alt-rock ethos.
‘Ain’t Got Nothin’, ‘You Said’, ‘Hard Days Hard Times’, ‘Livin’ In Sin’, ‘Comin’ Home’ and finally ‘Ride’ play in sequence.
A set highlight is ‘You Said’, their newest single released in November which can be described as a track that revels in rumination and an inability to let go of past experiences “The things you said, it goes round in my head” definitely goes round in our heads it echoes sounds of a murkier, rawer version of a 2018 You Me At Six.
Vocalist Jamie describes the night: “To perform to such a receptive crowd was a real pleasure and privilege to be a part of. At a time where many artists and venues are struggling to keep going, it was such a joy to see a packed-out Deaf Institute on a rainy Wednesday evening in December. A real testament to grassroots music!”.
Before Malcom took the stage, Betsy, 22 an artist in her own right known as BETS, from Brighton exclaims – “Malcom are the next up and coming rock band – oh my god and they’re coming on!”
The first track plays, their newest July release ‘All the Time’, an infectious, rambunctious song with an unforgettable gritty chorus which showcases the bands intensity and sophistication.
The crowd is taken into a new era of Malcom as they debut new tracks such as ‘Airplane’, ‘Alien’, ‘Fool Me’, ‘Coincide’, ‘Not Saying’, ‘Daytona’, ‘Hard Working Blues’, ‘Alright’, ‘Running’ and ‘Lead Balloon’. Some new and some played previously but not released.
Speaking to Malcom, two of these tracks have been recorded and will be released in January. The tracks are ‘Fool Me’ (Blossoms inspired synth led track) and ‘Airplane’ (Bloc Party, Stereophonics inspired rock track)
‘Daytona’ has the crowd in awe at Caz’s crisp and yearning voice that shone through as the vibrant drums in the other tracks were taken out and his bass swapped for a guitar on this softer song.
The harmonica enriches another more fiery track it features on with its organic sound, contrasts the electric bass, to convey complex emotions and sounds.
Photography: Ruby Henry-Dicks
Malcolm’s vocalist Caz cuts through to the audience to pull at their heart strings in a full circle moment when he stops to tell a story of playing ‘Subconscious’ to his parents who dismissed him at the time and told him to turn his music off as they didn’t recognise him at first as they hadn’t heard his music in 3 years.
Photography: Rohan Walsh
‘C’est La Vie’ plays halfway through, an infectious indie anthem with a captivating deep bass and striking guitar. The gig rounds up cleanly with their first hit ‘Subconscious’ which opened a mosh-pit of fans to end, stirred on by Caz Donaghy’s passionate and naked vocals as he explored poignant aspects of love’s highs and lows.
The Crowd
Catching up with some of the crowd’s reaction to Malcom, Evo Hare, 22, a student says “I just thought they were so energetic and you can tell they just gave everyone such a good night, every song was just so unique and so fun and just everybody loved it”.
Alex, 21, also a student mirrored the sentiments and stated “very atmospheric, very lively and just a very fun night”.
Ellie, 22, student, provides a unique insight “something that makes Malcom stand out is the transition between the songs the setlist worked really nicely not only was each song really really good but the whole set worked together so well”.
Ruby Henry-Dicks 
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