Manchester
Cathedral will host, for the second year, Columns Festival on Saturday 2
May. The one-day event makes use of the cavernous Cathedral setting and
showcases a shortlist of strong leftfield emerging electronic artists. Last
year’s line-up included Future Islands and East India Youth, both of whom
promptly became far more established artists in their own right. This year is
headlined by the Canadian duo of Purity Ring and Braids alongside Ghostpoet,
Born Gold, Shivum Sharma, Clarence Clarity and Cash + David. It looks set to
showcase another range of performers, many of whom are performing newly
released music.
Topping the
bill is Purity Ring, showcasing their second and more accessible album, Another Eternity. Arriving from an
extensive European tour, the Manchester stop will be another in a long line
with tour support and kindred spirit Born Gold. Both artists are deeply rooted in
the electro-pop formula and are strongly interconnected performers.
The
festival will also mark the first weekend after the release of Braids’ third
album, Deep In the Iris. One of the
most progressive Canadian artists of the decade, the group’s collective work
has gained comparisons with Animal Collective, Björk and Burial. With further
shifts in direction on their new album they have delved into drum and bass as
well as house. Early single ‘Miniskirt’ also suggests a new clarity to their
sound that has often relied on a dense and obscure maximalist approach.
Ghostpoet
likewise released his third album, Shedding
Skin, back in March, conveying a similar upfront confidence that was
missing from his previous work. His performance, like many on the bill, will
prove his progression as an artist, from Mercury nomination to now.
Three relatively
undiscovered artists complete the bill. Shivum Sharma fuses gospel atmospherics
with soft, minimalist textures. Clarence Clarity is taking glitch-pop to an
extreme, sounding like a cross-between Kindness and Hudson Mohawke, but with
added camp. Finally Cash + David, featuring Bombay Bicycle Club backing singer
Liz Lawrence, are an electro-pop duo surely taking note of the headliners. All
three will feature first at Columns before venturing to play a number of the summer’s
most anticipated festivals.
Columns is
set to be an occasion for hearing established electronic talents alongside new
blood relishing the chance to perform in one of the city’s most ornate venues.
Words: Thomas
Dixon
Information
and tickets can be found on the Columns website, here.
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