Hot.

Here's the other side of Manchester. The east side. The forgotten side. Whilst the media celebrates the rise of 'Gloomchester' with its honoured Northern Quarter buddies- Puressence are still out there. There are no 'faces' in the crowd tonight. This is 100 per cent locals. The sort of people who actually buy records! And Puressence have a fierce and loyal fanbase. It's the sort of fanbase that makes this band remarkably stick together in the face of growing music biz disinterest.

Shame, because never have they sounded better. Tonight they are stunning. I mean that voice, where does a the laddish-looking James Mudriczki find that angelic voice. It never deserts him once. Not one squeak. Not one crack. It soars casually, cockily above the fluid chimed guitar, deep dark dub bass and thundering drum backdrop.

There is no voice like this and if Manchester has a tradition of cack-throated vocalists whose attitude wins the day then no-one one told James - this fucker can actually sing.

And the songs? Celebratory or dark and despondent - these are the very soundtrack of the real city life in Manchester, not the student trendy, not the endless fakers or media pets but the ups and downs the crazed hopes and the merciless depressions of living just beyond the new steel and glass wealth of marketable Manchester. It's the sound of endless dark winter days with no money combined with the outrageous Manchester optimism and it's never sounded better.

Puressence aren't just coasting in 2003 - this isn't a band that is knackered and playing for some pin money. Puressence are a band that is on fire. This is the sound of the working class lads making moody rock music; proving once and for all that it isn't just the preserve of the Coldplay set. For fucks sake, someone give this band a hand, we can¹t keep letting genuine talent like this be ignored.

Support comes from Adom, an American band who have made the curious move to Manchester. Their intensity and flanged guitar epics are a perfect compliment to the headliners and their intense bug-eyed powerful set proves that they have all the right moves for the the new moody guitar terrain. A charismatic frontman and a sweat drenched intense unit of a band bodes well for there future. Coming on like a Chameleons/U2 soaked mish mash of early eighties brave new stadium experimantalists, Adom are yet another American band selling coals back to Newcastle. They have all the right attributes to grab flavour of the month status - but they will have to make sure that everyone thinks they are still from New York!