CityLife

Mind On Fire - putting community spirit back into Manc music

Denis Jones

WE often hear about the ‘community aspect’ of the Manchester music scene – and now, a bunch of resourceful young folks are aiming to bring that special unity into cyberspace.

The new Mind On Fire website is a brave attempt to create an online resource for the whole Manchester music community.

Whether you’re a band, a promoter, a DJ or a producer, Mind On Fire hopes to make your life all that more easier – offering what is essentially a database and mass social networking facility to contact ‘creative’ types and share thoughts and ideas.

 And for us ordinary music fans, Mind On Fire delivers much greatness too – offering us free (yes, that’s FREE) music downloads, plus numerous live music events featuring the hottest young acts on the Manc music scene

Covering all genres

The Mind On Fire collective has existed for around four years, an ever-evolving set-up consisting of local musicians, DJs and producers, dedicated to staging live events and supporting young musicians, covering all genres from hip-hop to electronica to jazz to DubStep.

But in the last 12 months, the collective’s ambitions have considerably shot up – first there was the Mind On Fire record label, and now they are launching their own website.

Typical of the collective’s all-inclusive ethos though, this is a venture not about promoting themselves.

 “We’re not about ego,” says Lowell Walbank, MOF’s Creative Director. “The thing about this website is all about supporting local musicians who really need the help.

Foot in the door

''It’s amazing really, but if you searched on the internet, there’s so few resources for Manchester musicians to actually get support and make contacts. We want to provide that first step for young musicians to get their foot in the door.”

The Mind On Fire website launches officially this week (January 22-24), and to mark the occasion, the collective are staging a feast of free live gigs across the city.

Thursday, at Deaf Institute, there’s a hip-hop spectacular with a live set from NEKO NEKO, plus visuals by ace local artists Sketch City.

Friday, there’s an electronica/breaks DJ showdown at the Ram & Shackle in Withington;

Saturday at The Nook pub in Chorlton, things get a little more genteel with acoustic performances from the likes of CityLife fave Denis Jones and LA77.   

For full details and to dip your toes in Manc music’s new social networking world visit – www.mindonfire.co.uk