By Emma Turner
Over the weekend, rising indie rockers, Manilla Times, played their biggest show to date at Manchester Academy 3, and they absolutely brought the house down.
Made up of frontman Jack McKelvey, guitarist Jason Watkins, bassist Ollie Neave, and drummer Sean Wheldon, the band brought an insane amount of energy; on a high from start to finish.
As fans swiftly made their way into the venue, they weren’t left waiting long for the night to begin. Starting the night off strong, support act Sad Films hit the stage, oozing confidence and immediately getting the crowd hyped. He brought the crowd alive and ready for the night that was about to unfold.
Handing out flowers to fans upon entrance, and throwing some into the pit, you could instantly feel the love and appreciation from him, which was reciprocated from fans who threw them back onto the stage at him in pure admiration.
Plugged In was the track that gained the best reaction in the room, as everyone cheered and danced along. Despite having a short set of only six songs – he left a long lasting impression.
Lower Loveday were the second support act of the night, who ran on stage ready to amp up the crowd even more.
Lead vocalist Mark, captivated the audience with his soaring vocals and phenomenal stage presence from the very start. Along with his ability to engage the crowd, the audience were in for a treat, with a remarkable cover of Believe by Cher. Everyone was belting the lyrics together, with the mic being pointed towards the pit, and the crowd truly embraced the moment.
He sang some of his original songs too, including You Could’ve Been My Queen, where Mark encouraged the crowd to get down low, and jump as the chorus built.
Their overall sound had punchy drums and irresistibly catchy lyrics making the perfect combination for a lively show.
As the crowd waited in anticipation, the main event – Manilla Times, entered the stage to Busy Earnin’ by Jungle as they took their positions.
Kickstarting their set was Miracle Worker, the perfect tune to get the crowd involved, with fans chanting the lyrics “I’m fucking tired of it” with such a strong passion.
Their next track amplified the room even more—You Down For It?—despite being released only a few weeks ago. Springing into action with a funky guitar riff, it had the entire venue jumping. The performance was so impressive to witness, as this was one of the first times the song had been performed live, and the reception from the crowd couldn’t have been better.
We then came to a break in the set, where frontman Jack McKelvey asked how everyone was feeling, to which someone responded “Jase get your kit off!” followed by a crowd full of laughter – a recurring theme that stayed until the very end of the night.
If there’s one thing to note from their performance, it’s the heavy influence of guitars throughout each song. Even when the tempo slowed down a bit with Broken House, the track still had an undeniable energy, thanks to the incredible guitar playing that drove it forward. Combining this with the pure joy on their faces as the band performed together, truly made the experience unforgettable.
Anyone in the room could see that they love what they do and value making their show enjoyable for everyone, from Jack encouraging his fans to get closer to the stage, generating an even more intimate feel, to him standing on the barricade himself to sing.
Without question, the connection between the audience was growing more and more as the gig progressed, with some even spinning and twirling one another.
Manilla Times played a mixture of the old and new on Saturday night, with a few unreleased tracks, such as Softboy McCoy and History, so there really was something for everyone.
However, one member of the crowd was relentless in asking for them to play Dirty Trainers – a track from their first EP Informal Edits, to which Jack’s cheeky response to these callouts were ‘Is it my gig or your gig?!’ followed by a chuckle, before starting the next song.
Fans from the earlier days in their career were still catered for, with Queen Of California being a song that fans cheered and whistled for, after screaming the lyrics word for word. Come Around shortly followed after, a song now ‘going into retirement,’ Jack explained; that this would be the last time they performed the song—this news causing the crowd to absolutely give it their all.
After playing one of their most recent singles Mona Lisa, the band then exited the stage, and the lights went dim, but the audience knew that the concert wasn’t over yet.
The band returned for a much-needed encore, with two more songs, Boys, which spurred the room back into dancing and singing, and Third Time Lucky – one of their most popular songs on Spotify.
No gig is complete though without a photo with the crowd, so Manilla Times gathered each and every fan together, as Angels by Robbie Williams played through the speakers, and the house lights were lifted.
[Photo Credit: Emma Turner/ADRENALINE Magazine]
Photography & Text Copyright 2025 © Emma Turner/ADRENALINE Magazine. All rights reserved.
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