George the Poet: Northwest book events August 2015

DJ and author Dave Haslam launches his new book Life After Dark: A History of British Nightclubs & Music Venues in Manchester on 16 Aug. DJing more than 450 times at Manchester’s iconic Haçienda nightclub in its late 1980s heyday, Haslam is a legend of the ‘Madchester’ music scene.

Having explored the city’s radical and musical heritage in his book Manchester, England, Haslam’s latest title is a broad history of Britain’s significant venues and nights: from Victorian dance halls through to the venues behind The Beatles and the Sex Pistols. Haslam is in conversation with an impressive panel, featuring drummer Bruce Mitchell (The Durutti Column), DJ Graeme Park (Haçienda), Kath McDermott (Flesh/HomoElectric) and musician Pete Wylie (Wah!). The launch will be followed by a DJ set in Manchester’s newest interdisciplinary arts centre, HOME, a stone’s throw from the Haçienda building itself.

With their tenth festival just around the corner, Manchester Literature Festival have co-commissioned a bold multimedia work with Manchester Jazz Festival (now in its 20th year). An Ape’s Progress brings together three artists, each established in their own field, to celebrate the anniversaries of both festivals. Irish poet Matthew Sweeney is joined by saxophonist and composer Iain Ballamy along with Dave McKean, an artist and filmmaker, to combine words, music and visual art for the unique commission. The piece premieres at the Royal Northern College of Music on 6 Aug.

The distinction between poetry and music has become increasingly ambiguous, with artists like Kate Tempest being nominated for last year’s Mercury prize after winning the Ted Hughes poetry award in 2012. Mixing stanzas and melodies, two hotly tipped spoken word artists are pushing poetry’s boundaries at music festivals across the Northwest this August. Listed fifth in the BBC’s Sound of 2015, George the Poet is an act not to be missed by literature lovers at this year’s Leeds Festival. Dubbed the ‘hippest poet in Britain,’ George Mpanga started out rapping before deciding to use his poetry as a force for social change. His powerful performances have already landed him more YouTube views than the Poet Laureate, as well as a nomination for this year’s Critics’ Choice Awards at the BRITs.

Elsewhere, Liverpool International Music Festival (LIMF) welcomes spoken word duo SPXKEN to their Summer Jam event this month. Citing influences from Kanye West to T.S. Eliot, Teesoulful and Jayyangelo combine their poetry with hip-hop, R&B, gospel and house. The pair were chosen as part of LIMF’s Academy programme, which seeks to develop emerging young musical talent in Merseyside. You heard them here first.

Finally, the hugely popular and critically acclaimed author David Mitchell will be discussing his latest novel, The Bone Clocks, in Liverpool on 13 Aug. The Southport-born writer is best known for his book Cloud Atlas, which was made into a feature film starring Tom Hanks, Halle Berry and Jim Broadbent in 2012. Longlisted for both the Man Booker Prize (2014) and The Folio Prize (2015), The Bone Clocks tells the story of its protagonist, Holly Sykes, through Mitchell’s characteristically experimental form: the novel is split into six parts, each telling a different chapter of Holly’s life through multiple genres and points of view. 

Fans don’t have to wait long for the next instalment. Slade House, a novella which began life on Twitter, is set to be published by Sceptre this autumn. Taking place in the same universe as The Bone Clocks, the book developed from a 280-tweet story known as The Right Sort. Expect another inventive, fantastical and gripping read.