News / Mondays man for Mareel
HAPPY MONDAYS singer Shaun Ryder will perform in Shetland this summer with his reunited group Black Grape.
The band – who are heading out on tour to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their No.1 album ‘It’s Great When You’re Straight…Yeah’ – will play Mareel in Lerwick on Saturday 4 July.
Ryder and co. are best known for tracks like ‘Reverend Black Grape’ and ‘In the Name of the Father’. He formed Black Grape in the mid-90s following the demise of iconic Manchester act Happy Mondays.
Alan McLeod from promoters Klub Revolution said that the gig would go some way to make up for the disappointment of Happy Mondays pulling their planned show at Mareel in 2012.
The concert will incidentally replace the promoter’s scheduled Happy Mondaze tribute event, which was due to be held on 4 July at the same venue.
Local indie outfit Dig Deep will provide support alongside Subtronic DJ Saul Day, who will perform a “Hacienda-era” set.
McLeod said: “I’m delighted and amazed that a band of the stature of Black Grape has agreed to play Shetland as part of its special one-off tour which will also coincide with the 15th anniversary of Klub Revolution being formed.
“We were extremely disappointed three years ago when Happy Mondays had to cancel the show at Mareel due to illness, but it is with great credit to Shaun Ryder and the band’s agent that they have kept to their word and will now visit us with the brilliant Black Grape.”
Meanwhile, another Klub Revolution event will see tribute act Them Beatles play their first ever show in Shetland on Friday 5 June.
Paying homage to the band who changed the face of music forever, the group promises to cover all eras of The Beatles’ music: from the “mop-top”, suit-clad days of the Cavern Club, through their psychedelic mid 1960s period which saw the release of masterpieces such as ‘Rubber Soul’, ‘Revolver’ and ‘Sgt Pepper’, to the last days of the Fab Four as they released ‘Abbey Road’ and performed on the rooftop of Apple Studios.
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Them Beatles are described as one of the most sought after tribute bands in the country, regularly touring Europe, Japan and America as well as selling out venues the length and breadth of the UK.
They use only authentic instruments, as used by The Beatles, to replicate the band’s original and innovative sound.
Supporting Them Beatles will be Lisa Ward, who has made a real name for herself by appearing on BBC’s ‘The Voice’ and releasing her debut EP ‘Liminal’.
Tickets for the Black Grape concert will go on sale priced at £30 from Shetland Box Office at 10am on Friday (24 April).
Those who bought tickets for the Happy Mondaze gig can exchange them at Shetland Box Office for a Black Grape ticket.
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