b&n magazine is a free and independent zine originally from Germany, now based in Manchester, UK. We're trying to keep it monothematic, which mostly doesn't work out. The articles are either in German or English (or both sometimes) and deal with everything vague related to popular culture, music, politics and feminism.
There were people with radio button thingies in the entrance hall. Women with very high high heels. Men in suits. And us: a scruffy looking pair of soon to be drunk soon to be doctors, wearing sturdy boots in preparation for the second part of our evening. The presidential suite of the Lowry hotel wasn’t quite as glamorous as one would have expected, but the big floor to ceiling windows that made up one side of the sitting room set the right atmosphere for the wonderful concert we were about to experience. Nancy Elisabeth, multi-instrumental, giggly and lovely as always, played a few songs before Hauschka took over the piano that had all sorts of bric a brac sticking out. What followed was a wave of piano music and percussive sounds, caused by kids’ drums, necklaces, ping pong balls and vibrating bullets that were stuck into the piano, paired with explanations and stories told by the surprisingly chatty and charming musician.
From classy to flashy: The second half of the evening was more shouty than chatty and certainly a lot messier, as we saw M.I.A. at the Warehouse Project. Well, we heard the music, the odd noise from her, and saw some flashing lights, but the lady herself made hardly any impact on the show. Given my disliking for the Warehouse Project, I hadn’t expected this to be ultimately satisfying in the first place, but the euphoric atmosphere in the audience and sweaty one-on-one body contact made for an all-round fun experience.
Hauschka 1 : M.I.A. 0.5
