WARMDUSCHER BREAK THEIR RECORDING ‘BOREDOM’ WITH INTIMATE MANCHESTER GIG
Warmduscher (Lucy McLachlan/Northern Exposure)
PHOTO GALLERY | WARMDUSCHER | THE WHITE HOTEL, MANCHESTER | 21st May 2026 by Lucy McLachlan
After swearing they wouldn’t play anymore shows until a new album was finished, Warmduscher announced they were bored, couldn’t sit still and heading back out there. Playing just 4 dates plus Bearded Theory festival, their sold out Manchester date at Salford’s The White Hotel (the most beautiful ramshackle ex garage in the middle of a run down industrial estate) feels a rare treat to see the band playing in such a tiny intimate space where the crowd is nearly on top of the stage.
Last Manchester gigs included dates at the O2 Ritz and Projekts Skatepark headlining the Manchester Psych Fest playing to much larger audiences. But kudos to promoters Now Wave for giving us a now hopefully annual intimate show at Salford space where they did a similar gig in May 2025.
Their set promised all the old favourites mixed with new material to get us riled up for the bands next release since 2024’s Too Cold To Hold. What we got on a warm May evening heading into a heatwave weekend was a mere 250 people dancing under a sweaty tin roof to a set list of what felt like all the best songs off all of their albums. Riled up we were and the feeling that this White Hotel gig was something special. Now when can we expect that new album?
Support and on strict duty for crowd warm up is East London’s Freddy Forbidden. His first gig in Manchester blends grime with alt rock, with lyrics about his modeling days and pizza. Tasked with getting the crowd moving before the headliners, call and response attempts fizzled out until we’re told not to act like a London audience and shout back, which worked. The North/South divide is a powerful thing.
