THE MARCH VIOLETS REUNITE FOR MANCHESTER 2023 SHOW WITH SPECIAL GUESTS KRISTEEN YOUNG & VISION VIDEO @ MANCHESTER ACADEMY 3

– FRIDAY 2^nd JUNE 2023 –

41 years on since they first formed – THE MARCH VIOLETS – are delighted to announce plans for their live reunion.

With an appearance planned at Manchester Academy 3 on Friday 2nd June 2023, the boundary-shredding post/punk band from Leeds make their long awaited return to the stage for the first time since 2015.

Following a warm reception to a series of reissues on the Jungle Records label, including most recently the digital release of classic 7” singles “Walk into the Sun” (which has been unavailable since the ‘80s) & “Crow Baby”, the cult band have decided that the time is now for the return of The March Violets.

Comprising founding members Rosie Garland (performer, poet and author) and Tom Ashton (Guitarist, producer and studio owner), plus William Faith (musician and vocalist with Faith & the Muse, Conflict, The Bellwether Syndicate), the band are intending the shows to be a celebration of The March Violets’ legacy, while also honouring the irreplaceable contribution of friend and founding member Simon Denbigh.

Speaking about their upcoming reunion, The March Violets explain:

“Since the last March Violets tour in 2015 we’ve been shocked at how many musical friends have passed over and out. And after Simon Denbigh’s life-changing stroke, it’s no surprise we all thought that was it for the Violets. When, in 2021, Jungle Records released Big Soul Kiss (The BBC Sessions double album) for Record Store Day 2021 it sold out its entire pressing in 24 hours. We were amazed at the response, absolutely amazed. We faced a choice – to fade away quietly or go out with a celebration.

We feel for Simon, and honour his massive artistic contribution & intense vision as one of The March Violets founding members. He’s irreplaceable, so we’re not going to try. We believe the legacy of The March Violets deserves a far better conclusion than sinking into silence, and now is the right time to do it.”

With their first incarnation described by Sounds magazine as “slinky, savage yet warmly delicate [with a] thirst for mystery, magic and brutal darkness”, The March Violets were a post/punk band cut from a different cloth. Founded in Leeds in 1981, from there the band would initiate an impressive career that would see them navigating all corners of the alternative scene and accrue a longstanding cult following. With their debut EP ‘Religious As Hell’ released by Andrew Eldritch (frontman of fellow Leeds scene band The Sisters of Mercy), TMV would tally a total of seven successful Indie Chart singles including “Grooving in Green”, “Snake Dance”, “Deep”, and “Walk Into The Sun”, plus their ‘Radiant Boys’ EP, at the height of their powers. With an impeccable John Peel Session also under their belts, the band released two compilation albums ‘Natural History’ (which peaked at No.3 in the Indie Charts) and ‘Electric Shades’, before signing a major deal in 1985 with London Records. Releasing the poppier charms of the hit single “Turn to the Sky”, the track would notably feature in the John Hughes movie Some Kind of Wonderful in 1987, before the band eventually split later that year.

Reforming for a one-off hometown gig two decades later, their 2007 reunion would lead to a flurry of activity in the 21st Century including festival headline slots across Europe & the USA, the brand new studio albums ‘Made Glorious’ (2013) and ‘Mortality’ (2015), plus a storming Record Store Day release in 2021’s sell-out double album: ‘Big Soul Kiss’.

Most recently, The March Violets confirmed the release of their full back catalogue via Jungle Records for the first time, while releasing two new compilations ‘Play Loud Play Purple’ and ‘The Palace of Infinite Darkness’ in 2022 alone. Currently back in the studio, the band have confirmed they are working on a new album set for release next Summer.

Promising a show strewn with classics and surprises, The March Violets will be back with a vengeance in 2023.

Headlining Manchester Academy 3 on Friday 2nd June, the band will also be supported by two of post/punk’s brightest new hopes.

A must-see guest slot comes courtesy of Kristeen Young. Something of an artist’s artist, the NYC resident has impressed and worked-with a long line of alternative rock’s most illustrious performers. From Tony Visconti and David Bowie (who caught one of her New York shows and ended up duetting on her song “Saviour”), to Morrissey (who she has opened for on multiple tours), to Dave Grohl (who played drums on her entire 2014 album ‘The Knife Shift’), and Nick Zinner of Yeahs Yeah Yeahs (who laid down guitars for her 2017 album, ‘Live at The Witch’s Tit’); Kristeen Young is one of music’s best kept secrets. Releasing her self-produced album ‘The Beauty Shop’ (a song-cycle based on the life and emotions of a serial killer) in Summer 2022, expect choice selections from the album and deep cuts from her fascinating back catalogue.

Plus, fresh from the release of their new album ‘Haunted Hours’, Vision Video will be making the trip from Athens, GA, for a set of their refreshingly honest and dark gothic pop. The follow-up to their 2021 debut ‘Inked in Red’ (which told the story of lead singer Dusty Gannon (aka TikTok’s “Goth Dad”) and the darkness he saw as a soldier in Afghanistan), their recent work ‘Haunted Hours’ explores Dusty’s experience as a firefighter and paramedic working on the frontlines of the pandemic that followed his return. One for ‘Baby Bats’ and goth heads everywhere, this will be a unique opportunity to experience Goth Dad in the flesh and in full-flight.