SIDETRACKS & DETOURS 21st June 2026: Town Of Culture Excedes All Expectations and awards its ´creatives´ + news, interviws, previews and reviews of Jason Isbel and the 400 Unit + review of ACATIFE IN LAS BRENAS
Rochdale, Town Of Culture
EXCEDED ALL EXPECTATIONS
by Steve Cooke
Our coverr picture today is also included at the top of this article shows Rochdale Town Hall packed the town´s elite creatives. We decided to do this justto support Steve Cooke, because his pride in the town is evident in the way he himslef, mentors, advses, supports and publicises how he feels the creatives and their arts benefit the Borough
Rochdale’s year as Greater Manchester Town of Culture far excelled all expectations through a truly pioneering co-operative approach led by the wonderful Rochdale Creates team at RDA [Rochdale Development Agency].
Many of the creative artists and organisations that were fundamental to this successful year were celebrated at a spectacular closing weekend event in our town hall at the Rochdale Culture Awards.
The awards were supported by Your Trust, Rochdale Borough Council, Rochdale Development Agency, Culture Co-op, Cartwheel Arts, and Rochdale Borough Cultural Network; facilitating a yearlong spectacular line up of festivals, live performances, exhibitions and art that celebrated our town’s rich history, creativity, talent and diverse arts scene.
Seven awards were handed out from 19 finalists at the event.
The creative of the year award was collected by Hayley Garner, a multi-disciplinary artist and curator of last year’s popular Common Walls International Mural Festival. Rochdale-born Hayley has brought bold, large-scale murals to Rochdale and Heywood. Her work explores human connection, emotion and perspective, transforming public spaces through powerful visual storytelling. Last month she mentored young artists as part of the FAB Youth Arts Festival.
Cultural event of the year was awarded to Darnhill Festival, organised by Cartwheel Arts alongside the Darnhill Festival Association and local partners.
Proudly community-led, this annual festival shines a light on creativity, resilience and humour, bringing families together through the arts. Last year it attracted over 2,000 visitors and championed many more youth voices through its young producers’ programme. The event was praised for its bold carnival energy and a strong sense of belonging, building pride and tackling isolation.
There was a double success for Skylight Circus Arts, who collected the health and wellbeing award and the community award. They provide circus workshops for all across the region, regardless of age, background or ability as well as live shows at events and festivals. Through classes, school sessions and community work they create inclusive spaces where people can build confidence, connect with others and improve their wellbeing.
Young Creative of The Year went to Rochdale indie-rock band PoolEra. Known for melodic guitar sound and energetic shows the band, who formed whilst at school in Milnrow, have a rapidly expanding fan base. When they’re not playing or recording, the band also mentor young producers, visit youth groups and create opportunities for other emerging artists.
The Heritage Award was won by South Asian Heritage Rochdale. In just two years, the community led platform has grown the South Asian Heritage Festival at Rochdale Town Hall into a large and joyful celebration of history, identity and lived experience, with music, dance, food, fashion and heritage from South Asia.
M6 Theatre Company who produce and stage wonderfully imaginative shows for children and young people won the cultural legacy award.
Special thanks were also given during the evening to Hebe Reilly, who recently stepped down as creative director and chief executive of Cartwheel Arts.
She was praised for the enormous contribution she has made to the borough, including chairing Rochdale Borough Culture Network over the past four years.
During the event there was music from singer/songwriter Ellysse Mason, (righ) ta reading from Rochdale’s Poet Laureate Sammy Weaver and a beautiful performance by the brilliant Middleton based Tracing Steps Theatre and Dance Company. There was also a live artwork demonstration by Zairah Life and a set by DJ Zak Gurnah.
Pete Courtie, head of culture and placemaking at Rochdale Development Agency said: “Rochdale has certainly been at the forefront of culture in Greater Manchester over the last year, brimming with creativity, and these awards, which we would like to see become an annual event, helped celebrate the artists, innovators, community activists and organisations who are using culture and creativity to make a real difference. Congratulations to all the winners and finalists, it’s been a privilege to be part of it, and you should all be very proud.”
Estelle Rowe, chief executive of Your Trust said: “The standard amongst our finalists was very high and it was incredibly difficult to pick the winners. We were so proud to be part of Rochdale Culture Awards, celebrating the abundance of creativity, passion and dedication in the borough.”
An oasis of positivity celebrating the creative arts with previews, reviews, interviews, and recommendations.
ALL ACTOSS THE ARTS with Steve Cooke
Previews: Cartwheel Arts Messages of Hope Community Exhibition, and Blissful Bumps Quilted Floor Blanket-Making
Review: A mesmeric Toad Lane Concert at St Mary in the Baum and Ebor Gallery Frank Exhibition
CARTWHEEL Arts
Messages of Hope Community Exhibition
Preview by Steve Cooke
As part of the Darnhill Festival 2026 taking place on 4 July 12-4pm, Cartwheel Arts are inviting local people of all ages to submit artwork for a community window exhibition celebrating hope, pride, and positivity in Heywood.
The exhibition will showcase artwork created by local people of all ages, celebrating hope, kindness, community and connection. Submitted artwork will be photographed and displayed in windows across Darnhill during the festival
They would like you to share this opportunity with anyone you think may be interested. If a group would like to take part but would benefit from art supplies, they may also be able to provide items such as paper and coloured pens.
For more information and to submit, please contact Bailey at Cartwheel Arts.
Touchstones Rochdale Team
BLISSFUL BUMPS Quilted Floor Blanket-Making
Preview by Steve Cooke (left)
The above project is yet another admirably innovative activity from the wonderful Touchstones Rochdale Team.
Touchstones are inviting pregnant women from Rochdale to go along to Derby Street family hub to create a patchwork quilted floor blanket over ten weeks. Working with textile artists and a range of inspirations from the Touchstones collections this is an opportunity for pregnant women to relax through the meditative process of creativity. No experience is necessary – the session is supported by a seamstress who can help with the sewing! Members from the perinatal team will also be available to chat about anything pregnancy-related and beyond.
For enquiries, please contact creative communities at yourtrust at rochdale.co.uk
You may then attend every session at 1pm
the full dates are:
Thursday 18 June
Thursday 25 June
Thursday 2 July
Thursday 9 July
Thursday 16 July
Friday 17 July
Friday 24 July
Friday 31 July
Friday 7 August
at
Derby Street Family Hub,
Derby St, Heywood OL10 4QJ
Situated in a purpose built facility, Derby Street Best Start Family Hub offers a welcoming and safe environment for families with children aged 0–5 years. There are excellent indoor and outdoor play facilities and a variety of sessions for children with parents and parents-only, including an active parents forum and play sessions for children to develop their own social skills.
Derby Street Best Start Family Hub offers the Family Journey Programme, a series of 12 workshops shaped to support families at the different stages of your child’s development, such as weaning, potty training and going to nursery.
Derby Street Best Start Family Hub has Derby Street Day Care Nursery and Nursery School on site.
A mesmeric Toad Lane Concertat St. Mary In The Baum
RICHARD HASLAM; classical guitarist
Review by Dr Joe Dawson (left)
As one wit piped up at the end of the recital, ‘it’s amazing what you can do with a pretty little wooden box and half a dozen strings, isn’t it?’ It was amazing, indeed, in the hands of Richard Haslam (right) , the Derbyshire-born classical guitarist who gained a post-graduate degree at the RNCM with Australian guitarist Craig Ogden in 2017, having previously graduated from Hull in 2013. He teaches privately in the Bury area and as an instrumental tutor for Trafford Music Service.
Richard has given recitals as both a soloist and with a variety of ensembles. He has performed Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez with Derby Concert Orchestra and Salford Symphony Orchestra and will perform it again on Saturday November 14th of this year with Todmorden Orchestra.
The pretty little wooden box with merely half a dozen strings produces only a fraction of the volume of say the resident 8’ Challen Grand Piano’s 88 keys supported by roughly 220–230 strings. The audience had to adjust their expectations somewhat in the huge acoustic space of St Mary in the Baum, but their rewards for concentration and focus were considerable.
Variations on a Theme of Handel by Mauro Giuliani was a delight, beginning with a deceptively naïve theme and moving through charming developments of the melody and accompanying harmonies. Finger-picking the broken chords whilst enabling a melody to sing out called for immense skill, which Richard pursued flawlessly.
Lagrima, Adelita and Sueno by Francisco Tarrega were elegant late-nineteenth century pieces in similar vein. By now the delicate tones were beguiling and soothing, summoning up sunny days and moody and reflective nights.
Gary Ryan’s contemporary Lough Caragh conjured up a reflective Irish ballad style, but with the intense Benga Beat he broke the mould; born out of world music styles with vocal fragments from the player and rhythm patterns tapped on the case, it produced a spellbinding cacophony. Great fun.
Bagatelles 2, 3 and 4 by Oldham-born composer Sir William Walton were fine examples of the uptake of guitar music in the twentieth century, particularly through players like Julian Bream who inspired composers such as Walton, Tippett and Britten to take the ‘pretty little box’ seriously.
We ended with a Latin American finale of the attractive Valseana and Jongo by contemporary Brazilian Sergio Assad (b. 1952) … that proved worthy additions to the repertoire.
The Queen’s Award-winning Toad Lane Concerts are held every Wednesday at 12.30pm at the Grade 1 listed church of St Mary in the Baum, Toad Lane, Rochdale, OL16 1DZ. Entrance fee is £6. Contact 01706 648872 for further information.
SECRET GEOMETRIES
Ebor Gallery Frank Exhibition Review
By Mark Rothwell
Three artists, one gallery space and several exhibits comprising a film, audio, two dimensional and three dimensional works, such as church pews, a bedroom dresser and three Zoetropes, are observable or audible in an exhibition titled Secret Geometries at Ebor Studio on William Street in Littleborough.
The artworks are made by a range of practitioners, namely Jack-Victor Westerdale and Stephen Cranston and Laura Moxon-Groves..
Laura Moxon-Groves (right) has created Zoetropes (see above), made up of cylinders with small, regular vertical slits and, on the inside of each one, illustrations in black ink on paper across 360 degrees. The Zoetrope is regarded as the forerunner of film and animation originally patented by William F. Lincoln in the United States in the 1860s.
One Zoetrope features beautifully wrought human figures, another a made up character, part chick, part human and influenced by such artists as Hieronymus Bosch, in a world of fantasy realised by a former University of Salford student now resident in Todmorden. As Moxon-Groves says, “I use metaphorical and figurative imagery to reconstruct reality”.
Jack-Victor Westerdale has an animated film projected on a white wooden brick structure hung on a wall titled Romancing The Stone, created this year, 2026.
Stephen Cranston has a range of exhibits. One, The Shepard Lord, Pentaptych, 2016, is a collage that borrows from the sixteenth century Isenheim Altarpiece. There are five windows in the whole, framed composition, four rectangular – three portrait, one landscape – and a semicircle.
Each window has a different subject, some related others not, thus a pair of hands, a tusked animal and, somewhat disconcertingly, a frog like creature with a human mouth, are all depicted with a colourful palette too.
Other works include a Bedroom Dresser in a nod to Tracy Emin’s bed, church pews, another two framed collages and sound.
Indeed gallery attendees participated in a group spoken word recording of simple sentences that may form the basis of a sound piece similar in idea to previous recordings Cranston has made such as those aired in the gallery space.
One sound piece, Evocation 2, required family and friends to recite three palindromic sentences assembled in a process Cranston also deploys in his hand cut collage work.
The exhibition closes on the 20th June 2026. For general enquiries, such as gallery opening times, telephone 01706 551001.
JASON ISBELL & THE 400 UNIT
June 8th, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester
by our Americana Correspondent, Peter Pearson (left)
Jason Isbell has steadily progressed from third guitarist and songwriter with the band Drive By Truckers in 2001 at age 22 to become a revered singer songwriter, releasing a fine catalogue of band and solo albums, appearing on the world’s major stages and gaining praise from the likes of Bruce Springsteen. For those who may not have seen or heard of him as a musician you may have seen him as a straight actor in the 2023 film, Killers Of The Flower Moon.
Whilst he often tours and issues solo acoustic albums he has, since 2009, fronted his own band, The 400 Unit, with whom he appeared tonight. The band is essentially a superb rock and roll band made up from musicians from Jason’s home state of Muscle Shoals Alabama and this performance left no room for any doubt about their credentials.
I am a fairly recent convert to his music and have seen it described as alt country. I would say that it defies genre categorisation. With the 400 unit, it is melodic rock and roll and in acoustic mode, americana singer songwriter.
At 44 he is following firmly in the footsteps of Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Jackson Browne and his hero, John Prine, all of whom we talk about as we wander down our sidetracks & detopurs.
This is by no means his first visit to the area. I missed his last visit in 2024 at the cavernous Ardwick Apollo. The Bridgewater, on this night was virtually sold out to an audience demographic mostly of middle age and
The opening act, Will Johnson, was putting in a double shift, being guitarist, percussionist and back up vocalist in the band, whilst displaying his acoustic guitar and vocal skills as warm-up act. It was only a short opener, giving ample time for Jason Isbell to deliver a 22 song two and a half hour set, leaving the enthusiastic crowd shouting for more.
The 400 Unit (shown left with Jason) features twin lead guitars with Isbell, a top notch guitarist, supported by Sadler Vaden, the pair interweaving and trading melodic and powerful riffs. Keyboard, bass, drums, percussion/vocal/guitar completed the line up.
The guitar rack to the side of the stage contained a staggering array of electric and acoustic guitars, each expertly tuned up by the guitar techs before handing them over to the guitarists. From memory, it’s the first time I have seen this tuning job done exposed to the audience, albeit at the side of the stage. Normally you just see the guitar tech come out with the tuned instrument.
In addition to his studio albums Isbell has a large catalogue of live albums, many issued in digital format via the digital album store, Bandcamp. I have found them to be a sonic delight and the sound was well replicated here on the Bridgewater stage
Last year Isbell issued an acoustic solo album, Foxes In The Snow, which creates an intimacy that makes you feel that he is sitting across the room from you. The songs are so strong that he has been able to seamlessly work them into his full band concerts and several were featured in this format tonight along with all the favourites from his extensive catalogue.
Looking at the audience around me I could see they were absorbed by the stories unfolding in Isbell’s songs, with tracks like Cover Me Up, reflecting on his journey of overcoming substance abuse and finding love during that dark period. Whilst the riffs and drums drew applause, it was his lyricism that held the room’s attention.
Compared with say, Jackson Browne, Isbell is not especially chatty between numbers. It is all about the music but throughout the evening Isbell repeatedly praised his various band members and it was clear that there was a strong bond within the band built on mutual respect, something akin to Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
The night drew to a close with a three song encore, the first of which, The Ride To Roberts, a standout song on the acoustic album, was presented in full band format, losing nothing in translation.
It was a night of glorious music-making that will stand high in my list of great performances.
© Peter Pearson
FEELING LIKE A PART OF THE VILLAGE
LENDANEAR TO ACATIFA IN LAS BRENAS
review by Norman Warwick
The beautiful village of Las Brenas is situated on a lengthy plateau roughly between Playa Blanca and Yaiza and home owners up there enjoy a 180 degree view over the salt pans and right out to sea to where the sun sets, often gloriously, out behind the end of the world. My wife Dee and I know from visiting the beautiful house of our friends Iain and Margaret that the reverse 180 degree takes in the horizon of the range of mountains, etched into a clear blue sky behind the plateau, and Iain often speaks of how they can watch the rising of the sun and its journey until the going down of the same.
Strangely, at the event we are reviewing in this article, the sun wimped out in the very final footsteps of its journey on Friday 19th June, and we watched it disappear behind a couple of non-threatening clouds in an otherwise cloudless sky !
We and Iain and Margaret had reserved a window table in Casa Marcos, the village restaurant with its welcoming management and staff and wonderful food, (especially the steaks).
We had heard the sounds of the opening act as we dined in the restaurant, and de la Parrenda Junibo, with the participation of female vocalist El Eizer Betancourt, carried well. We could tell there were other female vocalists too, and we learned afterwards that they were accompanied by around fifteen musicians.
I was on my cheesecake dessert just as the sun deserted the scene (if you will pardon the pun) when I heard the act close their show I was becoming just a touch concerned that the time was 8.55pm. In only five minutes time Acatife, my favourite folk lore group on the island, would be taking to a specially erected stage to deliver a prestigious concert in the very impressive tent, raised in the town square only fifty yards away. Come on guys, or else we won´t get any seats !
We crossed the rubicon just as Acatife were introducing themselves to the, now that we were here, very full house.
That was no surprise at all, because the popular music group Acatife (right) was founded in the town of Teguise, Lanzarote, in 1983 with the aim of deepening the knowledge and dissemination of the island’s folklore and contributing to its development, with its own contributions.
The group´s first public appearance was on the TVE program Tenderete, hosted by the late Nanino Díaz Cutillas.
Since then, they have performed over five hundred times throughout the Canary Islands. Performances such as those at the 21st Sabandeño Festival and the first Estameña Festival, organized by Los Gofiones, have left a lasting mark on the group. Performances in other cities across Spain, as well as in Germany and France, appearances on national and international television networks, and eight recordings on the market, place Acatife are among the musical groups that have made the greatest contribution to Canarian folk music.
Acatife has approached its work from three different angles: the rescue of songs still present in the collective memory, the musicalization of lyrics by folk singers and poets, with special attention to the research work of the musical heritage, work of Diego Catalán, Sebastián Sosa Barroso or Jesús María Godoy, of the popular Canarian ballads and other editions and authors and also from the composition of its own songs, with texts inspired by tradition or rooted in the vibrant social reality of Lanzarote and the archipelago.
Emigration, which so plagued the people of Lanzarote until not many years ago, is a central theme of special interest in Acatife’s repertoire.
These years of uninterrupted career are splendidly showcased in their eight albums: Acatife’s first album, an eponymous release, was a tribute to the martyrs of Cruz del Mar, was released in 1986. It was followed by Peñas del Chache (1991), Acatife sings to Christmas (1993), Songs of Lanarote (1995), Christmas In A Place In the Atlantic (1996), The Devil of Timanfaya (1999), In Lanzarote (2012), and most recently, My Town And Cesar (Manrique” (2023).
The recording of this latest album, in Spanish named Mi Pueblo y César, was a live performance at a concert held in Jameos del Agua, one of Lanzarote’s most iconic landmarks. The spectacular soundscape of the setting, as well as the connection with the audience, is faithfully reflected on the album. The album launch took place on June 9th at the Teatro el Salinero, one of the events the group is holding to celebrate its 40th anniversary. The performance featured the collaboration of artist Isabel Cabrera, who provided the narrative thread for the show, and Almudena Hernández, who sang the title track. This album coincides with three significant anniversaries: the 40th anniversary of the group Acatife, the 600th anniversary of Teguise, and the 100th anniversary of the birth of the renowned artist César Manrique.
The 29 editions of the Acatife Festival, which annually brings together artists from Latin America and the rest of the Archipelago and the State, are a good example of its establishment in Lanzarote society; as well as the Acatife Silver Volcano distinction that the group awards to people or institutions for their contribution to the popular heritage of the island.
Acatife (left) is not known for covering songs by other artists or groups, but rather for performing traditional songs, original compositions, or unreleased pieces. They remain true to their stage format, using the same simple line-up and string instruments with percussion accompaniment.
With thirty musicians on stage tonight, Acatife were formidable. There were a couple of vocals-only members and many of the rest both sang and played, although there were also a couple of instrumental-only musicians.
I had been trying to tell Iain during our meal how much I love Acatife and I kept raving about how they deliver incredible vocal swells as I call them. He looked at me doubtfully as I tried to explain what I meant, but by halfway through the first song he was smiling blissfully as the swell made itself known.
It comes about when bass percussion, strings, and full choral vocals are delivered together, and somehow always puts me in mind of the great Welsh male choirs of the past singing Men Of Harlech or Bread Of Heaven.
Another reason I love Acatife is that by always adhering to their original remit as described above they have picked up ubiquitous melodies that have sailed the oceans. I often hear in their concerts fragments of music I know from other genres that have been carried down sidetracks & detours to the diasporas of other peoples.
So, I hear these echoes of Harry Secombe and the lads in the choirs of Wales, and I heard a song tonight that I associate with a tune called Night Riders Lament, which itself was written by Michael Burton and echoes the ´cowboy songs´ performed in choral style around the night-time camp sites by the fire when cattle drivers had settled their herd for the night and sung ´folk´ songs from their homelands.
That Acatife have enjoyed such an admirable career is partly, I think, because they have adhered to their original agreement with their funders and sponsors, and have regularly found new ways of introducing the folk lore of the island to the island´s people, and have identified new folk lore advocates and performers, mentored them for a number of years, and helped them hone their craft, be it singing or musicianship, until their members are ready and able to create their individual careers, so widening the folk lore offer to Lanzarote.
It seemed that the entire population of Las Brenas had either crowded into the tented arena or were ´chilling´ outside on the peripheries of the Crepe Bars, and temporary drinks bar hastily stocked outside for the evening.
And that is another facet I like about Acatife. Their attention to their audience is second to none. Lengthy introductions (sadly, for me, in Spanish) are given to each song and the audience in return clearly show their appreciation of particular segments of playing or vocals.
It was clear in my eyes, if not in my ears, that everyone was enjoying friendly repartee between the band and their audience.
In fact, as we walked out after the well-deserved standing ovation from the audience to the players, who clearly returned the plaudit, Iain remarked how convivial it had all been and how it felt so good to be a part of the village. He likened the concert to what he imagined the English Village Green concerts must have been like one hundred years ago and I. too, could see such an event in my mind´s eye. Of course, The Village Green Preservation Societies, as The Kinks called them, would probably not have sanctioned the benefits of either such a state of the art sound system, or even the diligent sound engineers who helped make tonight so wonderful.
That the evening was so lightly policed, that grandparents were out with parents and children and that the attitude of the audience and the band was one between friends, and maybe even family membersmade it yet another great Acatife event.
I arrived home during half time in the Scotland Morroco, game which the latter won 1-0 in a more comfortable fashion than the score-line might suggest. It was already so many hours past my bed time so I decided to stay up to watch the Brazil versus Haitia game and I was proud as punch to see that the referee was from Lanzarote and one of the linesmen was from Gran Canaria. That Brazil beat Haiti in this 2026 World Cup Group game should mean that Scotland, despite their own defeat, will progress from the group, as should England after their opening 4-2 win over Croatia.
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featuring
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featurng
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by Peter Pearson and Norman Warwick
featuring
Kate Wolf and Julie Matthews
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a year as poet laureate
featuring
´´Sammy Weaver
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 16th AUGUST 2nd 2026
Michael: a film about art for arts´sake ?
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 23rd august 2026
Buddy Mondlock is a songwriter !
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 30th AUGUST 2026
Too Darn Hot: live jazz
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Canary Cruising,…cool
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 13th SEPTEMBER 2026
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SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 20th SEPTEMBER 2026
Waiting For Godot and Music At Lunchtomes
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 27th SEPTEMBER 2026
r.i.p. David Alan Coe, songwriter and unreliable narrator
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