It’s funny how the quirks of building names meant I arrived at the Deaf Institute in Manchester in late January to see live music. Probably the smallest venue, for a big(ish) act. We weren’t in the main hall, but a small bar underneath called the lodge. I counted about 65 people there! But it was brilliant.

Live music really helps my mental health, you can’t beat it. Its probably how it makes religious people feel when they’ve been to church!

Kelsey Waldon has been around for a while, in the country / Americana space. I first discovered her supporting Margo Price at a gig in Manchester a couple of years back, playing acoustic. Her album No Regular Dog had just been released. Since then, she’s gone from strength to strength with 2 more albums. Her latest album, Every Ghost, is absolutely stunning, being named in the top 20 of Rolling Stone magazine’s albums of the year last year.

This time she was with a band. And it only cost £16. Yes, not a typo – £16. I have been to gigs where the admin fees are more than that. Absolute bargain.

No backing tracks, no miming – just a tight band going for it. With such a small crowd I feared she might be disappointed but if so, she didn’t show it. They played for the best part of 2 hours, playing the whole of the new album plus a few older tracks. It feels as if her career is on the up and I look forward to seeing her in a bigger venue.

A month later, with apologies for the awful photograph, I saw Cam at the New Century Hall in Manchester. Another new venue, for me. Great acoustics, big crowd. I was stood near the back near the bar (and actually enjoyed some alcohol free beer) and enjoyed a really enthusiastic audience. I booked my ticket on the day of the show, deciding to go last minute as I was only my own for the evening.

Cam’s new album comes 5 years after her last one, 10 years after her breakthrough record Untamed (with the massive single Burning House) and she explained that in the gap not only had she been busy bringing up her daughter but she had already cowritten Beyonce’s recent country album.

One thing I can say about Cam is that she is absolutely hilarious, really down to earth and her stories between the songs were worth the entrance fee. (She was more than Kelsey Waldon, but still far more reasonable than some of the prices you read about in the press). She had a small band, who were fantastic. The three of them provided harmonies and moved between instruments. One minute they could be playing drums, then moving to keyboards and back again even during one song.

I end up going to a lot of these shows on my own – Billy No Mates! On the one hand it sounds sad, but on the other I don’t want to miss live music because my friends don’t like the same gigs as me. Also, I’m going to enjoy the music, the show – and those at gigs who go to chat really do my head in.

For a variety of reasons I might talk about later I suspect 2026 might be a year when I set a personal record for live shows.