Heatwave In The Cold North

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In April 2006, Reverend and The Makers were support to the Arctic Monkeys on their sold out UK tour, exposing the band to larger audiences and bigger venues. This was followed by their own first UK tour in May and June, selling out dates in Shoreditch, London and The Plug in home-town Sheffield on the final night. A second tour followed in October 2006, showing great progression as a band. The sound was much tighter and far more advanced than on their previous tour.

I bet! As you say, you’ve got that Radio 2 attention but you’re also tuning into the sounds of younger pop, which is creating another great platform for you. Your albums have always seemed like a vessel for whatever’s keeping you up at night or fuelling your fire. What is that this time round? The singles so far are definitely smooth and sexy as you say, and I don’t think anyone expected a song such as ‘High’ from you. Were you worried about how that would go down? A lot of ageing, northern male indie starts to do that same melody… Everyone, fellas from the north especially, they’ve all got their own melodic thing. When you’re getting older and you’ve been doing it a long time, you hear a new record and you think, “oh you do that on every song you ever do!” I wanted to break that. I dunno, what’s the point in making less good versions of stuff you’ve already done, you know?With sing-along rousing lyrics, dazzling percussion and sun-drenched guitars, this is anthemic and optimistic and McClure’s tone is warm and gorgeous. It feels nostalgic, but still at the same time fresh and contemporary. Dedicated to giving a leg up to those working their way through the music industry – regardless of musical quality Reverend and The Makers are making waves in the right way. A sense of community can be found in clips of their gigs through the hard-hitting efforts of a band reclaiming their space and sense of identity. Much can be said for the good Reverend, and while frontman Jon McClure is steadfast in his approach to Football Manager, he pulled himself away from the game to bash out Heatwave in the Cold North . Tributes to the indie era are endless on the ear and the middle-of-the-road status found in Heatwave in the Cold North is a disappointing traipse through the latest workings of a band that cites Oasis as their influence.

The five albums since have seen the band move through several incarnations, sounds and line ups and experience all the highs - and most of the lows - that the music industry has to offer, but it was Covid-19 that saw Jon worry the most about income, since his wife Laura is also a member of the band.The commander asked and Rev’s Army’ dutifully obliged. It’s impossible not to when they’re bringing out ‘banger after banger’. The Manchester gig forms part of the Sheffield band’s first live tour in four years. Formed in 2005, Jon McClure and his collective of musicians burst onto the scene with their top five charting debut album, The State of Things. From giving reflective life lessons to his 21 year-old self like “To tell ya not let such fears / Dominate any o’ ya bestest years” to the more candid advice “Take care that your friends and peers / Don’t get near with the bags of gear…”, ‘A Letter To My 21 Year Old Self’ is poignant, introspective and highly personal. Lines like ‘Maybe be kinder to yourself and know your worth’ will resonate with everyone – I know it does for me.