The Black Keys at Castlefield Bowl, Manchester 09.07.2025

It was a late call to shoot this gig, with an email 48 hours before. I’d actually resolved to having a break after shooting roughly one million gigs in June. But it’s The Black Keys! I used to absolutely adore this band, particularly the Rubber Factory-era. And I’d never shot at Castlefield Bowl either, one of Manchester’s coolest summer-only venues. So when the Manchester Evening News asked me to shoot it – I said yes!

The first support act was Alex Spencer, a local lad. He’s only 18 but is touring with The Black Keys – not bad, really. As you can imagine, Alex Spencer brings loads of youthful enthusiasm and energy to his performance. But he evidently has songwriting talent too, fitting into that modern-indie genre alongside Blossoms, Catfish etc. Best of all was that Alex and his band genuinely seemed to be having a great time – and why wouldn’t they!? It’s easy to be cynical about acts like this but good for them, they smashed it and had a boss night.

Miles Kane was the second support act for The Black Keys at Castlefield Bowl.

The main event arrived, coming on stage amidst much noise and fanfare. Although there was a backing band, it’s easy to forget The Black Keys are just Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney. I’d not seen them live since about 2012. So the main thing I noticed this time round, from my privileged position 10 feet away, was how fucking hard Carney hits his drums. I lvoed it!

They nailed it. Setlist was mostly from the last decade or so, but fair play – that’s the better material for a big gig like this. It was definitely a big tick to shoot The Black Keys at Castlefield Bowl.