What the world was waiting for, bigger than Pulp, bigger than The Libertines, it is the second coming of Manchester’s iconic Britpop legends The Stone Roses. In unfortunate circumstances Brown, Squire, Mani and Reni met again. The funeral of Mani’s mother gifted the opportunity for Brown and Squire to reconcile. Browns stubbornness was spent, and Squire maturely accepted second party wishes to put the past behind him. The reformation was obvious, the ‘roses’ wanted this, and more so, the world needed this. Days after the funeral the ‘roses’ appeared at a press conference in London to confirm it was happening. They revealed two dates at Heaton Park, Manchester, in June. Tickets went on sale just 3 days later. it was certainly expected that every man and his dog would be frantically refreshing their ‘seetickets’ page on this nervy Friday morning, but selling 150,000 tickets in 14 minutes was only described as exasperating insanity. The drastic demand for a golden ticket resulted in an added date. 3 consecutive days now in which ‘roses’ fans will get jiggy in the mud whilst witnessing their miracle. Tickets for the added Sunday sold out in a further 45 minutes, so a quarter of a million tickets gone in just an hour! There is something about them which nobody can put their finger on. When Squire, Mani and Reni play together something magical happens, something no-one else can do. This only seasons Browns arrogant sneer, his cocky persona and his unquestionable front man talent. Many years and several side-projects have been and gone, Brown had a semi successful solo period. Squire had the ‘Sea Horses’ and ‘The Shining’. Mani had, in all fairness, the sensational yet bonkers ‘Primal Scream’ and despite Reni playing the drums like Hendrix played guitar, he never did anything else. These were pass times, not the real deal. So whilst the lucky ticket holders bubble with overwhelming excitement, and count down the days until they witness euphoria, the four adhered Mancunian’s practice no end to ensure the 60 quid tickets are nothing but the bargain of the decade. We shall see, I can’t fucking wait!
