Northside

Blackley and Moston

Northside came from Blackley and Moston in north Manchester. Per LTM's biography, Warren Dermody, called Dermo, on vocals and lyrics, and Cliff Ogier on bass formed it in early 1989; Michael Upton on guitar and Paul Walsh on drums joined soon after, and Timmy Walsh later replaced Upton. Dermo's brother Steven named the band. Demos were recorded at The Cutting Rooms at Abraham Moss College in August 1989, with airplay on Piccadilly Radio, they played the Boardwalk in September, and Tony Wilson offered a contract after visiting their practice rooms. They supported Happy Mondays at the Free Trade Hall on November 18, 1989, and appeared in the Granada documentary Madchester: The Sound of the North in March 1990.

"Shall We Take a Trip", produced by Ian Broudie in London in April 1990, came out on Factory as FAC 268, reaching 50 in the UK. "My Rising Star" reached 32 that October, and in January 1991 they opened the Great British Music Weekend at Wembley Arena, where the live Radio One broadcast was halted after they opened with "Shall We Take a Trip". "Take 5" reached 40 in the UK and 5 on Billboard's Alternative Songs, and the album Chicken Rhythms (June 17, 1991, Factory and Geffen, produced by Broudie) reached 19 in the UK. A second album was recorded in 1992 but Factory went bankrupt in November and the band split.

Dermody and Ogier formed Silent Partners in 2003. LTM reissued Chicken Rhythms in 2006; the original four reformed in November 2013, per Louder Than War, toured the UK in April and May 2014, and Cherry Red issued the two-CD Shall We Take a Trip: The Factory Recordings 1990-91 on May 19, 2014. Wikipedia reports the band signed to Venture Records in June 2026 with a new album planned for 2027. Record Collector describes them as frequently derided as baggy bandwagon-jumpers, and says the straighter indie guitar-pop suits them better.