Punk Rock Factory Bring Pop Punk Mayhem and Nostalgia to a Packed Manchester Academy – Manchester UK – November 17th, 2024

Punk Rock Factory headline the biggest show of their career, as they bring their unique twist on pop classics and film soundtracks to a packed Manchester Academy.

As one of the first people in the Academy tonight, I watch as the room fills up with a real mix of people. What’s immediately clear is that there are a lot of young children in the audience, potentially their first-ever gig, and it makes sense given the headline act. 

The first support act is Bronnie. A female solo artist (backed live by a guitarist and drummer) she is the perfect opening act for tonight. Showcasing tracks from her debut album “Jaded” (title track, Runaway, Lipstick, Scream, OH!), her upbeat and bouncy pop-rock anthems strike a chord with the early arrivals, with covers of Katy Perry’s I Kissed A Girl and Carrie Underwood‘s Before He Cheats get the crowd warmed up nice and early.

Next up are The Hara. Die In The City kicks things off, and it’s clear they have a fair amount of fans in the building. I suspect a few parents are wincing at some of the on-stage antics of the shirtless and tattooed frontman Josh Taylor, gyrating around and making lewd gestures with the microphone. This is, of course, all part of being in an edgy rock band, but it felt slightly awkward given the makeup of the crowd.

That’s not to say they don’t go down well, because they certainly get the crowd going, instigating mosh pits, walls of death and Josh crowd surfing. “Fire and Jesus”, from debut album “Survival Mode“, has everyone bouncing around, but the highlight is “Friends”, with its catchy hook being chanted by the hardcore fans for most of the set.

Now it’s finally time for Punk Rock Factory. Peej (vocals, guitar), Benj (bass), Ryan (guitar) and Kob (drums) take to stage after a funny intro, setting the tone for the humorous night we are in for.

Get ready for a bunch of references I never thought I would include in a review! Billed as the “Stick To The Covers” Tour, the lads from South Wales have found a niche that is gaining more and more attention. 

They have a huge following on social media that has translated into ticket sales, with this 31-date UK and Ireland featuring the biggest venues they have played in so far.

Opening up with a pair of Disney tracks, “How Far I’ll Go” (Moana) and “Friend Like Me” (Aladdin), delighting the many youngsters in the crowd, and the older ones too!

The whole night is one big sing-along, with a blistering rendition of ABBA‘s “Mama Mia” followed by “Under The Sea” (Little Mermaid). Acknowledged by the band later on, it’s a somewhat bizarre sight to see four forty-year-old men from South Wales perform these songs, but they do make them their own with not just their musical ability, but their infectious likability and humour.

Next year’s album, “All Hands On Deck“, is a homage to 90s Pop. Introducing B*Witched‘s C’est La Vie, Peej says “How good would it be if they joined us on stage?”, and whilst we all thought it was just one of the many jokes of the evening, they actually did, to huge cheers from a crowd engrossed in this glorious slice of nostalgia. 

For the recording of their new album – which they, as always, self-produced – they became friends with a guy dubbed “Lowercase Jay” (Uppercase Jay works the merch stand!). He joins them on vocals for “Surface Pressure” (Encanto) and the hometown boy puts on a highly confident display in a real dream come true moment for him.

PRF can turn any song into a pop-punk masterpiece, ripping through the theme song to Sponge Bob Square Pants, before a quick costume change for Michael Jackson‘s “Thriller”.

They frequently interact with the audience, playing one side of the crowd against the other to see who is the loudest. For “You’re Welcome” (Moana), they invite two fans on stage for a rap battle. Eva and Megan are given boxing robes for the contest, and they both put in incredible performances and although Megan is dubbed the winner, they are both given free tour shirts for their efforts.

“Back for Good” is the latest single to be released, and Peej says, “Don’t expect what happened earlier to happen again”, as there’s no sign of Gary Barlow joining them for this one. Jokes about him following the recent viral meme have the audience in hysterics, with Peej hoping “our album will be as big as his Gary Barlow’s son”.

A collection of theme songs follow, A Magical Place (Toys R Us), Pokemon, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and “Red Car Blue Car” (Milky Way) in what feels like a weird fever dream but they somehow make it work!

Fan favourites “Life Is A Highway” (Cars) and “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” (Encanto) complete the set before they return for an Encore of “Let It Go”, with the loudest sing-along of the night bringing this ludicrously weird but wonderful set to a close.

This was a really fun night which left everyone grinning from ear to ear.

SET LIST

1/ How Far I’ll Go
(Auliʻi Cravalho cover)

2/ Friend Like Me
(Robin Williams cover)

3/ Mamma Mia
(ABBA cover)

4/ Under the Sea
(Samuel E. Wright cover)

5/ C’est la vie
(B*Witched cover) (with B*Witched)

6/ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Theme Song)
(Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cover)

7/ Believe In Yourself
(Ziggy Marley cover)

8/ Surface Pressure
(Jessica Darrow cover) (With Lowercase Jay)

9/ Today Is Gonna Be a Great Day
(Bowling for Soup cover)

10/ SpongeBob SquarePants Theme
(Painty the Pirate & Kids cover)

11/ Thriller
(Michael Jackson cover)

12/ You’re Welcome
(Dwayne Johnson cover) (2 fans onstage to rap battle the Maui rap)

13/ Back for Good
(Take That cover)

14/ It’s a Magical Place (Toys R Us)

15/ Pokémon Theme
(Jason Paige cover)

16/ Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
(Ron Wasserman cover)

17/ Red Car Blue Car (Milky Way)
(Mike Connaris cover)

18/ Life Is a Highway
(Tom Cochrane cover)

19/ We Don’t Talk About Bruno
(Lin‐Manuel Miranda cover)

Encore

20/ Let It Go
(Kristen Anderson‐Lopez & Robert Lopez cover)