Manchester is known by many for its historically renowned music scene; however, the scenes and sounds of Madchester, Oasis and the likes commonly overshadow the notable influence of surrounding towns within Greater Manchester. Rochdale, Greater Manchester Town of Culture for 2026, is one of those towns whose musical influence is understated and a lot of the time, unknown.
From actress and singer Gracie Fields, to soul extraordinaire Lisa Stansfield, indie legends The Courteeners to electronic duos Autechre, and Piri, half of the electronic dance duo Piri & Tommy, the eclectic and diverse nature of Rochdale’s musical history is huge. It was also home to Suite Sixteen and Cargo Studios, both on Kenion Street, where artists including Happy Mondays, The Stone Roses, Joy Division, Inspiral Carpets, The Fall, OMD and A Certain Ratio recorded some of their greatest work.
To celebrate and recognise this, as well as aligning with Rochdale’s year as Greater Manchester Town of Culture, Rochdale Development Agency has launched ‘Rochdale Music Stories’, a collaboration between The Stockport Music Story and Voltalab Sound Studios.
An exciting initiative was released on Saturday 14th March, where the baton of musical history is passed on from past legends to rising local artists, breathing a new lease of life into well-known and well-loved songs. Rochdale Music Stories Presents: Kenion Street consists of 11 songs recorded at the studios of Kenion Street between 1977-2001.
Photo: Councillor Angela Brown
In support of the release of this compilation, Rochdale Music Stories staged a special showcase launch concert at Heywood Civic on Saturday 14th March. Each track was performed live, hosted by Inspiral Carpets’ Clint Boon who spoke to some special guests including Joy Division and New Order bassist, Peter Hook, The Chameleons’ frontman Vox and Martin Moscrop of A Certain Ratio.
Rochdale Music Stories Presents: Kenion Street was released on limited-edition high-quality vinyl on Saturday 14th March 2026. The tracklisting is as follows:
- Micah Stalgic ft. Local Vocals - “Atmosphere" (Joy Division)
- K-Estate - "Damaged Goods" (Gang of Four)
- Desyfer & Emma Konnanov - "Twenty Four Hour Party People" (Happy Mondays)
- P*STARR - "Keep The Circle Around" (Inspiral Carpets)
- Leo HC - "Up The Down Escalator" (The Chameleons)
- PoolEra - “Electricity" (OMD)
- Medley - Dreams Never End (New Order)
- Blvckout - "All Night Party" (A Certain Ratio)
- The Velvet Shadow ft. Maisie Thompson - "All Tomorrow's Parties” (Nico)
- Jennifer Reid - "Totally Wired" (The Fall)
- From The Ground Up ft. Bloom Music Community - "Elephant Stone" (The Stone Roses)
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