Strictly Enrique and Alesha

LATIN heartthrob Enrique Iglesias will be igniting passions at the Manchester Arena on Friday.

Over the last decade, Julio’s son has sold 41 million albums worldwide making him one of the biggest Spanish selling artists of all time.

Last year, Enrique broke the record for the most number one songs on America’s Billboard Chart beating Mariah Carey and The Beatles.

Former “Strictly Come Dancing” winner Alesha Dixon — who is currently riding high with “Breathe Slow” — will fill the support slot.

The former Misteeq singer is looking forward to hitting the road after her gruelling Comic Relief trek up Kilimanjaro with a host of other celebs.

Tickets are available from www.gigsandtours.com



Don’t miss Metric



THE Canadian poppers are back on the top of their game following a brief hiatus.



They made their name in 2005 with the stupendously catchy “Monster Hospital” and now they’re back with new single “Help I’m Alive” from album “Fantasies”. Catch up with them at Manchester’s Academy 3 on Monday.




Weird and wonderful EskimO roll in



ONE EskimO don’t look or sound like any other band, but it’s that very uniqueness that gives them the edge and sets them apart.



Produced by Rollo (Faithless), One EskimO are a 4-piece band who’s album “All Balloons” is backed up by a series of animations produced by Passion Pictures — the team behind the Damon Albarn’s Gorillaz.

EskimO and his band — giraffe, monkey and penguin — take listeners on a magical musical journey.

The animal metaphors came around after long discussions with singer/songwriter Kristian Leontiou to decide which creatures each band member most closely resembled.

Adam Falkner (drums and triggers) is the giraffe as he’s tall and posh with great elegance and rhythm. Jamie Sefton (bass and horns) is just a scruffy, forgetful monkey and Pete Rinaldi (guitar) is a particularly laid back penguin.

Fresh from supporting Tricky, One EskimO will hit Moho Live in Manchester’s Northern Quarter along with All Thieves and Bailey Tzuke on Friday. Visit www.myspace.com/oneeskimo




McFly up close...



FANS of punk poppers McFly have the chance to get up close and personal with with their idols.



The quartet are preparing for their sell out arena tour in November with a string of intimate gigs including Friday’s stint at the Manchester Apollo

Buy tickets online at www.gigsandtours.com or www.ticketmaster.co.uk or call 0871 2200 260.