REAR WINDOW: Alice Faye, The Deaf Institute, Manchester, 27th June 2026

Alice Faye UK tour dates 2026

To step into an Alice Faye show is to feel less like a traditional concertgoer and more like L.B. Jefferies clutching a pair of binoculars in Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window. It’s a fitting parallel; the Glasgow-based singer-songwriter is a known devotee of the classic thriller, and she crafts her live sets with that exact same brand of captivating, voyeuristic intimacy.

Having spent the last year listening to her music on the high recommendation of my eldest daughter, Darcie, a perfectly timed flight out of Manchester Airport meant the stars finally aligned for me to pull back the curtain on her live show. What followed at The Deaf Institute was a compelling spectacle of musical cinema.

Alice Faye: One to Watch

Epitomised by commanding vocals and dramatic storytelling, Alice Faye describes her own style as a fusion of "retro-pop" and "pop-opera." It’s a unique sonic blueprint that has seen her rapidly ascend the ranks of the Scottish music scene.

Gaining widespread public attention as a standout performer on Channel 4’s hit show The Piano, more recently she has received further accolades (BBC Introducing Scottish Act of the Year 2026 and Sound of Young Scotland 2025), released a number of EPs, all helping elevate her presence as she prepares to release her debut album Vaudevillain.

Squeezing in a few UK tour dates around her summer festival appearances, this Saturday night gig marked her first-ever headline appearance in Manchester.

Lewis Docherty and Alice Faye, The Deaf Institute, Manchester (Image: Damien Wilkinson)

The Deaf Institute Gig

Good evening…

Apartment One: Marnie Glum

With the schedule adjusted to accommodate England’s World Cup football match at 10pm, Leeds-based singer-songwriter Marnie Glum (not her real name!) was tasked with kicking things off.

She treated the early crowd to a crisp, half-hour set that beautifully showcased her songwriting. Clearly an artist to keep an eye on, her striking vocals and measured guitar playing provided a fantastic start to the evening.

Apartment Two: Alice Faye

Referencing Rita Hayworth and the 1946 film noir classic, Alice Faye opened her set with the spellbinding Gilda. Instantly, the audience was transformed from a mere crowd into a room of on-lookers, pulling back the curtains to witness her unmask the secrets of her beautifully dark songs in real time.

With no piano to colour her songbook tonight, Alice cleverly reimagined her material acoustically. Her own rhythm guitar meshed perfectly with the lead work of Lewis Docherty, who added the extra cinematic dimension and texture the arrangements demanded. Working through a strong setlist that offered a series of glimpses into the "different apartments" populating her courtyard of songs, Alice engaged brilliantly with the crowd. She shared the witty, candid concepts behind her music—recounting stories of bad breakups, job rejections, and even questionable haircuts.

Above all, the night was a showcase for a voice that is truly something to behold. Merging the range of Piaf, the delivery of prime Dolly Parton infused with Lynn Andersen she packed an almighty punch. You got the distinct feeling she could have grabbed a telephone directory stacked in the corner of L.B. Jefferies' apartment, sung it cover to cover, and the audience would have been just as captivated.

It was all paired with an effervescent stage presence that Grace Kelly would surely have nonchalantly nodded her approval to.

In the end, the wonderfully intimate Deaf Institute proved to be the perfect frame for Alice Faye’s brilliant and mesmerising Manchester debut.

Seat: Standing, far left of room near front

Setlist:

The following was the intended setlist - Alice did mix things up a little and moved a couple of songs around, ending the set with Later, Later On.

S.B.E. refers to Alice’s Some Brief Encounter song and EP

Alice’s set list, The Deaf Institute, Manchester Gig (Image: Damien Wilkinson)

Marnie Glum, The Deaf Institute, Manchester (Image: Damien Wilkinson)

Lewis Docherty and Alice Faye, The Deaf Institute, Manchester (Image: Damien Wilkinson)