YES

YES took over a former furniture shop on Charles Street and turned it into four floors of exactly what Manchester needed. The basement is a dark, sweaty club space that hosts some of the city’s best electronic nights. Ground floor is the main gig room – 450 capacity, good sound, proper stage. First floor is the bar and pizza kitchen. And up top there’s a rooftop terrace that’s rammed on any day the sun even thinks about appearing.

The programming is sharp. They book bands before they blow up, run credible club nights, and aren’t afraid to mix genres. You might catch a post-punk band on Friday and a techno night on Saturday. The pizza is genuinely good – proper sourdough, not an afterthought. Drinks prices are fair by city centre standards.

Each floor has its own character and you can drift between them on a night out. The rooftop gets packed in summer and there’s often a queue, so get there early if you want a seat. Door staff are sound. The crowd is mostly 20s and 30s, people who care about what they’re listening to. YES filled a gap Manchester didn’t know it had and became essential almost overnight.