New music shindig In The City is back this week. Dan Feeney applauds its move to the Northern Quarter – and to Manchester’s best-loved music venues

In the City, Manchester’s annual music industry convention, was the brainchild of Yvette Livesey and the late-lamented Tony Wilson, cooked up back in the now nearly forgotten days when people actually paid to consume music. So the fact that In The City is still seen as relevant to an ever-evolving music industry is testament to the thought that goes into arranging it. And, over the past few years, more importance has been put on the live side of the mega-event, with music fans becoming just as much a part of In The City as the A&R men loudly comparing the size of their cheque-books at the back of the room.

Shifting ITC away from its traditional Peter Street home (at the Midland) to Piccadilly and the Northern Quarter is just one sign of this changing focus. Rather than seeing bands try to put on a good show in non-venues such as Electric Boogaloo or Bar38, this year the Northern Quarter’s Ruby Lounge, Band On The Wall, Night & Day and Castle pub form the hub of the musical action. The move to proper live music venues is coupled with possibly the best line-up in years, boasting the lo-fi garage noise of No Age, post-dubstep from Mount Kimbie, indie-pop with Sky Larkin and a debut UK show from LA’s Kisses.

In The City also remains a showcase for the best unsigned bands around, giving them the chance to convince the industry bigwigs who are in Manchester that they are worth taking a chance on. The bands to keep an eye on this year are D/R/U/G/S, Brown Brogues, Eagulls, Advances in Mathematics, Patterns and This Many Boyfriends. But don’t just take our word for it. Finding the good among the merely mediocre has always been one of the most rewarding parts of In The City, and it pays to watch people you’ve never heard of as much as it does to blag your way in to see the hotly-tipped acts.

Alongside live music, delegates can access keynote addresses and panel debates featuring some of the biggest names within the music industry. Highlights include Bertis Downs (REM’s ‘manager and lawyer’), Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason, panels on the future of music blogging and Elbow’s Guy Garvey heading up a discussion on the Musicians Union’s controversial offer of support for pay-to-play gigs. Seeking out answers to some of the most difficult questions facing the music industry, ITC often also plays host to some fairly heated debate – but it is exactly that passion for the industry that, you can’t help but wonder, keeps the industry’s movers and shakers flocking back to Manchester every year for.

In The City, 13-15 October, venues across Manchester. Day tickets, £16; 3 day festival wristbands £29; 3 day delegate pass, £200. Check out ITC’s handy clash-finding iPhone app. – perfect for organising your time during the convention. Images (top to bottom): Sky Larkin, courtesy the artists; No Age, copyright Sub Pop.