BBC Radio 6 Music Festival: BBC Introducing presents TTSSFU, pyncher and Ellen Beth Abdi

To kick off this year's BBC Radio 6 Music Festival, BBC Introducing promised to host a showcase of Mancunian talent at Band on the Wall. With a line-up consisting of local favourites TTSSFU, pyncher, and Ellen Beth Abdi, this certainly did materialise, as the three acts delivered impressive performances and proved themselves deserving of the BBC's support.

“Any 6 Music dads in the building?” joked Ellen Beth Adbi as she faced a crowd of flannel shirts and balding crowns with a median age of 45, who replied through a nervous murmur. She was the first artist to take to the stage on the opening night of BBC Radio 6 Music’s festival this year, and instantly swooned the audience with her summery instrumentals and lush, deep voice. For fans of Orion Sun and Blood Orange, her music is absolutely worth checking out.

She was flatteringly introduced by BBC Introducing Manchester presenter Roesh, who boasted about her inclusion on Piccadilly Records’ top 50 albums of 2025 list, the backing she has received from the likes of Lauren Laverne, and her experience supporting Olivia Dean and The Stone Roses on tour. Towards the end of her set, she dropped the drum machines in favour of live looping, with a superb a capella cover of Mark Rae & Stephen Christian’s 'Spellbound'. The hip-hop grooves of the original track were revived in her layered harmonies, and her powerful vocal range was revealed in its entirety.

Her set was followed by the heavier sound of Manchester-based four-piece pyncher. Frontman Sam Blakeley appeared restless, moving around the stage as his lyrics echoed amongst the dreamy guitars and classic indie-rock melodies. The band has a striking presence and appeared to be very comfortable on stage. “We’ve been in Manchester for a while and have been surrounded by so many amazing artists and people,” said Blakely after the band had played a couple of songs. “There’s a community in Manchester that can’t be replicated".

BIMM Manchester alumni Phoebe Green joined the band for 'Love You Better', an unreleased collaboration which leans into the indie-pop side of their sound. Green’s folky vocals sat evenly alongside Blakely’s, and the resulting duet was enchanting, commanding, and very catchy. pyncher performed several unreleased tracks as their session came to a close, 'Louisa' and 'Home' being among the best. While those songs might not be available on streaming platforms, their set is available to stream on BBC Sounds at the moment as part of the BBC's broadcasting of the festival.

At a quarter to ten, with a lulling build-up of guitar distortion, TTSSFU began her awe-striking headline set wearing a silk dress and "FRAGILE" packaging tape. Her take on dream-pop is addictive and stirring, with gloomy lyrics and wailing walls of noise. In quieter moments, her voice is wispy, but certain heavier songs warrant howls and screams.

She’s been championed by the BBC over the past year, and it’s no mystery why. Her latest single, 'Upstairs' (released last November off the back of her 2025 EP Blown), made its way up the BBC Radio 6 Music playlists, being featured on the A-list in January. It’s a gorgeous track, and perhaps TTSSFU at her best. Over a monotonous drum beat, the chorus resonates: “I went upstairs to be alone with you, and by that I mean a photo / I’m zooming in, and I look at your face, all the cracks and the lines”.

She had to change the title of 'Cat Piss Junkie' in accordance with the radio broadcast, and so introduced it as “Cat Pee Funky”, stifling a giggle as she sang the censored lyrics. The penultimate song of her set was 'Studio 54', in which she climbed over the barrier to join the crowd, running up and down the pit and hugging audience members. “It’s party time”, she says as she climbs down from the stage.

The festival’s opening night couldn’t have had a more fitting headliner. Whatever happens next for TTSSFU, it's sure to be thrilling and thoroughly well-deserved. In the meantime, the event’s two support acts could absolutely be seen occupying her place on the line-up next year. Both pyncher and Ellen Beth Abdi brought something unique to the stage, and all three performances showed promise of even greater things on the horizon.