This is a year of milestones for fans of Manchester-based miserablism. For a start, it’s exactly 40 years since the release of The Smiths’ self-titled debut album, which heralded the arrival of the definitive Manchester band. For a group steeped in musical and cultural nostalgia (something that would become increasingly problematic for singer/lyricist Morrissey) they managed to look and sound like nothing else. With their wry, introspective lyrics and mad, jangly melodies, The Smiths were advocates for the awkward, the band for the bookish.