Kendal Calling

Arriving on the British indie rock scene in 2006 were vocalist and guitarist Luke Pritchard, lead guitarist and synth player Hugh Harris, drummer Alexis Nunez and bassist Peter Denton (the original bassist was Max Rafferty, who left in 2008 and original drummer Paul Garred was eventually replaced due to a nerve problem in his arm, making him unable to play live).

The four Brighton boys that make up The Kooks joined the likes of the fresh-faced Arctic Monkeys in releasing their debut album in the mid naughties; theirs recorded in Konk studios, London in 2005 and entitled “Inside In/Inside Out.” Although they were a little overshadowed by Arctic Monkey’s simultaneous release and instant success, the album received great critical acclaim and massive chart success in their UK home, eventually securing the number two position in the Albums Chart for two consecutive weeks. The album was also certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry and the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and launched their mainstream success, winning them the Best UK and Ireland Act at the 2006 MTV Awards.

Singles from their debut album such as “She Moves in Her Own Way” and “Naïve” broke the top ten in the UK singles chart and achieved success in charts in Europe too. The latter single being covered in Radio One’s Live Lounge sessions by British songstress Lily Allen cemented the band’s wide reaching appeal and demonstrated their strength in song writing skills. With influences like The Rolling Stones, The Strokes and Bob Dylan, this particular skill certainly didn't happen by mistake.

Their second album, “Konk” (named after the studio in which the first and second album were recorded) was released in 2008 and went straight to number one in the UK Albums Chart and was certified gold in the UK and Ireland. Single “Always Where I Need to Be” even achieved chart success in the US, reaching number 22 in the Alternative Songs Billboard chart.

In 2009 The Kooks began working on their third studio album (also recorded on label Virgin Records, as with their preceding albums). However, work was slow and after moving between new producers and writing methods to finally work with producer Tony Hoffer again, front man Pritchard announced in January 2011 that they had finally recorded fourteen tracks. Two months later the release date of 12th September 2011 for “Junk of the Heart” was announced and the album released with a more modern sound than before.

The Kooks then released a new single in April 2014 from their album, “Listen” released the following September. With surprise slots at festivals like Glastonbury, this particular year felt a little like a come back for The Kooks with Pritchard stating himself “that kind of fearlessness when you make the first album kind of crept back in.”

The Vaccines are one of those classic examples of pretty much instantaneous success; they formed in 2010, with their links to the UK indie scene already well-established - frontman Justin Young had previously recorded and toured under the name Jay Jay Pistolet, albeit with an altogether more folky sound, whilst guitarist Freddie Cowan is the younger brother of his counterpart in The Horrors, Tom.

By February of 2011, just a couple of early singles were enough to land The Vaccines the prestigious opening slot on the NME Awards Tour that year - previously occupied by the likes of Franz Ferdinand and Coldplay - and by the time they released their debut album, ‘What Did You Expect from The Vaccines?’, they had already built up a sizable fanbase of the back of tracks like ‘Wreckin’ Bar (Ra Ra Ra)’ and ‘Post Break-Up Sex’. That first album charted at number four in their native UK, and would eventually go on to be the biggest-selling debut of the year on those shores. They wasted little time in following it up; album number two, ‘Come of Age’, was released in September of 2012, after a successful lap of European festivals, and topped the album charts in the UK.

Deriving their name from a short story by Angela Carter, Wolf Alice was formed in 2010 by Ellie Roswell and Jeff Oddie. Shortly after, the band released an eponymously-titled EP featuring the tracks “Every Cloud”, “Destroy Me” and “Wednesday”, the latter of which was also made into a video. After two years of playing local shows and getting their name into the blogosphere, Wolf Alice became a four-piece with the addition of drummer Joel Amey and bassist Theo Ellis.

The band subsequently released the single “Leaving You” as a free download on their Soundcloud page which resulted in BBC Radio 1 airplay and a feature in NME’s ‘Radar’ section, significantly increasing the exposure of the group. After the release of the single Wolf Alice toured with Birmingham, UK band Peace and recorded a session for BBC Radio 1 DJ Huw Stevens in January 2013.

Wolf Alice signed with independent label Chess Club records in early 2013 who issued the band’s first physically released single “Fluffy” in February 2013. This was followed the by singles “Bros” and the EP “Blush” in October 2013. By December, BBC Radio 6 named the band as the single most blogged-about band in 2013 and a little while later signed with Dirty Hit Records. The new label released Wolf Alice’s second official EP “Creature Songs” on a 10” vinyl and digitally in May, which the the band supported by opening for a catalogue of UK indie bands including Alt-J, Superfood and The 1975.

Groove Armada, named after a 1970s disco, released four singles in their first year as a signed collective with songs such as “At the River” which featured a sample of “Old Cape Cod” originally by Patti Page, which would go on to be one of Groove Armada’s most well known tracks. They released their debut album “Northern Star” on March 9th 1998.

However, it wasn’t until they released their sophomore album “Vertigo” on May 24th 1999 that they earned themselves a silver record. It was also around this time that they released “At the River” as a single in its own right. “Vertigo” featured some of the duo’s biggest hits such as “I See You Baby”, which would go on to be used in Renault Megane and Ford Fiesta car commercials and then the song “”If Everybody Looked the Same” being used in the films, Gone in 60 Seconds and Miss Congeniality. The album went on to peak at number 23 in the UK Albums Chart too.

Their third album “Goodbye Country (Hello Nightclub)” released on September 10th 2001 shot up the charts to number 5 in the UK and number 8 in Australia. This album also features “Superstylin” which was a huge international hit for the duo, and earned the band a Grammy nomination.

The duo released a greatest hits album called “The Best of Groove Armada” in 2004, which ended their list of released with Pepper Records, before releasing “Soundboy Rock” on May 4th 2007, which was Groove Armada’s self proclaimed best album yet. The album after that, “Black Light” released on January 29th 2010, cited influences from Fleetwood Mac and Gary Numan.

Comprising of Simon Neil (guitar/vocals), James Johnston (bass, vocals) and Ben Johnston (drums/vocals), Biffy Clyro have slowly developed and progressed their sound, moving from a frenetic post-hardcore tinged rock reminiscent of Fugazi with prog influences, towards a more melodic, dynamic and expansive sound that has seen them headline major festivals and play at arena-sized venues.

After forming in their hometown of Kilmarnock, they moved to Glasgow, Scotland, where they began performing frequently to enthusiastic reactions form the crowd. They soon caught the attention of those in the music business, releasing their first single, "Iname" in 1999 on Aereogramme's Baby Yaga label. They then released a record on Elecric Honey, titled "thekidswhopoptodaywillrocktomorrow" which received airplay on BBC Radio Scotland. Following these releases and a successful performance at T in the Park in 2000, Beggars Banquet signed them to their label.

Their debut album was released in 2002, titled "Blackened Sky," to positive critical responses, touring extensively after its release. This was followed by "The Vertigo of Bliss" in 2003, which pushed their music to more experimental levels and to further positive reviews. "infinity Land" was to be their third album, again pushing the band to more success and attention, developing a strong and loyal fan base across the UK.

However, it was with their next album that Biffy Clyro would burst across the radio and the world of mainstream music, leaving behind their dissonant, chaotic sound for a more refined, melodic and dynamic record that would go on to reach number two in the UK charts the first week of its release and be certified Platinum in the UK. 2006's "Puzzle" was released on 14th Floor records, featuring the hit single, "Saturday Superhouse" which went to number 13 in the Singles Chart. The album's success led to many high profile support slots with the likes of Muse, The Who, The Rolling Stones and many more.

In 2008, "Mountains" was released, which went to number five in the UK Singles Chart. A year later, their fifth album, "Only Revolutions" came out, which featured a number of hit singles including "Mountains," "The Captain"and "The Golden Rule" which reached number 10 on the UK Singles Chart.

Biffy Clyro became one of the biggest rock bands in the world, supporting Foo Fighters in front of 135,000 fans at the Milton Keynes Bowl in 2011. With their 2013 album "Opposites," Biffy Clyro secured their first number one album, topping the UK charts. Following this success, they were invited to headline at Reading and Leeds Festival, as well as Radio 1's Big Weekend festival, cementing their position as one of rock's powerhouses in this modern age.

Every generation has the guitar band that unites them. For those that came of age in the early 2000’s, they had two, the lucky buggers. The Strokes kicked it all off at the turn of the century, and almost directly following in their footsteps were London’s very own The Libertines. A band that basically took the no-nonsense, year zero attitude of the New York City natives and gave it a twist of English romanticism and Dickensian decay. The influence of The Libertines spreads further than practically any of us can comprehend, least of all the band themselves, and it all began with the meeting of the bands frontmen, Pete Doherty and Carl Barât.

Barât was studying for a drama degree at Brunel University, where he was a classmate of one Amy-Jo Doherty. The two became friends and on one fateful occasion that Barât came to Amy-Jo’s flat to visit, Amy-Jo’s little brother, Peter, had come to visit at the same time. The two struck up a friendship based on their shared passion for songwriting, literature and poetry, and soon after they met they both dropped out of their university courses. The duo had become very close very quickly, and they decided to move in together, renting a flat on Camden Road that eventually became known as The Delaney Mansions.

The first line up of The Libertines would be the two of them and their neighbour Steve Bedlow (a man who would later pick up the nickname Scarborough Steve), but later picked up John Hassall to play rhythm guitar and some no-hoper called Johnny Borrell to play bass. The first incarnation of the band were soon playing live anywhere that would have them. In March 2000, they met with Banny Poostchi, a lawyer with Warner Chappell Music Publishing who saw the masses of potential that most people missed in the band, and began to manage them.

Unfortunately, by December of the same year it looked as if the band were going nowhere fast, so Hassall, Pootschi and their drummer John Dufour left the fold, leaving Pete and Carl alone. Fate was on their side though. With the massive hype around The Strokes quickly becoming the music story of the year, Pootschi reconsidered and put a plan in effect to get the band signed to Rough Trade Records in six months flat. She replaced Dufour with Gary Powell, and after it was became clear that Borrell couldn’t be counted on to turn up to rehearsals, John Hassall was convinced back into the fold to play bass instead.

During this time, Pete and Carl were writing feverishly, with the songs that would eventually make up their debut album mainly being written around this time. Pootschi’s plan worked and the band were signed to Rough Trade on December 21st 2001, ringing in the new year playing support slots with the aforementioned Strokes and Australia’s The Vines. The band started to pick up admirers in the music press, especially in the NME, and shortly after the release of their debut single “Up The Bracket”, it was time to record the album. With The Clash’s Mick Jones on production duties, “Up The Bracket” was immediately hailed as a classic by pretty much everyone who heard it, and support slots with the likes of Morrissey and the Sex Pistols soon followed.

By 2003, the band were becoming infamous, known as much for Pete Doherty’s worsening drug addiction and erratic nature than for their actual music. The story of the band becomes a horror show at this point, with Pete and Carl’s relationship being tested to its limits while Doherty refused to stop associating with deeply shady characters and enablers who wanted a slice of the fame and notoriety that followed him around wherever he went. By the time their second album was released, seeing the band live was something of a gamble, as it was just as, if not more likely that the band would play without Doherty than with him. The tabloids had gotten hold of the band at this point, and “Potty Pete” became something of a fixture with them that would continue until way after the decade’s end.

The band were still undeniably special, their UK tours at the end of 2003 and the start of 2004 were heralded as some of the best gigs of the year, and their second, self-titled album was another instant classic. They were finally starting to see some commercial success as well, with their second effort’s lead single “Can’t Stand Me Now” hurtling into the number two spot on the singles charts and its follow up, the prophetically named “What Became Of The Likely Lads” peaking at number nine. By this point however, the band was as good as dead. Doherty was in and out of rehab, missing gigs, promotional duties and recording sessions. Barat couldn’t in good conscience keep going as The Libertines without him, and called time on the band in 2004.

A Libertines reunion was treated as an impossibility for the rest of the decade, until in 2010 when the band were revealed as the sub-headliners of that years Reading And Leeds Festivals. The celebrated show was thought to be a one off until 2014, when the band again announced they were getting back together to headline Hyde Park. This wasn’t to be a one off, and after playing three sold out nights at Alexandra Palace in the following September, the band announced that they’d signed a record deal with Virgin/EMI Records. The band are unquestionably back, and with one of the best British bands of their generation making music again, what comes next is an impossibly exciting prospect. Highly recommended.

Carlton’s passion for music stemmed from the age of two when she visited Disneyland Park and returned wanting to play “It’s a Small World” on piano. During her childhood Carlton received piano lessons and from her mother, however by the age of nine her focus had turned to ballet and later enrolled at the School of American Ballet. Eventually the formality and discipline of ballet began to take its toll and Carlton subsequently looked towards music, especially of the alt-pop genre, to utilise her extensive talents. Following a period at Columbia University and waiting tables in New York City’s Hell’s Kitchen, the singer began playing open-mic events and feeling more comfortable performing in front of others.

In 2001 Carlton signed with A&M Records whose president Ron Fair was personally interested in the singer’s output. Vanessa Carlton released her debut hit single “A Thousand Miles” in 2002 earning three Grammy nominations, a host of pop and college radio play, and charting at No. 5 on the Billboard 200. The corresponding album “Be Not Nobody” arrived shortly afterwards spawning the subsequent singles “Ordinary Day” and “Pretty Baby”. Carlton supported the record with a national tour in support of Goo Goo Dolls and Third Eye Blind, before headlining her own tour towards the tail-end of 2002.

Following a series of contributions to the music of Counting Crows, Kimya Dawson, and Zucchero, Carlton issued her sophomore full-length “Harmonium” in November 2004. The album, produced by Stephan Jenkins of Third Blind Eye, proved to be more the result of Carlton's creative vision than her debut, however failed the match the commercial success. Debuting at No. 33 on the Billboard 200, “Harmonium” spawned the single “White Houses” and was toured alongside the Cary Brothers and Ari Hest. The full-length “Heroes & Thieves” arrived in October 2007 led by the singles “Nolita Fairytale” and “Hands on Me”. With production from Irv Gotti and Linda Perry, the record performed poorly in the charts, however earned positive reviews from the critical press. Carlton’s fourth full-length “Rabbits on the Run” was issued by Razor & Tie in July 2011, followed by the Christmas EP “Hear the Bells” in November that year.

Before the earliest incarnation of Ash, vocalist and guitarist Tim Wheeler and bassist Mark Hamilton played in an Iron Maiden cover band entitled Vietnam in 1989. Deciding on the first word they liked in the dictionary, Ash, with the addition of drummer Rick McMurray, created three demo tapes in 1992 with the names “Solar Happy”, “Shed”, and “Home Demo”. Many of the songs which featured on Ash’s debut full-length “Trailer” had previously appeared on earlier demos including “Jack Names the Planets”, “Uncle Pat”, and “Petrol”. The release received limited airplay from BBC Radio 1 and the group subsequently released the breakthrough singles “Kung Fu”, “Girl From Mars”, and “Angel Interceptor”.

After their singles “Jack Names the Planets” and “Kung Fu” appeared on the soundtrack to the film “Angus”, the band earned a wealth of exposure in the U.S. market. The Northern Irish group released their full-length debut “1977” in 1996 on Infectious and Reprise Records. Featuring the singles “Kung Fu”, Girl From Mars” and “Goldfinger” the album was named after the birth year of two of the band members, the year of the first punk albums and the original release of Star Wars. A year later Ash recorded a live album entitled “Live at the Wireless” at the Triple J Studios in Australia.

In 1997 after touring alongside Weezer, the band invited Charlotte Hatherley on board as a second guitarist, who played one of her first gigs at the year’s V Festival. Ahead of the band’s sophomore full-length “Nu-Clear Sounds”, Ash issued the single “Jesus Says”, however years of constant touring and recording were beginning to take their toll on the group. “Nu-Clear Sounds” turned out to be a commercial and critical flop and the band returned to Wheeler’s parents’ house, where the band began, to play and find their roots once again. The trip home worked wonders for the group whose subsequent album “Free All Angels” topped the UK Albums chart in 2001. Spawning the singles “Shining Light”, “Burn Baby Burn”, “Sometimes, and “Candy”, the first of which won the Ivor Novello Award for “Best Contemporary Song”, the album introduced Ash as a staple of Brit-pop.

Continuing the sci-fi theme of “1977”, Ash’s subsequent release, the singles collection “Intergalactic Sonic 7”s” was released in September 2002. After supporting U2 on their world tour, Wheeler and Hamilton moved to New York and embarked on a six month hiatus. A year later Charlotte Hatherley announced she was leaving the group. “Twilight of the Innocents” arrived in 2007 and was claimed to be Ash’s last album, with the band focussing on singles thereafter. In 2009 Ash began the “A-Z Series”, which saw the group released a new single every two weeks for a year, until 26 had been recorded. The same year the band made appearances at Hevy Music Festival in Folkestone, and headlined the John Peel Stage at Glastonbury Festival.

It’s safe to say that Louise Gabrielle Bobb made quite an impression when she debuted at the tender age of 23. Her debut single “Dreams” hurtled into the charts at number two, which was already the highest chart entry for a debut single in the history of the U.K singles charts. She went one better the week afterwards though, when the single topped the charts and stayed at the top for the following three weeks. With one single, Gabrielle had established herself as a talent to be reckoned with, and followed it up with another top ten single in the form of “Going Nowhere”. Her debut album “Find Your Way” was released soon after that, and signalled the peak of a commercial purple patch for the young artist along with her award for British Breakthrough Act at the 1994 BRIT Awards.

After touring the world for the remainder of 1994, Gabrielle released her second studio album in 1996. The self-titled effort was another huge hit for her, as was its lead single “Give Me A Little More Time”, but as the campaign went on her singles started slipping further and further down the upper echelons of the charts, save for a duet with “Stay Another Day” hitmakers East 17 in the form of “If You Ever”, which was a number two hit and sold over half a million copies. However, people were beginning to doubt the commercial potential of Gabrielle on the whole. Almost as a response, 1999 would see her go through one of the most spectacular career rejuvenations of the 1990’s. Her third album “Rise” spent three weeks at number one and was certified four times platinum, with its eponymous lead single enjoying similar success in January 2000.

Ever since then, Gabrielle has enjoyed a stellar career as one of the premier British soul artists of today, arguably paving the way for the likes of Adele and Amy Winehouse to have similar levels of success all over the world. With a sixth album currently in the works, Gabrielle comes highly recommended.

We Are Scientists members Keith Murray and Chris Cain met in 1997 at Pomona College, along with original guitarist and vocalist Scott Lamb.

Their style is inspired by live performers such as The Rapture and David Bowie. The sounds and artists that influence the recorded material of the band include varying acts such as Brian Eno, Velvet Underground, My Bloody Valentine and Fleetwood Mac.

After their move to Brooklyn, New York in 2001 the band began recording their debut album on November 10, 2001, and 'Safety, Fun, and Learning (In That Order)' was released in April 2002 but unfortunately failed to make an impact on the UK album charts. However, due to relentless touring and an aid from the blogosphere, the band achieved a commercial break with the follow-up 'With Love And Squalor' charting just outside the top 40 in 2006.

To promote their next album the band made their second appearance at the Reading and Leeds Festivals, performing on the Radio One Stage and introduced Max Hart who would be providing guitar and keyboards at live shows, in preparation for a UK tour in November. Days before this tour was scheduled to begin, drummer Michael Tapper unexpectedly quit the band meaning Gary Powell and Adam Aaronson had to step in.

'Brain Thrust Mastery' went on to be their highest charting UK album, peaking at #11 helped by support from Radio 1 DJs at the time Jo Whiley and Edith Bowman. The next album 'Barbara' was a commercial miss after WAS split from EMI Records and released this LP on PIAS Recordings. It fell outside the UK top 40 due to poor promotion although critical response for this album was overall positive. The 2014 album 'TV en Français' re-entered the top 40 at #36 and #5 on the Indie Charts. The band took to the road in September to promote its release with Surfer Blood, releasing an exclusive joint vinyl which featured new song 'Distillery'. In April 2018, the band released their seventh studio album "Megaplex," featuring singles 'No Wait at Five Leaves' and 'Heart is a Weapon.'

Prior to setting up their own lo-fi, analogue studio, Springtime Studios, as a recording outlet for the band, The Cribs had debuted at a family party in the late ’80s, when all the brothers were younger than 10. Growing up on the same diet of the Beatles, Sex Pistols and the Smiths, the trio became finely tuned with one another and recorded well-received demo. The demo caused a stir and along with successful performances at the likes of Leeds’ Brudenell Social Club and the Metro in London, the band signed with indie-label Wichita Recordings in 2003.

The band re-recorded a number of the songs on their demo, working with avant-garde musician Bobby Conn and music engineer Ed Deegan. It wasn’t long before the Cribs became highly revered by music publications, notably NME, and their self-titled debut, recorded in seven days, perked the ears of many in the industry. The album led to an extensive period of touring, including significant slots at the festivals Reading and Leeds and T in the Park, which garnered the band an intensely devoted following.

The Cribs’ next released came in 2005 with the album “The New Fellas”, this time working with Orange Juice singer-songwriter Edwyn Collins. The album, like its predecessor has an unpolished lo-fi approach to it and features the singles “Hey Scenesters” and “Haunted”, the latter of which was recorded on Scarborough beach in the UK. The band’s subsequent release “Men’s Needs, Women’s Needs, Whatever” in 2007, features a who’s who of esteemed collaborations including Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand, Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth, and mixed by Andy Wallace. The single “Men’s Needs”, reached No. 17 on the UK Singles Chart and marked the Cribs’ first breakthrough onto mainstream radio.

By this time the Cribs had become a high-profile indie rock band and were afforded the luxuries of headlining and main stage festival slots. By chance, Gary of the band met Johnny Marr, at the time member of Modest Mouse, who went on to officially join the band for their subsequent release “Ignore the Ignorant” in 2009. On top of appearing on the recording, which became the Cribs’ first Top Ten UK hit, Marr joined the band on tour, including dates in Australia and New Zealand and at Reading and Leeds.

Johnny Marr announced his more than amicable departure from the band in 2011, and the Cribs subsequently released the albums “In the Belly of the Brazen Bull” in 2011 and “Payola” in 2012, the latter of which features the single “Leather Jacket Love Song” released in 2013.

Lloyd's music career began as part of the band The Commotions, their debut in 1984 cemented Cole's reputation as a social commentator. 'Rattlesnakes' contained a number of literary and pop culture references mentioning varying people including Arthur Lee, Simone de Beauvoir, Grace Kelly, Eva Marie Saint, Truman Capote, and Joan Didion. After two more albums, 'Easy Pieces' and 'Mainstream' the band disbanded and Lloyd moved back to New York to concentrate on a solo career.

His self titled debut was a success in his homeland, charting at #11 on the album charts and featured a small hit 'No Blue Skies'. The follow-up also fared relatively well in the UK, peaking at #21. 'Don't Get Weird On Me Babe' was an album of two halves, one followed Cole's conventional rock stylings whilst the other included a symphony orchestra.

He had two more albums chart within the UK top 40 chart before dropping off the commercial radar. In the mid-90's Cole's label Universal Music had a large purge of the artist roster and their contract with Lloyd was terminated despite having two full length albums still in their possession. In 2013 Cole returned to the UK charts for the first time in fifteen years with 'Standards' which peaked at #74.