THIS Thursday sees what promises to be a legendary gig at Barfly, with some of Merseyside’s best up-and-coming acts joining together to raise money for Oxfam.
Throughout October, bands across the country will be putting on thousands of music events, including this gig which will see The Hot Melts (pictured), Elle S'appelle, The Vagabonds, Go Faster and My Amiga uniting to help the charity, and showcase some hot new talent.
“It should be a really good night,” says Hot Melts drummer Jack Prince. “When they asked us if we’d play we were definitely up for it.”
West Kirby lads The Hot Melts – Jack is joined by Will Bayliss (vocals and guitar), Jonny Green (lead guitar), Jamie Otsa (bass) – have just returned to Liverpool after a summer of touring. They’ve just signed to American indie label Epitaph and they’re currently rehearsing songs for their new album.
Their songs are a fantastic combination of bright, bouncy tunes juxtaposed against stark, emotional lyrics.
“I love that way bands like Abba could write a happy melody for a really dark lyric,” says Will. “Some of those songs are about real pain, but it’s all wrapped up in such a jolly tune that most people would never notice. That’s genius.”
The Vagabonds are the current ECHO Unsigned Band of the Week, and are quickly proving themselves to be one of the most exciting young acts coming out of Merseyside.
They’ve previously played alongside The Kooks, The New York Dolls and Donny Tourette’s band the Towers of London.
They are the aptly named Billy Singer on vocals, Phil Atkinson on guitar, John Cole on bass, and Wayne Fleet on drums.
Elle S'appelle, Go Faster and My Amiga are all being hotly tipped as the next big things.
See them all now – while you can. These guys are going to be huge.
Elle S'appelle, The Vagabonds, Go Faster, The Hot Melts and My Amiga play Barfly on Thursday night. Doors open at 8pm and entry is £5. For more information see www.my space.com/thehotmelts.