From the streets of Brixton comes this refreshingly urban four piece indie/rock quartet who have been surrounded by whispers of musical brilliance since their introduction to the music scene in 2006. Creating their loyal fan base the old fashioned way, these friends played a tough year long gig tour in small venues around London. Even the great Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stone’s fame saw the potential of this new band after hearing the rumor mill surrounding them, Wood made a trip to the Half Moon in Putney in 2006 where he signed them to his record label on the spot making them the first ever band to be signed up to Wooden Records.
Mensah Lofi-Agyeman lead vocalist and guitarist says about starting the band at age 14, “I started playing now and again and just got these three round just smoking and trying to stay off the road. My mum allowed us all to come round her house and chill out. She’d rather that then us hanging on the street corner smoking weed”. From the influences of their parents and the sounds of the street comes their stark and honest look at urban life in Brixton, London youth culture and gang society, with lyrics contrasted by sounds influenced by Jimi Hendrix, punk, Ska, Reggae and the local hip-hop and drum and bass coming out of Brixton.
2007 was a great year career wise for the band when they released their first album from the famous Olympic Studios, On the Brink. Stand out songs such as Sail Away, lyrically astounding and portraying the harsh realities of urban life in London and the melodic Don’t Waste Your Time, sticking closely to the musical sounds of Ska, Reggae and Dub like bands such as The Jam and The Specials. 2007 also saw them playing at a selection of great festivals such as Glastonbury, Hyde Park Calling and The Isle of White and supporting The Rolling Stones and the Sex Pistols for a few shows.
2009 has been equally interesting after the boys supported Pete Doherty on tour in March and are returning to their roots this month to help with the open of ‘thirsty Thursdays’ at Jamm in Brixton which launches on Thursday 9th July 09. Whilst we eagerly await their second album, check out their myspace page for a few up and coming gigs in London this summer.
written by Hannah Johnson