Twang get ready for ‘lairy’ first tour date in Crewe tonight

Sep 30 2009 by James A Oliver, Crewe Chronicle

LAD rock champions The Twang make an appearance in Crewe tonight (Wednesday ) as they embark on a tour of the UK.

The Birmingham five-piece are the latest in a growing list of big-name acts which the M Club has managed to bring to the town.

Formed in 2001, it wasn’t until six years later that they were vaunted as one of the brightest new acts in Britain by the NME magazine and the BBC’s Sound of 2007 poll.

They released debut album Love It When I Feel Like This, which reached number three in the charts that year and followed that up with Jewellery Quarter – a top 20 record which hit the shops last month.

Now they celebrate with a 17-date tour, beginning at the High Street venue which has welcomed the likes of Feeder, Athlete and Ocean Colour Scene so far this year.

Singer Martin Saunders promises a true rock ‘n’ roll experience for the crowd.

He says: “We’re really looking forward to this. We’ve been wanting to get out on the road for a while now. We did a few festivals over the summer but now we just want to get out on our own tour, play every night and get drunk.

“I am always excited about the first date of the tour and it is the first time we have come to Crewe.”

Saunders is joined by a second vocalist, Phil Etheridge, bass player Jon Watkin, drummer Matty Clinton and guitarist Stu Hartland, who all admit their shows have become notoriously lairy.

Saunders explains: “The tours can become very dark as we basically overdo it for a few weeks. We like to have a drink before and after gigs, so the shows can get a bit mad, as you can imagine.

“We used to have a ‘two-pint rule’ before we go on stage, but that has gradually turned into a ‘two bottle of wine rule!’ It’s rock ‘n’ roll at the end of the day.

“We do get a lot of people throwing pints on to the stage although that was something we used to encourage.

“If you want to see a proper show, come and see us. It’s better than those bands who just turn up and go through the motions.”

When they burst on to the scene, The Twang were described as a combination of The Stone Roses, Happy Mondays and The Streets – a comparison which Saunders feels was justified.

“I never really thought about it that much but I love those bands so I would say it’s a nice compliment, really. It probably did fit us at the time but the music has progressed.”

However, that ‘progression’ was lambasted by much of the music press and the new album received a number of bad reviews.

Saunders felt most of it was personal: “It does hurt when you read bad reviews but you can guarantee most of them haven’t even listened to the album anyway.

“Some just can’t get past the fact we are from Birmingham and they base their reviews on class. People don’t buy records based on where people are from!

“We think the record was great when we recorded it and we still do.”

And it hasn’t spoilt the band’s desire to record album number three.

Saunders adds: “We want to get another record out as soon as possible. I buy music and I know a lot of stuff out there at the moment is really bad, that’s a fact.

“We write good songs and we will keep getting better as a band.”

Support at tonight’s show comes from Crewe band Sumo Kings. Tickets are still on sale, visit www.themclub.co.uk for more information or call 01270 216785.