Mad garage-punk boys from the north East of England.
Pellethead formed many moons ago in Middlesbrough in the North-East of England, and quickly developed a reputation for their quirky brand of garage-punk. They are all self-taught musicians and this combined with 3 singer-songwriters helps to explain their preference for the path less travelled.
Pellethead have been compared to many other bands, pointedly they are usually rather good ones! Some of the more frequent references are: Pavement, The Fall, The White Stripes, Joy Division, The Pixies, Devo and The Minutemen. But at the same time they have their own instantly recognisable, signature sound. They certainly sit firmly in the avant-garde camp.
The boys live to play live and this has led them to play in every corner of England on gigs, tours and festivals, as well as venturing over the pond for a 2-week tour of the North-East USA.
Highlight gigs include: Kenny’s Castaways Club in New York City, Stockton International Riverside Festival 3 times, Middlesbrough Music Live, Kick-Start Festival, Liverpool Pacific Road Theatre, The Cavern Club in Liverpool twice, and various London venues.
They have played with some fantastic bands including: Kenickie several times, The Palace Brothers, Goober Patrol, Red Star and Kodiak.
As a result of all this gigging Pellethead have honed their live act to a spectacle capable of winning the hearts and souls of any audience. They are most certainly performers as well as musicians. The have often been referred to as showmen and performance artists, this is over-and-above their musical magnificence of course.
They have released 5 albums and had a song on a split 7” vinyl E.P. that was played by John Peel on BBC Radio 1. They have, in addition, appeared on other radio stations all over the globe, including in Liverpool, Middlesbrough, Ohio, Albania, and of course on the World Wide Web. And they have been written about in countless local rags as well as the following magazines: Record Collector, In Pittsburgh arts magazine, Suspect Device, Keep It Live, The Idea and many online zines and forums.
They are currently working on a new vinyl EP due for release in Autumn 2004.
Its what we love the most. Most memorable was a gig we played in New York City at a club called Kenny's Castaways, previously hosting Blondie, New York Dolls etc. Half way through the gig it was invited by a hen party from Florida. So we got the bride to be and friend on stage, taught them the words for our final song and it worked a treat, the place went beserk. Spent the rest of the evening signing T-shirts and CD's for them and posing for photos.
All the band members bring their own influences and we share a lot too. Classic punk and new-wave like: The Fall, The Clash, The Buzzcocks and Joy Division mixed in with a love of bluesmen such as John Lee Hooker, rockers like Duane Eddy, and all things Northern Soul and you have us in a nutshell.
Valve amps pretty much straight up. Old drum kit and the weirdest but best sounding guitars we can find. But out main piece of equipment is our shining charisma!
You either get us or don't, love us or don't care. Fortunately most people do love us. We stand out at any gig. And above all we do it because we love it. We aren't doing it for the money or the chicks (just as well), we are doing it because we have a brilliant laugh. Oh, and we are very, very good. Honest.