By: Chris Broom


The band, a motley international crew that takes in England, Scotland, Brazil and Canada, are sonic alchemists of the highest order, weaving magic out of the weirdest of sources.

And Sir Ian McKellen, who played the wizard in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, recently performed in the video for Falling Out of Reach, the next single from their top-10 album Red - for free.

Drummer Greig Stewart says: 'He was so humble and really lovely. We were with him all day, and he did it for nothing - we couldn't afford him otherwise.

'He came to see us play at the Astoria in London a couple of years ago, and came backstage to meet us - he called us "thorough performers".'
With backgrounds that take in jazz, classical, folk and heavy metal,
Stewart, frontman Fyfe Dangerfield< CORR>, bassist Aristazabal Hawkes< CORR>, and guitarist MC Lord Magrao< CORR> have produced a second album that looks set to take them to the next level.

Recording in their own studio, a converted synagogue, the four-piece would experiment endlessly in their quest to create the perfect pop songs.

But for the follow-up to the Mercury Prize nominated Through The Windowpane they wanted to hark back to the sonic experimentalism of the 60s greats such as The Beatles and The Beach Boys.

'We just have fun - there's lots of nooks of crannies where we can go and throw things around, and see what new sounds we can make,' says Stewart. 'We've got tons of ideas.

'We wanted to make pop songs - it's easier to make songs that last longer - it's much more difficult to fit everything into three-and-a-half minutes.'

However, the fact that the new songs are so densely layered is providing the band with a few headaches over how to recreate them live.
'We like doing different arrangements live, and we've only done a few gigs as tasters so far, but the new songs have been going down quite well,' he adds.

The band are playing at Southampton Guildhall on May 30.
*Tickets cost £13.50 and are available from the box office on 023 8063 2601 or online at www.southampton-guildhall.com/events