The Holiday

Crunch, crunch goes the snow as I weave my way through the 20 centimeters that has magically coated the city in glittering white icing. As I make my way to the solent SU, I am joined by my fellow students from the two journalism courses, all of us braving the icy temperatures in order to check out the mysterious band “The Holiday”. The glacial temperatures however didn´t stop the girls getting dolled up just that little bit more, than is the norm for a press conference. I bet the prospect of meeting a band with young guys in it has something to do with their transformation.

Entering the SU feels like going to a proper gig as the waiting crowd flows over both staircases. The girls quickly do a mirror check and join the excited queue. Surprisingly we have to wait 15 minutes for the band to appear on stage. I guess this up & coming band had to push their credibility factor just that tiny bit by miming the big guys. 30 minutes later however everything was forgiven as the band members- all dressed in unison (black skinny pants, shirt and black ties) one by one make their way onto the stage and us budding reporters quickly huddle in front of the stage with our pens poised and notepads at the ready.

The quirky looking singer James Harding introduces the band with a constant cheeky grin on his face. He introduces the tall burly drummer: Jonathan Royston-Claire, then on lead guitar and vocals it's James Harding who looks very dapper in a light grey tux (he could be the brother of Sarah Harding, judging by his handsome features) on bass and vocals it's quiet guitarist James Broderick, and last but not least the adorable Beatles lookalike Daniel Cobb. Their sound is purposely hard to pin down, as it has a distinctive edgy Brit pop vibe inspired by bands like the Vaccines, combined with a happy-go-lucky boy-band back beat. “We actually have a major Mcfly addiction” the drummer later on reveals as their dirty little secret.

Their dazzlingly bright riffs however don`t seem to have inspired the audience quite yet. Maybe the frosty temperatures have seeped into the venue, as the girls seem too frozen to do more than a polite head bop now and again. The guys themselves however seem to be having fun, evident by their exuberant dance style. Even the drummer is breaking into a sweat. As soon as they play the first cord of “Cue the Sun”- the band´s favorite song- the icy atmosphere melts, as we are all prompted to sing: “Goodbye rain and hello sun”.

This song encapsulates the band´s philosophy perfectly as they describe themselves as a completely new movement, focusing on escapism: from their boring, tedious day jobs. Their lyrics talk about taking risks that pay off with happy endings. It´s a bit difficult to believe that “Cue the Sun” is still their favorite song, considering: much to their housemate’s disgust, they played it for six and a half hours the other day.

The band is becoming more and more confident during the set and they seem very much a unit, as they continuously turn to each other and all of them move around the stage, which makes the set more lively and interesting. Although their stage presence could do with a bit of fine-tuning: Christmas chitchat doesn't really seem to be a hit with the audience. Their dancing skills however soon make up for that, as they aren`t afraid to just let loose and go for it. Like the crazy dancing of the lead vocalist, James Harding, or the exuberant drumming that made the tall posh looking drummer, Jonathan Royston- Claire, break out into a sweat. Sweat however does not put off any of the girls as we all agree in whispers that he is definitely the hottie of the band.

Even though the band is famously trying to avoid using the cyber-world as a platform, James himself made sure that all the girls signed their emailing list. Jonathan justifies their elusiveness “We prefer to be chased and just leave clues along the way.” If you think of it this is actually a smart move in the over saturated media world of today. “This way it kinda takes the pressure off and we can make the best music in our own time. We want to build our band and fan base up to such a high level that we are good enough to go national.” One thing all of the members definitely have in common is their shared enthusiasm and belief in their ability to: “make it big”, as they say.

So the mandatory question to all starting bands: how did you start a band? “We founded our band at table 28 at the Witherspoons on London road in Southampton” James giggles. He elaborates by saying: “ Because Jonathan was already in a successful band I tried to convince him on a drunken night out at Kaos to ditch that band and start a band with us instead.” Speaking of Kaos the guys were obviously more than happy that the press conference was mainly dominated by girls as they frequently interspersed pauses with the same query: “So are you girls coming to Kaos tonight?”

During the entire press conference Jonathan was definitely the main speaker, which backs up his view that even though he is always at the back of the stage he believes that he, is the driving force of the band holding it all together. Just as the boys seem ready to head off to Kaos we get to the nitty gritty asking for their funniest stories. Jamie takes the plunge and starts off with a humorous little anecdote chuckling about a guy having mistaken him for a girl and saying: “S'cuse me love”. The mysteriously quiet but handsome James H. mentioned that a girl once kissed his behind just as he was leaving the stage. Maybe he isn`t that gentleman-like after all, as he also reveals;“ I soiled myself twice after a two day bender once”. This is when Daniel quickly pitches in and advises the girls to put down a plastic sheet if they take him home, after Kaos that night. On a less rock n roll note the Beatles look alike, Daniel, reveals that he was one half of the heaviest baby twins in the year he was born. The stories ranged from funny to just plain painful, when James Broderick revealed: “ My story was more funny for onlookers than myself, I got on the balancing beam with my socks on, fell down and broke my arm in two places.”

So where does this unique band see itself heading in future? Well, they would love to get signed by a major record label as soon as they are big enough. Which ones? Universal or Nirvana's old label. Definitely aiming high, just like the places they see themselves touring in: America, Japan, Hamburg; where James H. insists they`ll play in the same club the Beatles performed in 1962- the so-called “Star Club”. “Oh and North Korea would be interesting” Jamie jokes. “Our ultimate goal is to be able to say: oh your off to work are you? Oh me too, I've got band practice today...” Jonathan says with a twinkle of future prospects in his eye.

The last question uttered, and also on most girls’ minds was: “ So are you guys single?” Two of them are. Which ones? Go to their next gig at Lennon’s (in Southampton) on the 16th of January to find out for yourself.