Doesn’t time fly! It seems like only yesterday when we spoke to Martin Edwards, he of Thoria fame, to help launch our Band of the Month feature back in November 2003. And since showcasing the talents of the loud Coventry trio the unsigned band section has grown and grown. We’ve now got our thirteenth band, Kingtide, which means the section’s been going a whole year with bands throwing themselves at us to get featured on our site. Well we may not have bought a cake and blown out the candle but we’ve certainly made a wish that Band of the Month continues as successfully for another year and beyond. So if you know of any acts you think deserve to be featured, or if you are indeed an artist wanting more coverage then drop us a line. Our email address is: coventry@bbc.co.uk. In the meantime let us remember the many bands we’ve featured so far.  | | Satsangi |
Coventry’s grunge rock trio Thoria kicked off things for us in November 2003 and it’s no surprise the top band still are going strong. They’ve finished recording a new album which has yet to be mixed. But the band will be committing themselves to more live dates over the coming weeks. We toned things the following month with Stratford’s funky mothers FrankSound. They launched the Hope Dust & Stuff EP in April of this year and are still regulars in their home town. Satsangi helped us ring in the new year with their Led Zeppelin/classical Indian raga influenced dark melodies. The Leamington six-piece were an eclectic mix to say the least. In February of this year we featured Coventry’s delightful Tree and Chris, otherwise known as Little Girl Screaming. At the time the two were playing acoustic gigs because they were searching for a new drummer and bassist. They got both (by a quirk of fate they were both called James) but it didn’t pan out as planned as they had hoped with the percussionist so another sticksman is again wanted. You can contact the band via their website if you’re interested.  | | The Senses |
March saw us feature Plan-a. The Coventry-based duo of Malcolm Evans and Nathan Bennett are still going strong but have a rethink about their name. Now if come across a band called Beneva you’ll be in for an acoustic treat. Next up were the Dukes and the Stratford boys are still living proof that white men can funk! You can still catch up with them today though we can’t say for sure if guitarist’s Stu McLeish’s dream of lying on a bed of money surrounded by many beautiful women has come true yet. In May we featured Coventry’s pop-tastic The Senses who delighted us with their jangling guitars and gorgeous melodies. The boys have subsequently made it onto Radio One’s prestigious unsigned list. And we still reckon they’re going to be big.  | | SumladfromCov |
It was the turn of Lowdrive in June and they featured not only on our website but also on the airwaves thanks to a slot on BBC WM’s Sunday Breakfast Show in their native Coventry. We found that rock music was in the blood of a young Stratford outfit in July. Despite their age Blueblood have been going for a while and still gig inbetween their dayjobs …. Well, university anyway. The Satin Dolls were causing a fuss in August. At the time the band was courting attention from several record labels. Not bad for a group born out of a university project in Coventry. Three words sum up their future – watch this space! Declan Bennett may have been one third of boy-band Point Break in his youth, but this London based artist has matured. And in his current incarnation of SumladfromCov, he proved in September that he’s an accomplished singer/songwriter.  | | Kingtide |
October’s act Nizlopi are doing well with their original blend of funky music. The Leamington lad’s have been together since they were 13 and don’t look like stopping just yet. And our second year has begun in earnest with another act from the Spa town in the form of Kingtide. Formerly known as Penfold, these boys are seriously slick with their crisp indie-rock tunes. So raise a glass and a litrtle cheer – Band of the Month is officially a year old. Let’s hope we’re still making music this time next year!
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