THE PADDINGTONS come from darkest Hull, even minus duffelcoats, wellies and marmalade sandwiches they are some seriously noisy bears.

If you had to pick one band from the countless promising Hull acts who are emerging from the doldrums of a local music scene which was previously stuck in a dodgy brit-pop by numbers time warp with Oasis as the one and only messiah, a band whose raucous stage shows and too cool for school garments which, although striking on their own, are merely by-products of an exhilarating range of zealous garage-punk tunes, a single band who are the ‘most likeliest’ to catapult themselves into the current new wave of much lauded British rock-n-roll upstarts currently terrorising venues up and down the country, then Hull born and bred quintet ‘The Paddingtons’ are that band.

Tom (lead vocals), Grant (drums), Josh (rhythm guitar), Lloyd (bass) and Marv (lead guitar) proclaim to be “the northern invaders.” The Paddingtons play music which on first hearing sounds like a bastard hybrid of The Ramones and The Libertines. It is admittedly uncomplicated stuff played at largely breakneck speed but most notably with an extremely vigorous and tuneful stance. Music that they love themselves as band spokesman Josh explains “I like those passionate two minute songs, forget key changes or whatever.”

It is those power punk medleys which have led to interest in the band from all quarters culminating in a single deal with none other than Alan McGee’s Poptones label. Not that the reward of a deal has come just like that in a realm of simplicity as Josh describes, “We have been going two years and in that time we must have done about 200 gigs. The first 100 was learning to play the guitar in Hull while the other 100 was just playing gigs and finally gaining that good response.”

The band have literally played every venue there is in Hull and in the process have gradually gained an ardent local fan base who adore them for their own songs rather than the splendid renditions of various ‘Strokes’ and ‘Libertines’ covers which characterised their earlier sets. However, despite their mammoth gig experiences they are refreshingly blunt and honest when describing their ability as musicians, as Josh speaks for them all “We cant play! We are not great musically. Where as you get some people who sit there playing the guitar for hours, they see us and wonder whats going on and they say '3 chord trick, what ya doing?'.”

You get the feeling that such ripostes have never and will never hold them back. It is the bands own self-belief in what they do which will ensure that any detractors will not get a look-in when it comes to the bands own mind set. ”We know we have the good songs, if you have not got the sonjgs then people are really not gonna be interested,“ explains Grant.

This youthful confidence is what no doubt first attracted the man who discovered the uber-sure Oasis to The Paddingtons. But just how did this man end up signing a band from what was previously known as Beautiful South city? The answer to this lies in a collective decision to play as many gigs down in London, “to get in everybody’s faces,” smirks Josh. Quite an acute decision based on the burgeoning scene of DIY bands creating and accumulating a scene of its own, and it was the singer one of these bands who The Paddingtons will be eternally grateful too.

“We got some gigs with a geezer we got to know called Dominic who is in ‘The Others’ (newly signed and hotly tipped London band), he said something about us and got someone to come and watch us at a gig in London and he would also pass demos on and stuff like that,” explains Grant.

One of these five-track demos managed to get into the hands of McGee who was so impressed by these self-proclaimed Northern scumbags that he played them on his radio station leading to many enquiries as to just who this band were and where they could buy their music. That apparently was all that was needed to sign them up on a single deal, the screwed up genius of 'Twenty One' which is released nationally in October.

Despite serious interest from a few minor labels, the boys couldn’t be happier with their Poptones deal. “Alan is 100% behind us, he likes all these new bands that are coming along and if he is positive about it then I am on his side. We have such a good team there and we have been introduced and they look after us well,” says Josh.

The current deal is based on how well the first single actually does but unlike a lot of labels who are happy enough to sign a band and then get rid at the sense of any kind of failure, Poptones’ belief in the band means that a second single release is almost inevitable and that suits the band pretty well indeed for now. As Marv explains, “We would not want to sign an album deal just like that anyway, as we have not done that much and we have not been seen by enough people. We know Poptones are not the type to ditch you after one single.”

Oblivious to that fact the band will be launching their single in an all out attack on the gig going publics consciousness in the way that comes most natural to them with a planned tour in September taking in venues which they feel most at home in.

“We will have the underground gigs in the Rhythm Factory and places like that. We’ll do them all the time anyway because they are the best fucking gigs. We are also going to get some good support tours as well I do believe, certain bands who are doing quite good,” says Josh intriguingly.

The band do seem to have struck up quite a relationship with the capital city, after all, this is the place where they were discovered and where they feel an affinity with a lot of similar bands who are cropping up in that area who hold a lot of the same ideals as The Paddingtons do. Indeed, throughout the interview the band enthusiastically describe their experiences of playing London and how each crowd seems to be that little bit larger once they head back into town. Surely this adulation must inevitably lead to a decision to leave the banks of the Humber and settle down in the infinitely more popular and widespread music scene in the big city? Not a chance.

“There is no point moving down to London as we can get there pretty easily anyway,” explains Marv. “We would just end up becoming known as another London band and we do not want to lose our identity,” adds Grant defiantly.

London’s loss is therefore Hull’s gain as it means we get to see them perform more often! At any rate being based in Hull has not held the band back in the slightest. Rather than being a hindrance, it should be, and to all purposes has been, celebrated and the band agree that any band coming from Hull should ply their trade wherever they can without taking any notice of any negative association they may come across.

“I think its more about the music down there (London) where people are just interested in seeing good bands and good music where as Hull gigs are sometimes like Mams and Dads parades,” referring to the occasional pattern of familiar people coming out for them at certain venues across the city.

”Hull bands should get themselves everywhere, get to London then keep going back. Play Wolverhampton and then go back again. Just keep getting it in their faces, that’s what we did,” Josh enthuses, while singing the praises of local favourites Turismo and new kids on the block The Morphines.

 

It’s a strategy that in its simplicity has worked for The Paddingtons and there is no reason why it cannot work for the current crop of Hull bands with a bag full of talent. The more that they make themselves known all over the country as well as in their home city the more new fans they will accumulate and even the more influential people they may come across as even though you may have the talent as a band, luck always has to play a part in your future and its sometimes the people that you know who can prove the be extremely useful in getting places as is what happened with The Paddingtons in managing to get the enviable support position to the band of the moment, The Libertines.

 

As Lloyd describes, ”we met a guy called Scarborough Steve who was supposed to have been in The Libertines and knew them quite well. He is quite a figure in the sort of scene and took a shine to Tom and after speaking to them we managed to get some smaller gigs with Babyshambles and The Libertines”.

Nice work if you can get it! In fact, the boys have struck up quite a relationship with the band and know them well enough to get on the blower and ask to support them at any time. It does seem that a hell of a lot has happened for the band in such a short space of time and all the hard graft is beginning to pay off, but really this is just where the exertion begins as the future holds firstly a busy few months ahead.

“Gigs everyday man” the band agree with smiles across their faces. “We are touring in September and fully booked in August. The single is out in October and we will see what happens from there. We will know a little bit more once we see how the single does. We are not looking that far ahead,“ explains Marv.

The forecast is looking favourable what with a recent NME photo shoot outside Buckingham Palace under their bags profiling a number of British bands predicted to do exciting things with the one and only Peter Doherty turning up.

”It was good stuff, there were some bands that we knew and some we didn’t. There was a band called Art Brut that did “Formed a Band” and if there was a scene that would be the song that would seal it.” This is what binds a lot of these new bands together as depicted in the glorious minimalism of the aforesaid “Formed a Band” which unsurprisingly offers the lyric of “Look at us, we formed a band..” This is exactly what a lot of bands have done in response to the bewildering state of the United Kingdom and the love of playing music with such immense energy.

 

Finally, what with this undercurrent of bands crawling out of the gutter why does the public need The Paddingtons? “There is always a need for another rock’n’roll band. If you don’t like our music, don’t come and listen to it,” suggests Marv. “You gotta try us once though, no, maybe try us twice and then be won over,” interjects Josh.

 

With this kind of approach you will be hearing a lot more from The Paddingtons in the very near future.

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