The Brightlights

There once was a time when the only places in the world that could be described as 'Rock'n'roll' lay across the Atlantic. But in recent years there have at least been a few previously unromantic spots in the UK that have made it onto the musical map. Portishead, Rusholme, Brixton...even perennially unremarkable Hull was namechecked in a Housemartins' album title. Most corners of the UK have also produced a few homegrown rock heroes of note. As yet, however, Grimsby has enjoyed neither reference in popular song nor chart success for its citizens. Truth be told, this fishing port on the south bank of the river Humber has never had a great press. Relegated football teams are routinely described as being sentenced to playing on ''wet tuesday nights in Grimsby', even if they're in a different division. Its East Coast location mean it's the kind of place no-one has any cause to travel through to get to get to anywhere else. In fact, it's fair to say that the first four letters of its name pretty much sum up its public image.

A name like The Brightlights, on the other hand, doesn't. But it does encapsulate the desire for new horizons felt by four teenagers from the town, instilled with the kind of love-hate relationship to their surroundings that has so often fuelled great music. "There's only a few paths to take in Grimsby," admits 19 year-old singer, guitarist and chief lyricist Leon Blanchard. "If you want to go to Uni you've got to move away anyway and if you don't want to work in a factory or a shopping precinct there's not a lot else you can do." "There's people who say 'oh well, that'll do," concurs drummer James Buxton, also 19. "Then there's the people who say 'I'm going to aim higher, I want more than this'. And that's us." One escape route all four dreamed of during their teens was as professional footballers. They all played at a fairly high level, until they realised that there were other pursuits which they were even more passionate about. A couple of years ago Leon was warming the subs' bench with fellow guitar enthusiast and best mate Adam Featherstone (now 18) when they met Luke Parker (Keyboards, 19), and the trio got talking about music. "We realised we'd spent half the game talking about music and totally ignoring what was happening on the field," admits Luke, "which was kind of an indication of which of those things would end up taking priority."

Leon and Adam had been something of a double act since they were 10 years old."We wanted to form a band back then," says Adam. "We couldn't play, but we tried. I remember Leon trying to teach me a C chord so we could play a Stereophonics song. We practiced as a band at school then when we left school we started to take it seriously."

Luke was given a keyboard one christmas, and being a fan of the piano-heavy tunes of Keane and Coldplay, he quickly learnt to play. Meanwhile, on hearing of his new acquisition, Leon sent Luke a demo of his acoustic songs, offering him the chance to play with him and Adam once he'd learnt to play properly.They recruited old school friend James Buxton on drums, and within five weeks of forming, they were so impressed with the sounds they were making that they entered a local Battle Of The Bands competition, convinced they would win easily. "We came last, and people laughed at us on the way out," recalls Leon. Part of the problem, it would seem, was his now startlingly magnetic voice."I couldn't really sing back then," he admits. "I really liked one of the bands who played in the competition, and went to see them play at The Cockpit in Leeds. I said to him 'You've got a good voice,' and he said, 'Yeah, it's a good job you're not singing tonight isn't it?' So after that I really wanted to prove myself as a singer, to show he was wrong."As it happened, lack of resources soon helped line his distinctive pipes with a healthy amount of grit. "I'd never been able to afford a PA or monitor so I had to shout to hear myself, and I think that's where the rasp came from."

The result was a voice that sounds like a sonic marriage between Kelly Jones and Caleb Followill, while at the same time, the rest of the band were also getting their act in order."We looked back at the video of that first gig," says Leon, "and said to ourselves 'Well if we're going to do this let's have a proper crack at it and get really good."The quartet shut themselves away for nine months, rehearsing and writing songs. It had the desired effect, as James explains. "At our first proper gig after that, you could see people were really shocked that this shit band had turned into something really good.""And after that," says Adam, "we were offered a headline slot, then started putting on our own shows and selling them out just through word of mouth."

Judging by their recent London shows, it's not hard to see why. There's an exhilarating intensity about their brand of guitar pop that some might see as akin to fellow provincial firebrands like The Enemy or The Twang, but the piano adds a certain widescreen yearning to the sound that adds glimpses of more epic horizons than those bands have in mind. Likewise, there are echoes of Razorlight's tightly-wound hooks, but with less of the big ego and more of the burning passion. Not for this lot, though, a life of dope-smoking and bohemian slackery until the big break arrives. They've no qualms about doing an honest day's work to finance a good night's play. "I'm an apprentice electrician," says Leon, "but I spend most of my time thinking about the next gig, or what songs we're going to play in rehearsal."

Adam and Luke, meanwhile, work 6am until 2 in a fish factory, to earn money to finance the band. Not massively rock'n'roll, but it's the kind of unpretentious dedication to the cause that so often sorts out the dilettantes from the truly determined."We're all in the same situation," says Adam. "Except for James - he's failed every course and been sacked from every job he's ever had, but he's a good drummer, so we'll let him off...""But we all want the same things," stresses Leon, "so that makes it feel like a proper band, a proper gang."

As if they weren't tightly knit enough already, they drew further strength from the adversity of seeing James's father, who acts as the band's driver, half killed in a vicious and unprovoked assault after a gig in the North East earlier this year. He was beaten so badly that doctors warned him he may not survive. "It was just brutal," confirms James. "It was the worst thing that's ever happened to us. But it made us even more determined to succeed.""It brought us a lot closer," reckons Leon. "After that we had another gig and no-one to drive us, but we decided we were going to do the gig anyway. We proved something to ourselves, and to our parents that we are unstoppable, and we will keep going. That was the most passionate gig we've ever played."

Judging by the way they rip into songs like pounding, emotive new single Inspired By and stirring exhortations like 3 and Another Night when they play live, they must have pinned a few people against the wall that night. "This kind of opportunity doesn't come along every day," points out James. "especially for people from our background. It's our chance to get out there, see new places, meet new people, while doing something we really feel passionate about."

Wherever you're coming from, you can't argue with that.