What started out as a Whatsapp group amongst close friends last May, has grown into a massive community of 11,000 avid gig lovers on Facebook. The group has become a supportive platform for unsigned artists in the independent music scene, a place to share gigs and festivals and even a place for people to buddy up to attend gigs. There is also merch available! T-shirts, hoodies, pin badges, car stickers, one member has even got a ‘Gig Life Crisis’ tattoo!
The group organised a Gig Life Crisis festival at The Steam and Whistle in Cheltenham in January, showcasing the likes of The Kairos, The Rosadocs, Spangled, Samantics, The Slates, Siracuse plus more. The festival was a huge success, 200 members of the group attended and an amazing £1500 was raised for charities Mind, Punks Against Poverty and Refuge through a charity raffle organised by John Hibbits (admin of the group) who is passionate about supporting mental health.
Gig Life Crisis 2 has just been announced, to be hosted in Coventry for later in the year so watch this space.
The Lunar Towers are the four-piece garage rock/pop band hailing from London and Cheltenham, composed of songwriters Rory Moore on Bass/Vocals, Joe Richardson on Guitar/Vocals, Rob Sewell on Guitar/Vocals and Bradley Hillier-Smith on Drums.
The group deliver a lively combination of bright, melodic guitar sounds, 60s revivalism, and infectious three part harmonies to form hook-filled pop songs that draw influence from some of their favourite artists including: The Byrds, Buzzcocks, Teenage Fanclub, Ride, Michael Head and The Apples in Stereo.
School friends Rory and Joe met by chance at the age of fifteen, when they found themselves seated together in a French class at school. The pair instantly found common ground musically when Rory noticed Joe’s poorly hidden Oasis t-shirt and Morrissey inspired haircut. During this period, they quickly realised their shared love of lyric writing and guitar music old and new, which set them on the path to forming their first band in their hometown of Cheltenham, as teenagers. In 2021, following a period of national lockdown in which they had sent demos back and forth, the boys reunited in the garden of Joe’s London home, along with old school friend and fellow music obsessive Rob, who brought his own blend of blues style guitar and melodic vocal sensibilities to the group. The duo had now become a trio with a deeper chemistry and insatiable hunger for crafting memorable pop songs.
Since then the group has grown into a full band outfit with the addition of drummer Bradley, who had worked with Joe in a previous band.
The band recently recorded ten tracks with producer Richard James. All tracks have been mastered by Pete Maher with additions from Andy Crofts (The Moons/Paul Weller band).
The Lunar Towers’ first three single releases were featured on Radio X, BBC Radio London, Boogaloo Radio, BBC Radio Gloucestershire and various other stations and playlists worldwide. ‘Wire’ and ‘Happy as Larry’ were also featured in the July 2022 issue of Shindig, described as an “ace pair of singles,” as well as Dead Good Music, It’s all Indie and various other music journals.
The Lunar Towers are now back with their latest offering in the form of their debut EP ‘Hurry Up and Wait’. The new EP consists of four melodic, garage pop songs.
The EP’s opening track ‘Plastic Glass Towers,’ blasts through the speaker with a fast-paced, jangling energy right from the off and sets the tone perfectly for the record. This infectious, hook-filled three and a half minute pop song portrays the ever-changing social conditions of London, with Joe on lead vocals and Rob delivering some ethereal harmonies.
Next comes ‘Pillar 2 Post’ with Rory on lead vocals and Rob on backing vocal duty. The song’s lyrics explore a broken relationship between two people and how someone can move from emotional blindness to forgiveness over time and gain a deeper understanding of pain passed down through generations. This track stands out for its thundering rhythm section, effervescent lead guitar parts and huge chorus which boasts a powerful blend of Rory and Rob’s vocals.
The third song on the EP is the previously released single ‘Southern Love’ which maintains the brightness and pace, delivering wonderful lead vocals from Rob, complemented by backing from Joe and Rory. A real highlight here is the song’s shift into an unexpected coda section which serves as an irresistible dopamine hit and sing-along for the listener.
The EP concludes with a slight change of pace as ‘Back To You’ delivers dreamier, laid back guitars, walking bass lines and delicate lead vocals from Joe, while still packing a punch at the very end. This track contains many great moments, at times reminiscent of songs from Richard Hawley and The Velvet Underground, while the lyrics centre on the ruminations of someone in a relationship and how romantic and spiritual connections can be lost and refound.
The cover artwork for ‘Hurry Up and Wait’ continues the collage theme developed collectively by the band for their previous three singles. These striking images have added a vivid framework of intrigue and beauty to the group’s releases and the artwork for their debut EP is no different. The collaged cover inspired by a convergence of the sacred refuge of home and the profane yet wondrous nature of the city streets, provides a bold and thought-provoking sleeve which mirrors deeply the character of the songs within it.
‘Hurry Up and Wait’ was written by Rory Moore, Joe Richardson and Rob Sewell. It was produced and mixed by Richard James at Vacant TV and Cable Street Studios and the tracks were mastered by Pete Maher.
The EP is being released under Coloroma Records(run by Andy Crofts from The Moons/The Paul Weller Band and John Britton) and it will be released digitally and as a limited edition CD.
Indie Revolution 