Sidearm started with Neil Allen and Ben Walker making noise in a garage in early 2001. By Summer 2001, with the arrival of Craig Hayward on bass, a new quirky three-piece emerged onto the Peterborough scene. They played a bunch of experimental sets at venues in Peterborough, Leeds, Durham and Nottingham, growing more confident from gig to gig. Then in December 2002, the electric arrival of Phil Mitchell – with the addition of a second guitar gave Sidearm a new dimension.
With some money raised from the sales of their first home-recorded demo, ‘blackbox process’, they got some studio time and recorded the three track ‘Graffitied Litter’ CD, before recently adding two new tracks to make the five track CD ‘Don’t cry help until you’re dead!’. Shortly after the recording Craig was unable to carry on with the band, and was replaced by tall friend Simon Moore. Currently Sidearm are rehearsing hard, writing new material and gigging to promote their CD, in order to raise some cash to buy a big van and gig all over the country.
Sidearm Are:
Neil Allen – Vocals, Guitar and drums
Electricity Mitchell – Guitar and Vocals
Simon Moore – Bass
Ben Walker – Drums, Guitar and Vocals
Blackbox Process
1-3amp
2-Drive Home by Night
3-On the Verge of Losing Ourselves
4-14:00 hrs Departure
5-Private Song
Released 2001
Graffitied Litter
1-Peach Garden
2-Jeremy’s Parking Only
3-Victim Junkie
Released 2003
Don’t Cry Help Until You’re Dead!
1-Follow Augustus, he’s going to be King
2-Precede the Map
3-Peach Garden
4-Jeremy’s Parking Only
5-Victim Junkie
Released 2004
The live Sidearm show consists of energetic music with spontaeneous melodic outbreaks, instrument change-overs and projected images including video clips and animation made by Sidearm and Kate Walsh.
Sidearm have been described as indie art-core, post-rock, art-punk and art-rock. Shared influences come from an array of bands including At the drive-in, Godspeed you black emperor, Sonic youth, the Mars Volta, Mogwai, …and you will know us by the trail of dead, Ikara Colt, and Liars.
