Steve Guest

These days, in a particularly tough and competitive industry, only the very brave and fortunate few get the lucky break and go beyond playing their music in local bars and pubs. Even with a strong work ethic and belief, not to mention talent in abundance, it is still a huge ask for the majority of bands and musicians to force their way onto the bigger platform and go on to forge a career out of what they love to do. With The Atmospherics, a young Blackpool indie-pop quartet, there is a real chance that something might just happen for them.…

Some people are fortunate to have been born with a gift, a natural talent, not simply taught or produced, just an ability to excel at something they possess within from childhood. Blackpool songstress Jess Allan is one such person, blessed with a flawlessly wonderful voice and suited to a varied range of styles and genres. Be it jazz, blues, R&B or soul, Jess can turn her hand to most of those categories of music and her distinctive vocal tones set her apart from many other female singers in the area. Described in many circles as ‘world class’, it may be…

In their own words, Akin began life by choosing their band name as an inside joke and this quirky and very likeable bunch of lads don’t take themselves too seriously. But when it comes to their music and impressive live performances, you can’t help but sit up and listen. The young Blackpool based five-piece, who have been together now for around a year, prefer to incorporate a fun and happy go lucky element into what they love to do. You would be hard pushed to argue with that and so far that philosophy has enabled the band to progress and…

I wouldn’t imagine there are many town music festivals that can boast that they can persuade a European record label to up sticks and bring the whole set up, along with bands signed to its label and travel hundreds of miles to showcase their acts for free over three or so hours at a single music venue. Blackpool Music Festival organiser and founder Jon Bamborough has managed to do exactly that. With close ties in Europe as well as this country, Jon has persuaded Belgium based Hyphen Records founder Holly Nab to travel over with his acts to perform at…

Singer-songwriter Avishek Choudhury from Blackpool, (who is now currently based in Barnsley at university) has made it through to a regional final of the prestigious Open Mic UK singing competition and will now be performing in one of the live showcases of the competition at the 02 Academy in Sheffield on Sunday October 12. Avishek is a well known face around the Blackpool music scene and especially known for his support of younger musicians currently coming through in the area. On his regular visits home to the Fylde, Avishek wastes no time in getting out and about with his camera shooting…

Eaglefest is certainly one of those events that manages to pull together the whole of the local music community and always provides a festival of great live music to remember and cherish. Last weekend was no different; over two brilliant days and although Saturday was at times awash with torrential downpours, it never once dampened the spirits of either the enthusiastic crowd or the performers. Unfortunately, on day one, the inclement weather meant that the live stage had to be moved indoors, but from the very beginning of the proceedings at 1pm with local young band Akin taking to the…

One of the best surprises in music is when you go to a gig intending to check out a band and inadvertently stumble upon another that completely bowls you over. This was the case when I attended a charity music festival several weeks back staged at The Halfway House in Blackpool. On the line up that particular day there were some great live performers, but one local band, which I had never seen before, totally grabbed my attention and from that moment on I became a fan. This is why music is a constantly exciting journey, because there is always…