It can always be hard for local bands to get their name out there. How do they make themselves stick out from the crowd? How can they keep producing tracks that will keep people interested enough to stick around? Well, there is one band based in Southampton who are quickly answering these questions and quickly making big waves on the local scene – young rock ‘n’ rollers, The Costellos.
The Jam are one of The Costellos’ major influences
The four piece consist of frontman George Dummett, lead guitarist Declan Byrne, bassist Harry Stevenson, and drummer Tomi Lewis. The band was born a year ago after the friends started meeting up for a few drinks and jam sessions in a garage. From the very beginning, they prided themselves on trying to produce catchy, upbeat tracks that could get a whole room bouncing around. This will come as no surprise considering they hail the likes of The Stone Roses, Oasis, The Jam, The Beatles, and The Who as their main musical influences.
The Costellos released their debut single ‘My Friend The Garden’ in June of last year, which was shortly followed by their debut EP, also called My Friend The Garden, which was released a month later. They have sold their records successfully within the Southampton area, but have also had purchases from people afar afield as Germany.
To date, their biggest show played in their own right was during Music in the City
The Costellos supported The Hoosiers (‘Goodbye Mr. A’ and ‘Worried About Ray’) last year
Festival in Southampton last year. But they have been chosen as support for a number of established bands over the past twelve months including, most notably, when The Hoosiers came to Southampton last year. They will also be supporting Inspiral Carpets frontman Tom Hingley in April.
The Costellos have announced that they have big plans for the coming year. They will be branching out and playing live shows in London and Brighton, as well as their native city, and are hoping to play numerous festivals over the summer. They are also planning their first UK tour, which would see them travelling up and down the country in a bid to drastically increase their already loyal following. The lads are also hoping to get their name out there by supporting bigger bands. A new single is also in the works and shall be released at some point later in the year.
So if you love checking out the local music scene and thoroughly enjoy witnessing bands blossom in front of your very eyes, then check these guys out. It isn’t difficult to see them fulfilling their promises.
You can next catch The Costellos supporting The Sherlocks at The Joiners on the 7th March – tickets can be found here. They are also playing March Of The Mods festival in Camden the following day on the 8th, full details can be found here.
