Harringtons

In the space of a couple of months The Harringtons had gone from putting an ad out on 'Myspace' for musicians to headlining a local music event in Barnsley. But, love 'em or hate 'em, this is The Harringtons' velocity of life fuelled by energy and charisma.

The snow's thawing and its hard to believe that there's life hiding out in this lethargic looking Barnsley side street, but, here The Harringtons are tucked away in their rehearsal room (allegedly once belonging to the Tiny Dancers), preparing for their first gig of the year. It comes as no surprise that the room is adorned with front covers of every popular music magazine this side of the channel. To say its bleak outside, The Harringtons are in full flow, bantering and tuning up. A meek apology creeps up from a bundle on the floor, which turns out to be guitarist Jake. 'Sorry, feeling a bit rough, me and Trav were drinking til the early hours.'

Although it would appear that these lads practically party like rock stars, surprisingly there's a strict rule regarding drugs and booze. Drugs are forbidden and when gigging no band member is allowed getting trashed until after the performance (something of which is becoming ever-increasingly with new and upcoming bands). Frontman Trav points to the other band members. 'These think I'm a bit of a serious bastard sometimes. It just seems a bit of a waste when you've spent hours practising just to balls it up by getting pissed just before a gig.'

Maturity comes from the lust of stamping The Harringtons on the British music scene, having bad experiences with previous bands helps too. Trav: 'That's in the past! I'm not getting into all that. I just don't believe in wasting time, money and effort in order to 'make it', only to throw it all away by behaving like a prick on stage.'

There's a bit of shuffling about and it appears Jake is springing to life; every so often he strums the guitar he's nursing affectionately on his knees. 'We've been working on some new songs, we'll play you one before you go.' It would be rude to decline; the classic Yorkshire charm never fails.

The next objective for this band is to expand on the live circuit outside the Yorkshire boundaries. The Harringtons are fully aware that many local venues like the idea of cashing in on their popularity, but they refuse to sell out during these early stages because they feel their ever-growing fanbase deserve more.

Every Harrington fan has a story to tell, and one young man tells me of his tale the time the band played Manchester. 'I go to all their (The Harringtons) gigs. The one in Manchester was f**king unreal! Me and my mates had been drinking during the afternoon and thought it would be a good idea to chant for The Harringtons. Everyone started doing it and it was like been at a proper big gig and they were famous like!'

There's an awkward laugh when I recall this and Jack decides to put me straight. 'It was a nightmare. We didn't even know that much about it because we were knocking about outside. Apparently there were chants, but the band onstage at the time was pretty pissed off. They were doing some live recordings at the time. To be honest I'd be pretty pissed, but at the same time it's flattering. You can't control other peoples actions, can ya?'

So what happens now?

Drummer Danny chips in: 'We've got ourselves a manager and an agent; things are definitely looking better for the band. We're going over to Holland to perform at some music festivals. We're not too sure what to expect but we do know we'll be playing to more than we're used to. Quite a few of our friends and fans are on about coming with us, so it should be a good laugh'.

Its obvious that The Harringtons are Yorkshire boys at heart and know there's a lot of hard work ahead of them, the casual indie rock and roll style mixed with a passion for having a fucking good time makes them all the more appealing.

Interview by Donna Bonds
Pics by Mark Tighe

www.myspace.com/harringtonsuk