Good Shoes
Who the hell are Good Shoes? Good Shoes the hell are Rhys Jones (vocals and guitars), Steve Leach (guitar), Joel Cox (bass) and the snigger-inducingly named Tom Jones (drums). Formed in South West London by Rhys and Steve, they played their first gig at Kingston’s cult hangout The Peel in 2004. Young bands – this is how far you can come in under three years…
Within two shows, they were invited to the mystical Eel Pie Island as guests of the Mystery Jets and on to bills hosted by our office co-dwellers Artrocker. At one such Artrocker bill the band were to hook up with Brille Records who they would eventually sign with in November 2005, after much support from XFM’s John Kennedy who incessantly played the band’s shed-recorded demo on his influential radio show earlier that year. Soon, the likes of Lamacq and Lowe would follow. And when you’ve got them on your side, you know you’re on to a good thing.
‘Small Town Girl’ was to be the band’s first single, released early in 2005 on the small and lovely indie Young & Lost Club, and prompted a full session for XFM. It was followed with the rapturously received ‘We Are Not The Same’ EP, the ‘All In My Head’ single, and a slot in the new bands tent at the 2006 Reading Festival.
The band have since recorded one of 2007’s finest debuts, ‘Think Before You Speak’, with Per Sunding at Tambourine Studios in Malmo, Sweden. If pretence-free, jangly, jittery indie rock is something that makes you smile, its purchase is mandatory.
TWO for you this week:
LONDON, UK – SUMMER 2005: One of the band’s first interviews, way back in ’05.
MANCHESTER, UK – SPRING 2007: …and one of their most recent. Just days off the press, this.
GOOD SHOES DOT CO DOT YOU KAY: As with everything this handsome little band does, their official site looks and reads like an absolute treat. Design your own artwork for ‘Think Before You Speak’ here. It’s an hour, innit?
GOOD SHOES MYSPACE: You know the score – tour dates, videos, and three songs to sample from the debut LP are here.
BRILLE RECORDS: These guys not only host our heroes Good Shoes, but also The Knife, Whirlwind Heat and Envelopes. Make their acquaintance here.
THE PHOTOS ON MY WALL: Alex Lee Thomson gets all excited about the band’s first single to chart.
NEVER MEANT TO HURT YOU VIDEO: Wanna know a secret? It’s my favourite Good Shoes song, this. And this charming video has more than a little to do with me awarding it that accolade.
THINK BEFORE YOU SPEAK: Good Shoes’ own Rhys Jones told us that this was ‘probably the review that had me pinned best’. So, to every other reviewer - nerrrrr….!
ALL IN MY HEAD:
WE ARE NOT THE SAME: