The fReds – A potted history
Formed in 2007 The ‘mighty’ fReds have been a mainstay of the burgeoning Sydney Britpop scene since their inception in the Lord Dudley pub in April 2007. Founder members Dan Banyard (Drums), The Dickster (Guitar), Eric Lawrence (Bass), Alun X (Vox) and Andy Franks (Guitar) came together with an avowed aim to play covers of covers in an approximated Britpop style. After a few months rehearsals The fReds unleashed themselves on an unsuspecting Sydney public at their debut gig in Mosman. A fine debut heralded a bright new future. So, much so that The fReds took 2008 off from live performances and fine tuned their set, doubling the number of songs at their disposal.
After retiring to the studio, 2009 saw The fReds come steaming out of the blocks with a gig at the Manly Aquarium in the February and then a headlining performance at the Seaforth Free Festival in October. After that barnstorming display, Alun X Aka ‘The Voice of the Valleys’ dropped a major bombshell and announced his intention to retreat from live performance to ‘get his stuff together in the country maan’ and reduce his already impressive golf handicap.
So, what next for The fReds?
Unbeknownst to the four remaining band members an answer was close at hand. Steve ‘The Golden Larynx’ Hodkin was coming to the end of a fruitful relationship with his erstwhile acoustic partner Adam and was on the look out for a suitable bunch of geezers to lead into the golden sunlit uplands of guitar pop pleasure. After half a verse of ‘Should I stay or Should I go’, it was agreed. Steve was in and The Freds were back on! From 2010 onwards the band have increased their repertoire, broadened their horizons and played to sell out crowds across the whole of Sydney.
However, before rushing out to see them in action or contacting them to find out if they are free to play a major festival slot because New Order have dropped out again. Here are some answers to some FAQ‘s…
Where did the name come from? It was a desire to come up with a quintessentially English name like Fred Smith, Fred Perry etc However, seeing as The Smiths had already swiped the first surname and The Perrys were a 70’s youth cult in Manchester it made sense to use the first name instead. Also on closer inspection it is also possible to make the name up from the band members name. Franksie, Richard, Eric, Dan, Steve. (In Alun’s time as vocalist it was Franksie, Richard, Eric, Dan, Singer!)
What do they play? The covers of covers principle is still one they try and adhere to although a couple of self-penned tunes and straightforward covers have managed to barge their way into the ever increasing setlist. The artists covered include: Blur, The Clash, The Jam, Oasis, TRB, The Monkees, The Who, The Arctic Monkeys, Talking Heads & Rolling Stones
How can I get hold of The fReds? E-mail us at themightyfreds@gmail.com
The fReds blog thang 