Aberdeen bands that were tipped for big things but didn't do as well as expected

[Alan Cynic]

Paul from Coast is currently playing in Pablo (ex APB) I think.

18 Wheeler did OK...Oasis were 'discovered' by Alan McGee supporting them at King Tut's.

I played bass in a band supporting Coast & 18 Wheeler at Drummonds.......it was scary.

[Frosty Jack]

I don't know if you could say the Lorelei were ever tipped for big things, but we did get a lot of favourable press at one time, including nationally, and I guess there was a 'bit of a buzz' for a while. We got some choice gigs, supported some names and released two albums. But the thing about being 'tipped' is, it's like getting a job as teaboy at Shell, then someone saying you're really good at it and you could be the Chief Executive one day. Absolutely you could, if you kill yourself working at it and have no life until you get there.

There is video footage somewhere of our old Transit van pulling up at my old place of work and me running out with my voluntary redundancy package in hand, to be picked up on the way to another London jaunt. We certainly took the leap of faith and tried making a go of it, piling into the van and kipping on floors for weeks at a time while we played wherever we could. I've got an old gig list somewhere which shows something like 40 or 50 gigs in the space of two months.

We signed one of those fabled 'record deals', (KRL in Glasgow along with the Skuobhie Dubh Orchestra) and I suppose we did start to believe that the only way was up and goodbye to boring normal jobs forever. The reality was that all we really got from that was a 'loan' from the record label as they paid for the recording, but took the royalties until they got it all back and more. As for royalties, after expecting huge cheques to come tumbling through the door, I remember working out once that every time someone went into a shop and bought one of our albums, we all got the equivalent of a packet of polos each, and far from getting our own guitar shaped swimming pools, we were using Council ones to have a wash after sleeping on another floor.

I suppose we had plenty of chances which could have made a difference, - we had a manager in London who swore that the month we broke up would have been the one which broke us into the 'big time' as all our hard work was just beginning to pay off. Reality was, it just broke us. Years of 10 hr journeys to play in a half empty club then sleep on another floor and living off budget cans of soup and spam sandwiches just wore us down.

So we packed it in, came back to 'real life' and got jobs, families, and comfy beds. Funnily enough we discovered that we really rather enjoyed having jobs, money, and beds. We stayed together, just not as a band. Until a few years ago when we did start playing again. Except this time with no dreams or expectations, just loving playing together. And it turned out that that was what it had all been about after all. We hadn't been trying to 'make it' as a band - we already were one. We had been trying to make huge sums of money, which was never going to happen. We had a shitload of fun doing it obviously, but also had a shitload of shit too, for no real good reason.

Now we're getting to do the fun bit, without the shit. And as if by magic, although we're playing far fewer gigs, we're playing far better ones. And we're releasing another album in May, playing gigs in Glasgow, Edinburgh, and one coming up at Camden Underworld. Don't expect to make many packets of polos from this album either, but that's not the point any more.* And it's probably the best thing we've ever done because of that.

I have to say though that none of us would change anything about what we did then, it probably made us the people we are now and we've certainly got some amazing memories. And maybe if we had ploughed on for longer, we might have ended up waving awkwardly on Saturday morning kids TV, or miming on Loose Women, or whatever fucking hoops the so called music industry has people jumping through nowadays if they want to live the dream. But there's making it and there's making it. Personally, looking at the ones doing that, and then at what we are doing now, I reckon we actually did make it after all.

*If Capt Tom is reading this, of course it's the point and we absolutely will sell shedloads and buy you a house. Love, the Lorelei.

[Christy]

Frosty - that is a cracking read and a tale that resonates with me and I am sure Kris and Steven too. Our story was very similar (although we never expected to make any money).

Any chance you could edit it with a few hits of the return bar? It is tough to read but it deserves to be seen. i very nearly didnt read it because of its wall of textiness.

[GraemeC]

Probably not after the reception to their previous advert...

Youre so right... wasted on here, the banner advert was for a gig last April... this gig was busier what does that say?