The story all began way back in October 2005 when myself (Mel), Sophie and Lucy had the great fortune to find ourselves in a tutor group together in college with the legend that is Gerald Summers. At some point during COPE lessons we decided that we could not tolerate to be trapped in a room with Gerry's "What was the question again?" much longer. Luckily the answer came in one of Gerrys amazing 'send you to sleep stories'. Apparently he had in his youth been part of a band called; wait for it, "Rat poison", which in my opinion says it all. So to fuel Gerrys ego we decided to form a tribute band called Pigeon poison. Amazingly this cunning plan worked and Gerry allowed us to skedaddle out of every COPE lesson in order to practise.
Next step was to enlist people to join us in the band. Step Forward, Dominique and Sarah providing Vocals and Bass talent respectively. Now, the five of us had found ourselves with the seemingly easy task of becoming the 'next big thing'. This is unfortunately when the cracks began to appear.
First of all it is important to explain that to this day I have never actually heard Dominique sing- she may have the voice of an angel but I really couldnt tell you. We then had to face the inevitable truth that Sophie couldn't actually play any instruments. Suggestions that were tossed around included the triangle and the bongo drums. Unfortunately I am not joking. As for me although I had been a classical guitarist for 7 years my knowledge of Beethoven was not going to get me far in the band. My limited electric experience led me to be excruciatingly shy about playing, so much so that I only played facing the wall. No Joke. THEN disaster struck. Dominique bowed out of the band soon followed by Sarah. I like to think that they were apprehensive of whether they could cope with the hardcore rock lifestyle. However it is more likely that they disliked the direction the band was headed. Nowhere. We were now a group in crisis, a three man band consisting of a guitarist with severe stage fright, Sophie with enthusiasm but no instrument and Lucy- the girl with the actual talent- just need to say that without her we would not be around today.
The light at the end of the tunnel came when we were innocently wandering the halls of the music block annoying the technicians and stumbled across Jen S in her music lesson. She was a singer without a band, we were a band without a singer. It was fate. The decision to turn Sophie into our bass player sounds crazy but if you hear her now you'll know we made the right decision. Suddenly things were looking up for us, the only thing missing though was a drummer. And by some twist of fate Sophie found one. Jennie Barrett was the next victim in our quest for fame. Soon after we performed our Oasis song in a small college gig along with the rest of Jen's music group. For us it was a triumph. It was our worst performance to date and was to be honest barely recognisable but the POINT IS that we had performed to people. With ears. And they had not booed us off the stage. The only teeny tiny hiccup was that MY guitar was not *ahem* switched on and no-one could hear me. But cest le vie, I say forgive and forget. Sophie and Lucy do not let me forget it though. EVER.
From here the sky was the limit. We even decided on a name. Now you might not like the name The Colliding Lemons but you should have heard some of the other suggestions. One of the highlights includes "Rock Chicks" courtesy of Geoff Collard.
We soon made the leap from rehearsing covers to writing our own songs; with a change to make Mel singer, and Jen the guitarist. It seems to work best this way. We've recorded three times now, and have 11 songs on a CD, which we have decided to call 'Freshly Squeezed!' Please let us know if you would like a copy. We've played some great gigs including ones at the Louisana, The Cooler, Joe Public's, The Hatchett, Purr, Moles and The Fleece. We've also played in some festivals, including one in Derby this year, which we really enjoyed! A highlight during our time together includes meeting Roy Van Den Brink-Budgen---who loves his song!! Although 3 of us are off to Cardiff uni this year, we are sticking together, so who knows what else the future holds.....
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'Bangly Go-Go all girl pop of a rather beautiful bent' - VENUE
"One of the weekend's hidden gems. Part Bangles, part Sundays in places, their unashamedly pop melodies are a joy to behold - a highly polished performance.” - DrownedInSound
Now, I have to admit, I’ve seen The Colliding Lemons a number of times before. They were great when they were playing ramshackle Raincoatsy girl rock. Now they seem far more proficient, but no less endearing, having got into a Tanya Donelly type fem-Weezer sorta thing. If Kurt Cobain wasn’t dead he would have been a fan. Pete Griffiths for Surface Unsigned Festival
“The Colliding Lemons, are a morning delight for sure. There's something charming about the Lemon's lead singer beyond her sultry looks (she's a sight for sore eyes at this early hour, a lithe, brunette stunner in a pink dress), and also something charming about their music, which is a sweetly quaint '80s indie confection. Half an hour seems to have drifted by like nothing. A touch of corrosiveness here, a chip on the shoulder there, and an Indelicates record or two in the pocket, and next year The Lemons could be capturing hearts.” - Popmatters
'With C86 indie-pop swaying guitar riffs, echoing girl-group vocals and lilting skiffle-pop refrains, they're handclap-inspiring dance-floor queens. Falling somewhere between (and yet at the same time totally missing) cutie-era Primal Scream, Dolly Mixtures, The Stray Cat Cure and 1960s compilations of lost girl-group gems.” – Artrocker
'This is what I like to see, a great all-girl indie band from good old Bristol. Bristol doesn't seem to get enough exposure with new bands, I just hope Colliding Lemons can make it commercially, they certainly sound ready. Their sound is unique yet familiar, an odd combination I know but don't just take my word for it, check them out.' Chris GWR
'All-girl band from Bristol with uncategorizable but lovely tunes' - PURR
'1960's girl pop group but with a touch of grunge and punk, plenty of ambition and sense of adventure.' - Evening Post
'All girl troupe plying effortlessly fine post-Riot Grrl pop-rock' - VENUE
'Colliding Lemons' music has a simple-yet-rough edge that recalls The Suicidal Birds (only more accessible); an enticing energy; and what's more they look the part and aren't afraid to send their vocals through a distortion pedal. What more could you ask from an all-girl band, quite frankly?" - Andrew Morrison, Dandelion Radio.
'Whether it rains or shines I guess you can call them the All Girl British Winter Fun Band! ' -INDIE MP3 - Keeping C86 alive!
'With the discordant fuzzy edge of Deerhoof, if deerhoof could play conventional (meant for indie) disco indie rock, 5 all female piece the colliding Lemons have a great sound, they just need the sort of breathtaking songs to make them huuuuge! So close…' - SUBBA CULTCHA
This all-singing, part-dancing, complete girl band have taken the rock genre, churned it up, and spat out their own version. At their next gig I am definitely going to be front-rowing it!" - Pookey69
You can get hold of us through this account, or our email address
Collidinglemons@hotmail.co.uk
Starry night myspace layout
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Band we have played with:
New Rhodes,
The Mentalists, Manic Cough, The Ripps, Rattlesnake Remedy, Friends of the Bride, Brandon Steep, Ideal Standard, Strayday, The Photos, The Jinx, The Volt, The Dues, Even Nine, Gentleman's Relish, Mercian Steel, Hit Of The Search Party, Psalms, Made In China, In This Story, Til Mightnight, The 5150s, Coco, Jet Jaguar, November Criminals, The Barebones, Across The Mourning Sky, Melon Farmer, Robert Clarke, Liz Smith, Neko, Beethoven
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