Cookham band set to play first gig

Teenagers spend a lot of their time trying to blag their way into pubs but it's normally to glug a pint rather than strum a guitar.

For five public school boys their musically-motivated effort has paid off as this Saturday they will be playing their first ever gig at The Roof.

Mill Lane cut their performance teeth at the Edinburgh Festival last summer with typical teenage verve.

Youngest member, Will Murphy said: "We just took our instruments and thought we would try our luck.
"It was a laugh. We made £200 the first night but then the second night we got stopped by the police."

Inspired by their antics the youngsters decided to expand their fan base beyond family and friends and recently recorded a demo CD at Maidenhead's Denmark Studios.

Will said: "I'm a bit apprehensive about the gig and how our songs will go down or if anyone will even turn up."

The band, like its members, is still maturing and Will was reluctant to pigeon hole their sound but said they had been compared to Madness. However the 17-year-old said their stage style was anything but mad and added: "It's nice to let the music do the talking. For us five teenagers to go mental on the stage could be a bit over the top and I think you have to be fairly well known to get away with thrashing about on stage."

The Cookham resident plays bass guitar while his older brother Olly Murphy, 18, is on drums, Auzzi Thomson,17, is on vocals, James Bailey,18, is on keyboard and Andy Bingham, 18, is on lead guitar.

Will said he finds the focus for his song writing from social cliques and clichés within his age group. The Charter House pupil said: "I use stuff like being under age and trying your luck at bars with fake ID. It's a bit pathetic when you think about it but it's part of being young."

Their name was chosen after much deliberation and is a tribute to Will and Olly's home turf in Cookham.

Will said: "It wasn't too flashy and reflected what we are doing because it sounds a bit suburban."

Their CD contains tracks Scary Films and Spicy Food, Miss My Mind and Heroin Monkey.

Mill Lane will be at The Roof this Saturday from 8pm.

For more information visit www.myspace.com/milllanemusic