False Friends

+ Alex Maxwell + Who's Olivia?

The Hug and Pint, Glasgow, GB

£5
Entry Requirements: 18+
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False Friends are a band nestled calmly in the vibrant music scene of Glasgow, that came about when members of the group moved over from Ireland after being inspired by the city and finding a lovely Glaswegian member to help complete their quintet. The blend of the 5 individuals influences has created a unique style which has been described as ‘acoustic meets pop-rock’, ‘orchestral indie pop’ and quite simply - ‘indie-rock’. The band themselves focus on writing catchy riff based hooks mixing that with lots of different synth sounds and giving each song it’s own lyrical identity with gorgeous harmonies backing it. On the live music scene they’ve hit the ground running, supporting Clean Cut Kid & Saint Motel in Glasgow as part of both their UK tours. Vinyl Noise have described False Friends as a ‘soaring new act on Glasgow’s music scene’. They also enjoy creating hypotheticals in their living room and have been known to be lovely backstage. Ask anybody.

Alex Maxwell is an indie-folk-rock singer-songwriter from Dumfries. A landmark 2017 saw Alex championed as a BBC Introducing Artist and Scotsman/Scotland on Sunday ‘Artist to Watch’. Further positive response from Rave Child, BBC Radio Scotland and Amazing Radio followed five summer festival appearances at Electric Fields, Eden Festival, Kelburn Garden Party, Mugstock and Moniaive Folk Festival. Alex was also featured as a Fresh Fave on Tom Robinson’s ‘Fresh On The Net’. Showcase performances at the BBC stage, Edinburgh Fringe and Dumfries Music Conference preceded the release of his first single. Maxwell’s EP launch at the Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, December 3 was a near sell out. The lyrics are semi-autobiographical and the music has shifted gradually from being troubadour-like to include upbeat singalongs. The music ranges from upbeat finger picking folk to full on indie-folk-rock songs with hooky vocal lines for singalongs. Alex' vocals are inspired his favourite bands in the the Scottish indie scene, he is inspired by the the energy and imagination from The Tallest Man on Earth, the punk rock sense of honesty from Frank Turner, the delivery from Villagers and Bright Eyes and the free flowing melodies of Vance Joy and Shakey Graves.

Line Up

First and foremost False Friends enjoy movies, board games and creating hypotheticals in their living room.

False Friends are a band now nestled calmly in the vibrant music scene of Glasgow, after the majority of the band moved to the city from Northern Ireland. The blend of 5 individual influences has created a unique style which has been described as ‘acoustic meets pop-rock’, ‘orchestral indie pop’ and quite simply - ‘indie-rock’. The band themselves focus on writing catchy hooks and thoughtful lyrics; the genre follows suit.

Formed in 2016, the band released 3 singles in August of that year, with ‘All My Friends’ being premiered by chordblossom.com and named ‘Tune for the Weekend’ by PastieBap.com. ‘Holy Water’ also received airplay from Jim Gellatly on Amazing radio. These singles secured gigs in the famous King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut and Glasgow’s Nice ’N’ Sleazy.

2017 was a great year for False Friends, starting off by playing King Tut's New Years Revolution, supporting Saint Motel in Glasgow as part of their European tour, headlining King Tut's Summer Nights Festival and finishing off the year with recording some new music (to be released early 2018).

Vinyl Noise have described False Friends as a band ‘taking flight as a soaring new act on Glasgow’s music scene’. Small Music Reviews said their live set consisted of ‘numbers driven by high-octane rhythms, where the bass and drum work excelled, the guitars were great and the ensemble vocals meshed impeccably.’

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Alex Maxwell
Who's Olivia?