About The Twang
The Twang are an English indie rock band, formed in 2004 in Birmingham. The band have released five studio albums - Love It When I Feel Like This , Jewellery Quarter , 10:20 , Neon Twang , If Confronted Just Go Mad and a B-sides compilation, Subscription . Consisting of vocalist and guitarist Phil Etheridge, bassist Jon Watkin, guitarist Stu Hartland, drummer Ash Sheehan, and new backing singers Cat Mctigue and Rio Hellyer, the band garnered national acclaim when NME magazine produced an article on music acts in the West Midlands. The band's original line-up consisted of Etheridge and Saunders, Watkin, Hartland & Matty Clinton on drums.
The band's debut single, "Wide Awake", was released on 19 March 2007, with their debut album Love It When I Feel Like This released on 4 June 2007. The album reached #3 in the UK charts.
The Twang's second album, Jewellery Quarter, was released 3 August 2009 and reached #20 on the UK album chart. The album was produced by Neil Claxton of Mint Royale at Blueprint Studios in Salford. Third album 10:20 was released on 29 October 2012, reaching a chart placing of #52.
Neon Twang was released on 10 March 2014. This was the last studio album to feature Martin Saunders, who left in 2018 after the Love It When I Feel Like This 10th anniversary tour, which saw the band play their debut album in full. The Twang announced their fifth studio album If Confronted Just Go Mad in November 2019, featuring new female backing singer Cat Mctigue.
The band was formed in Quinton, Birmingham by singer Phil Etheridge and bassist Jon Watkin after the pair studied music technology together at Kidderminster College. They originally performed in and around Birmingham under the name "Neon Twang". During this period, Etheridge and Watkin often swapped instruments. The addition of guitarist Stu Hartland in late 2005 enabled Watkin to take over bass duties permanently and allowed Etheridge to perform live without playing guitar. The name Neon Twang was eventually dropped by the managers of the band, as the name had become notorious for fights at gigs , and a new name was needed to change the image of the band, so they became just 'The Twang'.
The Twang eventually signed to independent record label B-Unique in 2007. The label was also home to other bands including Kaiser Chiefs, The Automatic and The Ordinary Boys.
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