Profile - The Holiday

Expecting a six o’clock start, I walked up the steps overwhelmed by the silence around me. With just five minutes until what I thought was the start of the show, it was extremely quiet with just a few twenty something men walking around. I took up pitch on a step outside, hoping that people would soon turn up. A man confidently stuck his head out the door, still dressing himself in a shirt and tie, and told me that the sound check was about to start, which would make them sound ‘really bad’, suggesting I go to the bar for an hour.
The hour soon past after a couple of drinks at the bar and I made my way back upstairs, soon greeted by a crowd of girls all fighting to be near the front. Finally, the band came to the stage, five smartly dressed preppy looking guys, with jeans so tight I’m surprised they could even move. “We’re The Holiday and we’re from Southampton” was the opening line from lead singer Jamie Smart, who then went on to introduce the band, with a charming “big cheer for the big guy” when it came to drummer Jonathan, followed by a short spurt of nervous conversation he promptly led into the first song with “Enough of that shit, lets play some music”. This gave me an instant impression that these guys are real and know how to have a good time and as the gig came to an end, it was time for the interview.
The band is made up of five men. Jamie, the slightly arrogant lead singer, Jonathan, the far from quiet, drummer, Daniel, the comedian guitarist, James H, the awkwardly quiet bass player and singer and James B, the extremely quiet guitar player.
They are an unsigned band who all appear to be working extremely hard to make there dreams come true. “Our aim is to get signed by Universal. A major label would be good because it would give us the means to quit our jobs and just do it” said Jonathan.
The interview was in full swing and it wasn’t long before Dan had referred to it as “like being on Loose Women”.
A band that admitted to starting in Wetherspoons, Table 28 to be precise, they are still on their way to reaching their full potential by breaking into the music industry with strong beliefs that there is a gap in the market for a band like them. Jonathan made it clear that the plan was to start on a smaller scale when he said: “First we’re going to take over Southampton; we want to build everything here at the moment, so everyone who knows us gets the first dibs on shows and music. It’s a unique thing until were ready to take over the world”. They have managed to keep themselves very private only doing small gigs around Southampton and nearby areas and putting a halt on any internet coverage. This makes them extremely hard to find. But it’s not to worry as it’s only for the time being. Being a small unsigned band gives them the freedom to write what they want at their pace without the demands of a huge fan base and label. “We like the idea of bands being hard to find. We don’t want to give too much away and it takes the pressure off us, there are no deadlines and no one’s expecting anything” admitted James Harding.
Matching the bands fresh outlook on the future, it’s quite simple to see where a name as uplifting as The Holiday came from. Dan revealed: “To be in a band you have to have more than just music, you have to have an image and know what the band is about. The Holiday links with our song lyrics, it helps bring the band together. It’s all about escaping”. This links in with bands general image. For tonight’s performance, they all came out wearing a shirt, tie and plimsolls with different jackets over the top and similar style trousers and jeans. This gives them the indie rock band look while still keeping some similarity throughout. “We’re bound together by a basic look. I walk past a lot of business people and think hey you could be in our band. We look like those guys that where there trainers to work” said Jonathan. Jamie confidently went on to admit: “We want free clothes. It’ll be better when we get endorsements”.
Along with their image comes their sound. Inspired by The Beatles, they have created their own style mixing pop, indie and rock music into one. On stage, they look like your typical The Who style band, jumping around and taking foot tapping to a whole new level. “The song writing process is really organic. Me and Dan will start an idea and everyone will add a sound. An idea will start, everyone will put something in, its like a melting pot of ideas. We like to think that were a fresh sound” admitted Jonathan.
Although they have a very positive attitude and seem to have all the cliché ‘right’ answers, it’s far from serious watching them together with typical banter flying in each direction. A few embarrassing confessions from the guys included being mistaken for a girl on a train earlier that day, being part of a boy band called ‘Anal Dave’, being part of one of the heaviest sets of twins in England, having Michael Buble as a ringtone, pissing themselves twice on a three day bender and lastly, a McFly obsession. It’s easy to see how strong the friendships are between them and how real it is, especially as Dan and Jonathan live together.
The most recent track to be written is one of the bands favourites so far, The Weekend so join their mailing list for updates on what’s happening, new songs, gigs and exclusive previews. They’re definitely one to watch.