PREVIEW: Yorkshire's Radio 1 stars The Sherlocks celebrate homecoming weekend

They've played over 20 sold out dates already across Britain in February - now Yorkshire's Radio 1 indie stars The Sherlocks are coming home for three huge shows this weekend.
Live For The Moment....The Sherlocks rocking it on tour. Photo: Tom LangfordLive For The Moment....The Sherlocks rocking it on tour. Photo: Tom Langford
Live For The Moment....The Sherlocks rocking it on tour. Photo: Tom Langford

The Bolton-upon-Dearne band of brothers’ biggest ever tour has seen them span the country from Inverness to Southampton and Plymouth to Newcastle, packing out houses in every town and city and seemingly lighting the touch paper for a new roots up music insurgency.

They even made worldwide news, including America’s NBC Today breakfast show, when the story went viral of how one fan snuck through security at Manchester after changing the band’s Wikipedia page.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

He convinced a security guard he was lead singer Kiaran Crook’s cousin and the inspiration for their hit single Live for the Moment.

Now, at last, The Sherlocks are coming home to The Foundry, at Sheffield University, tonight - Friday, March 3 - for a sold out show with support Oddity Road and Barnsley indie four-piece Sundance, opening the show at 7.30pm.

The Sherlocks will then perform at The Welly, in Hull on Saturday, March 4, and Fibbers, York, on Sunday, March 5.

This tour is so extensive that it’s taking in places even hardworking frontman Kiaran, his brother and drummer Brandon, lead guitarist Josh Davidson and his brother and bassist Andy have never been to, despite famously having played more than 700 gigs nationwide.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But for most it’s been a welcome return for the lads, who in their time have industriously worked their way up from the smallest venues to some of the most celebrated in the country.

The Sherlocks: Photo: Jack Kirwin.The Sherlocks: Photo: Jack Kirwin.
The Sherlocks: Photo: Jack Kirwin.

Legendary names like Aberdeen’s The Lemon Tree, the O2 Academies in Liverpool and Newcastle plus The Sugar Mill in Stoke and the floating Thekla in Bristol have become familiar stages for The Sherlocks – now a truly great band of Britain.

It’s a stunning achievement for a group who only branched out for their first headline gig in the south of England less than two years ago at Southampton’s iconic The Joiners.

This time round in the same city the lads sold out a new 300 capacity venue before playing to another 400 half an hour up the road in Portsmouth the next night despite the normal convention of acts only playing one city or the other on the same tour. They pulled off the same double header in close by Newcastle and Middlesbrough too.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Outside of Sheffield, one city foreseeing where this band is heading more than most is Manchester, where there seems to be something in the water for The Sherlocks. The Friday night picture at The Albert Hall was an astonishing sea of over 2,000 bouncing and chanting fans.

The Sherlocks. Photo: Leon GateleyThe Sherlocks. Photo: Leon Gateley
The Sherlocks. Photo: Leon Gateley

Even before the headliners appeared on stage the chants of Sherlocks Army echoed around the former Wesleyan Chapel with its huge floor, open stage and vast circular balcony. They used to worship here and in a different way, on nights like this they still do. Here was a people’s band in a people’s venue.

On the same Manchester bill Sheffield’s lively Oddity Road, who’ll play all three Yorkshire dates this weekend, ignited the evening with a blistering set before Bolton’s infectious rising stars Jordan Allen marked releasing latest single 110 Ways to Make Things Better with their own storming performance.

Making it a fantastic Yorkshire triple bill at The Foundry will be ones to watch Barnsley lads Sundance, who with Oddity Road are also on the bill for this year’s Mosborough Music Festival at Don Valley Bowl on June 3.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

While undaunted, the enormity and excitement of how quickly things are moving is not lost on The Sherlocks as Kiaran, 21, explained: “We’re four lads from Yorkshire and travelling so far and selling out eminent venues everywhere blows our minds.

The Sherlocks. Photo:Tom LangfordThe Sherlocks. Photo:Tom Langford
The Sherlocks. Photo:Tom Langford

"Every gig on this tour so far has genuinely been class - and we haven’t reached Sheffield yet.

“It’s getting bigger for us now, we’re ramping up production and lighting, so our music has to go to the next level too.

"We’ve broken down all our songs, making the most of every catchy line and riff. People relate to good melodies and in higher capacity venues you can’t only rely on everyone going nuts for atmosphere, although we’re never short of that, especially in Sheffield. The songs have to hold their own too and we have to be as good as we can.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Since their last raucous shows at The Leadmill, Sheffield in June and The Wardrobe, Leeds in September, the band has stepped things up further with exciting new songs like Nobody Knows and intriguing versions of old favourites like the frantic Motions being flipped on its head in a country-rockabilly direction.

New single, Was It Really Worth It?, presently riding high on Radio One, has been nicely overhauled, or, as Kiaran described, sweetened up, with a fantastic new middle eight, extra lyrics and an end of song guitar solo from Josh, making an already big song bigger.

The return to Sheffield is no end of tour homecoming as after Yorkshire the lads will be straight back on the road with further dates in March then three more in April including The Church in Leeds.

The Sherlocks: Photo: Jack Kirwin.The Sherlocks: Photo: Jack Kirwin.
The Sherlocks: Photo: Jack Kirwin.

Last week it was revealed they will return for a third year to Leeds and Reading festivals in August where they’ve been such a revelation before playing to thousands and stunning organisers by drawing huge crowds at any time of day despite not yet releasing their fabled debut album.

More at thesherlocksmusic.co.uk. They return to Leeds festival on Friday August 25. Latest single Was It Really Worth It? is out now.