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The Fondas

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The Fondas - "Dirty Kicks". Blending screaming guitars, thumping beats and stroppy disposition with songs that can haunt you, inspire you or just blow you away the Fondas power their way onto the Bristol/South Wales scene. They call it “Slum Rock” but it’s a hotchpotch of sleaze punk, grunge and indie rock. This four-piece guitar/drums combo pours a copious draft of attitude in on stage performances. Website www.thefondas.co.uk

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The Fondas describe their sound as "slum rock". Quite what it means is anyone's guess, and I'm not that sure that they know either. In fact, you'd have a pretty difficult job trying to nail down their sound, for the four piece, who hail from Bristol and Newport, seem to have a fairly free approach, taking in a load of different influences and melding theminto a very distinctive style of their own.So you could hear nods to The Byrds in the jangly guitar of opener D'Ya Feel Lucky, Morrissey in the vocals to Always Never, classic rock in Dirty Little Death Rider, Thom Yorke in Andy Ward's high vocal style, New York punk bands in the energy and The Clash in the thoughtfulness of their lyrics.There aren't that many bands whose music is so eclectic that they could follow a frenetic punky number like Be Alone with the psychedelic-style Strange Honey with its screaming wah-wah guitar solo, and then follow that with a big chorusey crowd-pleaser like Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. And not just mix it up but make it sound perfectly natural. Ward shows real assurance in the falsetto range, as was shown offparticularly well in Sleep, the rhythm section was rock solid throughout and guitarist James Young thrashed out the big power chords when required but also played some very imaginative solos.It didn't all work quite so well. The rocker Everybody Runs was a bit weak, for instance, and some of the endings were a little ragged, but nevertheless an impressive performance from a band deservedly attracting a lot of interest.Keith ClarkBristol Evening PostWednesday, 14th December 2005"Now this is how guitars should be played – loud, and in your face. This four piece draw their influences from everything from Radiohead to The Ramones, and end up coming out with a fairly fresh take on what is at times a tired sound. Upbeat and with a chorus perfect for moshing about to, this is unlikely to be the last time we hear from The Fondas. Could go onto big things. 7/10" youngscot.orgSunday, 11th December 2005Live For Music Review"Guitar fuzz junkies the Fondas return with their single Be Alone, an indulgent blend of falsetto vocals, in your face screaming guitars and lyrics that ingrain themselves into your head like the JCB song (except far less irritating).The band, hailing from Newport (so they must know the GLC), aren't afraid to show their influences, particularly the Clash and Ramones. Also sighting more diverse heroes such as Level 42, its hardly surprising the basslines are as carefully crafted as the skull splitting guitars.The Fondas promise big things for 2006 - and I'm not betting against them."The Fondas have been played and Interviewed by Rory Mcconnell from Radio 1 Northern Ireland on the Donna Legge show, they have also been featured on other Local BBC Radio 1 Stations, plus BBC Wales and BBC Nottingham, heads up for an item on Radio 1s main output soon!

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