Boys in a Band are an

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming *Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies *Indie game, any game (board ...

rock

band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary *Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania *Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...

from the

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...

. Formed in 2006 in Gøta, the group comprises vocalist/guitarist Pætur Zachariasson, guitarist Heini, bassist Símun Sakaris, drummer The Rógvi, and Heri Schwartz on hammond organ. The band members claim to play ''Cowboy Rock''. They are the winners of

Global Battle of the Bands The Global Battle of the Bands (GBOB) is a live music competition joined by bands from all continents around the world. It is open to amateur/professional bands of all music genres and ages; there are only two main prerequisites to joining: no cove ...

(2007) (GBOB).

History

2006

Boys in a Band formed in September 2006. The same year, they took part in the international music competition GBOB, earning second spot. Through 2006, they managed to become one of the most popular live acts in the Faroes, and despite never having released a record, this secured them a nomination in the annual ''Planet Awards'', a local Faroese award show, which is sponsored by the daily paper

Sosialurin ''Sosialurin'' is a Faroese newspaper located in Tórshavn. It is written in the Faroese language. The newspaper, in partnership with Føroya Tele, a Faroese telecom, operates the websitin.fo History The newspaper published its first copy on 27 ...

. The band managed to win their nomination, which was in the category "best newcomer 2006".

2007

The following year, the band continued taking part in competitions. Firstly in a local songwriting contest which was part of the bi-annual Nordic showcase AME ( Atlantic Music Event). Here, their song "Secrets to Conceal" came in third place. Later that year, the boys entered the GBOB competition one more time. This time proved more lucky and the band went on to take first place in the world finals, ahead of over 3,000 other bands from 25 different countries. The prize was $100,000 (US), and a world tour. In 2007, they performed live at the

Roskilde Festival The Roskilde Festival is a Danish music festival held annually south of Roskilde. It is one of the largest music festivals in Europe and the largest in the Nordic countries. It was created in 1971 by two high school students and a promoter. In 1 ...

(DK),

Spot Spot or SPOT may refer to: Places * Spot, North Carolina, a community in the United States * The Spot, New South Wales, a locality in Sydney, Australia * South Pole Traverse, sometimes called the South Pole Overland Traverse People * Spot (produ ...

(DK),

G! Festival The G! Festival (commonly known as G!, in Faroese also called G! Festivalur or G! Festivalurin) is a Faroese musical festival, held annually at the seaside village Gøta on Eysturoy in mid or late July, but always before the Ólavsøka. It is one ...

(FO), and

Iceland Airwaves Iceland Airwaves is a music festival A music festival is a community event with performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock, blues, folk, jazz, classical music), n ...

(IS).

2008

In January 2008, Boys in a Band went to London to record their first album with Ken Thomas, who is best known for his work with the Icelandic group

Sigur Rós Sigur Rós () is an Icelandic post-rock band from Reykjavík, active since 1994. The band comprises singer and guitarist Jón Þór "Jónsi" Birgisson, bassist Georg Hólm, and keyboardist Kjartan Sveinsson. Known for their ethereal sound, fr ...

and

Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in Basildon, Essex, in 1980. The band currently consists of Dave Gahan (lead vocals and co-songwriting) and Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, co-lead vocals and main songwriting). Depech ...

's singer Dave Gahan. 2008 proved to be the most fruitful and busy year yet for the band. They played festivals like

Eurosonic Eurosonic Noorderslag is an annual four-day music showcase festival and conference held in January in Groningen, Netherlands. The first three days of the festival (Eurosonic) feature artists from all over Europe, the last day of the festival (No ...

(NL), by:Larm (NO),

Canadian Music Week Canadian Music Week (or CMW) is an industry conference and music festival held over ten days in Toronto and Ontario, Canada. History Canadian Music Week began in 1981 and has grown to become one of Canada's largest and most influential media a ...

(CA),

SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, ...

(US), The Great Escape (UK), and

SPOT Spot or SPOT may refer to: Places * Spot, North Carolina, a community in the United States * The Spot, New South Wales, a locality in Sydney, Australia * South Pole Traverse, sometimes called the South Pole Overland Traverse People * Spot (produ ...

(DK). In July, they broke the world record for most shows in 24 hours, playing no less than 24 gigs in the Faroe Islands. The boys played at

Reykjavík Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...

again in October 2008.Iceland Airwaves music festival, Reykjavík: 2008 Dates/Artists

Music

Boys in a Band describe their music as "

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

on amphetamine", due to the energetic nature of their old-school songs, which, among others, are inspired by Dylan, as are their lyrics. According to the boys, their music is a mixture of new rock and roll with traditional American folk/blues roots, adding, "This, together with the band's strict dress code, is the recipe for cowboy rock, a genre yet only mastered by Boys in a Band." Boys in a Band are still unsigned and their first album, Black Diamond Train, was released in the Faroe Islands on 19 July 2008.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boys In A Band Musical quintets Faroese musical groups Faroese rock music groups Faroese alternative rock groups Faroese indie rock groups Musical groups established in 2006