The Maybes? were an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

band from

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

. The group was made up of five principal members: Nick Ellis, Nick Otaegui, Lee Smith, Timo Tierney and Dominic Allen. They had been performing since 2002, and in early 2006 they were signed to

Xtra Mile Recordings Xtra Mile Recordings are a British independent record label based in London, England. The label was founded in 2003 by Charlie Caplowe and they release an eclectic mix of genres with a focus on rock and folk. History The label first signed the ...

. The band disbanded in 2009.

Background

All the members of the band are from the

Anfield Anfield is a Association football, football stadium in the area of Anfield (suburb), Anfield, Liverpool, England, which has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since its formation in 1892. The stadium has a seating capacity of 61,276, making it the ...

and

Kensington Kensington is an area of London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, around west of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up by Kensingt ...

districts of

, and were close friends before the band started. They attended

Liverpool Community College The City of Liverpool College is a further education and higher education college in Liverpool, England. The college is located over several sites across the Knowledge Quarter, Liverpool, Knowledge Quartera district in the Liverpool city c ...

. They have been performing gigs since 2002, supporting other bands as well as their own shows. They are well known in Liverpool for their band name being spray painted in many places. In 2006, The Maybes? having just been published by

Universal Music Publishing Group Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) is a global music publishing company and is part of the Universal Music Group. Universal Music Publishing has been ranked the #1 music publisher in market share by Billboard for multiple consecutive quart ...

, signed their first record deal with London-based

record label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of Sound recording and reproduction, music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a Music publisher, ...

. The label released The Maybes?' first record, "Stop, Look & Listen", on a split

7" vinyl In music, a single is a type of release of a song recording of fewer tracks than an album ( LP), typically one or two tracks. A single can be released for sale to the public in a variety of physical or digital formats. Singles may be standa ...

with DARTZ! in January 2006 (as part of the Xtra Mile Single Sessions) and went on to sign the band. They also brought out "Olympia" their debut EP, in October 2006. The band were one of the headline acts at the

Liverpool Mathew Street Music Festival Liverpool International Music Festival (LIMF), formerly known as the Liverpool Mathew Street Music Festival, is an event held annually at Sefton Park in Liverpool. It takes place every summer and was Europe's largest free music event, although ...

in 2006, and again in 2007, when they also appeared at the Knowsley Hall Music Festival. They started recording their album in late 2007 and when they had finished recording in early 2008, they set about touring Britain again and playing for local and national radio shows. It was around the same time their second single "Talk About You" was released on download. In April 2008, they launched their own nightclub at Nation (the home of

Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this proces ...

) called Sonic Temple, and in the summer of 2008 the band played some of the big music festivals such as the

V Festival V Festival, often referred to as V Fest or simply V, was an annual music festival held in the United Kingdom during the third weekend in August. The event was held at two parks simultaneously which shared the same bill; artists performed at one ...

Isle of Wight Festival The Isle of Wight Festival is a British music festival which takes place annually in Newport, Isle of Wight, Newport on the Isle of Wight, England. It was originally a Counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture event held from 1968 to 1970. Th ...

and

Reading and Leeds Festival The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend. The Reading Festi ...

, as well as seeing the release of their debut album ''Promise'' produced by "Head", alongside the release of singles "Boys" and "Summertime". The single "Promise" is also used as the theme song for the 2010 Friends Provident t20 cricket competition in England and Wales. The track is played when the teams take to the field at the start of the game and is played during the hand shakes. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' editor described ''Promise'' as sharp and full of shot, bittersweet guitar-pop songs. Describing the first single, "Boys", as a "cover version of a Hamburg or Cavern-era

Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

tune", while "Summertime" was characterized as "typical

ong Ong or ONG may refer to: Arts and media * Ong's Hat, a collaborative work of fiction * “Ong Ong”, a song by Blur from the album The Magic Whip Places * Ong, Nebraska, US, city * Ong's Hat, New Jersey, US, ghost town * Ong River, Odisha, ...

with its eager, rasping Scouse vocals and frantic drums that gallop towards the exuberant chorus". The title track dysplayed "sheer psychedelic dub-rock delirium", and the editor compared it to

The Coral The Coral are an English rock band, formed in 1996 in Hoylake on the Wirral Peninsula, Merseyside. The band emerged during the early 2000s. Their 2002 debut album ''The Coral (album), The Coral'', from which came the single "Dreaming of You (T ...

, Can's ''

Soon Over Babaluma ''Soon Over Babaluma'' is the fifth studio album by the rock music group Can, released in November 1974 by United Artists. This is the band's first album following the 1973 departure of their second vocalist Damo Suzuki. The vocals are provided b ...

Public Image Ltd Public Image Ltd (abbreviated and stylized as PiL) are an English post-punk band formed by lead vocalist John Lydon (previously, as Johnny Rotten, lead vocalist of the Sex Pistols), guitarist Keith Levene (a founding member of the Clash), bassi ...

's "

Death Disco "Death Disco" is a song by Public Image Ltd. The record was released in both 7" and 12" single formats with a "½ Mix" of the song and "Megga mix" (an instrumental version of "Fodderstompf" from '' Public Image: First Issue'') on the 12" version ...

Members

*Nick Ellis – guitar, vocals *Lee Smith – guitar, vocals *Timo Tierney – guitar, vocals *Nick Otaegui – bass, vocals *Dominic Allen – drums, percussion

Discography

Albums

*''Promise'' () *''The Love Story'' (2010)

EPs

*"Olympia'" ()

Singles

References

External links

YouTubePromise Review Daily Music Guide
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maybes, The English alternative rock groups English indie rock groups Alternative rock groups from Liverpool