International Flannel

International Flannel are now a three piece, significantly increasing the ginger-ratio of the band to 2:1. That means that 66.66% of the band are blessed with the extra protein that blesses them not only with stunning red flowing locks, but a noticeably higher pain threshold.

The departure of bassist Jonathan Burgess also means that all the band members now live on the same street! How handy.

Hailing from Auckland, International Flannel have a solid reputation around town for their explosive and dynamic live performances. The guys like to keep things interesting by performing with an ever-changing line-up of guest musicians; anyone attending a gig is guaranteed a good show.

The brainchild of the Heeps brothers, International Flannel was soon joined by Lloyd on guitar. After the departure of bassist Isaac Borthwick, a short period with Matt Ledingham of Lacerda plucking the four string, and a slightly longer period with Jonathan Burgess looking after the low end, Daniel eventually decided to just do it himself.

The band falls into the wide genre of Alternative Rock, mixing youthful exuberance with a healthy dose of atmosphere and musicianship.

International Flannel’s debut EP ‘Extended Play’ was released in May 2005 and generated a massive response. Over 350 people attended the EP release party, and approximately 180 copies were sold on the night. Rip it Up Magazine labelled the EP “A promising debut”. Copies are available at Auckland’s Real Groovy. The first stages in creating a full-length album have just begun. The band is unsigned and self-funded, with all management, recording and costs being covered by the band members.

Milestones in the Flannel history include raising $3247.90 for Unicef’s Tsunami Relief Fund in a pair of fundraising gigs, having their video for Dr. Heeps played on C4, a live to air performance on Fleet FM and having tracks played on bFM, RDU, Fleet FM and TV3’s Nightline. Two of their songs were also featured in Scott Boswell’s full-length feature film ‘Tyrannical Love’ that showed at this year’s International Film Festival. The track ‘Or Do I?’ was recently selected to feature on a compilation of New Zealand Music on the cover of the October edition of UK’s Rocksound Magazine, due to hit the streets in September (www.rock-sound.net).

Their dedicated group of fans continues to grow with every gig, and everyone who attends one of their regular performances leaves impressed.

The band have a regular mailing list to keep everyone updated on their activities, you can sign up at their website.

Photo by Randall Paul [randallpaul.com]