- Steer Clear
Steer Clear are a
pop punk five piece band fromBelfast , Northern Ireland that formed in 2005. The band are currently signed to Blastspace Records.Burns, Martin. "It's Gig Brother", "News of the World ", 2008-07-13, p. 46.]History
The original line up consisted of Mark, Pearse, p0d, Sib and Vinny. They released an EP, "Dog in a Bath", recorded in Einstein Studios. Due to both personal and musical differences Pearse left and Ciarán Bartlett took over as lead vocalist, fitting in perfectly with the bands new style. The band released another EP, "Fairytales That I Despise", recorded in Manor Park Studios. Again, Steer Clear lost their vocalist, to be replaced by Dave O'Gorman. After entering the Blast:beat competition,they reached the national finals but came in 4th. Blastspace still showed interest and signed Steer Clear. Due to musical differences Dave left Steer Clear and p0d was talked into taking over lead vocals for the recording of their first full length album, "No...You Hang Up".
They then decided to get a keyboardist for when they play live, and after many applicants finally found Simon, who gelled with the band almost straight away and helped create Steer Clear's unique sound.
Steer Clear had created a big fan base in Ireland and landed big support slots with
Enter Shikari ,Good Charlotte ,Set Your Goals ,Elliot Minor ,Paramore ,Anti Flag andInMe . These slots got Steer Clear to a wider audience and a wider fan base.In reviewing a 2007 concert in
Belfast , theBBC wrote, "There is a purity to the pop hooks that sets Steer Clear apart from the emo also-rans." [" [http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/atl/vital07_steerclear.shtml Vital 2007: Steer Clear] ",BBC Northern Ireland , August 2007. Retrieved on 2008-07-31.]They released their first single, "Please Be My Girlfriend Again" and their debut album, "No...You Hang Up" soon after.
Steer Clear have played in
South By South West in Texas this year, a festival with well known American bands. They were well received at the festival, and have been described as "the next big thing", based on the merits of their performance at the festival. [Cooper, Ryan. " [http://punkmusic.about.com/b/2008/04/02/sxsw-2008-steer-clear.htm SXSW 2008 - Steer Clear] ", About.com Guide to Punk Music, 2008-04-02.]Steer Clear released the second single from their album, "Comebacks Aren't Your Thing" on 4 July 2008. They recorded a video for it in Bolton. [http://youtube.com/watch?v=56FU5X2dkEU]
From 7–14 July 2008, Steer Clear were all locked in a two-room secret location in
Dublin , with only a practise and chill out room. They had certain tasks they had to fulfill if they wanted food, such as singing for their supper and writing a song a day. They were not allowed to leave the building. There was a 24-hour webcam and fans had to guess where the secret location was for a chance to win prizes and a chance to see them perform their new songs in The Lock In. The website received 50,000 hits in the first three days.The band's concert at The Academy in Dublin in July 2008 was a sellout. They then were heading to Britain for a series of concerts, now with a management team, From Here To The Pier, that is based in
Liverpool .In September 2008, Vinny (guitarist) left the band and Ebbs, the new guitarist was introduced to the public.
References
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
