NEiLS CHiLDREN are an English three-piece garage punk outfit who formed in 1999 at Harlow College in Essex, where members John Linger (guitar/vocals), Brandon Jacobs (drums) and Tom Hawkins (bass/vocals) were then studying. The band’s name came from Linger’s obsession with 1960s proto-punk band John’s Children; ‘Neil’ was the nickname of bassist Hawkins.
Primarily playing freakbeat-inspired music, the band performed several gigs on the London Mod scene as well as performing in the Harlow Square Rock Contest. In 2000 Hawkins quit the band for unknown reasons, and went on to become a successful sound engineer for The Subways. Replacement bassist, James Hair, was recruited and the band decided to move to London.
They have since played many shows in London, Southend, Brighton and many other cities, notably playing the Insomniacs Ball in London in 2006, and the popular London Calling Festival in Amsterdam. To this date, they have released an 8-track mini album and a string of singles on several different indie music labels. Their 2004 single ‘I Hate Models’ has become something of an underground hit and was included on an XFM compilation; it is currently still the song for which they are best known, despite its exclusion from their live show. More recently, in December 2005 bassist James Hair was replaced by Keith Seymour (formerly of Hope of the States), and a shift in their sound has been notable since this change.
In 2007, the band received attention in the wake of the critical and commercial explosion of The Horrors, with whom they toured in April. The two bands share personal connections, as John Linger is a friend of Rhys ‘Spider’ Webb, and there are similarities in the two bands’ dress sense and appearance (although less so between their music). |
