Seemingly the missing link between the MC5, Primal Scream, Tame Impala and Kasabian, new arrivals The Shimmer Band have burst onto the scene with their blend of stylised electro-thrash.

Tipped, by ‘those in the know’, as being ones to watch, the band have already seen 2017 start with a bang with support slots for both Cabbages and The Jesus and Mary Chain

We caught up with front man Tom Newman before their show in Newcastle’s Think Tank? Underground on the 14th April to talk about the show, the future of the band and Creation records.

Punk, electronic, indie, rock, there are many things that the band can be accused of.  Subtlety, perhaps, is not one of them. Describe the sound of The Shimmer Band to any of our readers who’ve not heard your music yet.

We’re pretty diverse with a lot of influences and a lot of sounds going on.  The continuing theme for all of our music is that it’s big, euphoric, psych rock.

 So with such a blend of musical styles, what is the vision for the band?

We don’t really want to pigeon-hole ourselves too much. All of our favourite bands are capable of doing whatever they want musically.  We’re big fans of Primal Scream and they can do anything they want; they can do dance music, they can do rock and roll, they can do punk, they can do country.  And that’s what makes them a great band.  And that’s what we want to be.

And the name the Shimmer Band, I’m guessing that comes from your stage show which is very colourful and strobe-heavy.  Perhaps there’s a less obvious reason?

Yeah, I’ve got a bit of an obsession with light.  As in natural light.  And I wanted our band to have a name which was light.  There’s so much shit going on in the world that it’s nice to have a bit of light coming through.  Also, the word ‘band’ is important as it helps people to realise that we’re a band of people who can swap instruments and do things differently.

You’ve been out touring already in 2017 with Cabbages, and you’re about to support the Jesus and Mary Chain, what difference can people expect between your support slots and a headline gig?

To be honest, I actually prefer the support slots as we’ve only got 30 minutes so we’ve got to be concise and there’s no fucking around.  But headlining is different as we realise people are there for us so we’re a bit more appreciative and it’s a bit more of a joyous occasion.

Alan McGee’s been out championing some of recent tracks.  As word starts to get out about the band is that enjoyable, or is adding to any pressure you may feel about delivering new music or a strong live show?

No not at all.  There is no pressure.  We’re making the music we want to make and we get to play the music we love.  Alan McGee’s our hero, particularly Creation records which housed all of our hero’s, Primal Scream, Super Furry Animals, Ride, The Mary Chain, the list goes on.

You’re playing up in Newcastle on the 14th April, what can our readers expect from the gig and for the remainder of this year?

The gig will be carrying on what we’ve been doing this year; big euphoric rock and the rest of the year we’re going to people putting music out.   We’ll have a new single out in April called ‘What’s mine?’ which is a big orchestral number and Jagz Kooner will be doing a remix so we’re really excited for that.

The Shimmer Band will play Think Tank? Underground 14th April with new single ‘What’s Mine’ out on the 6th April.