Local band aiming for the top

Keep your eyes out for Ealing band 'The Tailormade' who just might be the next big thing. They've recently played a huge gig at Green Park and have a few anxious days to hear if they've made it in the finals of the Big Busk competition.

Our reporter Jamie Gould has been to see the three young men now dreaming of fame and fortune......

Standing on the main stage in Green Park, with over a thousand people watching, and their performance displayed on the big screen...

It’s starting to feel like the big time for The Tailormade, and the guys know they’ve come a long way from their first appearance on a local talent show in Cumbria.

The band is made up of three musicians who now live in Ealing - Aaron Murphy (23). Jack Frimston (22), and Matt Pickersgill (25).

Matt was playing guitar and writing songs on his own during his first year at uni. But it wasn't until Jack moved in the following year that things really started to come together. The two played around with guitars and lyrics and that was how it all started.

After a holiday in Corfu, Jack returned with inspiration for a song. The result was Rum & Red Bull, which is now one of the band’s most popular songs. After receiving a lot of positive feedback, the guys entered 'Cumbria's Got Talent', and made it all the way to the final.

The duo became a trio when their friend Aaron returned from a spell doing work experience in York, and they’ve been together ever since.

The three guys continued to gig wherever and whenever they could under the name used for that first appearance on Cumbria's Got Talent: Swag 'n' Tekkerz.  A stage director they were working with liked what he saw, but suggested a new image.

Matt described the process of coming up with a new name:

"We thought the best way to do it was go to the pub and have some beers, and just brainstorm."

Because they all enjoyed wearing smart clothes, they decided The Tailormade was an ideal fit for three guys with a sense of fashion and a lot of style. Their first video – appropriately entitled Suit Up – is now on YouTube.

Since the makeover and move to Ealing, the band has performed at a variety of busy locations in London, including both Westfield shopping centres. The lads have also done some busking on the South Bank.

Whilst many gigs have been great, others were less memorable. But they say it’s given them fantastic experience of playing to live audiences and helped them get to the semi finals of Open Mic UK.

They've been approached by various managers and agencies but nobody has been able to offer exactly what they need, so they currently remain independent.

This summer they decided they took part in Big Busk - London’s annual competition for buskers. On stage in Green Park as part of an event that attracted some twenty thousand people - it was their biggest audience to date.

In just a few days, they will discover if they have got through to the final.

There are serious prizes on offer, including musical equipment, gigs around London, and the chance to record in a major studio. Jack described entering this competition as "the best thing we've done so far".

So the band faces an anxious few days, waiting for the verdict of the judges. But one way or another, the well-dressed young men from Ealing are clearly making an impression in the music business.

They are all agreed that they want to make the band a full-time job. Jack says it would be nice to reach a point where the audience sings their songs back to them. Matt says he would settle for a sell-out show at the 02, but would also like to become famous and then "go back to my home town in Suffolk and do a gig in a packed out venue".

Aaron, clearly impressed with their show in Green Park, now has his sights set on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury.

They certainly don’t lack drive and ambition. They’re just hoping they are Tailormade for success.

To find out more about the band check out their website: www.thetailormade.co.uk

Vote for The Tailormade here

Pics and words: Jamie Gould

18th August 2014