One day we’ll Frake it in

Reporter: Simon Smedley
Date published: 05 May 2015


BY their own admission the Frakes are a band in an early stage of development.

But the three-strong Oldham mod hopefuls dream of making their mark on the massive musical map.

The Frakes — guitar/vocalist Ben Warwick (aged 17 from High Crompton), bassist Jacob Simpson (18, from Waterhead) and drummer Luke O’Reilly (16, from Waterhead) — have already performed around a dozen well-received gigs, including two at Manchester Academy. Now the spotlight is on producing top quality original material, rather than covers.

The band — strongly influenced by the Who, Small Faces and the soulful rhythm ’n’ blues sounds of the 1960s — recently had second thoughts about including original material in its sets.

Simpson, a member since the band was formed 18 months ago, said: “We had some of our own material but it kind of got kicked under the carpet when there was a line-up change, and we simply weren’t a band for a few months. It was progressive rock, but that didn’t always suit how we wanted to play.

“They weren’t bad tunes, but it wasn’t really what we were looking for, if I’m honest. We decided to start fresh. Now we want to make sure the songs are fantastic.

“The main aim isn’t to be mega Arctic Monkeys-like famous, we’d just like to provide people with a good night out.”

Keep up with the Frakes by checking out their Facebook page.