Silly name, good band (From Stroud News and Journal)

Silly name, good band

IN the first of a series of occasional interviews with local bands, the SNJ this week talks to the bizarrely monikered kitsch cabaret band Shed Hunter and the Indigo Fish.

Formed by John Ferguson (Shed Hunter) and Preeti Bharadia (Indigo Fish) last year, the band revel in the silliness of the name. "In our civilian identities, we're a small business solutions consultant and a care worker," John said.

"But when the lights dim we find a phone box, make a quick change and become the band!" laughed Preeti.

When asked where they got their name, they mythologise immediately. "Half way to Hereford there's a shed on stilts," said Preeti. "It's an intriguing shed." "Indigo's a good colour," John suggested, "and we both like fish."

"We tried picking a name randomly from the dictionary, but it didn't work," he added. "Actually, I blame alcohol."

In eleven months of playing together, the band have done rather well, progressing from an early start in friendly local pubs to the reasonably dizzy heights of Cheltenham Festival of Literature, alongside various performance poets and comedians.

"We fitted in well with the evening," said John. "We even enjoyed the poets..."

Asked what they thought of Shed Hunter and the Indigo Fish being described as kitsch cabaret, the band suggested that 'any accolade is fine by us, as long as it doesn't use the word awful'. They're far too much fun to be described as that, veering musically between Rhinestone Cowboy and songs from The Jungle Book and The Beautiful South.

"We've written some material and we're going to record a little soon," said Preeti. "We have so many silly ideas, it would be nice to follow them up," added John.

The band's next show is at The Duke of York on Nelson Street, Stroud this Tuesday, November 12 at 9pm. Entry is free.

For more arts news, reviews and full listings of events in the Stroud area, see this week's SNJ.