Bulletin Board

20.09.08 | Plug 'n' Play | Milford Road | Reading

Gig details:

Listen to DissolvedIn tracks here:

DissolvedIn on tour

Their gig listing looks like one belonging to a huge signed touring band. Practically every day in the calendar is filled up with a concert happening somewhere around the country. Yet DissolvedIn, Reading's energetic pop punksters, are unsigned - something a few thousand Germans might find a little hard to believe.

"We supported a band that was really big in Germany and everyone over there took us as a big band," says 23-year-old guitarist Gary Howkins, "not so much like a local band, which is what we're used to."

So what's a Reading band who only formed two years ago doing rocking their socks off supporting the mighty Killerpilze at the German Rock im Hof festival?

It may be because the quartet follow their own positive mantra, and they hope to spread their message through their new EP Proudly Dressed.

"The songs are inspirational and motivational," says Gary, "it's trying to inspire people to go down the same route as we have and follow your dreams. Take the bull by the horns and don't just live a life you're not going to be happy with."

DissolvedIn - keeping their eye on the ball

It's certainly worked for the lads, who met at Thames Valley University, and have now given up their jobs to pursue their goal of "world domination" full time.

"Playing Reading Festival, it's all I can think of after going this year," says Gary of the band's aspirations. "It's always there at the front of my mind, whatever band I was watching I was thinking 'I want to play at the Reading Festival'."

He adds that playing Wembley Stadium would be good too.

And they're well on their way, following their growing popularity thanks to relentless touring, and the accolade that Fightstar chose them personally as support act.

"There was a voting poll for fans to go online and vote for their favourite band (to support Fightstar)," says Gary.

"But the vote got taken advantage of by some bands. They were using some computer wizardry to get themselves more votes."

So Fightstar and sponsors Kerrang and Lowlife ditched the voting and plumped for judging the bands instead.

"It was an honour that Fightstar picked us themselves just for our music," says Gary.

Now, with an legion of growing fans, DissolvedIn are playing a home-coming gig at Plug 'n' Play in Reading on Saturday 20 September.

"It's one of the first home-coming gigs in six months," says Gary, who's been on tour with the band since February.

They played an age 16+ gig at the Face Bar in Reading last week, which Gary says was "exciting but nerve-wracking".

"I'd rather play in front of the whole of the Reading Festival main stage than I would my friends and family!"

He adds: "It was exciting to see the response crowd-wise. When we used to play in Reading we didn't pull that many people but since we've had so much going on, and with the Kerrang and Fightstar exposure, we were excited to see how many people turned up that time."

And for their Saturday gig, I wouldn't be surprised to see a few Germans in the crowd too.