Band reforms to honour mate's life

Indie-rock band Blue Generation formed at Montgomery High School in Bispham in 2001 and gigged at venues such as Jenx, The Downtown Bar, West Coast Rock Cafe and the Rossall Tavern.

The band split up in 2006, with university and working life getting in the way, but the band’s two main songwriters, James Hyde and Carl Bailey, made a vow to one day reunite to finish their debut album.

But Carl died in 2013, after suffering from depression.

After initial talks at his funeral, the band decided to get back together to make good on the promise that James and Carl had made all those years previously.

James said: “I had been taking the lead on it to see what I could come up with, then our singer Debbie agreed to come back, and after four years, we’ve ended up with an album on the verge of being ready to go.”

After spending the last four years recording the album, it is now ready to be released and the band have set up a crowdfunding website to help with the costs of pressing the physical CD.

In just over a week, more than £400 has been donated and James admits that he’s overwhelmed by the response the project has received.

James added: “It’s rejuvenated me into thinking this has all been worth it, to get as many people to hear Carl’s lyrics and my music.

“I think it’s what he would have wanted.

“The band was one of the happiest parts of his existence, he absolutely loved it.

“He was very hyperintelligent, he was our lyricist for a reason!

“He loved films, he loved books and he was so passionate about music and this project. We would talk for hours about how it would sound and he’s run up to me with this new lyric, really excited. I’d go away and try to put that excitement into the music.

“I’d hope he’d be happy with what we’ve done. It sounds to me, how I thought we would always sound if we got into a studio and did this properly.”

As well as releasing the physical CD, the band plans to make the song available on iTunes and Spotify, with Carl’s share of any eventual profits going to the mental health charity – Mind.

To donate, find out more information about the project, or to pre-order the album, visit www.bluegeneration.co.uk