MARK GARDENER, (right) former lead singer with defunct indie darlings Ride, has revealed the name of his new band and confirmed plans for their debut UK tour.
Called Animal House, the group features Gardener on vocals and guitar, Supergrass producer Sam Williams on vocals and guitar plus former Ride drummer Loz Colbert. Gardener has added Oxford musicians Hari-T and Jason King on bass and keyboards respectively.
A spokesperson for the band says Animal House wanted their first tour to be as low-key as possible so they could ease into the current scene gently. Once the tour was over, they would then head into the studio to record their debut album.
The spokesperson adds: “They’re in negotiation with lots of major labels at the moment, they’re pretty much ready to go, but Mark wants to take it easy to begin with.”
Animal House make their live debut at Leicester Princess Charlotte (June 3) then continue at Bath Moles Club (4), Sheffield The Park (7), Bristol Fleece (8), Glamorgan University (9), Chelmsford Y Club (10), Tunbridge Wells Forum (12) and Oxford Zodiac (13).