The Naturals

The Naturals are a band from Bristol, England. Formed in 2004 before any of them were even in their teens (and are still only a tender 19 years old) and the line up has remained the same ever since. So has the aesthetic; what can't be done with guitars needn't be worried about. They can make guitars sound like anything, and often do ; sometimes delicate, sometimes brutal, always beautiful. BBC Introducing simply noted the Naturals were “Four men in a room, using guitars as weapons” (BBC Introducing 2011)

Since their inception, The Naturals have just kept on keeping on. What started out as “art rock and stroppy punk” (Venue Magazine) in 2005 quickly became something wholly different, entering their teens viewed as “unprecedented...for a band this young to be this good” (Live Music Scene UK). This small yet concentrated stir was picked up on by Geoff Barrow (Portishead/BEAK>) and during the hot summer of 2006 the band took to Barrow's State Of Art studio to record “The Anticipation EP”. Over the course of two more years, their sound, style and live shows grew as they did. A return to State of Art to to create 2009's “Adventricle EP” garnered radio support from the likes of Huw Stephens and Steve Lamacq, and a regular cycle of shows concluding with a performance at Manchester's In The City where one reviewer was happy to remark that “...the strength of the songs [is] not only humbling but also gives this audience hope as to what be next for this band of exciting youngsters” (In The City review 2009).

Despite their rising tide, their age meant a settling into the end of their compulsory studies, whilst continuing to write. Exposure and subsequent influence by bands such as My Bloody Valentine and Swans, the localised Soundsytems and hip hop scene as well as paying particular homage to artists such as Luke Savisky and Doug Hart expanded their horizons, hinting at a more visual and engrossing sound. Live performances were noted for having become exceptionally loud and with a swelling musical palette, leading to remarks that “honestly, never heard anything quite like that before. Fucking incredible!” (WIRED Magazine 2010). Whilst being roundly sounded as “the best unsigned band in the city” (Whiteboard Music.com)

Their third marker was to be born early 2011 in the shape of the double A side release Gifthorse/He Has An Eighty Foot Tarantula, the culmination of seven years of constant growth validated by both a sold out release show and glowing reviews which praised “pitter-patter arpeggios leading in and out of passages of thunder...they're all grown up now” (Venue Magazine 2011).

Having already survived, nurtured and evolved longer than most bands stay together, the seven year itch has led to the Naturals putting together their debut album back in the bosom of State Of Art. Mark Gardener (Ride) on hearing their defining 9 minute opus ‘I’ve Become Everything’ offered his mixing services, as have award winning film-makers BDH who are now in production of a short film around the track. A limited seven inch release through the up and coming Howling Owl Records in the new year will mark the way into 2012, a year that promises to service the itch, a year the Naturals will exit their teens, a year they will announce their arrival. It will be loud, it will be worth it.