VALENS

When it comes to home-grown musical talent, dear old Watford certainly has its fair share. We’ve nurtured the likes of George Michael and Geri Halliwel,l and are now sitting back and following their phenomenal success like proud parents.

Here at the Watford Observer, we’ve long been championing bands and acts that we’ve thought would go on to make it on the global stage, and were proud advocates of Naughty Boy, The Staves and Lower Than Atlantis from the very beginning, and were delighted when they went on to do just that.

Continuing that tradition, we’ve now got our eye on the bright young things in rock band Valens. They are: Julian, 21, on lead vocals and keyboards; Leigh, 24, on lead guitar and backing vocals; Tommy, 22, on bass; and Alister, 25, from St Albans, on drums. Tommy and Leigh met at Bushey Meads School and met Ali at college. Deciding to form a band, they recruited Julian as their singer two years ago.

The boys describe their sounds as ‘an explosion of solid rock rhythms and uplifting melodies delivered with a vocal punch to the ears that will leave you reaching for the repeat button’. Crikey. They cite their musical influences as Thirty Seconds to Mars and Angels & Airwaves.

You’ll have seen them gigging furiously round the pubs, venues and music festivals of Herts over the past couple of years, often at The Flag in Watford and The Horn in St Albans, and they’re playing a free gig next Monday at The Horns in Watford.

If you want to check them out before you go, they’ve got a single on YouTube and iTunes, Father, and a track called Forever Young on YouTube.

They’re already starting to make waves outside of Watford –last year alt rock band the Fearless Vampire Killers invited the boys to support them at their headline show at The Dome in Tufnell Park in front of about 500 fans, opening Valens up to a whole new audience, and they’ve also played with pop rockers Native and received Radio 1 airplay on Huw Stephens’ show, and have appeared in the rock bible Kerrang!

“Watford is our home and we’ve got loads of memories and moments from here,“ say the boys, “and no matter what the future will bring us, we’ll never forget this place. Our home will always have a place in our music.“ So just how big are Valens going to be? That’s for you to decide.

Valens play The Horns, Hempstead Road, Watford on Monday, January 19 at 8pm. Details: facebook.com/valensUK - Watford Observer

Then to the headliners of the night, the incredible Valens, a Watford based four piece who are a prime example that age is no reflection on talent or musical ability.

The band kicked off with their song Blue (mainly written by bassist Tommy Pool) and instantly gained the attention of the audience, causing fans and photographers to flock to the front of the stage to gain a better view of the spectacle that was about to unravel.

Valens are a band who live for music, especially their live performances, a band that give everything they have to music and putting on a show. They thrive to express the emotions put into every song that they write and it’s clear from songs like Father I (which sadly wasn’t performed on the night) that they only write music that they believe in, that can connect with their fans. The band evidently enjoy performing as they move around the stage. Their passion and dedication are reflected, not only in the emotion visible in vocalist Julian’s eyes, but by the reaction of the crowd, who all seem truly touched by the performance.

I’m Rising and Miracle went down a treat with the audience, with a group of girls at the very front even singing and dancing along. Once again, it's clear Valens enjoy performing as much as the audience enjoys watching them.

One of the highlights of the set for me, apart from Julian somehow falling over, [bless him] was their performance of extremely catchy Forever Young which prompted both movement on and off the stage, and left people singing even if they were unsure of the lyrics.

Valens are a band with lyrics as powerful as the vocal range of lead singer Julian Sollai. With both upbeat and slower songs this is a quartet who have nailed storytelling and building an atmosphere through their music. With a great use of light and shade, guitar heavy parts, and bass and drums all building to create a totally unique sound, this can definitely be referred to as an eargasm.

As the band near the end of their set Love Infinity and crowd favourite Hearts to the Sky round off this energetic yet moving headline slot and once again confirm that this is a band destined for great things. This is reiterated by the crowd requesting an encore, and they are treated to an acoustic performance of Julian’s brand new song, Hey, a highly catchy, great singalong track which is sure to be a new highlight of shows to come.

Overall it was a great night, put on by Oxygen at The Horns, with two totally contrasting genres, and two bands full of great promise in their field.

For more information check out:

Valens:

https://www.facebook.com/ValensUK/

https://soundcloud.com/valens-uk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRx9iXY17uA



Read more: http://www.hertfordshiremercury.co.uk/Outright-Resistance-Valens-night-remember/story-25960195-detail/story.html#ixzz3QcNB0BcQ
Follow us: @HertsMercury on Twitter - Hertfordshire Mercury

http://issuu.com/headlinerhub/docs/digital_magazine_issue_6/37?e=11400578/9558923 - Headliner Magazine

We like to think of our music as one of those colossal movie's with a big epic ending, like Armageddon or Interstellar. There's a moment for Valens in everyone's life - everyone can understand our music and be able to appreciate it.

If you're looking for something emotional but catchy and memorable then you should definitely check us out. You won't believe how much you will be able to relate to our music and feel through it. - Kerrang

Valens are a band that we have been following very closely on The Amazing Rock Show since they uploaded Father I back in September 2013, with Aaron chatting to Tommy from the band earlier in the year.

After some time in the studio they’re back with new track I’m Rising, which sees their anthemic sound develop even further. With the hard hitting riffs you’d expect from a rock band blended with commercial sensibilities in the vocal melodies, I’m Rising will hit the spot for many different rock fans.

We gave the track it’s first airplay on The Rock Show on Saturday, but if you missed it you can listen to it in the player below. - Amazing Radio