Gomez

The unclassifiable Gomez emerged from Southport in the late ’90s as one of the era’s most eclectic new bands, combining elements of roots music, psychedelia, electronics, indie pop and more. With multiple singers and songwriters, Gomez serve up a sound that’s constantly in flux. The band began via the relationship between singer/guitarist Ian Ball and drummer Olly Peacock, who played in a group together as teens. Ben Ottewell, Tom Gray and Paul Blackburn came into the picture at university, completing the lineup. Their 1998 debut, Bring It On, brought Gomez success straight away, and with the following year’s Liquid Skin they were attracting attention in the U.S. as well. The band went from strength to strength over the next decade, but after 2011’s Whatever’s On Your Mind, Gomez went into semi-retirement, occasionally reuniting for sporadic bouts of touring.