Tony Cummings quizzed Northumberland's THE STEELS who are going full time in September

The Steels

As any grassroots Christian act will tell you, there are few if any fast lanes to national popularity. Grinding it out with small time gigs seems a prerequisite while recordings when the opportunities arise are often low budget and low sales. This being the reality of the UK scene plaudits should go to a trio of rockers from Morpeth, Northumberland, who go by the name The Steels. Their track "Masquerade" is currently a popular item on Cross Rhythms radio while the band - consisting of Adam Carmichael (lead vocals, guitar), Simon Napper (bass) and Matthew Chambers (drums) - are today considered one of the best gigging units on the British Christian scene.

The band started young. They were originally called Steel Machine. Simon Napper recounted the history. "Initially, in 2000, we had one extra guitarist called Bob. We began learning our instruments together and playing for fun in Matt's cellar. We played a few small gigs like this either organised by ourselves or at our high school. In 2001 we became a three piece, Bob was more into heavy metal. The following year we won a competition to play at Newcastle City Hall with Yfriday, which was massive for us."

In 2003 the group recorded two cassette singles, one imaginatively titled "Demo", the other an edgy little number called "Crazy". The following year Steel Machine recorded their "How Can It Be" EP. But the band's sound was changing, as did their name. Simon recalled, "People started calling us The Steels and it just stuck. We learnt new songs and developed our sound. We began doing bigger gigs, especially supporting Yfriday and Titus a lot more. Obviously we were still at school so had a lot of time constraints. We gradually started recording songs with Dez and Gav from Yfriday in any free time we had. Dez took up a manager role with the band booking us gigs, etc."

In 2005 The Steels finished recording their first album, 'My Energy'. Explained Simon, "We all began Uni in September. We all ended up going to Leeds Uni, even though it was not all our first choice. We launched the album at Christmas. The new album led to bigger gigs, including travelling abroad to Sweden. We also started to headline more concerts rather than playing support. We also began playing bigger festivals, like Greenbelt, Grapevine, Merseyfest, etc. In the summer of 2007 we recorded our second album 'Your Name In Lights' over two to three months. We released the album at Christmas with a launch tour around UK."

Produced by Dez Minto and Gav Richards at Broadwater Studios in Gateshead, the project was a major improvement on 'My Energy'. Said Simon, "We used live drums unlike on the first album which improved the overall sound massively."

The band all graduated from university this summer and The Steels will go full time in September though before then they have a summer packed with gigs. The group are then heading to American in September to play some gigs including the Shoutfest in Ohio alongside such acts as Relient K and Sixpence None The Richer. Simon spoke about the decision to go full time: "The band has got to the point where we have taken it as far as we can with other commitments. It seems like the right time to make the change to full time and hopefully being able to put all our time into it will make it a success. We feel our main aim as a band is to change the stereotypical image many non-Christians have of Christianity and show them it's cool and relevant in their lives. For this reason we felt it was important to have a few songs on this album that everyone could relate to, everyday issues. To show we were normal, basically. Once people get into these songs they will then start listening to the others and realise there is something far more important about our music. 'Waiting' and 'Masquerade' were the two songs which did this job. 'Waiting' is about being away from someone you care a lot about and missing them. 'Masquerade' is about encouraging and supporting each other and being honest and open. It's amazing how a little encouragement can change someone and fill them with confidence. Also saying how you really feel before it's too late."

The band have a real sense that God is putting things together for The Steels. Commented Simon, "So many times we have felt things were going badly when actually we have been making a real impact in other ways, maybe by just being there and talking to people. With God we can achieve so much more. So many times we have felt things were not possible but it is so easy to think within our own constraints and not God's. For example last summer in Hastings, we had to organise an outdoor town centre gig in two days - it seemed impossible, but with God's help it just happened. And hundreds of people emptied out the pubs and clubs to jump around to Christian music, it was unbelievable and completely God!"