FM - The Carlisle, Hastings - Thursday 17th October 2024

In the summer of 1984 singer Steve Overland and his brother, guitarist Chris (both formerly of Wildlife) teamed up with drummer Pete Jupp (ex Wildlife and Samson) and bassist Merv Goldsworthy (ex Diamond Head and Samson) to form FM. Joined by the keyboard talents of Didge Digital, by December that year they had secured a recording contract with CBS/Portrait and the band headed to Germany for a run of dates with Meat Loaf.

Further tours with Tina Turner, Foreigner and Gary Moore built up the momentum. On 8 September 1986 FM released their debut album INDISCREET (featuring the hugely popular single "Frozen Heart") to great critical acclaim and the year ended on a high with FM supporting the white-hot Bon Jovi on their "Slippery When Wet" tour.

For the next nine years FM consolidated their position at the forefront of British melodic rock, touring extensively as headliners and also joining bands such as Status Quo and Whitesnake on tours to promote releases such as 1989's TOUGH IT OUT album; TAKIN' IT TO THE STREETS released in 1991 (with Andy Barnett on guitar replacing the now-departed Chris Overland); APHRODISIAC in 1992 (featuring Tony 'Slim' Mitman of Romeo's Daughter on keyboards) and what was to be their 'final' album, 1995's DEAD MAN'S SHOES with new recruit Jem Davis (Tobruk, UFO) on keyboards.

In 2007 - after a 12 year sabbatical - FM were persuaded to return to the stage for a 'one-off' headline performance at a sold-out Firefest IV at Nottingham Rock City.

The rapturous reception from the fans at Firefest led to FM quickly making the decision to record a new album and following a return to Firefest in 2009, in March 2010 FM released their much-anticipated sixth studio album METROPOLIS with Jim Kirkpatrick replacing Andy Barnett on lead guitar.

…And FM haven't stopped since… Headline tours both in the UK and overseas, Special Guest slots touring with Foreigner, Journey, Thin Lizzy and Heart; festival appearances including Download, Planet Rockstock, Sweden Rock, Graspop, Steelhouse Festival, Frontiers Rock Festival, HRH and HRH AOR, Cambridge Rock Festival and in 2018 their first-ever live show in the US at Melodic Rock Fest 5.

When not touring, FM have been busy in the studio and since their 2010 'comeback' album they have released 2013's double helping of ROCKVILLE and ROCKVILLE II (with two songs playlisted by BBC Radio 2 - "Story Of My Life" and "Better Late Than Never"); HEROES AND VILLAINS in 2015 and INDISCREET 30 - a new 2016 recording of FM's classic debut album to celebrate the 30th anniversary of its release.

ATOMIC GENERATION was released on 30 March 2018, featuring the lead track "Black Magic". The radio single "Killed By Love" has proved to be a popular addition to the live set.

2019 saw the release of THE ITALIAN JOB on 22 February via Frontiers Records - a live recording of their set at Frontiers Rock Festival in April 2018 - on Blu-ray and as a DVD/CD package. FM toured throughout the year including European dates with Skid Row and festivals including Graspop, Sweden Rock, Ramblin' Man Fair and Barcelona Rock Fest. The year ended with December's Big 3-0 Tour - a triple headline bill with Dan Reed Network and Gun for the 30th anniversary of their 1989 albums Tough It Out, Slam and Taking On The World.

FM released SYNCHRONIZED in 2020. With the world at a standstill that year, the band used their time productively to record their thirteenth studio album. The aptly-titled THIRTEEN was released via Frontiers in March 2022 and the band are currently touring throughout Europe.

WHITE SKIES

After bursting onto the rock scene at the end of 2022 with the release of their debut album ‘Black Tide’ to rave reviews across the UK and European press, White Skies have set about establishing themselves in the live arena throughout 2023/24. 
Featuring former members of Samson, Ya Ya, Dante Fox, Blood Red Saints and Red, White and Blues the band are no strangers to the stage and they are rapidly gaining a reputation as a top notch live outfit combining a slick stage presence with their well crafted, melodic songs. After a few low key warm up gigs White Skies headed out on a series of shows with Romeo’s Daughter in the Autumn of 2023 and culminated the year with their first headline show at the Giffard in Wolverhampton to a packed house. 
2024 sees the band continuing to tour the UK including a handful of festival slots and a support tour with TEN. Album number two is well on the way and a new single/video is set for release on May 10th

Mick White – Vocals 
Ray Callcut – Guitars and vocals 
Pete Lakin – Keyboards and vocals 
Rob Naylor – Bass and vocals 
Daz Lamberton – Drums and vocals