Action Hank were formed in 1995 when Ben taught Thom to play the bass guitar so they could play covers of Green Day, Terrorvision and Weezer songs in his bedroom.
In 2001 Thom returned from university in Wales with knowledge of how a real band works, that he learned from a rotund and good-natured Welsh entrepeneur. Armed with this knowledge, but saddled with an all-time-consuming job, Thom thought of one bass-line and a name – Kid Twist and The Skam! – one of which was good, and one of which was not.
Losing the job and gaining time, Thom and Ben were able to recruit their first Matt – bass-player, nee second guitarist, Matt – and have a practice in Ben's back garden, with rare appearances from Mandy on the bongos and Becky on the guitar keyboard!
An advert placed on the internet provided a drummer: Leo, a middle aged american jazzer, who decided after twenty minutes that it wasn't for him. However, with three hours and forty minutes practice time left, our heroes pressed on. With two hours to go, Jonny, the manager of the practice studios, arrived and said that he'd seen their poster and fancied a go!
The Hank Was Born!
It was obvious that horns were required, so Thom called in an old, old friend with whom he hadn't spoken in years. Chris could play the clarinet and it was hoped that he could step up to take the mantle of saxophonist. Chris said yes – but only owned a soprano saxophone, which is widely regarded as a ‘gay’ instrument. So they stuck with the clarinet which turned out to be a much better idea.
One down, some to go. A poster in WHSmith, of all places, was enough to yield three! more! horns!
Ali (trombone), was cajoled into joining, which was good because she is the only trombone player in britain not already attached to a band. Then Laura was bullied into joining on alto sax. She was a bit nervous at first, but was telling Chris off regularly after only a few weeks! And lastly Matt on trumpet. The boyfriend, at the time, of Thom's, Ali's and Laura's boss, this was a dangerous move, but all turned out well and the hank had reached its final, frightening, proportions!
A few upheavals and a dozen or shows later, it's the year 2005. Laura left to go to university; Jonny left to spend time with his family and his other bands; and his replacement, Matt, left after a few months to go round the world. He may even now be humming ‘Swings And Roundabouts’ forlornly to himself in a Brazilian jail cell.
Jon is Mr Drums now, and more – a legendary box of percussion equipment is his legacy as the scion of a drumming dynasty stretching back into ancient times.
Oh, and we don't practice at Backline no more, either – we is hooked up in a portacabin at Nev's!
Well we finally found a practice studio with modern gear like at Nev's, and the relaxed atmosphere like at Backline, except a bit cleaner! Of course we are talking about Silent Hill. Now that is what I am talking about.
