Bastard Fish are a 5 piece ska band from Manchester. Their sound consists of many different influences such as ska, dub, eastern european gypsy music, reggae, punk, stoner rock and metal. The band takes the approach that no idea is too ridiculous to be included in a song and therefore their music is characterised by drastic changes in mood, feel, tempo, dynamics and often genre. The lyrical themes vary from universal themes of money, relationships and rejection to tales of mute girls, drunken clowns and shopping in shady markets. The band was formed in late 2008 by Holly Fawcett (Vocals), Jake Stentiford (Guitar) and Chris 'Widy' Twigg (Bass) who met whilst studying at the Univeristy of Salford. They then recruited drummer Luke Hirst and set about writing and rehearsing their first few songs. The band played its first gig in late January 2009 at The Old Pint Pot pub in Salford. Most of the songs from this period were included on the bands first EP which was recorded in the spring of 2009. The EP was titled '...Fail' after the predicted result of Jake's music performance exam which featured the band as part of his music degree at Salford. The EP contained 4 tracks with a 5th bonus track of the unmastered version of the song 'No Faith Left Shown' later added. The EP was recorded for free at the studios at Salford University and was produced by the band's friend James Moore of the band Amongst the Russians. Shorty after the EP was recorded, keyboard player Roy Medhurst was recruited by the band after months of constant hassling and pestering. At one point after Medhurst insisted he was 'too busy' to join the band, things even got so drastic that the members of the band constructed a cardboard effigy of Medhurst out of toilet rolls and those pointless white circle disk things you get under pizzas, named 'Roybot.' Unfortunately Roybots life was a short and unfulfilled one as his leg soon collapsed and he caved in on the kitchen table. After a week of what must have constant agony Roybot was finally put out of his misery and his head mounted on the kitchen wall (although he still makes an appearence in some of the bands promo photos around this time). Several weeks later the real Medhurst was finally convinced to join the band and played his first gig with them a couple of days later. As of late 2009 drummer Luke Hirst has been unavailable due to a heavy workload from uni as well as some epic teaching job and therefore wont be able to drum for the band until completion of his degree in summer 2010. As a result Bastard Fish become an acoustic act, swapping the electric guitars for acoustics, the keyboards for a melodica and playing without a drummer. The band also started focusing more on its eastern european gypsy influences which better suited the acoustic line up. Initial gigs with this set up have proven successful and well received by audiences so the band now intends to continue the acoustic set along side the full electric band. In March 2010 drummer Tim Bailey joined on kit, to flesh out the acoustic set and also to allow the band to start gigging electrified again. The first electric gig with Tim was on Thursday 1st April 2010. Since then the band has been gigging all round Manchester and is now seeking gigs out of town. The band's second EP 'Pond Life' was recorded and released in May 2010, showcasing some of their acoustic material and Gypsy influences.