Meet the bright Belfast gang composed of one set of siblings and two friends – Brand New Friend. “I got given a guitar after my GCSEs and was like, ‘Oh, I’m just going to do this forever now!’” enthuses guitarist and vocalist Taylor Johnson. “Then I roped my wee sister Lauren into it, because she’s much more talented than I am with vocals. We took it from there.”

After gigging around Belfast, the siblings met Luke Harris and Adam Milligan at a show, and soon enough Brand New Friend was formed. “We’re such good friends that we’re able to block out all the shit thrown at us,” notes Taylor. “I think that’s so important for any young group.”
Fast forward to the present day, and jobs have been left and a record deal signed. Brand New Friend boast a rocky, choppy sound with bright keys and punk-pop lyrics – an energetic, youthful style they envision as the ideal soundtrack for house parties. The band’s raucous gigs inspired them to use live footage for the video to their single ‘Girl’; their connection with their audience is vitally important to them.

“At the start, it was difficult to make people give a shit about us,” Taylor admits. “Even getting friends out to a venue is tough sometimes. Luckily, most of them realised they quite liked it in the end, because we’ve gigged all over the place now.”
Brand New Friend have completed Irish and UK tours, and are shortly to release their debut album, Seatbelts For Aeroplanes. With a central theme of saving a failing relationship, the LP consists of 13 tracks – although they’re already knuckling down on material for the follow-up. Exciting, the band will also be supporting Snow Patrol on their upcoming Irish tour.