Meet Viva La Revolution, Andy Lowe and Carnypig

catches up with the region's best unsigned acts and meets the musical stars of tomorrow - this week it's Viva La Revolution from Halesowen, Shrewsbury's Andy Lowe and Stafford-based Carnypig.

I wonder if Green Day's Billie Joe realised the three words he uttered at a London concert would birth a Black Country pop punk group looking to make it big.

Teenage pop punks Viva La Revolution are veterans on the Stourbridge gigging circuit but say they are about to break out into the big wide world.

The three-piece band who hail from Halesowen are currently bracing themselves for an exciting journey to the great unknown.

After releasing their new single, called Zooey, last month the band have now secured a gig in Camden Town for January 5.

The musicians also have ambitions to cross the pond during the summer months to play in venues around Europe and perhaps even venture into North America.

VLR first started playing in 2009 and have had a number of line-up changes. The band is now made up of guitarist and vocalist Matt Price aged 18, drummer Alex Holloway, also 18 years old, and 19-year-old bassist and vocalist Josh Winfield.

The self-confessed Green Day fans are also influenced by Blink-182, Sum 41, Bowling For Soup and "any modern punk rock really" as well as some eclectic and diverse tastes including Barry Manilow and Reel Big Fish.

Winfield said: "We are a stadium-seeking blend of traditional pop-punk and ska, with just a touch of hard rock. We sound like our heroes, 10 seconds at a time. There are no barriers within the genre for us, there is literally something that everyone will enjoy in our music."

So why are they called VLR?

Winfield said: "We went to see Green Day play the O2 in London on their 21st Century Breakdown tour. Before their song Holiday gets going, the frontman, Billie Joe Armstrong screamed 'Viva La Revolution!' and the name just stuck from there on in."

This summer things started to take off for the band after they got through to the regional finals of the international unsigned festival, Surface Festival. This gave them the opportunity to play Birmingham venues including Flapper, the O2 Academy 3 and the Asylum.

The band now plan to release their second EP, which is currently in post production, on January 12.

Winfield said: "We had such a blast making this record. The whole experience gave us such confidence in how we write and arrange songs.

"Depending on the success of the EP, I think the next release we do, has the potential to be our first full length album."

For more information about Viva La Revolution www.facebook.com/VLR.UK

In Shrewsbury, singer/songwriter Andy Lowe has been getting out and about and hitting the stage to take part in an open mic night. The musician is known for his "anti-folk ballad" about Shropshire's county town called I Was Born In Shrewsbury.

The 23 year-old says he enjoys listening to "folk, rock, jazz, funk and more" and started his musical journey when he was seven years old. To hear his songs visit www.youtube.com/andylowemusic and www.myspace.com/andylowemusic

Elsewhere in the region, fans of brooding, alternative rock with angular guitars are advised to take a listen to Stafford-based artist Carnypig. The indie songsmith released his second album Blues & Twos as a download and limited edition digipak CD last weekend. Visit www.carnypig.co.uk to find out more.