A bar in Darwen is hosting karaoke nights with a twist - where wannabe rock stars can be the frontman in a band, 

The 'bandioke' nights are held at The Sound Lounge, featuring live band The Lounge Lizards.

The event allows people to take part in karaoke while being accompanied by the band, who play the backing track to the music.

Maxine Walsh, owner of The Sound Lounge, said: “Darwen is full of talented people, and we knew how much our customers love karaoke, so we decided to take it up a notch.

"I introduced Simon to Paddy (my sound engineer and talented drummer) and then Simon brought his friend Mick on board.

"With this talented group we formed our house band, The Lounge Lizards. After months of practice, we launched our first gig on a Sunday afternoon in May.”

She added: “The amount of practice and effort that goes into this event is beyond words.

"The band plays together then in between performances, they invite people to come up and choose a song from our every growing song book. We provide printed lyrics so all you have to do is get up and sing.”

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The next Bandioke night taking place at The Sound Lounge is on Sunday, September 15. Maxine assures wannabes that you do not need to be a good singer to get up, it is all about having fun!

The Sound Lounge has plenty of events coming up so if singing in public is not for you, plans include a casino night, an indie covers band, and True Order (a tribute to New Order).