Verve's Wigan Peers?

THE lead singer of up-and-coming Indie group Starsailor has spoken for the first time about his passion for music, saying all he wants is for people to respect his music.

In an exclusive interview with Pulse this week, Chorley-born James Walsh reflected on his meteoric rise as the frontman of Starsailor and spoke of his hopes for the coming year.

Starsailor, named after a Tim Buckley album, have been tipped by everyone from NME to Radio One to repeat the success of bands like Coldplay and The Verve over the coming months, starting off with the NME tour.

But modest James, a quiet-spoken 20-year-old who thinks incredibly deeply before answering questions posed to him, said: "We haven't set any particular goals for ourselves this year.

"It is always at the back of our minds that people are predicting things from us and we believe ourselves that we can go far.

"But, really, what I want, is for people to respect our music. That is what I am aspiring too."

If that really is all James wants, then he is one of the few 20-year-olds around to have achieved his dream already.

At Manchester's Roadhouse on Tuesday, the group performed their final warm-up gig before joining the NME tour which will bring them on to the same bill as JJ72.

Their seven-track gig brought the house down, earning them favourable comparisons with the likes of the The Verve, something James is flattered with.

He added: "It is good for us in one respect because we are being compared with benchmark groups but I hope people will appreciate our music as being its own thing as well.

"I see us as being part of a more acoustic sound which has been a while in coming but I think now that it has arrived, it will be here for a while yet, which I think is a good thing.

"Our sound I think, has a longevity."

The group formed in college at Wigan after James had left St Michael's CE High School in Chorley.

Previously, James has been a choir singer and it is his wide range of vocals which has impressed critics.

They were spotted while playing a gig by a reporter from NME. He gave them a glowing review, telling the record companies to sign them. Within weeks, they were on EMI's Chrysalis label.

The group's first EP will be out at the beginning of next month, followed by the single, Good Souls, in March or April.

For the single, they are working with Steve Osbourne, who has helped the Happy Mondays in the past.

The EP will contain tracks such as 'Fever,' and are all, according to the group, effectively the raw recordings.

James added: "One of the tracks we only played three times before going into the studio.

"We are looking forward to working with Steve again and he will be helping us with the album. Good Souls has a bit more of a groove but it is still us.

"We don't have any favourite tracks, but Good Souls is a good one.

"I write the songs and then we get our heads together to decide on the music behind it. All our songs are based on experiences people have been through, not necessarily us, but ones we have watched from afar." Dust and blood

THE curse of Dustfly strikes again -- making it three planned gigs in a row the Blackburn group have had to cancel.

Last Friday's adventure in Preston came to an abrupt halt when Douglas Livesey, lead in the group, managed to split his head open after banging his head open on a light fitting inside his van.

Douglas was unloading gear into the Golden Cross pub in Preston at the time but instead of wowing a large audience, he ended up keeping the staff at Accident and Emergency entertained for some time.

Douglas said: "We can only apologise to our fans who made the trip across there but there was nothing we could do about it.

"After painting the toilets a nice shade of oxygenated red, I was told I couldn't perform. It has become something of a curse for us. We had to cancel two gigs in Preston over the Christmas period because various people were ill in bed."

The gig has now been re-scheduled for February 2. Win Fatboy stuff!

MARKING the release of Fat Boy Slim's brilliant new single Demons, on which he collaborates with Macy Gray, PULSE has a stack of goodies from the Brighton DJ to give away.

The prize includes a medium size, Fat Boy Slim grey hooded top, 12-inch copies of Demons and a promo remix of his last single Birds of Prey.

With a promo video of Birds of Prey, the package is completed by two posters for his new album Halfway between the Gutter and the Stars. To have a chance of winning just tell us the name of Fat Boy Slim's celebrity wife!

Send your entries to PULSE Fat Boy Slim competition, Lancashire Evening Telegraph, Newspaper House, High Street, Blackburn. BB1 1HT.

Your entry must include a daytime telephone number and the closing date is Saturday January 27.

The prize is as stated and the editors decision is final.