Chart debut is music to Jake's ears

By kate helyer khelyer@c-dm.co.uk

A CLASSICALLY trained musician from Woolacombe has just seen his band make Number One in the unsigned UK charts with their latest offering, Take A Left.

Jake Bright, who plays bass with Dastards, started his music career long before taking up the double bass at West Buckland School.

He said: "I started learning guitar at the age of ten by playing along to bands like Muse and Red Hot Chili Peppers but never really made a mark as a guitarist at West Buckland.

"But at school I played with the North Devon String Orchestra, under the baton of Keith Chivers and the North Devon Sinfonia under Emma Kent, head of music at West Buckland."

But while he describes classical music as his "passion" Jake was drawn into the local band scene.

"I played bass in a couple of bands while at school and then played guitar for North Devon Ska band 2ft Heroes but these projects never really took off.

"But as well as the bands, I produced and wrote for This Window, an avant-garde 'cassette culture' outfit."

Now studying for a degree in music at Bristol University, Jake is still involved with The Window and gets regular airplay in Eastern Europe as well as appearing in a couple of Russian music magazines.

It was while he was still at school that he started writing and recording some of his own material.

Dastards front man Dan Wakefield heard some of his material online and it wasn't long before, at the age of 17, he was signed up for a label.

He said: "About a month after I joined, Kerrang Radio picked up one of our tracks, Flashlights and played it regularly for about a year. In January 2008 they invited us to do an acoustic session on air."

There followed a year of "drifting," but then the band was signed up with indie label Stretch Records and last summer supported Squeeze at the Chagstock Festival in Devon.

A pragmatic Jake said: "Composition is the avenue I want to go down, but if the band kicks off then that will definitely be the main focus of my career for the foreseeable future."

MUSICAL: Jake Bright.