Biography

Having previously played together in another band, guitarist Nick Jones and drummer Mike Billington began making music again in the early eighties. In 1984, after placing adverts in a local newspaper, they were joined by Gary Bond on keyboards and Russ Sargeant on bass guitar. Soon afterwards, they invited vocalist Clare Lakin (formerly of the band Movement) to complete the line-up.

The Mechanical Hearts were born.

Over the years, the band played numerous gigs in and around the Midlands, including regular appearances at the original JB’s in Dudley and a memorable Battle of the Bands performance at the Birmingham Odeon.

They recorded a two-track cassette featuring Answers On A Postcard Please and Passion For Blue, and later went on to produce a six-track album, What Makes You Tick. The band were frequently featured in local newspapers and in Birmingham Brum Beat magazine, as well as receiving excellent reviews for their demos in national music publications.

In those days, studio recording was expensive, and the band quickly learned how to write, play, and record on a very tight budget — often completing everything in a single day because that was all they could afford.

It’s hard to imagine now, but at that time the only real ways to promote your music were through live performances, word of mouth or by selling cassettes. There was no such thing as social media or streaming.