CityLife

Gents will bring back manners

MIND YOUR Ps & Qs: SR Gents

THE bloated figure of Manchester music stumbles drunkenly out of a grubby student nightclub, still clutching its pint of cheap, nasty lager.

It utters some rather crude profanities and wolf whistles at some girls nearby.

Despite its stupor, it somehow manages to stagger home, bellowing Oasis songs at the top of its voice, and eventually arrives at its front door.

But it’s too late, fatal inebriation has taken hold, and the body of Manchester music passes out on the doorstep, puking up on its best Ben Sherman shirt.

Hmm – not a pretty sight is it? Yet, thankfully, this is the boorish, bloke-ish image of Manc music that new band SR Gents are determined to eradicate. 

Based in Salford, the dandy-pop three-piece are not only one of this city’s most enchanting new musical prospects, they also double up as a relentless campaign for old-school gentlemanly decency. 

Arriving for their CityLife rendezvous on a sunny August afternoon, the trio – comprising singer Jules Frot, drummer/trumpet player Peri Eskell and bass player Gary Kinghorn – certainly look the part: all dressed in smart black suits and Stetson hats. SR Gents are the very embodiment of old-school charm and etiquette. 

Their language is full of quaint anachronisms (‘Sir’, ‘Squire’, ‘Tally ho!’), their manners impeccable, and if you spend more than 10 minutes with them, you start to feel like you’ve wandered into an episode of Jeeves and Wooster.

Manners, quite evidently, cost naff all; and it is SR Gents’ mission statement to make the rest of Manchester music realise that fact.

“I see it as this band’s job to uphold the image of the gentleman,” declares drummer Peri.

“Gone are the days when you think of the stereotypical Englishman in your head, someone who’s all dapper and well-mannered and opening doors for the lady. That image has been replaced by the image of the lager lout with the shaved head.

"The worst thing is that image is now recognised the world over."

“When it comes to Manchester music, that blokey, beery reputation is really quite hard to avoid,” adds bassist Gary.

“But who says you can’t be in a band and be a gentleman at the same time? We’re here to put manners back on the Manchester music map.” 

SR Gents, it’s fair to say, do not fit the stereotype of the blokey Manchester guitar band. Formed two years ago, the guitar-pop trio have been quietly charming the local scene with their old-school ways, and a major breakthrough could soon be imminent. 

Despite early accusations of being a novelty act, it seems the dapper trio are finally grabbing attention for their music as well as their unique gentlemanly perspective.

Dandy-ish

Trading in dandy-ish jazzy guitar-pop, they bring to mind The Libertines jamming with Serge Gainsbourg while chugging on a Gauloise with Edith Piaf; their songs full of bruised hearts, psychosexual melodramas and quaint old-school romanticism. 

This romanticism is largely down to one man: Frenchman Jules Frot, the band’s singer, songwriter and all-round bon viveur poster boy.

Born and raised in Normandy, in northern France, he relocated to Manchester five years ago, because, he explains: “Manchester seemed like the ultimate English city. I’d lived in the French countryside my whole life, in towns where there is a tiny population. Manchester seemed just full of possibilities.” 

Indeed it did. Within a few weeks of ‘exploring the city’s nightlife’, Jules had made lifelong friends in Peri and Gary, two aspiring musicians who shared a similar meticulous passion for all things old-school.

In a city where notions of brute laddism appear to have grown extra muscles, thanks to new bands like The Courteeners, a band like SR Gents were never going to find things plain sailing. Yet that is all part of the band’s unique charm: like the last gang of romantics in town, SR Gents have thrown themselves with admirable gusto into the local gigging circuit. 

Live shows have veered from the truly awful (“We once played in Jabez Clegg, and the crowd was horrific. We left the venue in tears,” shudders Peri), to far more joyful experiences at the Koffee Pot’s Teatime Sessions gigs (‘A really appreciative crowd. Not at all cynical’).

Indeed, shedding all cynicism is surely the most vital part of the SR Gents love affair: with gorgeous escapist odes like Mademoiselle and Stamping Feet, SR Gents are seeking out the eternal romantic in all of us; never afraid to look high, wide and even a bit pretentious in their quest to sate the heart’s desires. 

“It’s all about escape,” says Jules. “When people see our shows, or listen to our CDs, hopefully we can take them out of their surroundings.

"That’s the power of music. We want our music to transport the listener, to take them from their everyday surroundings, so they could almost be back in the sixties, drinking coffee in some small cafe in Paris. We want to create a romantic atmosphere.”

“We get a few jibes calling us pretentious,” says Gary on the defensive. “And that’s because we obviously don’t fit the stereotype of a Manchester band. “But that’s just being narrow-minded about music. You’ve got to open up your heart a bit if you want to understand this band.”

After some initial scepticism, Manchester is thankfully far more inclined to open up its heart these days. But what about the rest of those unconverted? You’ll be glad to hear SR Gents have a strict long-term plan to spread their gentlemanly message.

“You know that TV programme, Ladette to Lady?” asks Peri. “Well, I think we could probably do the male version of that show. It’d be a huge hit! Everything from table manners, to how to treat a lady, to buying the perfect cufflinks – we’d have it all covered. We’ll wipe out the image of the beery British lad before you know it.”

SR Gents play Lloyds Hotel (Chorlton) on Saturday, August 29 and Fuel (Withington) on Friday, September 11. For more info visit myspace.com/srgents.