Farrah

Formed in York, England during 1998, Farrah drew primary inspiration from the American power-pop traditions of Fountains Of Wayne and Jellyfish, while also absorbing the melodic craft of British guitar bands such as Squeeze and Supergrass. The initial line-up featured Jez Ashurst—previously employed as a video-shoot runner and born in York, North Yorkshire, England—on guitar, keyboards and vocals, his school friend Mike Walker (born Michael Ian Walker, York, North Yorkshire, England) on bass and vocals, and Tom Marsh (born York, North Yorkshire, England) on drums and percussion. One year later Swedish multi-instrumentalist Andrew Campbell, born in Uppsala, Uppsala län, Sweden and handling guitar, keyboards and vocals, completed the quartet in time for the release of the debut single “Terry,” whose artwork provoked a brief dispute with local confectioners Terry’s Of York over the depiction of their chocolate.

During the same year that T’Pau reactivated to promote their album Red, Ashurst joined their touring lineup, a role he maintained for an extended period even while fronting Farrah. Drummer Marsh departed in 2000, replaced by Max Fidani ahead of sessions for the band’s first album, Moustache, produced with T’Pau’s Ron Rogers. The resulting recordings secured both a worldwide publishing agreement with Warner Chappell and a recording contract with Miles Copeland’s Ark 21 Records. Fidani’s stay proved brief; after the group relocated to London he was succeeded by Mike Hopkins, born in England. A subsequent personnel shift occurred in 2001 when new father Walker returned to York, prompting occasional Montana member Michelle Margherita—born in Cooma, New South Wales, Australia—to take over bass and vocal duties.

Me Too, issued in 2004, adopted a tougher rock stance, whereas the 2007 follow-up Cut Out & Keep offered a broader stylistic range and polished production values. Neither album propelled the band into the mainstream, and Hopkins eventually left. In the interval between these releases Ashurst established himself as a songwriter, supplying material to former Blue member Duncan James and Japanese artist Kaela Kimura, among others.