The Martial Arts

The Martial Arts

The Martial Arts are a Glasgow group associated with power pop, jangle pop and scotpop, with links to the band All and The Beach Boys in the tag history attached to their name. The project centres on Joe Kane.

Background

The group forms in Glasgow. An earlier act using the same name is connected to singer and guitarist Paul Kelly, whose demos appear on two compilations issued by Swedish label Groover Recordings. After finding his music online, the band invites him to Stockholm to record an album with producer Ronald Bood, who works with Shout Out Louds.

Recording and releases

The band records its debut EP, Do It Riot Grrl, in Glasgow without having played live. It then travels to Stockholm in August 2005 to record its debut album, Your Sinclair. The first singles mentioned are Too Much Fun and Before The Fire, which precede the first EP.

Line-up

The line-up includes Paul Kelly on vocals, guitar and keys, Andy Bonar on guitar and vocals, Sean McGrath on keys, vocals and percussion, Joseph Greatorex on bass, and Jason Sweeney on drums.

Label

The group is signed to 5db.

Style

Its music is described as post-punk, while its associated tags place it alongside power pop, jangle pop and scotpop.