The Tender Heights

The band’s pulse is Brendan McGurk. He spent his early teenage years learning drums in Derry, Ireland, on his beat-up ‘Thunder’ drum kit, joining his first band at 15, while at St Columb’s College, whose alumni include several members of Irish rock royalty, The Undertones. In the early 90s, when Grunge was about to explode, McGurk would tape songs from the John Peel radio show and play along with them to develop his own style.  

McGurk’s influences and inspiration mostly come from the West Coast American Grunge boom, taking inspiration from Pearl Jam's Dave Abbruzzese, Mudhoney's Dan Peters, Soundgarden's Matt Cameron and the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Chad Smith. He also studies the playing style and complexity of Tool’s Danny Carey, who he considers to be one of rock's greatest drummers.

Guitarist James Wood brings his own distinctive, effects-laden style to the band. The west Londoner grew up learning guitar after seeing his older brother playing. His musical trajectory continued with Wood working in recording studios in his early 20s, having recording sessions at Abbey Road and Olympic Studios. Love then took him to America’s West Coast, where he would call Los Angeles home for many years. During his time there, he joined LA band ‘Kill or Be Killed’ and would often play on the iconic Sunset Strip, including at the famous Cat Club. Fast forward to 2023, Wood, now back in the UK, based in Cambridge, met Cannon and McGurk. 

With his musical roots deep in US 90s grunge, Wood grew up on The Smashing Pumpkins and Sonic Youth, particularly enjoying Billy Corgan and Thurston Moore’s driving guitar sounds. Later he discovered Robin Guthrie, founding member of the Cocteau Twins, and the band Warpaint. Both had a more dreamy, psychedelic sound, which inspired Wood to experiment with effects pedals, reverb and delays. This all helped shape his unique sound.