24 Aug 2026
Caroline Thain reflects on the headline acts of St Albans’ musical past, and finds out what they’re up to today…
St Albans has seen some amazing big and small musical artists, especially in the late 1990s/early 2000s. I can remember the exciting buzz of sitting in the smoke-filled dark den that was the back of The Horn in Victoria Street on a Sunday night.
Wearing some sort of whimsical skirt and a strappy vest, drinking Jack Daniels and Coke, clutching my Marlboro Lights next to a semi-full ashtray, I was fully in my childless, carefree happy place.
I recall listening to the likes of dad and daughter duo Pale Marble Movie, acoustic guitarist singer J Starck, the hauntingly beautiful tones of Planet Ruth (Ruth Tidmarsh) and the wonderful harmonising and comedy charm of Darren and Sass at The Blue Angel Acoustic Café, taking in the sarcastic wit of event host Bill Johnson between acts.
And it wasn’t just Sundays – every day of the week that place was filled with new bands, upcoming artists and more established musicians.
Friday and Saturday nights were rammed with people up for a late boozy one, with covers bands, originals bands and tribute acts such as The Red Hot Chili Beans, Enter Shikari and The Subways.
Then there were the pub-fillers like Curvy Nature, Soulfish and Mohair. I started to wonder what happened to all these musicians and where are they now?
John Tobin was in urban collective Maya, who often appeared at The Horn. He has since done many musical projects including persuading THE Paul McCartney to play bass on an album he made.
Musician Mac Macleod played flute in Maya as well as performing with Ruth Tidmarsh. He sadly died in 2020 at the age of 79. (Mac was well known on the local music scene and hung around with The Zombies, The Kinks and Donovan in the late 1960s.)
I made several lifelong friends from those heady badly-behaved days and sadly lost some of those along the way.
And I temporarily befriended Chaz from Chaz and Dave’s daughter who is now a music teacher (I stalked her) but Kate Hodges used to sing piano-based self-penned stories with talent aplenty. I can remember I wrote about her when I was working as a reporter at a local newspaper and one of my jobs was to compile the music page. Sounds Around. I had my photo on the top of the column and everything!
I recall my boss Terry Mitchinson asking me to write about this new upcoming Welwyn Garden City band called The Subways, who could regularly be seen on the local circuit in 2002.
The Subways are an alternative rock band made up of Billy Lunn (guitar and lead vocals), Charlotte Cooper (bass and lead vocals) and drummer Camille Phillips. Founding member and original drummer Josh Morgan left the band in 2020 due to acute stage-fright linked to autism spectrum condition.
Billy Lunn from The Subways said: “Even way back in 2002 and 2003 when we’d first started playing The Horn, it’s always been such an intimate and vibey space. My fondest memories are the gigs where my family members and friends came along, as it’s near to where we grew up, Welwyn Garden City.
“They yelled at us to play all the deep cuts no one else knew. Mixed in with those special people were our lovely fans who came from all over the world to watch such an intimate gig.
“It’s beautiful to have the opportunity to show them where we started out. I love pointing out the place at the back of the room where my mum used to sell our demo CDs!”
Billy said St Albans was a great place to start out, because it’s close enough to where they grew up and also near London (where we were growing a healthy new fanbase): “It’s a city full of cultural heritage in the arts, and you can feel it every time we play a gig there!”
Since their days of rocking out locally, they have played many festivals including Glastonbury, Reading and Leeds, reached number 25 in the UK singles charts, and stormed the UK and America on tours. They have also featured in several television series and supported AC/DC. Their fifth album Uncertain Joys was released in 2023.
Rock band Enter Shikari are a favourite with St Albans City Football Club and the band are the club’s top sponsor since 2020. Bassist Chris Batten played a charity football match in 2022 to raise money for Ukraine.
And in 2023 the band announced its partnership with The Pioneer Club where they first started playing, with the aim of restoring it as a touring circuit grassroots venue. They have also held an auction to raise money for the Pioneer as well as donating £1 from every ticket sold for their 2024 tour to venues affected by the pandemic.
Bassist Chris Batten formed the band in 1999 with Rou Reynolds (lead vocals and keyboard) and drummer Rob Rolfe. Guitarist Rory Clewlow joined in 2003 to complete their current line up.
Since setting out as a new band, they have continued to grow in success and played to sold-out audiences at London Astoria and Download Festival in 2006.
Other highlights include reaching number 4 in the official UK album chart with their debut album Take to the Skies in 2007, and achieving considerable success, including a number one in the UK album charts, with seven albums and an exciting world tour.
Their eighth album was surprise-released in April of this year.
Indie/rock group Curvy Nature were simply brilliant, which is why they won Battle of the Bands in 1999 at The Horn. They regularly played at The Horn, The Pineapple and The Mermaid pubs in St Albans and the London circuit between 1999 and 2001.
Band members such as Chris Taylor (lead singer) went on to feature in other regional band such as The 64s and The Policemen.
I would love to see them reform. I caught up with Mat Taylor who said: “We were in our twenties, life seemed easy, the summers were sunny (yet slightly hazy), and the music of Curvy Nature flowed from a sense of camaraderie, fun, and shared musical vibes.
“What was better was that our friends seemed to like it too and we built a great following who were always up for a great night down The Horn in St.Albans (what we considered our ‘home’ as it’s where we played our first gig and where we won the ‘battle of the bands’ competition that set us off on our path to Curvyness) or following us as we schlepped round the London circuit trying to get a record deal…
“It was a great few years, and we made some good friends along the way, not just our fans but some of the bands who were on similar journeys to us, notably Mohair/Trooper.
“The music has never stopped even though Curvy is no more. More recently I have been writing and recording as a solo artist I’m a multi-instrumentalist so I write, perform and record it all myself (although if you take a listen you will hear the occasional special ‘Curvy’ guest appearance). Search ‘Mat Taylor Mescaline’ on Spotify, Apple Music or any of the main streaming platforms to find my latest release, or visit mattaylor.bandcamp.com. Many of the songs have had extensive airplay on Steve Simpson’s local radio show.
“I see the Curvy Boys regularly, and three of us – myself, my brother Christian, and Dee (Darren) Hudson – get together every Tuesday night with another great musical buddy, Richard Hignett (another great songwriter and performer on the St Albans music scene, and notably of The Mighty Waves) to drink whisky, sing in harmony —often a cappella (we’ve tried Barbershop style, Americana, Gospel, all sorts)— and, more recently, getting back on instruments and playing a lot of dirty funk.”
Another great band was Mohair. The quirky rock band, formed in 1998, provided many a perfect night out at The Horn. They enjoyed years of touring the UK and shows in America, building up a cult following and racking up hundreds of gigs, until they sadly split up in 2007.
Made up of singer guitarist Tom Billington (since of learning disabilities music charity Electric Umbrella fame), Pete Baker (drums), Alex Lee-Richards on keys and bassist Tim Slade, they occasionally reform for one-off performances. The latest one was in April at The Bush Club in London, to celebrate 20 years since their album Small Talk was released.
But luckily 10-piece soul covers act Soulfish are still in fine full swing, recently appearing at The Horn to delight the audience.
Since beginning locally in 1998, they have gone on to open Proms in the Park and the Queen’s Silver Jubilee party at Buckingham Palace. They even funked comedian Greg Dykke at BBC Radio Awards. More locally they headlined Stanley Kubrick’s Chidwickbury Arts Fair.
That’s almost 30 years of bringing their feel good music to St Albans crowds and there’s a show at the Alban Arena on Saturday October 31 – so if you’ve never seen them you can check them out there.
The Horn continues to feature live music every night with The Blue Angel Acoustic Café open for floor spots on Sundays between 3pm and 6pm.
