Gomez

Gomez burst onto the scene in 1998 with the intricate and beautifully crafted Bring It On. Which scene is not entirely clear - they have been compared with everyone from Beck to Crosby, Stills and Nash. A key element of their sound is the amazing gravelly vocals of Ben Ottwell and Ian Ball and the ring of many guitars.

Britpop attempted to claim the band as its own but was rebuffed by the downbeat and introspective brooding of the band's second album Liquid Skin in 1999. Although not as radio friendly as the delightful harmony and infectious hooks of Bring It On Liquid Skin delivered a weird and wonderful conglomerate of blues riddled guitars and some amazing timing.

Gomez's third full studio album is In Our Gun. The first single, Shot Shot is very up-tempo compared to Liquid Skin's murkier depths. It still sounds like an alcohol riddled bullfrog with emphysema wailing over an orchestra of guitars though - great, in other words.

Mainstream rock seems to be giving way to fusion-metal-hybrid-rap-funk but Gomez are a breath of fresh air for anyone looking for original and beautiful music with brains.

Gomez is also a very common surname of Spanish origin. The correct spelling is Gómez, but everybody will pronounce it right even without the accent. It is a patronimic from the name Gome, not very used today. This surname has been used all over Spain, but the oldest reported appearance is in the area of Burgos and Santander.