Sandra's Wedding

Sandra's Wedding are a four piece alternative rock group from Goole, East Yorkshire. They are made up of members Joe Hodgson (Vocals), Jonny Hughes (Guitars), Tom Hill (Bass) and Luke Harrison (drums). They released their first album physically and digitally on 14 February 2017 entitled Northern Powerhouse. The band's sound and musical themes address love, loss and life in industrial towns across the North of England, with guitarist Jonny Hughes telling one newspaper that the band try to write songs about things that they can identify with, residing and experiencing life in Northern, working class areas.^[1]

Several reviews and articles on the band questioned the origin of the unusual name,^[2] with singer/songwriter Joe Hodgson explaining that the band had struggled for a name initially, but hoped that the name evoked a certain kind of person, or specifically a woman, who may have a story to tell.^[3]

With the release of Northern Powerhouse, the band gained attention in the press and on radio after the MP for the Northern Powerhouse Andrew Percy commented on the album, stating that after hearing it he enjoyed it so he would try and mention it in Parliament if possible.^[1] The band described this as a "bizarre twist" due to the album's political themes of austerity and working class strife, explaining how they didn’t expect the demographic to be Conservative politicians, and expressed their surprise.^[2]

The album received initial praise for its "dramatic, powerful vocals" and the way Hodgson's lyrics dealt with heavy subject matter with wit and variety. The sound of the band and the jangly guitars evoke comparisons to bands from the 1980s such as The Smiths^[4] and The Housemartins,^[5] while others likened the record to having an upbeat feel with an indie folk sound reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac.^[6] Another review described it as being a tight recording and praised the record's production.^[7]

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