Nightmare of You

Nightmare of You play The Craufurd Arms on Friday 29 January, with the set starting at 7:30pm. It's a single-band bill, so they'll be taking the full night.

If you haven't come across them, they're a melodic indie-rock group formed in 2003 by guitarist Brandon Reilly, who stepped over from the Long Island punk revival band The Movielife. He put the band together with friends Ryan Heil, Joseph McCaffrey and Sammy Siegler — Heil had worked with CIV and Glassjaw, and McCaffrey and Siegler also come from Rival Schools. Together they moved away from the hardcore trends of the time, trading the heavier sound for melodious string arrangements and thoughtful lyrics. They released their self-titled debut on their own East West imprint, The Bevonshire Label, in the autumn of 2005, and have toured with the likes of AFI, My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy, She Wants Revenge and Head Automatica. Their sound sits across indie dance, indie, pop, alternative and new wave, with The Smiths and The Cure cited as influences.

It's a long way from the punk and hardcore scenes they started in, and that shift is a good place to start if you're wondering what they sound like. The string arrangements they're known for give them a melodic edge that sets them apart from a standard four-piece, and the lyrics carry their own weight. It's indie rock with a pop sensibility, but with a new wave lean that keeps it from feeling too safe.

Tickets are £17.25, which includes the booking fee. The gig is at The Craufurd Arms, 59 Stratford Rd, Milton Keynes, on Friday 29 January, starting at 7:30pm.