The Flamin' Groovies story goes all the way back to 1965 when the band began as the Chosen Few in their hometown of San Francisco, California. After a name change and a self-released 10 inch album called “Sneakers”, which sold amazingly well, the band caught the attention of Columbia who signed them up and sent them into the studio with a big budget to record their first real album, “Supersnazz”, on the Epic label. Their next two albums were on Kama Sutra (home of their heroes, The Lovin' Spoonful): “Flamingo”, and the now revered classic “Teenage Head”. 

Lead singer Roy Loney left the band right after that and lead guitarist Cyril Jordan moved the group to England with Chris Wilson taking over as front man. A few singles on United Artists, recorded at the legendary Rockfield Studios in Wales with Dave Edmunds producing, followed in the early '70s.  In '76 they signed to Sire Records, who released three true gems of power pop: “Shake Some Action”, “Flamin' Groovies Now”, and “Jumpin' In The Night”.

Bulsara and His Queenies are a remarkable 7-piece band that perform the music of Queen to an exceptional and spine-tingling standard.

Made up of young music graduates and a former physics teacher, they have their own identity: not quite what is expected of your typical ‘Queen Tribute Band’. There are no wigs, no yellow jacket and no attempt to look like Queen.

The quality of the musicianship is world class. Lead vocalist Gareth Taylor’s vocal resemblance to Freddie Mercury is extraordinary. Backed by superb vocal harmonies and a meticulously accurate back line, lead guitarist Robert Hudson’s ability to recreate the classic ‘Brian May sound’ has to be heard to be believed.

The band take pride in performing the ‘studio versions’ of Queen’s back catalogue and not the easier live versions; there is no attempt to recreate Queen’s famous 1986 Magic Tour.

Queen recorded over 190 songs and Bulsara and His Queenies storm through an eclectic repertoire which appeals to their ever growing worldwide fan-base without conforming to the middle-of-the-road and obvious ‘Greatest Hits’ collection. Of course you will hear several hits such as Bohemian Rhapsody (they do the operatic section live) and Somebody To Love, but also some Deep Cuts from Queen’s diverse back catalogue.

Bulsara and His Queenies are experiencing a meteoric rise to the top, taking bookings from across the globe and playing shows for high profile clients such as Twentieth Century Fox, The Mercury Phoenix Trust, The Make A Wish Foundation, as well as performing at several exclusive parties.

In September 2019 they will return to Montreux, Switzerland, to headline The Official Freddie Mercury Birthday Party for the second successive year – a feat accomplished by no other band.

Bulsara and His Queenies provide the most discerning Queen fan with a unique experience, proving beyond doubt that it is possible to perform Queen’s music without looking like them  -  and to be respected more for doing so.

Testimonials from the band’s Facebook page.

“The stars aligned with this spirited collaboration of musical maestros, each one a true genius of their craft, blending effortlessly together. Their music has the ability to take you joyously back in time, whilst their on stage presence keeps you very much in the moment.”

“Close your eyes and you’d be forgiven for thinking that you’d pressed play on a Queen record. Bulsara and His Queenies are the closest sound to Queen apart from the Queen herself!”

“If you love Queen’s music you are in for a treat. Even Queen love this talented band. Don’t miss out .”

“Without doubt, the best live band you will see this year and they play Queen’s music!!”

“As a life Long die hard Queen fan I saw BAHQ in Montreux and again last night in Halifax!! They really are the next best thing to Queen and really produce the best homage to a fantastic band. They performed amazing album track and made an old Queen fan VERY happy. The guitarists are too young to play so well!!!”

Home from a superb mind blowing evening. Rarely do I go through every single emotion in one night but I did tonight, sheer joy and admiration for a group of insanely talented people goes above everything else though. What is even more apparent however is how down to earth they are as well; could not want to meet a better group of people or watch them play live. Bulsara and his Queenies truly are magical, from the gut busting guitar solos, the deep frenzied bass playing, awesome rhythm section or the melodic harmonies there wasn’t a foot they could put wrong. Being a lifelong Queen fan, it’s been an epic night seeing songs brought to life rarely if at all played live by Queen!!”

“Becoming a world famous band that has an eye for details!! Making the old days of Queen come back to life again.”

“Wow. Have just seen Bulsara and His Queenies. To call them a tribute band does not do them justice!! Whilst they celebrate the music of Freddie and Queen, they are incredible in their own right. I’ve never been as close to such eclectic talent. Ever. COULD. NOT. RECOMMEND. ENOUGH.”

Grammy award-winning, and multi-platinum selling, band MEN AT WORK, is excited to announce an upcoming summer tour for 2019. Playing in seven different countries and sixteen cities across Europe, including Manchester and London, this will be the first UK shows for MEN AT WORK since 1983.

Apart from Colin’s contribution to MEN AT WORK’s success, he has also released 13 solo albums and, most recently, toured as part of Ringo Starr’s All Starr Band. “It was during the Ringo tour of Europe, when confronted with the insatiable appetite for those old songs, that I got excited about the possibility of coming back, and touring with my band” explains Hay.

Colin co-founded MEN AT WORK in Melbourne back in 1979, which rose to astonishing fame in 1981 with their debut album “Business as Usual”. This album, which features the hit singles “Who Can It Be Now” and “Down Under”, was a global phenomenon, and hit Billboard’s #1 spot in the US where it stayed there for an incredible 16 weeks. The album “Cargo” followed, featuring the much loved singles “Overkill” and “It’s a Mistake”. The original band was short lived, however, which left Colin Hay and Greg Ham (saxophone/flute and keyboards) as the core members. Colin and Greg toured extensively, as MEN AT WORK, in the latter half of the 90s, and early 2000s. 

Sadly, Greg Ham passed away in 2012 but his contribution to the sound and personality of MEN AT WORK will live on forever. As will the music which has never stopped being played on radio, and deserves to be heard live by new generations of fans, which brings us to the present incarnation made up of Colin and his fantastic band of LA based musicians.

“It’s beyond my personal demons, and extremely honest,” says LaPlegua of the fifth Combichrist album Making Monsters. With five albums, thousands of shows, and four full months in Europe touring with Rammstein (in front of hundreds of thousands of people), Combichrist has become a purely visceral creature, driven by instinct and emotion; stripped of all pretension. Its urgency - most evident in the raw and uncompromising new album – is fueled by expressions of lust, anger, pain and hate.

Presenting a foreboding soundscape, the album kicks off with a hauntingly atmospheric instrumental “Declamation,” setting the tone for what is to follow: dark, stabbing synths; heavy, robotic beats; and swarming, buzz saw-style guitar sounds. Songs such as “Follow the Trail of Blood” (featuring Brendan Schiepatti of Bleeding Through) are baretoothed aggression; meanwhile the floor-stomping, first single “Never Surrender” proves to be aggressively catchy, with its metronome-tight rhythm through the verses, giving way to explosive choruses that is bound to pack dance floors. “Through These Eyes of Pain” takes a much subtler approach. Its echo-y vocal wash and glitchy beats conjure images like a mournful dream, exposing the man inside the monster. Though the moods displayed in Making Monsters are decidedly sinister, LaPlegua manages to portray these emotions in many different guises. Laden with hook heavy choruses, speaker-crushing beats, and LaPlegua’s trademark dark, aggressive vocals, this is an album that exudes honesty and the darkness that often comes with it.

Initially cutting his teeth in the seminal Norwegian hardcore bands Fleshfire and Lash Out, LaPlegua segued out of that scene into the electronic music world with Icon of Coil. Originally a solo project, it morphed into a full band with the additions of Sebastian Komor and Christian Lund. Not only did IOC mark LaPlegua’s first major work with electronics and dance beats, but it also granted him wider exposure beyond Norway; IOC was LaPlegua’s first project to be released in the United States.

It wasn’t until 2003 that LaPlegua founded Combichrist - the project that would soon dominate his time. A departure from IOC's futurepop sound, Combichrist took LaPlegua’s hardcore past and electronica present and merged them into a singular, mechanical music monster. Without the compromise of the band dynamic, LaPlegua, who does everything in the studio himself on Combichrist releases, was able to explore whatever avenue he desired musically. What he found was a long dark road with plenty of twists and turns. The Joy of Gunz, LaPlegua’s first release as Combichrist, was quickly followed by two EP’s: 2004’s Kiss the Blade and Sex Drogen und Industrial.

In 2005, LaPlegua was back at it again, releasing the landmark album Everybody Hates You. Defying the dreaded sophomore slump, the second Combichrist full-length featured two tracks that would become club classics—“This Shit Will Fuck You Up” and “This Is My Rifle”—and was also the project’s U.S. debut on Metropolis Records. Further benchmarks were set with the release of the 2006 EP Get Your Body Beat, the title track of which landed Combichrist its first appearance on Billboard’s Top 10 Dance Singles chart.

The years that followed brought on two more full-length albums — What the Fuck Is Wrong with You People? (2007) and Today We Are All Demons (2009) — as well as a handful of additional EPs. On top of Combichrist’s many releases, LaPlegua has also logged countless miles, globetrotting on tours of Europe, South America, Australia, the United States and points in-between.

Though Combichrist has kept him busy over the past seven years, LaPlegua has other interests that fill the rare breaks from his main musical project. The Atlanta, GA - based songwriter maintains Panzer AG, a sonic hybrid of Combichrist and Icon of Coil and even plays in a straightforward American rock 'n' roll band, Scandinavian Cock. This affinity for Americana is also displayed in his love for hotrods and motorcycles. On his MySpace page, LaPlegua states, “I’m a Norwegian grease ball, and I'm never afraid to get dirty!”

With Making Monsters, man and beast have combined, evolving beyond the demon it once was and into a greater, bigger and more malevolent force in music. This time, there’s no surrender.