5HOT new band Captain Phoenix are heading for Huddersfield – and they're planning to rock.

They will perform at the Club NME night at Tokyo on June 19.

They may be four fresh-faced twenty-somethings, but they've already mastered the art of turning witty observations on life into pop gold that drags their fans onto the dancefloor.

Captain Phoenix formed in Winchester – a place they say is full of "middle class people and chavs".

Bassist, lyricist and frontman Ben Burrows said: "Most people I went to school with ended up in comas. We hated it, but Winchester traps you".

However, Ben, drummer Ross Curnow, guitarist and singer Nick Hill and lead guitarist Luke Keyte had their music to help them stay free from the city's clutches.

They have played together since being youngsters growing up on 70s rock and Supergrass covers.

They also had some helpful mentors including Ben's brother, Razorlight drummer Andy Burrows, who taught Ross some tips.

Despite Razorlight's recent stellar success, Captain Phoenix decided not to exploit their A-list musical contacts.

Ben said: "We've chosen not to exploit Andy's contacts. We don't want to be in a place we're not ready to be.

"If we were offered a support tour now, we'd turn it down. We've only supported them once, back at The Railway."

This fierce independence, along with a burning ambition, saw the driving licence-less band fare-skipping round Hampshire and playing wherever would have them.

Honing the songs in a soundproofed garage, the music-obsessed teenagers made beer money by selling demos.

They then moved to the bright lights of London to take the next step on the road to stardom.

Living together proved to be a risky business, with plenty of drinking and fights. Fortunately, they were guided by the steady hand of producer Steve Cooper – responsible for Supergrass's 'Pumping On The Stereo' – so their forthcoming debut LP did get made. Ben said: "It's awesome, it sounds really fresh and way above our expectations."

The LP shows that while the boys no longer have to contend with small town annoyances, the exclusive snobbery of the big city can rile them just as easily.

Ben said: "When I moved to London, with this girl, things got very messy and we were partying every night.

" I'd come back from rehearsing every weekend and she'd be out with this Shoreditch scenester and by the time I got to meet them the club was full. I was rejected from the scene."

The band's debut single, Living On The Guestlist, is a succinct reflection on the hostile pretentiousness of London nightlife – something anyone who's been the wrong side of the velvet rope can empathise with.

But Captain Phoenix are getting their own back – both with their rising success and by hosting their own monthly club night.

As a two-fingered salute to the exclusion of invite-only events, anyone's welcome – especially the insane Japanese fans that follow their every move.

Captain Phoenix are not about image, or pretension. They're about entertaining – and that's their aim in life.

Ben said: "I've known I wanted to do this since I was eight and I f****d up my education entirely on purpose, so I knew I couldn't turn back."

With the way their star is rising, before long he'll be glad he did.

* Living On The Guestlist is currently available on Kind Canyon records. For more about the single and the band, visit www.captainphoenix,com.