Last Saturday I was at the Temple Bar in Oxford and a very young band by the name of Behaveya from Wycombe/Worcester was playing. The irony in all of this is that members of Behaveya are ages 10-17, and yet they were playing old punk and rock covers as well as punk originals that conjured up thoughts of the late 70’s punk music scene that I was too young to experience - but Saturday night may have been a good insight into what it was like.

Behaveya’s sound reminds me of punk bands from the 70’s, like X-Ray Spex, and with Becca fronting the band on vocals and bass, they’ve added a twist to the norm. At one point there was a technical problem with the bass, but what I really liked was Becca’s professionalism to just keep on singing until the problem was fixed - which eventually it was at the end of the song.

The band is comprised of siblings from two sets of families - and they’re all friends who simply love to play music. The youngest member, 10 year old Stephen on guitar, is confident on stage, and is fun to watch when he steps up to take his solos. Guitarist James has a great sound, and it was good to see him take the vocal lead on crowd favorite, “God Save The Queen” by the Sex Pistols.

I couldn’t see Ayla on the keys very well, as she was tucked away a bit, however, she is an important element to Behaveya’s sound. Phil is an exceptionally talented and interesting drummer, and is able to keep a solid rhythm throughout the night. You would never know that he is as young as he is by just listening.

It is an amazing thing to go into a bar and see a 10 year old playing guitar! At one point one of their songs was introduced as being written by him. Pretty cool.

They played two long sets which is impressive in itself, with enough originals to get a good feel as to the direction they’re going musically. I really had a great night out listening to Behaveya - and even pub landlord Barry was tapping his foot and singing along.

If Behaveya is playing in a town near you, go out and support this up and coming punk/rock band - you’ll be in for a treat!

For music and more information, go to:

Behaveya - Myspace

By: Jenny May - BandWeblogs.com