Young upstarts The Radio Addicts recently joined us for an in-depth interviewing, covering band life and their new great single 'Let's Party Like It's The 90s'
You’re a young Bolton band making serious waves in the Manchester scene with high-energy indie rock ‘n’ roll. How did The Radio Addicts come together, and what’s it like being such a young band (with members still in their early teens) chasing this dream?
Daniel and I were friends from school and we have a joint passion for making music, he’s been my best friend since I was twelve years old and when I started out I wanted to play an open mic night and asked Daniel if he would consider playing with me so I didn’t make a fool of myself alone - ha ha ha. That was how we started, Daniel’s brother joined us playing bass and then Vincent completed the line up and The Radio Addicts were formed. We play together all the time, three times a week, and often play two shows a week. We want this more than anything. We want to keep getting better and better and better.
Your sound has that raw, exuberant, anthemic feel that reminds people of classic indie and Britpop eras. How has growing up in Bolton shaped the band’s identity and attitude?
We love Bolton. There is no place like home and Bolton is our home. The people of Bolton are fantastic, especially those in the music community, the music community has been so supportive of us. Although Bolton is the biggest town in Europ, the community can feel really tight knight. It’s a wonderful place!!
You’ve already released tracks like’ Scroll My Life Away ‘Before My Eye’s, and even sold out vinyl EPs. What’s the reaction been like from fans and the local scene so far?
Everybody has been so positive and so nice, at times we have pinch ourselves that it’s really happening to us. We we first went into the studio with no expectations whatsoever, probably expecting that only my aunty Tracey would ever listen to the song on Spotify and believe it or not it got way over 2000 streams on its first day alone. The support that we receive is staggering and we couldn’t be any more grateful for it. Now we are so excited to release our next single “let’s party like it’s the 90s”, people who’ve seen us live will be familiar with this one because loads of people I’ve asked us to record it and release it over the last seven or eight months and we can’t wait for it to be out so everybody can hear it too!!
‘Let’s Party Like It’s The 90’s is your third single. What inspired the track — is it a straight-up celebration of 90s music and culture, or is there more to it?
It was written at a time when we were not playing so many gigs, and all I wanted to do was was just to go out and party, and have a great time. It’s all about that feeling of getting wasted with your mates and not thinking about the consequences the next day. The 90s element is of course the Britpop era, when Oasis, Pulp, Suede, Ash, The Verve all knew how to party!! And not everyone had a mobile phone so there was no danger of being videoed or photographed. You could party without too much social consequence.
The song seems like a rallying cry to bring back that indie-punk/rock energy. What does “partying like it’s the 90s” mean to you as a band in 2026?
It’s a metaphor for having a good time and not worrying too much about the consequences. Have a great time in that moment. Be it at a party, a gig, hanging out with friends. Whatever, enjoy that moment.
You recorded this one in the same studio where Kaiser Chiefs have worked. Did that history or vibe influence the recording process at all?
It made us want to work harder to live up to that legacy. We worked with the Andy who has produced The Pigeon Detectives, Florentenes, Maximo Park and Flogging Molly before us. It was great to work with someone of that calibre in a wonderful studio. We want to emulate those bands and become as good as them, and to get better as musicians, writers and performers we need to keep improving and learning from the best people. It was honour to record where those legends have and it spurred us on to do more.
Can you talk us through how the song came together — from the first riff or idea to the finished track? Who brought what to the table?
This is primarily written by me (Luke). Funnily enough the chorus came to me in a history lesson, when I probably should have been concentrating on something else - ha ha ha ha! The melody was born within a moment of the LETS PARTY LIKE ITS THE 90s line coming to me. I played around with the riff at home and took the first draft of the song to the rehearsal room for the lads to listen too and then each of the lads brought their own little bit of magic to the table to enhance it. The song is one of our favourites and it’s become a fan favourite too!
What do you hope listeners feel when they hear it — pure nostalgia, escapism, or something else?
We hope they feel the urge to press repeat on Spotify, throw our hands in the air and sing along with every word like their lives depend upon it! We love it when people sing along to our songs at our shows and this is one of our catches songs yet.
As a young band, who are your biggest musical heroes, especially from the 90s and early 2000s indie/rock scene?
From the 1990s and 2000s it’s bands like Oasis, Green Day, The Stone Roses, The Space Monkeys who we were lucky enough to support at their massive Manchester show last winter. But a lot of of our influences are from bands of our time period now, including the Cairo, Florentines, Royston club, The Cases, Catfish and the Bottlemen, the Lottery Winners, and The Wombats.
You handle a lot yourselves while still being unsigned and independent. What are the biggest challenges and best bits about doing it this way?
We don’t need to answer to someone and we can follow our own musical direction, but if you are label reading this…we are available to chat…call us ha ha ha.
You’ve got a big headline show coming up at the Deaf Institute in Manchester. What can fans expect from a Radio Addicts live set, especially with the new single in the arsenal?
We are going to blow the roof off!! People can expect a night of: arms aloft singalong choruses, guitars hooks and none stop entertainment. And it wouldn’t be a Radio Addicts show without some audience participation!! A good night is guaranteed to everyone who comes. Tickets are available here: www.fatsoma.com/...guests
Finally, if you could jump on stage with any 90s (or 90s-inspired) artist or band to perform ‘Let’s Party Like It’s The 90s’, who would it be and why?
It would have to be Green Day as they would be up for a party but of course so would Oasis. Liam Gallagher would be cool!
'Let's Party Like It's The 90's' is out now and you can listen to the track below.
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