Dylan Giles (vocal, guitar); Yuri Caul (bass); Tim Warren (drums); Denny hilton (guitar); Peet Earnshaw (keyboards, backing vocals) Originally a two-piece composed of two schoolfriends from Totnes in Devon, vocalist and guitarist Dylan Giles and bassist Yuri Caul, the band was known as The Conversation (named after the 1974 Francis Ford Coppola movie) and had been playing fairly low-key gigs in Manchester for a couple of years until Eastbourne native and drummer Tim "The Lord Stuchbury" Warren joined the band in late 2004.
Denny Hilton, originally from Stoke-on-Trent, had returned to Manchester after a few months living in Berlin, taking part in an improvised backing band for the former Can vocalist Damo Suzuki.
Firstly, in July, a weekend festival organised by local promoters Blowout at the Southern Pub in Chorlton raised their profile in the city and pricked the attention of various record labels, and then in October 2005, another Blowout gig as part of Manchester's In the City seminar brought them to the attention of Radio 1's Steve Lamacq, who began to play their bedroom-recorded "Pep" demo on his Radio 1 and 6 Music shows and mentioned them as one of his favourite bands of the moment in the NME.
[3] A last minute gig supporting The Subways at Manchester Academy meant the first official appearance of the fifth member of the group, keyboardist Peet Earnshaw, who also provides backing vocals.
He had become friends with Dylan and Yuri two years earlier at an open mic night in Withington after they bonded over a shared love of film director Wes Anderson.
Polytechnic saw in the new year with a support slot for The Strokes at Manchester Apollo, which further heightened expectation around the band, followed by tours with Morning Runner and Nine Black Alps and a live session with Steve LeMacq's 6 Music show.