Local band The Torn are set to perform at Lincoln Festival on the Brayford Waterfront in July.

The Doncaster-based group consists of Damian Dalton Smith (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, harmonica and mandolin), Nick Berry (lead guitar and backing vocals), Tim “Tay” Taylor (bass guitar) and Ben Mullins (drums).

photo (2)

In April 2013, The Torn performed at “Platform Live” at the Engine Shed’s recently-opened stage, The Platform. Damian Dalton Smith told The Linc that the band were “lucky” to get the gig: “Platform Live was good fun and there were some great bands on as well.

“Hopefully they’ll be getting more stuff like that down there and get more of the Lincoln bands onto the music scene.”

Having played a range of venues, Smith prefers performing at the smaller venues such as The Platform. He said: “We’ve played from 12 people to 12,000 people. The 12,000 people is fantastic, but I do like to do these smaller venues. I like to see the whites of the eyes.

“We’re lucky that we’ve got quite a decent following now and they’re listening to our own songs a lot and they’re singing them back to us. When you’ve got small crowds singing back to you, it’s great. I love it.”

Smith believes that unsigned bands may struggle to get picked up in the city, though the increasing amount of support from venues is a “massive bonus”. He explained: “That’s the thing about Lincoln, you have loads of decent bands but it’s just getting seen.

“Venues are opening up now and allowing us all to get in there and do what we can. We’re having to travel to Manchester, London and Sheffield for gigs. This is on our doorstep and it’s good that Lincoln is doing that now.”

The Torn are performing at Lincoln Festival on July 13th, 2013. Further details are available on The Torn website.