Joe Lean & The Jing Jang Jong

Championed by the indie music press and tipped to be one of the big bands of 2008, the oddly-named guitar-pop quintet Joe Lean & the Jing Jang Jong's initial hype fell by the wayside when they made a last-minute decision to prevent the release of their debut album. Formed in London, in 2006, the band was put together by frontman Joe Lean, a former drummer with the Pipettes, who had also previously acted under the name of Joe Van Moyland in Peep Show and The Tudors. Joined by guitarists Tommy D, later replaced by Randy Michael and Dominic O'Dare, bassist Panda, and drummer James Craig, the five-piece, originally named Joe Lean & the Tantrums, released their debut single, "Lucio Starts Fires," in 2007, before supporting Babyshambles, Kaiser Chiefs, and CSS on their U.K. tours. They finished seventh on the prestigious BBC Sound of 2008 poll and their chart success was predicted, but following the release of second single, "Lonely Buoy," and a performance at Glastonbury, the band pulled their self-titled debut album just weeks before its release. Despite four star reviews in NME, the band claimed "it didn't represent their current sound" and they spent the following months re-recording the album in its entirety. In October, 2009, the band were dropped by their Mercury label, and split up soon after, with their difficult debut remaining unreleased.
© Jon O'Brien /TiVo