IF YOU are in search of a quality home-grown band then there's no better way to keep it local in the New Year than listening out for Seven Seals.

Named after the Ingmar Bergman film The Seventh Seal, the group of Kendal-bred lads have been thrashing out their ideas over the last eight months and testing the water with a series of gigs in Lancaster and Kendal.

Now they have begun to knock off the rough edges and find their own sound, the band are preparing to launch themselves in earnest in the New Year with a new EP and a series of gigs.

The group have pulled together an impressive demo In Stereo Power, which they hope will secure them some more performances and give them the sort of exposure they need to build up a strong local following.

Although the Seven Seals say they are proud to be associated with their hometown, they are wary of being typecast.

"When you say you are a local band people can jump to the wrong conclusion because a lot of local bands are covers bands," says lead singer Simon Pickering.

"I am proud to be a local band. We are all determined we don't want to have to move from this area. It's a lovely place to live and unless we absolutely have to we don't want to leave to make this work."

Bass player Jim Tyson says: "Northern bands are traditionally from Manchester and Liverpool then beyond that it just sort of stops - but bands in Glasgow and Edinburgh have survived living up in Scotland because they have their own self sufficient live music scenes. We want to achieve whatever we can achieve here."

Following an intensive period of creative contemplation' while one of the members was away travelling and unable to perform live with them the Seven Seals sat down to write and develop their music.

John Bingley said: "At first it was mostly Simon who was doing the writing but now we all contribute and we sort of jam things out."

Simon added: "Sometimes I have an idea and we develop it together but some of the songs on the EP are completely organic and have grown from scratch from the whole band."

Seven Seals are: lead singer Simon Pickering, John Bingley on rhythm guitar, Jay Glover on lead guitar, Jim Tyson on bass and drummer John Powney