On this page , if you click on the photograph of their new album cover - Blood Wine - they will send you a free CD . ( Get in quickly in case they run out ). It all started when he was an impressionable 12-yearold pumping away on a pretend guitar to try and enthuse pretend fans in the Guitar Hero video game . ( The game is about how a rock star might play a guitar during a live stage performance , rather than about actually playing music ). “ I thought I was pretty cool , so I got Mum ( Maryanne ) to get me a real guitar ,” Nick said . It was a basic electric guitar with a little amp and it made a lot of noise . He started out playing what he hoped was “ heavy metal ”. “ I turned the distortion way up and thought ‘ I am a really awesome player ’,” he said , laughing . It didn ’ t take long for Nick to find some real music in his newest toy ... and suddenly , he wanted more . He found somebody to give him lessons and learnt the fundamentals - basic hand technique , fretting and some chords . He set his sights on a new guitar , but instead of aiming “ bigger and louder ”, he opted to go all the way back to basics , saved up and bought himself a steel-stringed acoustic folk guitar . So , about 18 months after jumping around playing a much noiser version of Guitar Hero with his first instrument , he set about learning to play real music on his second guitar . He was about 13 years old when he started on the folk guitar and quickly discovered a passion for playing music , but even more so , for writing it . He is modest about his playing ( and singing ) abilities but reckons his talent lies in writing music , although he does front the band and he can play a variety of instruments . “ I was in a cover band for a while - H-Hour - two
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Defence members and three civilians ,” Nick said . But it didn ’ t last , and Nick admits H-Hour didn ’ t play the music he wanted to explore . He really wanted to write and play original music at live shows , and in the studio ... and for that he needed his own band . He also needed to be able to sing because , he reasoned , the lead singer represented the band , which is what he wanted to do . “ I took singing lessons and looked about for young blokes with an interest in Australian , American , and British punk music ,” Nick said . He found Julian and Jarrad in a school band that had fallen apart when the bass guitarist left . They tried to gel as a three-piece , but Nick found it difficult to sing well , when he had to play the whole time .