The best bands don’t stick inside the lines, but scribble all over the top in their own unique style. Bright wax crayons at the ready, WELLY - who take to Dot To Dot this May - are one of the most exciting new acts in ages. Check them out with our first DORK x DOT TO DOT festival guide cover feature.

Words: Stephen Ackroyd.

Fresh off the release of their single 'Shopping', Southampton outfit Welly are gearing up for a riotous summer that includes a highly anticipated set at this year's Dot To Dot Festival.

Fronted by the self-proclaimed "ringleader" Welly (Yes, the band is named after him - Ed), the group is a chaotic blend of personalities. At the time of our chat, our eponymous hero is in guitarist Joe's Honda Jazz, "joyriding around charity shops". He's got some Talk Talk CDs; Joe has a sausage roll. Good to know.

"Joe, with the curly hair, plays the guitar," Welly announces, introducing the band mostly by the universal pop language of haircuts. "Jacob, with the curtains, plays bass; Matt, with the mop, plays the guitars, too; and Hanna, the European, plays synthesisers."

"Joe, Jacob and I went to school together," he continues, before verging into what's either the stuff of pop legend or a bit of TMI. "I met Matt at a sexual health seminar at freshers' week, and Hanna worked the bar at the indie night we all go to."

"We have a mutual love of Tears For Fears and Scampi Fries," explains Welly, summing up the band's delightfully quirky vibe. Their music, however, tackles weightier themes. "The first album is going to be all about the suburbs," he reveals. "Jacob, Joe and I all grew up near Southampton in yellow brick utopia. It's all so fascinating to me - when you and your family and your friends all have the same house, the same telly, the same lawnmower, the sa