It's an awfully useful word, is 'fresh'. The blackberries I had in my porridge this morning were fresh. Very fresh, in fact. The same vegetable shop, however, was also offering for sale some fairly old looking strawberries which smelt pretty fresh, man. The breeze coming in through gaps in my poorly maintained sash windows is, sometimes, an uncomfortably fresh one. Having showered and cleaned my ears, I currently feel pretty fresh though, of course, that could change as the day advances. As far as my purposes here go, I suspect any future updates as to my state of freshness might be superfluous. More pressing might be an explanation of those present intentions, namely that it is my great pleasure to outline the fancies and foibles of a newly-formed band, My Preserver.

My Preserver are not fresh. Because - versatile as 'fresh' is - to dwell on the relative edibility or cleanliness of the band is to commit a gross misdemeanour, namely to miss the point. Freshness doesn't really cover My Preserver. Relying upon developments within existing genres, freshness is simply insufficient as a way to start sniffing at these boys. Experimental and lucid perhaps seems more appropriate. Refusing to adhere to a specific genre, the band's first EP, 'Under the Gun', comes across as an intelligent balance of the group's very different musical backgrounds. It's a polite poke at an industry which the group see as drifting towards scenes and styles over substance, a balance which they aim to redress - rather than 'preserve', guffaw - in the music, lyrics and artwork they produce.

Having been presented with the privilege of penning an introduction by those nice boys at My Preserver, however, it's generic tags which I'm taking as by prerogative to engage wholeheartedly in. It's not every day one gets to publicise one's own neologisms and it's an opportunity I'd be foolish to let pass. So I've come up with this: Electropustriual. Write that in your dictionaries, folks. Electropustrial starts here. It's about as meaningless as most generic distinctions but is a useful word, if I say so myself, marking a thoroughly failed attempt to encompass My Preserver's pragmatic combinations of beats, sounds and energy. It's intelligent, but never snobbish; a thoughtful break from the hedonism which pervades many of the musical styles embraced by My Preserver, opting instead for a focus on the music and on creativity. It's inclusive - button badges are not a pre-requisite for devotion, while singing along is a wholly acceptable pursuit - but always challenging, politically and socially.

Who, then, are these young musicians. Well, part two of this spiel should unravel exactly that. In these atheistic times it's a task which I feel I should conduct with a certain amount of scientific rigour. So, summoning the remaining dregs of my mathematical education I can propose the following formula:

My Preserver = Marcus Plowright/vocals + guitar) + (Jonathon James/guitar) + (Ashley Hall/drums) + (Tru-fix/keyboards) + (Tom Woods/bass)

I should also state that I so enjoyed creating my own word (above), that the pursuit might be continued below.

Marcus was writing songs and forming bands even before the construction of the new canteen at school. For those unfamiliar with canteen building schedules at educational institutes in the North West of England, that's an awfully long time. Marcus's past band members have included, on one occasion, me. I wasn't very good. Marcus was, however, very good, which is convenient because it's rare that he's been out of a band since. Consistently writing music and lyrics, what Marcus doesn't know at time of writing is that one of his many notebooks has been knocking around in the boot of my car for about four years now. I haven't read it: it might be a load of guff. But where lyrics have made the transition from notebook jottings to performance, it's obvious that Marcus's dedication has been chivvied along by virtue of actually having something worthwhile to say. So the new release, 'Under the Gun' is a wry look at the strictures and structures which hold sway at every level of our lives. It's not 'fuck the system' gnashing of teeth (although I once saw Marcus draw blood from a fellow human using only his jaws) but a more subtle prodding or, what some might term a piss-take of modern times by a bunch or educated, articulate guys. It's this ethos that directs all of the band's work, from the live shows to the artwork.

Further evidence of this spirit comes in the person of Jonathon 'JJ' James, guitarist and cyclist extraordinaire - a guicyclist, no less. Consistent with My Preserver's democratic underpinnings, Marcus and JJ met through via an advert on musofinder.com and, after a somewhat gruelling period of jamming, lunch, coffee and finally a few beers, the pair grouped up. JJ is a big fan of the countryside, but doesn't spend all of his time there. Which is fortunate, because otherwise My Preserver might have missed out on bassist Tom Woods. Tom was spotted sneaking into the far less rural space of the canteen at Central St Martin's University of Art and Design where he was sticking up a few hand-drawn posters. No arrests were made and My Preserver gained a bass line - which made recording an EP a infinitely more productive experience. As an aside, it's also quite unusual to find Tom in a canteen. He once spent four days sleeping in a cowshed while on the run from the poster police. One of those bits I just made up.

Equally dedicated to musical pursuits is Ashley Hall, full-time drummer and part-time multi instrumentalist. I'm unsure whether 'drumentalist' is the most successful of my linguistic creations so far. A graduate of the University of Derby and London's Drum Tech, Ashley joined the band after having been recommended by a fellow drummer. Proof enough, I say, of his drumming skills. A further stroke of luck presented itself in meeting electronic musician Tru-fix - or Max, if you prefer. He is, according to Marcus, "shit hot" and, after meeting the band at the studio where he was on work experience, provides some shit hot keyboards on the EP.

As superfluous as it may be to note, I'm still just as fresh as I was when I started typing, i.e. the degree of freshness is comparatively identical. And that's where 'fresh' doesn't really cut the mustard with My Preserver. My Preserver aren't really comparative to much I've heard. There's an individuality and uniqueness which the band are extremely keen to expand and, erm, preserve. And that's infinitely better than my appalling wordplay.