Horndog Brass Band first growled into life at the debut Kelburn Garden Party festival near Largs the summer of 2009, drawn from members of Scotland’s left-field talent gathered there, including representatives of Orkestra del Sol, The Banana Sessions, Bombskare, Black Cat and Hidden Orchestra. After stealing the main stage’s audience and taking them for an impromptu walkabout gig in the woods surrounding the castle, it was clear that the Horndogs’ sound is one which connects instantly with fans of many genres, from funk and jazz through to hip hop and contemporary music. It is a sound to move feet, warm souls and put smiles on faces.

Fuelled by this knowledge of a winning formula, the band hit the streets of Edinburgh during the Fringe, entertaining international audiences of all ages on the streets of the Old Town. It was also during the Edinburgh Festival that the band made their onstage debut to a 1200-strong audience at the Picturehouse venue, not with their own tunes but as backing band to former Dresden Dolls singer, Amanda Palmer. The full force of the Horndog brass was applied to several songs for this one-off gig, including leading Amanda onstage through the crowd to open the gig in typically dramatic fashion.

After a successful tour of the Scottish Highlands to kickstart 2010, the band embarked upon their first summer festival performances at the Insider Festival (Aviemore), Eden Festival (Dumfries), and Edinburgh’s Meadows Festival, performing on the main stage each time. They also provided red carpet entertainment at the launch of the Edinburgh International Festival, entertaining Sir Sean Connery with a personal performance, which soon ended up on BBC Scotland news, via YouTube... The band made their first venture south of the border later in the year, playing a closing slot at a sold-out Scala in London for a steampunk Halloween extravaganza hosted by White Mischief.
2011 began as the band intends to continue. Onstage. Horndog led a New Orleans second line style Auld Lang Syne for the revellers at Edinburgh’s highly respected Departure Lounge ‘Hogmanay Carnival’, launching into their first set of a year that will also see them release their debut album...

Horndog Brass Band’s repertoire is made up of fresh originals by musical directors Tom Pickles and Tom Donaldson, augmented by a selection of brassed up cover versions ranging from Aerosmith to the Grange Hill theme tune, and some more ‘traditional’ funk with a New Orleans twist, paying tribute to the band’s key influences which include Dirty Dozen, Rebirth and Youngblood Brass Bands, Galactic, Lou Donaldson and Herbie Hancock.

This eclectic approach is what Horndog Brass Band is all about – its members come from hugely varied musical backgrounds, but together they are one voice that speaks many languages. Adaptable and exciting, expect to see a lot more of them in 2011...

“Fat, sizzling licks” – The Scotsman
“encouraged the crowd to swing dance and 'pogo' in equal measures - a mark of success that's surely unique” - Guardian
“Great stuff, I’ve never known musicians with such... stamina!” – Sir Sean Connery
“Excellent, and very loud!” – Tilda Swinton