It was back in 2012 that Broken Jaw played their first gig. Six years have passed but the appetite and hunger still shines brightly as the band look ahead to the future with a real sense of optimism.

Nutzie Shelley, frontman for the Stroud-based band, has been an influential figure on the live music scene here in Gloucestershire ever since his band played their first set. Band members have come and gone over the years, but Broken Jaw have remained, and that’s something Nutzie is extremely proud of.

He said: “The band has been a big part of my life for six years now. Broken Jaw came about when I met a drummer and a guitarist and went from there really. We gigged more and more and built up a bit of a following. It seems a very long time ago now!

“At the moment we’re getting together every week and working on new tracks. If you’re in a band it becomes a habit. All the successful bands are the ones who put the effort in and work really hard, that’s what we’re doing.

“Next year is going to be a big one for us, we hope to get back on the road and play as many gigs as we can.”

Nutzie has recently welcomed a couple of new members into the band but won’t be revealing too many details until they’ve recorded their new tracks.

He continued: “We’re spending plenty of time together playing and writing new songs, once we’ve finished up we’ll make an announcement.”

Nutzie, who also manages the band, managed to secure a rather lucrative sponsorship deal with a major company that have helped the band out over the years.

Nutzie added: “I’ve always enjoyed drinking Fireball whisky. One day I just decided to send the company an email asking if they would be interested in sponsoring us. They responded saying they would.

“They’ve been nothing but amazing for us over the years, they’ve been so generous. A couple of years ago they sent our guitarist a Fireball guitar. It’s been a great partnership, we often catch up with a few of their guys at festivals. It’s been a six-year partnership and we’re still going strong. It was a big deal for us. It made us the first band in the UK to be sponsored by Fireball Whisky.”

The band have a big following here in Gloucestershire and across the country, and there’s been some stand-out gigs over the last six years.

Nutzie added: “We did a tour over in Ireland that was very special, a lot of fun. We’ve played at some amazing festivals as well. It’s hard to name a favourite gig because there have been so many great nights over the years. Being able to see people enjoy our music, that’s the best feeling.

“We’re similar to a lot of bands in that our style has changed as the years have gone by. Some people have described as a punk-metal band. It’s hard to put a definite label on us because we do mix things up. We’re all excited to get back to playing gigs, 2019 is going to be massive for us.”