When Max Clutterbuck, Henry Robinson and Ethan Reeves used to sneak into the music rooms at Katharine Lady Berkeley’s School they may have imagined themselves performing to huge crowds, with adoring fans singing along.

A few years down the line, and with the addition of guitarist Jack Berry, that dream has become reality as Exiled prepare to play at Y Not? Festival and Tramlines – two of the country’s biggest indie music festivals.

“It’s unreal man,” said lead singer Max. “Me and Eth went to Y Not last year and watched bands play the stage we take to this year. It’s just nuts.

“Being announced for Tramlines was a particularly proud moment; knowing BBC Introducing have picked your music out of thousands of artists to best represent our region is huge.”

Tramlines takes place every year in Sheffield – where Ethan, Henry and Jack went to university.

The city has become something of a second home for the band and working with the local BBC Introducing project has paid dividends, as Exiled were chosen to play the on the first ever BBC Introducing stage at the festival.

The Y Not? show came about when the boys submitted their music and were shortlisted amongst 40 other acts to perform.

It went down to a public vote, and in June it was announced that Exiled had been chosen to play.

“It’s due to our fans, friends and supporters and we cannot thank them enough for listening to us, voting for us and putting us forward for these gigs,” said bassist Henry.

“Last year we did our own mini summer tour, and we played to some very empty venues and didn’t earn a penny for going all over the country. It’s crazy to now be on the line-ups for big festivals that have hundreds and thousands of people attending!”

Although the guys are now strewn around the country with their various day jobs, Exiled began here in Gloucestershire.

Ethan and Max hail from Wotton-Under-Edge, and Henry from nearby Wickwar, whilst Jack originates from slightly further afield in Brownhills near Birmingham, having joined the band later on.

“Henry and I have known each other since primary school, a long time,” said Ethan, who plays drums.

“We met Max in secondary school, clowning around irritating the teachers. We found ourselves with a bit of a Muse obsession in early secondary school, so I guess you could argue we started playing together because we wanted to crack out some questionable-sounding covers of the music we were into!”

Henry added: “We had a few iterations of bands before we ended up on the right instruments.

“There weren’t any good bass players looking to be in bands at our school, so I remember one RE lesson where Max and Ethan turned around to me and just told me to learn the bass so we could start a three piece together.”

Originally a trio, Jack joined the band as lead guitarist last summer for a mini tour and has been a fixture ever since.

The boys describe their music as “a cocktail of indie, britpop and surf rock”, citing an array of influences from the world of music.

Jack said: “We all draw on quite a wide range of genres, for example Henry is a big fan of EDM and I’m quite into heavier music than indie.

“But we are all influenced by bands like You Me at Six and Catfish and the Bottlemen undoubtedly.

“I’m a massive Catfish and the Bottlemen fan,” said frontman Max. “I really look up to them in terms of live performance and stage presence. I tend to reach for the likes of The Strokes, Oasis, Hockey Dad and The Night Café for inspiration.”

So far Exiled have released five singles, and when they spoke to The Local Answer they were in the studio, recording and preparing for a run of shows.

Although there’s no set plans for an album or EP just yet, the boys are always writing and new music is never far off.

Max continued: “Songs start with me in my room, lyrics go down first usually, then they’ll get paired with a riff or chord sequence I’ll either already have or will come up with based on the words.

“The best songs come along when you least expect it. They sneak up on you when you’re just noodling and getting lost in playing – before you know it the song is done.”

“The songwriting process is something I’ve definitely grown into,” added Jack.

“It was a bit intimidating at first, joining such a close group like the guys already were when I joined, who were totally comfortable and used to songwriting with each other.

“However the guys were amazing and so welcoming and now it’s something we all really contribute to, it’s very much a joint thing once Max has come up with the original idea.”

In a short space of time, Exiled have built up an impressive following.

And for the boys, who are all still in their early twenties, it’s still a surreal feeling hearing a crowd sing along to one of their songs.

“Seeing and hearing people singing along is such a buzz,” said Ethan.

“I can never stop grinning when I see it from the stage. I remember one small festival we played last summer, Max didn’t sing one of the lines, but the line still filled the room from the crowd singing it back to us.

“It’s actually still really weird for us,” continued Henry.

“Our music has come a long way in a short time, and though we love that people do want to listen to us, we definitely haven’t adjusted to the idea that our fans have our music sitting in the same playlists as all the bands we aspire to be like.”

After a summer of festival performances, including Y Not?, Tramlines and more locally, Nibley Festival, Exiled are set to continue gigging and releasing music.

Despite finding themselves spread across the country a lot of the time, the boys love nothing more than the chance to get on stage together.

“Playing live is so great with these guys,” said Ethan. “When the practice pays off and you explode into a chorus and you can see the crowd responding to what you’re doing, I’m always looking forward to the next gig.”

Max added: “It’s such a liberating experience. You’re sh*tting yourself one minute, next thing you know it’s all over, you’re sweaty and the people loved it.

“Playing a great gig is taking a room full of people in your hand to somewhere better for an hour or so, there’s no better feeling than that.”