CIRCA WAVES, one of the biggest bands in Britain, will play an exclusive first show of the year in Southampton next week.

The Liverpool indie stars have announced a special warm-up appearance at the 750 capacity The 1865 on Brunswick Square before heading to London the next day to play to 20,000 people across two nights at the world famous Alexandra Palace.

It’s a massive coup for Joiners promoter Ricky Bates as the four piece are currently hot property with their brilliant new singles Wake Up and Fire That Burns flying high on Radio One and their much anticipated second album Different Creatures due out in March.

“‘The Joiners are really excited to be welcoming Circa Waves back to their roots for a cool, smaller sweaty, gig before they head off to Ally Pally and their massive headline tour next month. It’s an evening not to be missed for hard core fans of the band!” Ricky told The Daily Echo.

Front man and songwriter Kieran Shudall, guitarist Joe Falconer, drummer Colin Jones and bassist Sam Rourke’s last gig on the South Coast was a sold out show at Portsmouth’s Wedgewood Rooms in April 2015, just a week after their debut album Young Chasers smashed into the top ten.

But as for so many great bands it was The Joiners on St Mary’s Street that first promoted the group in the South in their early days. Now, on the verge of what could be their biggest year yet, they are set to re-pay the favour by coming back to almost where it first started.

Famous for their hit single, T-Shirt Weather, a song that now heralds the unofficial start to summer, the lads are renowned for their tremendously urgent and bouncing indie tunes.

Songs like Get Away, Lost It and Fossils have made them firm festival favourites across the world. Now they say they have built an even bigger, even heavier, sound with their exciting second compilation.

Circa Waves return to Reading & Leeds in August, but first they play The 1865 on Wednesday.

Tickets are on sale from 10am today from joinerslive.co.uk and seetickets.com. New album Different Creatures is released on Friday March 10 and available for pre-order now.

RICHARD DERBYSHIRE