A REGGAE band from Leigh have been making waves in the last 12 months and are looking to continue their drive towards the top in their upcoming run of UK music festivals.

Four-piece band Jeramiah Ferrari have released their Dubby Rock EP and toured with legendary names including The Blockheads and the Wailers over the past year.

The band – compromising singer and guitarist Ryan Paul Mario Barton, lead guitarist Joshua Aitchinson, bassist Hanson Pollitt and drummer Stuart Welch – formed nearly five years ago due to their love of reggae and desire to write their own music, including their latest single Burning Inferno.

Ryan said: “Things are going really well for us. We’ve had quite a few good support tours with some amazing bands, which means we’ve been able to play to bigger audiences.

“The best was the tour with the Wailers. We played at the O2 Academy in Newcastle and at The Ritz in Manchester, which was incredible.

“There’s only one original member left in the band but to play alongside Bob Marley music like that was an amazing experience.

“Even now we have so many people coming to our shows off the back of that tour.

“It’s really helped us get to audiences we might not have otherwise.

“After all we’re a reggae band but we mix with rock and punk. We didn’t think that purists would like us, but it looks like some of them do, which is great.”

Despite the dizzy heights of playing academy-sized venues, they still love playing smaller, more intimate gigs, and will appear at The Rabbit Saloon in Bolton on Sunday, May 1, for TigerFest 3.

Ryan said: “The festival in Bolton is only a small one, but they’re always really good because the crowd is right on top of you and last year we had a great time there.

“It’s a real shame that there aren’t more mid-sized music venues in Leigh. We would love to play more gigs in our hometown.”

The band will play a number of festivals throughout the summer, including Confessional Festival 2016 in Blackburn and Level One in Darwen.

Ryan added: “We’ve been invited back to Kendal Calling again, which we’re looking forward to, but it’s nice to start off the festival season near to home and do a few near where we live.

“When we released our Dubby Rock EP, we hired out a PA and launched it at a club that rarely has bands on, but it was a great success, so I think there is definitely a market for it.”

Tickets for TigerFest 3 can be bought for £5 plus a 50p booking fee from seetickets.com.