"You don't have to be boring to be pop," declares LJ Marchent - and he's right. Here's a band who are very much pop but not so boring. A band that mix up the classic songwriting of Bowie with the attitude of The Strokes and the adventurousness of Bloc Party, without any of the irritating wackiness that goes with so many of today's fame-hungry indie-pop stars.

Formed in the small-town music vacuum of Taunton in Somerset, guitarist LJ, bassist Henry Drysdale and drummer James Sinclair got together aged ten to perform Red Hot Chili Peppers songs with a multitude of unsuitable frontmen. However, it wasn't until they got together with singer and guitarist Josh Brooksbank four years later that they got down to the nitty-gritty of writing their own songs and improving their music taste.

After nicking a name from a history lesson on the aftermath of the First World War, and going to see landmark gigs by the likes of Bloc Party in Bristol and The Maccabees in Exeter, the four-piece began to refine their set, throwing out their old songs along with their covers of 'Helicopter' and 'I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor' and replacing them with a whole set of new tracks.

"This is the first band I've been involved in," explains Josh, who brings most of the original song ideas to the table. "These are the first songs I've written."

Pretty lucky then, you could say, that these four personalities were able to salvage some indie treats from what could have been messy facsimiles of their favourite bands. Josh brings his insightful, witty lyrics and catchy chord sequences to the group, while the other three, including former classical violinist LJ, arrange the tracks. This kind of pop perfection can't just be thrown together, you know.

"Everyone adds their own parts and makes it a lot better," explains Josh, while LJ, who describes their music as 'refined', adds: "Arrangement is quite a big part of our songs. I've got a whammy pedal which I use to get my guitar sounding really elastic and I use loads of delays too."

They might be 'refined', but any sophistication in the band's songs isn't included at the expense of visceral thrills and raucous hooks.

Take 'No Excuse', which builds from a moody, spectral intro to a sing-a-long chorus perfect for any indie disco; or 'Don't Give Me A Hard Time', which pairs intertwining Smiths guitars with a melancholic melody Luke Pritchard would sell his granny for. Likewise, 'Make Up Your Mind' and 'Sticks And Stones' are danceable elixirs distilled directly from this decade's finest indie moments.

They might have only just left college, released their debut single ('Give It To Me Straight') and supported British Sea Power, The Cribs and The Metros, but the future's even brighter - not least now the band are about to release their best song to date, 'Unlucky Strike', and venture out to play dates around the country.

Here's a band who are determined to be big, to reach people and to play interesting and adventurous pop music, but without any of the sour careerist aftertaste of many in the 'indie' industry today.

"We want to be edgy as well as popular," explains LJ. "We don't want to be ridiculous bubblegum pop, but we do want a lot of people to like our music. I think we're pretty at home on a big stage!"

We're sure you'll soon get the chance to test out his theory for yourself.