The Mighty Stef

By the throat: If you get there early to a gig by The Things, Republic of Loose or Mainline, and the stage is invaded by a formidable fella with a guitar, a mod haircut and a throatful of broken dreams, then don't be alarmed. Be very, very, very alarmed. For this man is The Mighty Stef, and before he's finished his warm-up for the main act, you'll already be under the evil spell of this charming rogue, and joining lustily in with such punky tunes as The Pirate Song, I Love You and The Ballad of Ian Dury and Billy Fury. With his lumbering presence, booming, throaty voice (somwhere between John Otway, Eric Burdon and Tom Jones), The Mighty Stef is a hard man to ignore, so you might as well jump to attention.

Dancing spleen: Stefan Murphy was once the lead singer with local hopefuls The Subtonics, but now he's striking out on his own with his debut single, Prayer for the Broken Hearted, a breezy ballad about the utter futility of hoping to get your girlfriend back. The B-side, Liars, features a reworked version of The Nolan Sisters' classic cheesy disco tune, I'm in the Mood for Dancing. Stef's influences include Primal Scream, The Libertines, Johnny Cash, Bob Marley and Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster.

Tonic troupe: Back in 2002, going solo was the last thing on Murphy's mind. As the lead singer of The Subtonics, Murphy was not short of adoring fans up at the front of the stage. The five-piece band were hoping to hit the big time; they had released a well-received single, Half Time Holiday, and were busy putting down tracks for their debut album, working title Two Fingers to the World. They played the Hard Working Class Heroes festival in Dublin, the In The City festival in Manchester and opened for the golden gods of hair metal, The Darkness. But the ever-restless Murphy couldn't stay off the stage - when his band weren't gigging, he would grab his guitar and open for his mates' bands, playing his own songs, dropping in some mad cover versions, and generally giving the crowd something to talk about after the gig.

Mod for it: Murphy earned his stage name when he was booked to do a support slot with his pals The Things in Belfast. The promoter of the gig didn't get Stef's surname, so he simply billed him as The Mighty Stef. Soon, the audience reaction to his solo shows threatened to put Subtonics gigs in the shade, and so Stef announced that he was leaving the band to go it alone as a modern-day mod troubador. Sometimes he takes the stage alone, other times with his backing Band of Men. He has played support slots with The Zutons, John Squire, The Fiery Furnaces, Miles Hunt of The Wonder Stuff, Alice Cooper and Alabama 3. He's also showcased his work at the South by South West festival in Austin, Texas.