Jocasta were Tim Arnold (Vocals, Guitar, Piano ), Jack Reynolds ( Lead Guitar ), Adrian Meehan ( Drums ) and Andy Lewis ( Bass ). They formed whilst Tim and Jack were still at school in the early nineties, but became what you might call professional in 1995 when all four members of the band moved to London and after doing 6 gigs (the last of which included a string section) they were signed to Sony.


There are few better words to describe the sound of Jocasta than 'epic'. Lyrically pre-empting the fascination of London that later became de rigeur with the Libertines et al, Tim and Jack worked in an illegal Soho Bar, thus the debut album No Concidence was full of tales of prostitutes, dealers and the characters of the dodgy west end which the band practically lived in at the time.

Musically, Jocasta were the forerunners for what we now know as alternative stadium rock, pre-empting the success of bands like Muse, Coldplay and Snow Patrol.

One early quote of Tim Arnold's : "I wanted to hear Black Sabbath jamming with the Philharmonic" should give you an idea what the album is like and indeed, the London Symphony Orchestra play out Tim's arrangements on five of the album tracks, most notably Inside Out, the closing song. The top forty single Go was a far cry from what the band were about. Songs like Perfect and Single as Hell were what made the band stand out from the crowd. Jocasta only went from strength to strength both critically and in popularity throughout 1997 until a week before Tim' s 21st birthday when due to change of clientele and boring internal (yet unfair) politics, Sony dropped the band by fax on the same day the album was released.

After Arnold's vision for a 'String ensembled Rock band' was singlehandedly taken away, with what can only be described as a stiff upper lip and a great deal of tenacity, he carried on and carved out a unique solo career. Some of the tracks from 'No Coincidence' may now be heard on Tim's solo albums.

As anyone who saw their shows will tell you, Jocasta were one of the greatest British bands of their time and as Q magazine said in a prophetic review of their debut album:  "this is a highly impressive debut whose breadth of vision suggests an ambition not easily sated, and the mixture of searing power pop, swooning serenades and swelling string  sections is often magnificent.". Long live Jocasta.

      Tracklisting:

      1. Laughing
      2. Go
      3. Life In A Day
      4. Change Me
      5. Actress
      6.Leave The Light On
      7. Something To Say
      8. Single As Hell
      9. Perfect
    10. Face You
    11. Crackbaby
    12. Inside Out
  
    © Sony BMG 1997