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Honeytone Cody is a three-piece experimental rock band from North Yorkshire, England consisting of Elle Nelson (vocals/bass/synth), Elliot Nelson (guitar/drums/synth), and Martell James (drums/vocals/percussion). Regarded heavily as one of the most unique and interesting unsigned bands in the country, they still refuse to be confined musically. They're music is ever evolving, systematically changing sonic's whilst playing with cross rhythm's. Having had extensive play on BBC Radio 1 by the late John Peel and remixes by Kissy Sellout, Honeytone Cody have caught the eye of not only the British underground music audience but also influential disc jockeys in the UK.

Formative years
Elle and Elliot Nelson are siblings and offspring of prolific guitarist Bill Nelson (musician). Growing up around music all their lives it seemed only fitting that both brother and sister would eventually go on to form a band. In 1998 after already having played in a project together which was an early foundation of Honeytone Cody, Elle and Elliot acquired new drummer Matt Lunn (formerly Brace, Colour of Fire and The Officers) and were joined alongside with bassist Liam Jameson (whom was also in the siblings previous project).

Pink and Clean (1998)
Venturing into the studio for the first time they recorded a four track EP, entitled Pink and Clean. The band sacked previous bassist Liam Jameson whilst leading up to the recording and took on new bass player Grant Pattison. Also joining them was Elle and Elliot's father Bill Nelson (musician) brought in to produce the EP.

The recording took place in the summer of 1998 at Fairview studios in Willerby near Hull. The sound at the time was very different to what is created now by the three-piece, relying on a alternative rock, punk pop format. After releasing the record it was quickly homed in on by numerous record companies and various radio stations around the country including the late DJ John Peel began to air certain tracks from the EP.

Believe in the Promise of Tomorrow (2000)
Two summers later the group re-entered Fairview Studio's to begin recording for the second time. The band was experimenting with sonic's and the music direction was suddenly becoming quite different. Changing the sound also produced a change in bass player after having musical differences with former bassist Grant Pattison. Honeytone Cody hired guitarist Iain Would a close friend of Elle's in order to play bass in the band, although on the credits of the EP, Iain's surname is changed to Harrison. Producing again for the second time was Bill Nelson (musician) adding a secret track of his own ten minutes after the final track on the EP which consisted of looped samples from various cult movies, the band went on to use this when playing before getting on stage to play live. Five tracks were recorded on the EP and one track in particular became the flagship number getting played on various radio stations and was also used on a BBC TV series at the time called Breeze Block (TV series).

Showcasing, Tommy Hilfiger and more band members (2000-2002)
John Peel once again also got behind the band playing tracks from the EP 'Believe in the Promise of Tomorrow', the band then went on to showcase at In the City (festival) and also organizing a showcase of their own in a venue previously known as 'The Sound' which was used to host Channel 5 Pepsi Chart show in Leicester Square, London. The showcase in Liverpool at the In the City (festival) proved to be a failure, lack of management at this point may have been the bands undoing, although the band was later scrutinized in a review from now non-existent music paper Melody Maker who were covering the festival. Months later the band hired keyboard player Richard Garbutt and once again begun playing London in preparation for their second showcase which attracted the likes of producer John Leckie. The band were more successful this time having a verbal agreement from an A&R executive representing the label RCA, considering signing them to a subsidiary label over the course of the coming months. In the same year the band did a photo shoot with photographer Mick Rock for a Tommy Hilfiger clothes campaign which never got launched in the UK but did in certain countries across Europe. Long time serving member Matt Lunn (drummer) quit the band not long after which caused the band to disperse for number of years. Elle and Elliot remained writing and playing acoustic shows around the country as well as making an appearance supporting their father at a annual fan convention.

Nostalgic Lips and Antelope Eyes (2003-2004)
Honeytone Cody had become a myth among music lovers across North Yorkshire spurring Elle and Elliot to form a band again this time with rhythm section Adam Watson and Ralph Sayers. This band only lasted a year but within that time they played an extensive amount of shows across the country and more importantly created another new sound whilst writing new material. Having more difficulties with band members, Elle and Elliot were a duo once more. With plenty of material the two of them recorded acoustically at home on a portable studio, initially the idea was a prototype for a bigger recording in order to iron out any kinks. It was six tracks and the music was a mix of acoustic shoegazing and dream pop, although certain songs on the recording contained a much darker undertone. Having no finance, the pair released 'Nostalgic Lips and Antelope Eyes' digitally via a website for new music. The record became one of the most popular downloads on the site attracting the attention of people like Kissy Sellout who years later did a remix of one of the songs 'Some Kind of Bean' and played it on BBC Radio 1, also blogs across the internet used the duo's music as a visual audio diary.