'We have worked our way up': Leeds band Apollo Junction talks summer tour and playing Isle of Wight Festival

Fresh off the second half of their UK tour supporting album number three “Here We Are” - released in October 2023 and the band’s first entry on the UK Top 40 - the five-piece are getting ready for a string of summer shows around the UK.

After kicking off with a show at Don Valley Bowl in Sheffield with The Sherlocks this Friday (June 7), the band will be driving down south for a set on the main stage at the Isle of Wight Festival on June 22.

Sharing a stage with bands like Pet Shop Boys, The Prodigy and Green Day at the festival, singer Jamie Williamson is starting to feel the effect of their latest album’s success.

Speaking to the Yorkshire Evening Post, he said: “We’ve played [Isle of Wight Festival] before and, despite being so far away, it’s almost like our most special and most played festival.

“We first played there in 2018, when the organiser John Giddings asked us to play on one of the smaller stages.

“And since then, we’ve worked out way up the stages, where the next time we played a bigger stage, and then a bigger stage - and this year, he asked us to play the main stage.”

After debuting on the main stage, it’s straight back to Dalby Forest in Yorkshire for the first of two shows this summer supporting The Verve icon Richard Ashcroft - the second show being at Halifax’s Piece Hall in August.

Jamie said Ashcroft is an "all time hero" to all members of the band, as he recalls the first time they were approached to play for the icon. And being asked to play with him again was another unbelievable moment.

“We played the Piece Hall with Kaiser Chiefs a few years ago as the first band on the bill, but now we’re main support which also shows that build-up in faith in what we do,” Jamie added.

The band - which also includes guitarist Matt Wilson, bassist Ben Hope , drummer Jonathan Thorton and keyboard player Sam Potter - was formed in Leeds just over a decade ago.

They have released three studio albums to date - with their latest release “Here We Are” entering the UK top 40 and earning them their biggest shows to date.

Jamie said: “We’ve been selling out venues in cities far away. We’ve toured before, but to be honest I don’t think anyone knew.

“We’ve been a band for over ten years, so we have worked our way up. When something good comes in - like a main stage or a chart placement - we always celebrate it so much because of how much time we have spent working our way towards it.”

Their spring tour saw them play sold-out shows at the Trades Club in Hebden Bridge, Camden Assembly in London and Joiners in Southampton.

Jamie added: “Everywhere we’ve gone we have had hundreds of people come to see us, which is incredible.”

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The summer will also see Apollo Junction play York Museum Gardens with Shed Seven, Moto GP Festival with The Darkness - and their biggest homecoming show to date at Leeds Beckett Students Union in October.

But the Leeds lads are not slowing down after that, with plans for a new single in the autumn and their follow-up fourth album set for 2025.

Jamie said: “We’ve got [studio time] booked and we are just finishing off getting the first few songs for the album, and then we’ll start the process of putting the first bits down.

“We’ve got sort of an idea where we are headed towards, and we’ll hopefully have a new single in September.”

You can find Apollo Junction’s latest album “Here We Are” on streaming services. The band are kicking off their summer tour at Don Valley Bowl in Sheffield supporting The Sherlocks on Friday, June 7.

Apollo Junction summer tour 2024:

• Friday, June 7 - Don Valley Bowl, Sheffield with The Sherlocks
• Saturday, June 22 - Isle of Wight Festival
• Sunday, June 23 - Forest Live at Dalby Forest with Richard Ashcroft
• Saturday, July 6 - Right To Roam Festival, Bolton
• Saturday, July 20 - York Museum Gardens with Shed Seven
• Friday, August 2 - The Piece Hall, Halifax with Richard Ashcroft
• Saturday, August 3 - Y Not Festival, Derbyshire
• Sunday, August 4 - Silverstone Moto GP with The Darkness
• Saturday, October 26 - Leeds Beckett University Student Union