Not for a long time, if ever, has a band's debut EP been under so much scruntiny from all corners of the rock fraternity. It seems even before UK post-hardcore quartet Fightstar were given the chance to spread their wings musically and gel as a full-time rock band they were pushed into the media limelight. All this and more has meant the lads have been forced to learn quickly and make people see that we should judge the sound and leave the music politics at the door. Before their gig in Leeds Powerplay caught up with vocalist/guitarist Charlie Simpson, formerly of teen pop sensations Busted and bassist Dan Haigh to talk petty grievances, proving themselves as a band and Chuck Palahniuk.

It's fair to say that the name Fightstar won't ring too many bells with UK rock audiences at the moment. After all, they are a relatively new band emerging into the hardcore scene and are privy to the usual debut band practices like playing to home crowds, building up a decent fan base and putting together an EP bit this is where things become a lot more complicated. On the back of a well publicized split of a certain chart topping band the name Fightstar has been thrown into a media lion pit and the scrutiny rained upon the foursome is something that has probably never been seen before for a debut band.

"Its is good in a way because I wanted to draw a line under the whole Busted thing and just say this is what I am doing now and this is what I'm concentrating on but the inevitably the whole thing was going to cause tension. But its cool, I think its dying down now." Charlie explains. "At the end of the day we are no different to any other band coming out but the whole media focus is on the band and I don't think we were ready for that."

It was never going to be easy for Fightstar (whose line-up consists of Charlie Simpson on main Vocals/Guitar, Alex Westaway on Vocals/Guitar, Dan Haigh on Bass guitar and Omar Ibidi on drums) to live by the 'heads down rock out' formula of a number of up and coming bands on the circuit. Charlie's exploits with pop-rockers Busted have left many rock fans asking questions of credibility and in recent shows there have been a number of people who don't seem to agree with his past. Even though Fightstar is a fully-fledged melodic hardcore package, for the moment it seems some people are finding it too hard to leave their bias behind.

"We did a gig with Taking Back Sunday in Dublin and straight away some guy threw something and the press picked up n that but after the show Talking Back Sunday's guitarist came up to me and said one of our songs brought a tear to his ear, which was fucking amazing. There are always going to be closed minded people in the crowd but FUCK them!. I am in this band because I love being here and I love the music." Says Charlie.

"It's quite funny because it is a really cliquey scene but having people come up to me and say how much they love the record is awesome. We had an email from a Toll fan saying stuff like 'Busted suck Dick and I fucking hate them' but then at the end of it he said 'But I love Fightstar and I am going to be the first person to pre-order your album' which is great to hear."

One plus point of his past is that Charlie is now in a position to turn some ears away from chart music. Surely his standing is enough for people to take notice? Charlie seems more than happy to try. "I fucking hope so, I really do. If some kid came up to me and said after listening to the band they went out and bought a Funeral for a friend record then I would find that so cool."

At the moment the band is preparing to release their debut EP They Liked You Better When You Where Dead through their own record label Sandwich Leg Records. So it seems if at anytime the band are to silence their doubters then the time in now.

"The record was originally going to go through Fierce Panda but things changed and we decided to put it out through our own label. This way we kept complete control and we don't have to answer to anyone," explains Charlie.

Dan adds "We have done everything ourselves including artwork, merchandise and al the fucking video shit" The video for the opening single 'Palahnuiks Laughter' was directed by Dan, Charlie adds "The video captures what we are about, we didn't want to make a pretty I'm so cool playing in a garage thing. We just did this thing that was fucking raw and it really shows."

The single is a piece of upbeat pounding post hardcore. "The theme for the song is something Chuck Palahnuik wrote about in one of his books. On American comedy shows they use canned laughter and most of the recordings are from the forties and fifties so what we are hearing is effectively dead people laughing. It's a tribute to Chuck Palahniuk. In fact, most of our stuff is a tribute to him." Dan explains.

The EP is five tracks of post hardcore that sees the band mix between the light and the dark. Tracks such as Lost Like Tears In Rain and Speak Up prove the bands talent of picking out strong guitar lines and pounding drum patterns and mixing those with aggressive yet tuneful vocal, while Mono and Amethyst see the band more sombre, toned down mood. Dan says "This EP was put together between the times we could scrape together when Charlie wasn't working. It was by no means an optimum work situation but we love this record"

At their recent gigs the band has been showcasing their material to a live audience. In the whole spirit of the DIY ethic of being in a band the lads are seen onstage sorting out their own equipment and setting up everything before the show. Charlie stopping things, several times during soundcheck to make sure the bands sound is spot on for the show. Tonight is one of their first gigs outside the capital and the crowd packed inside Leeds Met seems of mixed mind, "So far there have been four sets of people," Charlie explains "There are people who think oh this is bullshit it will never work, then there are the people who want to give us a chance, then on the Busted side of things there are people who want me to do well but then there are the people who are angry at me for leaving the band. So at the moment there are two sets of haters and two sets of likers".

"But there are so many people who have come up to me and Charlie and said DUDE, I wanted to fucking hate you but I do really like your music" and that is the ultimate sense of achievement for us. We had people at our Sheffield show who were planning a bit of saboteur but at the end they just said 'I wanted to hate it but in the end we didn't say shit, we just enjoyed the show," adds Dan. And this statement is definatley true of the bands performance tonight, with the small number of hecklers being drowned out by the bands newfound army of northern followers, a live show which sees the band's style of thrashy post hardcore tunes greeted with a rapturous reception.

"To be placed in the emo-hardcore genre is great but there are so many bands out there now and they are all been classed as emo that it such a big area now. Plus emo now isn't what I remember loving it for. I loved bands like Benton Falls and Planes Mistaken for stars, really early fucking emo. At the end of the day everyone brings thing to the table. Dan is into heavy metal, Alex is a Buckley fan and I love bands like Taking back Sunday and Deftones. Bit I definitely say our music sits in the hardcore or post hardcore," Says Charlie. "As far as writing goes, I am heavily influenced by bands like Biffy Clyro and Thursday, so if we wanted to write a post hardcore record then we could but we also love post rock like Mono and Trip Hop shit like postal service. I don't think we're constricted to one sound of music."

Metal fans may not be impressed with the band but Charlie knows even though they might not be a metal band they are certainly aware of the genre's influence on Fightstar. "We are not really a metal band, it is a really difficult audience to play for. We were set to do a show with Bullet for my valentine but in the end we turned it down. We definitely have metal influences but it depends what kind of metal you are into, whether you are into bands like carcass and obituary or are into the crossover bands like Thrice and Funeral for a friend."

The tour starts in March and will see Fightstar take to the stage as a headline act. Dan is optimistic, "The whole thing is to set up a fan base for the band and then we can go away and write some new songs for the album"

The jury is still out on Fightstar. Not because of their talent but as Charlie explains, "We have to prove to people for obvious reasons, New bands aren't normally under this much scrutiny so we have to prove ourselves twice as hard but we are pleased with the record. We wanted to be in control of what we were giving to the fans on our first release and wer'e looking forward to it."