Thanks for checking out fishandhits. My name is Malcolm but most know me as Fishy. The boring reason for my nickname is that Fish is my surname but I'm also a qualified PADI Divemaster and Master Scuba Diver so that sounds way cooler. As you can see, I've been into music for as long as I can remember. Both my parents loved music. My dad was a guitarist and was happy for me to try and get my grubby little hands on his pride and joy, a '62 Fender Strat. We used to go to all my dad's gigs and I was obsessed with all the instruments and sounds they made. I got a lovely wood finished Stratocaster copy for Xmas when I was 8 and I was hooked.

As well as following in my dad's footsteps on the guitar, I used to arrange old pots on the sofa like a drum kit and play them using knitting needles as drum sticks. As I got better at it and after having a go on a proper kit a few times, I got a proper drum kit when I was 12. The following week I broke my arm but a cast did not stop me annoying my sister and our dog Candy for hours on end.

I joined a band of 20 year old lads playing drums for them for a while which was great fun.

As I got more into 80s music, synths and drum machines seemed amazing and I saved up gig money to buy my first synth (a Roland Juno-60) which I still have to this day. Keyboards became my main focus but I still played guitar, bass and drums on and off in different bands.

As music took over my teen years more and more, I played in various bands and the obligatory school band where I met my best mate 'Castles' who played drums. We played in bands together progressing from covers to our own songs and were lucky enough to get signed and record an album in Italy working with Gareth Jones of Depeche Mode & Erasure fame. Alas rock stardom eluded us but it was an amazing experience to have got that far.

After a few years away from music, I missed playing live and mentioned this to Castles over a beer one night. A chance meeting with another old school mate who played bass, led to the three of us forming 'class of 87' - an 80s tribute band. With my passion for synths and an eclectic mix of gadgets, we were able to take on some of the more challenging songs of the 80s by creating loops & samples to play alongside our live sound of drums, guitar and bass. We played all over the UK for a number of years, with an impressive list of venues, companies & clients including EE, Holkham Hall, Market Rasen Racecourse, Alexandra Palace, Ascot Racecourse with Nik Kershaw, Grosvenor House with Jimmy Carr & Dara Ó Briain, Imperial College, Brands Hatch, Haynes Motor Museum, Duxford Air Museum, Royal Horse Atillery, Royal Navy, RAF and many birthdays & weddings.

After many great gigs and memories made, 'Class of 87' took off their Ray-Bans in 2017.

A few years passed and a friend of my wife was looking for someone to play a quiet background set for her daughters wedding. My wife volunteered me not thinking I'd have to learn two hours of music from scratch and how much time that might entail! It was a challenge and though I really enjoyed it, I thought no more about playing live.

Word soon got around though and another friend of my wife's asked if I would play at her wedding. This one involved a set of chilled out songs in the afternoon which I already had in the bag followed by an evening set to get people up dancing. I had to learn and program lots more tunes but is was well worth it as both the guests, the venue and myself had a great night - enough for me to realise I wanted to get back into playing live again. It was then a question of what tunes to pick and a name for my solo act which my good friend and web genius Pezza came up with - fish and hits was born.

I've always loved the 80s and it always makes for a great night especially if you have a fancy dress theme, but it was also great to hand pick some cool grooves from other decades, including 90s britpop classics, foot tapping tracks from more recent years and the occasional nod to some great songs used in movies (think Top Gun or Pulp Fiction and the songs that spring to mind) to get people up dancing.

So if you are looking for an 80s tribute or a wedding band but space or budget is an issue, fishandhits is the go to option to make your wedding reception or party one to remember. Rest assured I love playing all the songs that I've picked and get to play live - hopefully you & your guests will love them too.