The Farm's Peter Hooton on playing Colchester in August

Liverpool musician Peter Hooton, 61, spoke to The Gazette about his band The Farm’s forthcoming appearance at the 80s Calling festival in Lower Castle Park on August 3.

The Farm are an alternative-rock band who released their UK No.1 debut album Spartacus in 1991.

The group formed in 1983 and worked throughout the decade before self-releasing the album.

Since the release of the album, the group have achieved acclaim with three top 10 singles - their biggest hit being All Together Now.

Musicians - The Farm (Image: PR)

Peter is looking forwarding to playing Colchester for what might be the first time.

He said: “We’re really looking forward to it.

"It’s going to be a great day. Our mates The Christians are on. It will be good to see the Human League again, and hopefully the weather will be okay.

“I thought we played Colchester in the 1990s, but maybe we are wrong.

"We played in Sudbury recently. That was a fantastic night and a brilliant cause for the SMiLE Festival.

"They were really lovely people.

“That’s the one thing about music - music generally unites people.”

Peter says the band normally tries to visit country pubs while on tour and the group takes an interest in history when travelling, so they will try to visit Colchester Castle.

One of the biggest lessons he has learnt throughout his years in the music industry is to stay determined.

He said: “I learned determination really, to keep on going. We had five years in the 80s where we did a lot of John Peel sessions but were on the verge of a record deal.

“We were very close with Madness, even UB40. We got a lot of help, it kept out spirits up.

“Once we decided to do it ourselves in the 1990s, we learnt a lot about the music industry and were able to have great success in that period.

“To get a number one record with independent distribution….

 “A lot of so-called indie bands were getting distributed by major companies.

"We did it purely on our own. I was punk rock in a way, it was a really exciting period.”

The 80s Calling event will feature five other big-name acts of the era, with The Human League headlining the event, Bananarama, Level 42, Hue and Cry, and The Christians supporting.

Colchester fans of The Farm should expect a mixture of new and old songs at the festival.

Most importantly, the future is looking bright for the band after appearing at Glastonbury, signing to Modern Sky Records, and a new album is planned for the future.

Peter said: “We’ve stuck a few new tracks on Spotify. We’ve just signed to Modern Sky Records in Liverpool, and hopefully we will get an album out next year.

“Spotify, is a good way at promoting your music. BBC Radio Two playlisted our recent song Feel The Love.

“The great thing is Paul Weller heard our new tracks - Feel the Love, and Let The Music Take Control - and he loved them.

"Paul Weller is one of our heroes - it was brilliant."