A BAND playing last weekend's Threshold Festival in Liverpool had £7,000 of gear ransacked from their van in broad daylight.
Manchester-based Welsh funk-rockers Clockwork Radio parked the vehicle on Greenland Street on Saturday afternoon and returned an hour later to find the back windscreen smashed.
The thieves' haul of around 30 items included a distinctive blowtorched Fender Stratocaster and a Biro-inked Telecaster, a Fender Jazz bass, acoustic guitars, pedalboards and tuners.
The four-piece were in the city to play an acoustic session as part of Threshold and had gone off to Elevator Studios to do some filming.
Clockwork Radio's smashed van
Guitarist Iwan Jones told reporters: “We think maybe they were targeting the area because they knew the festival was on.
“They must have had a car to take as much as they did.
“We’re going away on tour to Germany and France in April so this has crippled us. We might have to replace things on credit cards so we can go on tour."
Other items stolen include a Tanglewood acoustic and Farida acoustic, a Stagg pedal board, a tuner, a bass octave pedal and a Kill Switch pedal. Plus a book of lyrics and a red jumper.
'Minority'
An appeal by the band on Facebook has been shared by thousands of people across the north west, giving rise to the inevitable “anti-scouse” comments from the band's more challenged fans who are, fortunately, in a small minority.
But Clockwork Radio were quick to point out: “We have lots of friends and family in and from Liverpool and, like everywhere, 99pc of the people there are great. It's a minority that spoil things. Let's concentrate on getting information/help and not stereotyping anyone from anywhere.”
If you can help, don't buy the gear and, instead, email music@clockworkradio.co.uk or call the cops.
