Beat Union was a pop-punk band from

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

Bromsgrove Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, England, about north-east of Worcester and south-west of Birmingham city centre. It had a population of 34,755 in at the 2021 census. It gives its name to the wider Bromsgrove District, of which it is ...

and Redditch,

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. They were formerly known as Shortcut to Newark. The group has garnered comparisons to

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, author and television host. According to ''Rolling Stone'', Costello "reinvigorated the literate, lyrical ...

and

The Jam The Jam were an English rock band formed in 1972 in Woking, Surrey, consisting of Paul Weller, Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler. They released 18 consecutive top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in ...

, as well as

pop punk Pop-punk (also punk-pop, alternatively spelled without the hyphen) is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop music, pop. It is defined by its fast-paced, energetic tempos, and emphasis on classic pop s ...

groups like

Green Day Green Day is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Rodeo, California, in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong and bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, with drummer Tré Cool joining in 1990. In 1994, their majo ...

. In 2006 the band toured the UK with

Bedouin Soundclash Bedouin Soundclash is a Canadian band based in Toronto and consisting of vocalist and guitarist Jay Malinowski, bass player Eon Sinclair, and various session musicians. Their sound has been described as a combination of reggae and ska. Bedouin ...

and Zox. Their debut full-length album, '' Disconnected'', was released on Science Records in April 2008. It was produced with the help of John Feldmann, producer and frontman of Goldfinger. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' named their song "She Is the Gun" Song of the Day on 17 July 2008. The song also received rotation on

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, where it rose to #5 on the station's airplay charts. After releasing the album, the group toured with Goldfinger and then played the 2008

Warped Tour The Warped Tour is a Concert tour, touring Rock music, rock music festival that toured the United States and Canada each summer from 1995 until 2019, and returned in 2025 for its 30th anniversary. By 2015, Warped was the largest traveling music ...

in the U.S. A U.S. fall tour has been announced with Flogging Molly, followed by UK dates with Less Than Jake. Beat Union split up in January 2009. In August 2009, Luke Johnson was officially announced as Lostprophets new drummer, as a permanent member providing "it all works out". Luke Johnson is now the drummer for rock band Lowlives after previously playing with No Devotion. Dave Warsop now fronts the bands Sharp/Shock and NOT. He previously played in Suedehead who played at Coachella Festival and toured with Social Distortion. He also records and produces bands out of Strong Studios in SOCAL. Ade Preston went on to reform Farse. He also played in The King Blues, Mad Caddies and King Adora. Dean Ashton played in Farse with Ade. He joined The King Blues and recorded 3 albums with them and then spent 5 years playing bass with NWOBHM band Diamond Head.

Lineup

* Dave Warsop – Lead Vocals, Guitar (Shooter McGavin/Shortcut To Newark/Suedehead/Sharp Shock) * Luke Johnson (aka Jocko Johnson) – Drums (Shooter McGavin/Shortcut To Newark/ Amen/ Lostprophets) * Dean Ashton – Guitar, Backup Vocals (Shooter McGavin/Shortcut To Newark/ Farse/ The King Blues/ Diamond Head) * Ade Preston – Bass, Backup Vocals ( Farse/ The High Society/ The King Blues)

Discography

;As Shooter McGavin *"Saving The Day" 7-inch – Boss Tuneage (2001) *"Split with Dugong" 7-inch – Rock 'Em Dead Records (2001) ;As Shortcut to Newark *"Heads in Hands Heads in Half" 7-inch EP – Boss Tuneage (2003) *''Gearing Up for Getting Down'' CD – (Suckapunch Records (2006) ;As Beat Union *"She Is The Gun" 7-inch/CD – Haddock Recordings (2007) *'' Disconnected'' CD – Science Records (2008)

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official band site

Official Myspace page

Science Records band page

Beat Union Take To The States
Feature article. PlugInMusic.com English rock music groups Musical groups established in 2003 Musical groups disestablished in 2009 Rock music groups from Birmingham, West Midlands