POP duo NRG are hoping to cash in on becoming the new Dollar.

The boy/girl act, who have teamed up with dance sensations N Trance, release their debut single later this month - and they believe that chart success beckons, writes STEVE TINNISWOOD.

Blackburn-born Leon Kelly, 22, and 19-year-old girlfriend Alison Frost, from Bury, have seen boy bands flourish, girl bands make it big and the likes of Steps and S Club 7 enjoy mixed success.

Now they say it is time for the pop duo to return.

They had already been touted by former Spice Girls manager Simon Fullerton and Take That boss Nigel Martin Smith before signing up with record label All Around The World, who have N Trance on their books.

And their costumes are made by the same designers who kit out Cleopatra and Steps.

In the two years since they were formed, NRG have built up a strong following for their impressive cover versions of pop favourites by such acts as Steps and Boyzone.

But it was the visit of N Trance members to one of their gigs in Oldham that began to change things for Leon and Alison.

Now the release of their eagerly-awaited debut single, the Jackson Five's Shake Your Body, should launch them towards chart success.

A £60,000 video has been made by the same company who produced Ann Lee's Two Times video.

So it looks like the £2,000 loan they took out to buy all their equipment is beginning to pay off.

Leon, who works as a credit controller at Initial Shorrocks in Blackburn, said NRG could exploit a gap that has yet to be filled in the charts. He said: "Until Take That, there was no such thing as a boy band. Now there are loads of them. "The Spice Girls started off the all-girl thing and more recently there has been Steps and S Club 7.

"But there has not been a successful duo since Dollar and that is something we think we can exploit.

"We have tremendous backing and it has been great working with N Trance, who have given us a lot of advice.

"We both really love getting up there and entertaining the crowds and this is going to be a very exciting year for us."

NRG are no strangers to playing in front of big crowds and for the last two years have performed to more than 3,500 people at the Young Farmers' Ball at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool - the place where they first met four years ago.

Leon added: "We have been very lucky so far but we have worked very hard and all the money we make goes back into the band.

"We've had to put up with a lot of hassle from people wanting to beat us up and ruin our equipment but that is something you have to deal with.

"Now I strongly believe we can become chart toppers by the end of the year."

Strings detached - Gone Beggin' lose member

FOLK rockers Gone Beggin' have parted company with their banjo and mandolin player - and are on the look-out for a replacement with more than one string to their bow. Tim Martin, who played his final gig with the Irish-sounding band in Chorley last Saturday, is leaving the Darwen-based act to concentrate on session and studio work.

Singer Gary Walsh said: "We'd like another instrumentalist, who could play the banjo, fiddle, mandolin or something similar.

"If we could find someone who played two instruments, that would be a bonus."

Interested parties should call Gary on 01254 704006.

Sorry, I was just too slow for Tompaulin

AN apology is due to hotly-tipped band Tompaulin, whose debut single was reviewed in the final Pulse of 1999.

The six-piece, four of whom are from Blackburn, were left baffled and rather miffed when Pulse reviewed their double A-sided vinyl single Ballad Of The Bootboys/Wedding Song. Pulse editor Paul Barry described the single as being slow and hypnotic, with the singer's voice resembling a slurred Fat Harry White, sleazy hero of the Radio One afternoon show.

But had Paul played the single at its intended speed of 45rpm and not 33rpm, he would have found it was an upbeat piece of guitar pop. At least the ironic lyrics were praised, and the single still got a resounding 8 out of 10.

The Blackburn members of the band are songwriter, guitarist and keyboard player Jamie Holman, keyboard player Lee Davies, bassist Ciaran Melia and singer Stacey McKenna. The line-up is completed by Tap on lead guitar and drummer Amos, both of whom are from London.

The band, who released their first single through Preston-based Action Records, have already received play on Radio One's Steve Lamacq show.

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