HOOKING up with Stone Roses producer Paul Schroeder to work on their debut album has been a fulfilment of Motion Picture Soundtrack’s high ambitions.

The epic-sounding Canterbury rock outfit have built a strong following since forming nearly five years ago. Their Verve inspired music has found admirers in many quarters and have garnered comparisons with the likes of Sigur Ros and Editors.

Having played more than 150 gigs around the county, they have enjoyed many highlights including the Kent Music Festival, to supporting alternative chart act Kubb.

To their credit they have emerged stronger from the frustration of narrowly losing out on a major record deal with Warner music and as a signal of their determination in the face of an industry unwilling to take risks, they set out to produce an album financed entirely themselves.

Their towering melodic tunes bristle with quality and, if there’s any justice in the music industry, are destined to set them on the road to stardom.

"We had an amazing time in Copenhagen doing the album and are really pleased with the results," said drummer Graeme Blackwood. "Spending five weeks solid out there really focused the band without the distractions of our other day jobs.

"It was good to be working with a top producer like Paul – we were very flattered that he agreed to wave his production fee in order to help us as we are still unsigned. We would going into the studio often till about 1am and then on into the city which has lots of good late bars, it was an exciting experience."

Having such an experienced producer on hand helped lend an added air of creativity to their sessions. The band may not always have agreed with each other or Schroeder on the final edits of tracks, but the end product justified the often intense discussions which took place.

Taking it to an even further level, they have also sought the production services of Cenzo Townshend, who has worked with everyone from Kaiser Chiefs to New Order.

Now back home they are seeking a new management deal in order to secure a full release for their as yet untitled debut recording. Missing out the first time around has made them re-asses their priorities.

"It was pretty gutting the record deal didn’t come off two years back," said Graeme. "We had a deal from the guy who signed Muse who said he was really interested in us, but he backed out at the last minute.

"That experience made us realise that we had been paying too much attention to playing for what record companies wanted rather than how we had started out playing just for ourselves and the fans," added the 23-year old.

It’s their live performances that have attracted plenty of attention on the Kent scene. The close-knit bond between Graeme and his brother Alastair who fronts the group has been a steadying force within their ranks. The brothers, who hail from ay musical family spent most of their early years in Deal and Canterbury.

Influenced by a wide range of sounds, the group’s line-up (including Will Hasler and Nick Watts) finally cemented itself five years ago.

Taking their name from a love of film soundtracks (rather than the Radiohead Track which many suppose) they have honed their sound while studying in the Canterbury.

They now plan to take their startlingly beautiful music on a UK tour but that’s not before they’ve played a home city gig at the Orange Street Club to celebrate the completion of their album.

"There’s such a unique atmosphere there. It’s run by Sam and Adam Smith who we knew from when we were starting out and we’re excited to be playing back there. We’ve always enjoyed playing live, but now that we have a firm set of songs that we really believe in it’s going to make a big difference to our gigs."

Motion Picture Soundtrack play the Orange Street Music Club in Canterbury on Wednesday, November 14. For ticket details contact 01227 760801. Here tracks from their album at www.myspace.com/mps