Former WONDERSTUFF frontman, now solo.

MILES Hunt clatters into a tiny nightclub weighed down with his guitar case. He tucks himself into a corner and begins to change each string after the previous night's hammering.

In a couple of hours, he will play to an audience of one hundred or so, then sign a few autographs and sell his CDs like any regular jobbing musician.
Yet this is the former Wonder Stuff frontman, the brash singer who once teamed up with comedian Vic Reeves for the number one hit Dizzy.
Their sneering hit Unbearable and the gentle romp Don't Let Me Down Gently were among the songs which turned the Stourbridge band into the biggest act from the Midlands during their peak a decade ago.
With his trademark tartan suit and mass of curls, Miles pouted for the cameras and became one of the most distinctive faces in rock music. Then, when the band split six years ago at the height of their fame, he faced a stark choice.
Like hundreds of fallen rock stars before him, he could settle for a normal job, or start from scratch all over again. For those who take the second option, small pokey clubs and tiny audiences lie ahead.
Yet it is hard to forge any solo career when your current status is eclipsed by your former fame. For many of the twenty and thirty-somethings who come to watch him today, it's the old Miles they want, playing their favourite Wonder Stuff hits.
So does he ever feel like pulling the plug on all those songs?
"No not at all. I actually find it funny turning myself into a human jukebox and doing requests that people want," said Miles.
"Those Wonder Stuff songs are a part of me. When I was a kid, my mates would get tired of their records.
"But I would always hang on to all of mine, even some Police single that everyone thought were rubbish.
"I don't care for some of the Wonder Stuff songs and there are others I still really enjoy playing. And the audience wants to hear them. I'm a performer, I've got to be aware of that."
As we sit on the stairs of the club's fire escape, it strikes me that the one-time star is reflecting on the nature of fame. And he is still only 32 years old.
"I have become more gracious towards people," he admits. "If someone came up to me and asked for an autograph, I used to feel really uncomfortable.
"I used to think 'This person knows so much about me and I know absolutely nothing about them'. I just found the situation very strange.
"When I was playing with Wonder Stuff, we would be playing in front of 3,000 people.
"Now I'm playing in clubs, at least I can hear what people are saying," he muses with a smile.
Miles announced the Wonder Stuff split in July 1994, while the band was still riding high with their critically-acclaimed fourth album Construction for the Modern Idiot.
Former members Malcolm Treece, Martin Gilks and Paul Clifford reformed briefly in 1995 as Weknowhereyoulive, while Miles concentrated on his own band Vent, and presenting MTV's 120 Minutes.
His marriage to Radio One DJ Mary Ann Hobbs broke down two years ago, and he now lives on his own in a remote spot near Church Stretton in Shropshire.
Miles started touring in America a year ago and during that time, wrote the songs for his new solo album, Hairy on the Inside. Yet he says he never sought fame.
"It was always about writing and making great songs, not living the rock 'n roll lifestyle and pulling the birds," he said. "I'm very idealistic. That's why I was able to walk away from such a successful band.
"I'm touring within my own restrictions - so it's me carrying my equipment along with my manager.
"But I do want to do something harder with a bass and drummer. We've got rehearsals lined up for next month."
Miles is upbeat as he returns to the club, plunging straight into sound checks two hours before he is due on stage. That distinctive voice seems incongruous in the low key surroundings but he seems committed to his new music - with or without the fame.
Jenny Hudson, Go2Birmingham, July 1999