The Factory has been played on NTS shows including Gilded Sound Reflection, with Path Through The Forest first played on 12 July 2013.

The Factory were a trio of 17-year-olds from Surrey in England at the height of flower power in 1967. Originally named Souvenir Badge Factory, the line-up consisted of Ian Oates (guitar), Jack Brand (vocals, bass) and Bill MacLeod (drums). "Why don't you come and see us play" said The Factory to Brian Carroll at a party during the summer of love. The group were lucky. Brian and his friend Damon Lyon Shaw worked for IBC, the leading independent recording studios in London and they were looking for a band to record for their newly formed production company, Homegrown Music. They were both recording engineers who had worked with such legends as Jimi Hendrix, The Who, The Rolling Stones, Cream, Status Quo and many more. Surrounded by all this talent the engineers decided they had to find a raw young group that could use the knowledge they had learnt. Brian went to see the band and although only 21 himself, he was impressed by the energy from these teenagers.

Time was spent searching for a debut single and finally they came upon an obscure track by Clifford T. Ward called "Path Through The Forest". Backed by the B-side "Gone", a cover version of a track by Paul Revere & The Raiders, the record was released by CBS.

Their second single "Try A Little Sunshine" came from a meeting of the band with John Pantry, a talented writer who was also an engineer at IBC and ended up doing lead vocals on both tracks of the single. The words to "Try A Little Sunshine" was a peaceful message that worked against the band in an anti-drug society. With the ballad "Red Chalk Hill" as the B side, and released on MGM records, "Try A Little Sunshine" took many years to be appreciated as a statement of the times.

Both singles failed to chart. Disillusioned, the young group disbanded shortly afterwards. Its members went on to other things and today are all successful in their own careers.

The Factory were a sixties band from L.A. featuring Lowell George before he was in Little Feat. The band released two singles in 1967, "Smile, Let Your Life Begin" and "No Place I'd Rather Be", the latter together with percussion legend Emil Richards. The archival compilation "Lightning-Rod Man" contains two tracks produced by Frank Zappa.

Much like predecessors New York Dolls, Stooges and Dead Boys, The Factory burned like a roman candle, then disappeared into the night. The Washington D.C. band ruled the roost for a stint in the late 80's/early 90's, opening for Iggy Pop, The Ramones, Public Image, Ltd., and Johnny Thunders - turning the heads of both fans and music industry reps along the East Coast.

Led by Vance Bockis (formerly of The Obsessed, 9353 and doom metal gods Pentagram), The Factory ratcheted through songs of juvenile lust, drugs and working class bravado. They were a brash extension of late 1970's Rolling Stones, picking up where the strut and sneer of Some Girls and Tattoo You left off, creating an explosive concoction of straight ahead Rock n' Roll, Glam, Punk and R&B.