A ROCK band are aiming to be the first unsigned band in the Top Ten music charts this Christmas.

Steve Diamond, a member of Torn Asunder, said they are fed up with men in suits in the music industry telling people what to listen to.

The five piece - whose members come from Colchester and Witham - have recently recorded their debut studio album with producer Paul Smith, who has worked with acts such as The Darkness, The Pretenders, ELO and Destiny's Child.

Mr Diamond, a helpdesk analyst from Colchester, said: "He's called us one of the best unsigned bands he's heard. That's not bad going at all."

He describes their music as "bog standard old school rock", drawing influences from rock giants such as Guns N Roses, Led Zeppelin and Def Leppard.

"We're planning on around Christmas time releasing a single which all the proceeds will be donated to a kids charity of some kind or another," said the 35-year-old.

"We want to be the only credible alternative to the X-Factor single. We're taking on Simon Cowell and we aim to be only unsigned band to hit the top ten at Christmas."

The guys - who filmed the cover for their album, Fifteen Minutes to Tell the World, at The Grove Shopping Centre in Witham - have also been approached by the organisers of Children in Need to play a gig.