A young Bradford band are set to take the stage with some of the biggest names in rock after winning a competition to appear at one of the summer's major music festivals.

The Silence will appear alongside the likes of Metallica, Blur, System of a Down, Linkin Park and Blink 182 at the Carling Festival in Leeds later this month.

The band, all aged 20 and from Bradford, scooped the chance to a play a set after winning a competition at The Cockpit club in Leeds.

Out of a total of more than 300 hopeful bands, The Silence were chosen to perform at the festival which takes place at Bramham Park, near Wetherby, over the August Bank Holiday weekend.

And they hope the gig could prove the ticket to winning their first record deal.

The band members - Liam Patchett, Danny Yates, Mark Husak and Mark Lewalski - have been tipped for the top since getting together little more than 18 months ago.

Earlier this year, they topped a BBC Radio One internet chart for unsigned bands.

And DJ Steve Lamacq has been championing their three-track LP on his evening show on the same station.

Today Mark Lewalski said The Silence, who liken themselves to Joy Division and The Jam, hoped the festival could be their big break.

"We are a hell of a lot closer to making it than we have been before, but we don't pretend we are fully ready for the big time yet," he said. "It will be great to mix backstage with some of the really big bands like the Thrills and the Libertines.

"We've got to go to town on this gig and really use it to our advantage. The last couple of bands who won the competition and played at the festival have gone onto really big things and got record deals from it."

The band have spent most of the year writing new material and playing gigs, including two successful shows in London.

Mark Husak said: "It was great to play a new crowd and we were amazed by the response from the audiences in London; I don't think they expect anyone to be much good if they've come down from Bradford.

"It has really given us a boost of confidence and we have had plenty of promoters and record companies paying an interest in us."

The band are waiting to hear which day they will be performing at the festival which runs from August 22 to 24.