Interview w/ Lazybones

Hey guys! Thanks so much for taking the time out of your busy schedule to do this interview, been wanting to interview you for a while!

First questions first, I know it can be a repetitive one. BUT how did you start together?

We all met whilst playing in other bands around Brighton and after some alcohol-fueled conversations about music we decided to get together and make some noise…the rest is history!

Although you’ve released a few tracks, you guys have only been together since the back end of last year, which I find incredible to believe as you seem to have you sound nailed down. Did you to click together as fast as it seems?

Yeah pretty much! We had a clear vision of what we wanted to sound like before we even got in a room together which helped things move along. It’s important for us to all be on the same page and to be ruthless when it comes to choosing what songs to keep and what songs to drop as we write in order to keep things in line with how we want to sound, so the whole thing is quite a refined group process.

You’ve gained a lot of momentum really early on, with being featured in the XYZ magazine and supporting DEAD! Do you think it’s moving fast and why do you think that is?

Those things are both great but for us it doesn’t feel like it’s moving all that fast – it’s moving in the right direction though for sure! I think it’s partly because we’ve all been playing in other bands for years, we’ve learned a lot along the way and are trying our best to not make the same mistakes again. We’re in this for the long haul and want to do things the right way.

On the conversation of DEAD! What was it like supporting them? I’m a big fan of the boys and it would be cool to get an inside scoop on what it was like.

Those guys were cool yeah, it was fun to play with them! They’re pretty energetic on stage which is always exciting to watch too. It’s good to play with a band who are out there doing the same kind of things we want to achieve.

I first heard of you when you released your song ‘Snake’ which I really enjoyed, the whole fast paced in your face feel of it all was intense. Where do you pull your influences from as a band?

Thanks! We are all in to lots of different things but we’re definitely inspired by bands who can walk that line between intense and accessible, the bands who have a DIY approach with pop sensibilities.

Which leads me onto your new single ‘Crazy’ which was released yesterday, 2nd March! Can we expect more of the same from you, or will this song see a shift in gear?

It’s a bit of a shift in gear yeah. It’s not as raw sonically as our first two singles, but packs more of a punch at the same time. ‘Crazy’ is a great representation of where we are at right now and where we are heading as a band – it’s got one of those riffs that we hope will get stuck in your head for days whether you like it or not!

You’re having the Single Launch in Brighton at The Prince Albert on 12th March, which is a venue I unfortunately haven’t been to. Just wondering why you’ve chosen to have it there?

We wanted to do our single launch with a local promoter and Hot Wax and Tigmus have been putting on some really good local band showcases at the Prince Albert for a while now so it seemed like the right choice. It’s a nice pub too.

On that night you have Murmur, Murder Boys and Ragweed supporting you. Have you played with these guys before, and are you looking forward to playing alongside them?

We haven’t played with any of them before but have collectively checked them out at other gigs – we’re really excited to have them playing with us as they’ve all been rightfully getting a lot of love from the Brighton scene recently.

With you hailing from the amazing City that is Brighton, home to so much culture and wonderful places! I also know the music scene is doing fairly well down there! Do you think the Brighton music scene is relatively healthy, and are there any acts we should be keeping an out for?

Yeah it’s great down here for live music. You can go out any night of the week and be spoilt for choice of what band to go and watch! Brighton gets a bit of a bad rep for placid crowds – everyone standing there with their arms crossed looking miserable  – we see this a lot but it just makes us even more hungry to win them over. Acts to look out for, you should be listening to Gender Roles, Clt Drp, Projector, & Sick Joy…

A bit left field but I love asking this question. Last year was a great year for music, which albums really stood out to you, and is there any that influenced you?

Sure, there’s a few that stood out to us:

Candi: I absolutely love ‘Something to tell you’ from HAIM. I’m a big fan of the band and their catchy melodies/vocal arrangements, and this album brought that and even more. It’s a singalong fave for sure!

Joe: ‘Murder of the Universe’ by King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard is a great listen. It’s my favourite from the 5 they released last year.

Sam: ‘Strange Peace’ by Metz. It’s noisy and weird and I like it.

Finally, with 2018 still in its infancy, what will make this a successful year for Lazybones, and what do you want to achieve this year?

There’s more new music on the way, there’s more gigs to announce, it’s all looking very exciting. In terms of what we want to achieve, we want to be taking our music to new cities and share stages with even more great bands!

Thanks so much for taking the time out to do the interview, hopefully I will get to see you this year!

Interview w/ Average Sex

 

Photo by Agne Papievyte

Ahead of their show in Birmingham, I managed to get to speak to Sam and Laetitia from East London band Average Sex! After having a lot of success in past two years, we discussed what 2018 has to hold for them and much more. 

So 2017 was quite a hectic year for you guys with the release of your EP Ice Cream and playing a lot of shows including getting to play alongside The Charlatans! How was it having this jam packed 2017, and out of everything were there any other highlights?

Sam: Yeah there’s been so many, Other than the tour the biggest highlight was being asked to travel to Barcelona to shoot a cameo in an Indonesian movie being filmed there. 

Also when you’re touring a lot you get the chance to play with a lot of bands, which bands stood out to you, and would you like the chance to play with again?

Sam: Yeah we made loads of friends on tour, I really enjoyed Spinning Coin and Cabbage. Hopefully our paths cross again.

Laetitia: It was also great to meet and play with Brix & The Extricated, the Blinders and the adorable Tom Mouse Smith. To be fair, all the bands we played with were super good and I felt very lucky to share a stage with them.

Releasing an EP can be a very taxing experience sometimes especially when you can’t get the sound you want or it just taking a very long time. How was the experience for you, did you face any problems?

Sam: Not at all, we worked in quite a relaxed way! We recorded it back in July with our friend Ric James and it was a lot of fun! 

Laetitia: Recording was quite laid back, we went with the flow and didn’t stress too much about it. 

On the subject of your EP, how do you think it was received? Were you guys happy with the overall project, is there anything you would’ve done differently?

Sam: I think it’s gone really well, the 12″ sold out in Rough Trade East and Piccadilly Records in the first weekend! All the reviews have been great and it’s also gotten a lot of radio play on BBC 6 music and Radio X. 

Laetitia: It seems like people liked the EP. I’m super happy with it but now I can’t wait to release new songs. Sam and I have been writing so much since these first 4 that are on the EP! I feel like we are in a totally different place now. It’s very exciting.

Going slightly off topic, just would love your opinion on this as I’ve been asking other bands. 2017 was a good year for music, were there any records that really stood out for you and played a part in the bands sound last year?

Sam: I’m not too sure who played a part in our sound as such, but my favourite album of 2017 is probably The Courtney’s II by The Courtney’s. 

Laetitia: Two records released in 2017 that I bought and love are Slowdive’s Slowdive and First Hate’s A prayer for the Unemployed, although we sound nothing like them. But I’m sure I will think of more stuff tomorrow and regret not mentioning them.

You’ve got this Birmingham show on 24th January at the Hare and Hounds, is this the first time playing Birmingham before, and are you looking forward to it?

Sam: We played there earlier this year supporting Hungry Ghosts at their single launch, looking forward to playing there again. 

Laetitia: Love Birmingham, can’t wait to go back!

Finally, 2018 is staring at us right in the face, what have you got planned for the year and what do you look forward to doing the most?s

Sam: I’m looking forward to getting in the studio, we’ve got lots of big things in the pipeline which we’ll be announcing pretty soon! 

Laetitia: I’m not sure what we’re allowed to talk about yet, but I can’t wait to play in Paris, my hometown, and I’m also looking forward to playing festivals and releasing our next single.

Thanks so much for taking the time to complete the interview guys I really appreciate it, I look forward to seeing you in 2018!

Interview by Alex Wise @AJWise

10 Questions for I See Rivers!

First things first how did you come to be?

We’re all from different parts of Norway, but we didn’t meet before we all moved to Liverpool to study music. We formed the band quite quickly, as we spent all time hanging out with each other in the first place.

What genre of music would you say you play?

Our music floats somewhere between pop and folk, and we therefor invented our own genre “Float Folk”.

Which bands/artists do you take influences from?

We listen to quite a lot of different music, but a lot of our influences comes from bands such as Fleet Foxes, Feist, Sufjan Stevens and Bon Iver.

Best venue you’ve ever played and why?

We’ve been super lucky to play some crazy beautiful venues, but Olympia Theatre in Dublin is our definite favourite! We played there last April while we were on tour with Newton Faulkner – the venue is absolutely breath taking and the audience were super lovely.

Best gig you’ve ever attended?

We played Green Man Festival last summer and we saw Edvard Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros play the main stage. We’ve never seen anyone with such a massive amount of charisma on stage and the band was amazing! (AND we also got to witness an actual proposal in the audience – it was magical)

A band you would most like to support and why?

Sufjan Stevens! (We love you, man…)

 

A band that you would like to work with?
Fleet Foxes (imagine the crazy harmonies..!)

Top five albums you’ve ever heard?

In no particular order:

Sufjan Stevens – Carrie & Lowell

Bon Iver – 22, A Million

Andy Shauf – The Bearer of Bad News

Jónsi – Go – Advance

Siri Nilsen – Alle Snakker Sant

 

Biggest accomplishment as a band/solo artist?

We’re so incredibly proud of our upcoming EP ‘Standing Barefoot’ which we’ll be releasing on April 21^st! It was a really lovely experience recording and making the EP with our good friends Owain Jenkins and Toby Couling in Wales, Liverpool and London. It has been a great experience for us to be involved in the whole process from actually being in the studio to producing and mixing  the EP (with very good help, of course!).

What’s next in the pipeline?

First up is the release of the EP (which we’re celebrating at St. Luke’s Church in Kentish Town, London), but then we’ll be going on tour in May (we can’t tell you where just yet, but keep an eye out!) before playing some lovely festivals this summer such as Belladrum in Scotland (05.08) and Sørøyrocken in Northern Norway (27.07)

Thanks for taking the time to take on the 10 questions guys!

‘DA RAM’, single: https://soundcloud.com/i-see-rivers/da-ram-single

‘DA RAM’ [Official Video]: https://youtu.be/bPLl1CYOIZ4

Facebook: www.facebook.com/iseerivers

Interview: Wild Smiles, talk about their new song, and what’s to come!

WFM: Hello guys, before we start would just like to say that we’re big fans of your style, nice to hear something like this again!

Thanks, that means a lot. When you share things you’ve worked on in can be daunting cause you have no idea how people will react!

 

WFM: Before we start the interview, what are your top 3 albums and why?

I can’t speak for the other two as we all have different tastes but for me.

Nirvana – Nevermind. It’s probably the only album that i always go back and love. I really remember my friend from school playing me Teen Spirit and from then i knew i wanted to play guitar.

Beach Boys – Pet Sounds. An album that with each listen you find something new. What they managed to achieve on that album is amazing – amazing singers and great musicians!

Elliot Smith – XO – Its my favourite moment at this point in time, again amazing songwriting. Chords, melodies and lyrics are on another level!

 

WFM: Right now we can start! So how did Wild Smiles start out?

 

Wild Smiles started as a recording project. I had just come out of a band and i fancied giving singing ago so i wrote some songs for fun. I then wanted to make it more of a band so i had to look for people. Joe is my brother so he was easy to find but finding a drummer was difficult where we are from. I was walking home from the station and there was a guy trying to get drum students and asked him if he had anyone who would be interested and he said that Ben was a great drummer – which he is, so yeah thats how it ended up us 3!

 

WFM: Cool, I know how hard a drummer can be to find, it’s a huge relief when you find one! Would you say that you’re happy with your debut release and the response it received, or is there an aspect you would have liked to change?

I wouldn’t wanna change it – in this band i’ve tried not to over think anything. We recorded the record in my kitchen and we did the whole album over a month and i’m really proud of it!

 

WFM: The best albums come out of a weird place, like a Kitchen! As this is your debut single, how did you find the recording process? Did you feel like it was long process or did you find it quite easy?

Fool For You was the first song we finished for the album and i remember that one being actually quite different from the original demo to where it is now. Some songs were done in one or two takes and others would take days to figure out what to do with it.

 

WFM: On the topic of recording, who would you guys love to record with?

 

If we had to go record with someone – i think Steve Albini would be great. Other than that we are pretty happy recording at home for now.

 

WFM: Huge fan of his, what he did with the latest Cribs record was special!  ‘Fool For You’ is a very scuzzy song dressed with pop sensibilities, is this something that we can expect from you future releases?

Yeah i would say so, some songs are a bit heavier/darker and some are slower but essentially simple pop songs with heavier guitar.

 

WFM: Who would you say your influences have been for this song?

I’m not sure – the song was written original on acoustic guitar but i think we liked the idea of a really fast in your face song so thats how it ended up that way!

 

WFM: What can we expect after this release, a mini UK tour or will you be looking to get even more material out there?

After Fool For You we will have another single out pretty soon. We are going to be gigging quite a bit for the whole year (fingers crossed)

 

WFM: Final question, most embarrassing thing you have experienced as a band? (Optional)

I personally haven’t had anything but Joe forgot to plug in his bass for a whole show and non of us realised until the end so i guess that wins!

 

WFM: Wow! Well at least you know if he can’t make a gig, you could probably still get away with playing it! Thanks for taking part guys!

Thanks for having us guys!!

Chris

 

INTERVIEW: The Moons frontman Andy Crofts talks about their new song!

With their new single ‘Heart and Soul’ due to be released, we caught up with the frontman of The Moons, Andy Crofts, to see what inspired their new song, what we can expect from their new album and his musical icons!

WFM: Hello Guys, cheers for agreeing to this interview, really like upcoming single ‘Heart and Soul’ very Bolan-esque

Andy: Thanks!

WFM:  So before we start, your top 3 albums and why

Andy: Tough one but here’s a few

1) The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds

Because it musically blows nearly everything away in pop culture. It’s the most beautiful record and opened my eyes in songwriting

2. Air – Moon Safari

From the moment I heard this album it blew my mind. Kind of like a cross between electronica, serge gainsbourg and The Beach boys. It’s a pretty old album now but still is a work of art. Analogue heaven

3. The Bees – Free the bees

It’s a modern classic and the best production. It contains possibly my favourite song called “I Love You”. It really is an amazing piece of art by a very underrated band.

Andy: As I said, I haven’t even touch upon the huge list of favourites but I have chosen 3 quickly for you.

WFM: One last one before we officially start! Musical Icon and why?

Andy: I guess it would have to be David Bowie. The musical kameleon who ever changes into the unknown. His mixture of music, art and fashion was unbelievable.

WFM: Right, so what brought you guys together? Have you got a weird but wonderful tale behind the band?

Andy: The Moons started as a solo thing for me. I had a bunch of demos and uploaded them onto the Internet. I didn’t want to be “Andy Crofts” so I used The Moons instead as I thought it gave me more freedom.

After the songs had been online I had loads of good feedback and mojo magazine picked up on one of my instrumentals “intermission tag” so it all started there. No weird or wonderful tale i’m afraid

WFM: So what is the new song about? Does it have an interesting backstory?

Andy: I don’t ever plan to write about things in my songs. They just fall out of me and I string them together. This one turned out to be about a woman, a temptress who pulls you in so easily with her auora and looks. She pulls you in and spits you out stealing your heart and soul along the way.

WFM: How did you find the recoding process of the song, was it pretty simple or was it a song that you wanted to get perfect so a lot of time was spent on it?

Andy: It was pretty simple yeah. I just recorded most of the song at home in the lunar studio and took the rest into the studio for the band to work on. I bashed the music together quickly and the words came a little later on this one. A song like this doesn’t require much time to make. It’s rock n roll and it is what it is. It’s not my best song by far but it’s groovy and sounds like Bowie and Bolan so I’m happy!

WFM: On the topic of recording, who would you guys love to record with?

Andy: I don’t rate many producers at the moment and that’s why I did our new album myself. I do love the work of Paul Butler from The Bees though and his work is outstanding. I also like that lad out of Tame Impala, Kevin is it? He really shook things up over the last few years but generated lots of copycats. I think I like the idea of another band/artist mixing my record instead of a producer. Although i really would love I work with Quincy Jones and George Martin.

WFM: Like we said your song is very Bolan-esque which we think is brilliant but we believe is a genre that doesn’t get exposed enough, would you agree?

Andy: You could say that but I guess it’s because a lot if it was rubbish. Heart and Soul is a deliberate nod at bowie and bolan. I’m not hiding that at all! I love some of that glam stuff and it’s all I had been listening to when I write the song. I literally plugged in my rickenbacker and played through the song in nearly one take. It had to go In this direction it wouldn’t have sounded good any other way. It’s not a pastiche song it’s me tipping my hat to my favourite artists

WFM:  Is this what we can expect more of from your upcoming album ‘Mindwaves’?

Andy: In some places yes but mainly no. The album is full of many different colours and varied tracks. There is certainly a sense of the moons moving forward for sure and the songwriting remains strong like our other albums. That’s something the moons take pride in, good solid songs. A lot of my influences show through in this record. You will be getting a taste of space age, love and gothic harpsichords but all wrapped up in the sweetest melodies.

WFM: I understand that you guys have created a bit of a fan base for yourselves, is that something you find quite hard to do, or did the fans seem to come pretty easily?

Andy: Some bands are lucky and find their feet super fast. A good label comes along and puts shit loads of money into an average band and pretty much puts them straight out there. Us on the other hand have been doing our own thing for a while now. Maybe it’s because we dont compromise with what’s in or not, I dont know. I personally have tried to keep a connection with our fans and show them inside our music and videos. The thing with the Internet is people find it easy to “like” something and then forget about it. With the moons I find we have an honest fanbase of cats who really appreciate our music. It’s tough times for bands so we care about them a lot. Our fanbase continues to grow pretty quick and I think a lot of it is word of mouth with the moons. That’s great with me and we are not a fad band, we are here to make a catalogue of our art.

WFM: So you guys are embarking on a UK tour soon, are there any places you particularly love playing, or just all of them?

Andy : We love playing anywhere. We haven’t played live for a good while now as I was writing the album and washing my hair etc. We are doing a few off the beaten track dates this march/April but will be doing a bigger tour including Europe after our album comes out in July. We really like playing the European shows as u find the audience really wants to listen over there and do to spend too much time trying to be cool. In general though it’s always a buzz to play live and wake people up.

You can catch the band playing live on these dates:

MARCH

25^th         HULL                     Fruit

26^th         YORK                     Duchess

28^th         STOCKTON          Georgian Theatre

29^th         DUNDEE               Buskers

APRIL

3^rd           NOTTINGHAM     Bodega Social

4^th            LEICESTER          Soundhouse

5^th            BRISTOL               The Lanes

Their new single will be released 31st March, but you will be able to read the review of it HERE on 25th March!

INTERVIEW: THE Frankly’s talk about their new single and being women in a patriarchal Industry

WFM: Hello guys! Thankyou for agreeing to do this interview! Really like your music, especially your upcoming single ‘Puppet’, because of how heavy it is.

Jen: Thank you! We like mixing heavy with fun which I think we captured in ‘Puppet’.

WFM: Before we start, top 3 albums and why?

Nicole: 1. the Zombies Odyssey and Oracle. Why, the harmonies are beautiful & the arrangements are so sad and uplifting at the same time, I can always find space in my mind to listen to this album. Once the volume on my record player kept changing, I think this album or my house is haunted.

2. Hawkwind Warrior at the edge of time. Again, another classic that has rock, psych all mixed in one,. I’m not usually a fan of the sax but it works so bloody well.

3. Sonic Youth Daydream Nation: saw them back at M.I.T. In Boston, blew me away and changed my perception on making music

Jen: Wow, that’s a tough one! 3 of my favourites for sure are:

1) Mando Diao- Hurricane Bar – This was my first true love in rock music. It really takes me back places. Many happy memories!

2) Beatles- Rubber Soul – It’s just such a lovely record, and so different to all the other ones Beatles did. I just love it!

3) Queens Of The Stone Age- Lullabies to Paralyze – Every song on this album makes me want to get up and swing my hair around. My favourite QOTSA album by far!

WFM: And you’re musical icon and why? Sorry just questions we enjoy asking because of the answers we get!

Nicole: I have no Icons, too overrated and most of them are dead and for that I can’t have a dead Icon. Sorry, lame answer…

Jen: Debbie Harry. I would marry her in a heartbeat! No other reason other than that she’s amazing.

WFM: Okay, now we can start! How did the band come to be?

Nicole : We met up in London, brought together by various happenings. The band had had a few songs before I joined. When I got behind the drums it just took off. It was that moment when you know, shit, this is really good…we have different influences but it so works.

Jen: We all met in London and formed The Frankly’s in late 2011. Me and Fanny have known each other since lower school and started playing music together in our mid teens. We moved to London when we were 19, and met Zoe & Nicole a few years later. Though we’re from 3 different parts of the world, it just works so well.

WFM: We really enjoyed your previous song ‘My Love’ and now we’re hooked on your new one ‘Puppet’, so we’re just wondering what sort of bands influenced that?

Nicole: Both Puppet and My Love just came together in a jam. We had no intentions with either song. When we write, sometimes one will have a riff, but we build together. We all encourage each other in parts with suggestions. It’s great, with egos aside we can work as a team to get the best sound. We never have an influence and say, “We need to sound like this” if we did that, I don’t think we would be writing this interview. It would be too contrived and honestly not real. Glad you like them..!!

Jen: Thank you. We have so many different influences, it’s actually really hard to start name dropping bands. When we write songs, it just kinda happens. We never really have a plan, we jam, everyone has their input and the finished result is usually something new and unique. We always like to keep each song different from the other, mixing a lot of our different influences into one melting pot. I can’t actually say what or who influenced us in writing ‘Puppet’, it just came naturally!

WFM: How did you find the recording process of your new song?

Nicole: The recording process was fun. We recorded for the first time on 2” tape, for me, being the drummer, it’s a lot of pressure as I have to be spot on from start to finish. I do get a bit stressed as I can mess with my head if I think to hard when playing. We put backing vocals on and had a listen back and were like, nah…doesn’t work. We’re all on the same page most of the time. I know we have definite ideas of our sound and some may say we are opinionated but hey, we want the best result and won’t settle for less.

Jen: Real fun! We recorded on 2″ tape for the first time at Fish Factory, same place where we did our EP. Kinda feels like our second home now!

WFM: On the topic of recording, who would you like to record with?

Nicole: I don’t know..never really thought about that. I know there’s a place in Wales I would like to record at. It’s a small village and you go there for however long, 2 weeks, set up home & the studio and record when ready. To me that would be ideal as we could jam new material and write off the cuff without the pressures of time constraints.

Jen: I think Josh Homme would be the perfect producer for our album. I reckon he’d know exactly what to do with us.

WFM:  Is there any back-story to the song, or was it just out of the blue?

Nicole: Outside of the vocals, it came out of jamming. Jen has a journal of lyrics where she pulls from, they’re her life experiences. Once we hear the vocal pattern, melody, we all get a feel for the tempo and aggressiveness needed.

Jen: The lyrics are about the emotional game of keeping someone hanging and hanging. I think almost everyone has experienced this at some point in their lives.

WFM: We really like the fact that you are a band of girls, because it’s something you rarely see especially in rock/indie music. Do you think this is something that is slowly being turned now with the introduction of bands like Haim and Savages?

Nicole: Yeah, I think it’s great that there are bands like Savages etc…I still think it is very hard for girls in the all boys club. To be taken seriously is hard work. We are never going to sell ourselves in a sexual way, and we are going to continue to create music from inside that can be boy music or girl music. I really hope that the industry takes girl bands into consideration. I mean, we’re multi-taskers, sensitive yet sensible hard workers Men are too but girls have a different type intuition that can’t be replaced by the other sex. I want to see men and girls supporting more girl bands and stop idolising the “the boy band”. Come on girls, go out and support the girl bands making real music you like!! its 2014, it’s about time we’re equal. It makes me think about Wimbledon tennis Championships, why do the men get paid more than the women for doing the same thing. Definitely not fair!

Jen: Possibly. It’s great to see that more and more female bands are popping up, meaning that the music industry actually does care about women in music.

WFM: We know that the music industry is considered to be one of the most patriarchal businesses out there, have you encountered any of this behavior so far?

Nicole: Yeah, as in the above, it’s hard but we’re going to stick to our guns and let the music speak for itself. In that, I feel we can turn around the perception the business has of women. “We can do it!!”

Jen: Absolutely. We love men, but sometimes they love themselves a bit too much as well. Being a woman in the music biz definitely has its ups and downs. I think the biggest issue is that people don’t expect the same thing from women as they do from men. In the end we’re playing music just like any other band and I wish it wouldn’t be so much about the gender.

WFM: We discovered that you toured America, what was that like?

Nicole: Its was freakin’ good!! I’m the American so it was great to show my best friends, my band mates, where I come from & all the great food!!! While we were over there it was Halloween, and the Americans really know how to celebrate. The music scene is really supportive out there, especially the smaller towns. People thrive on touring bands from outside the US and really show an appreciation. We can’t wait to go back. My dad is working on a tour, haha – all thorough word of mouth..he’s not in the music biz if that’s what you’re thinking, he’s just a cool guy, a mad Italian, who loves me and the band!

Jen: America was amazing in every way! The crowd, the food, the people. It was a dream come true. Definitely want to go back soon!

WFM: We know you will be playing the Yard Life Festival this year, is there anywhere else we can expect to see you?

Nicole: Yes, we’re looking forward to Yard Life, I have 2 family members with MS so for me, this is a very personal appreciation to play. We are also going to be taking the stage at Strawberry Fields Festival. We are so psyched! We are looking to do a UK tour and have had offers of bookings in Berlin, just trying to work out funds, as the story goes. We’ll be in London playing various clubs, come & say hello, we’d LOVE it!!

Jen: Yes, plenty of shows coming up actually! Next up is our Single Launch on April 2nd at Barfly in Camden. We also just announced we’re playing the Main Stage at this year’s ‘Strawberry Fields Festival’ in August. You should come!

WFM: I will try to make it! If my bank account lets me! Thank you ever so much girls for the interview, all the best with your new single.

Interview carried out by Alex Wise @al4563

You can listen to their debut EP here.

Their new single Puppet will be released on 20th March, catch the review here!

 

INTERVIEW: OhBoy! Talk about their NEW EP!

We caught up with OhBoy! to talk about their new EP, along with their love of music.

WFM: Hello guys, just wanna say a big hello from everyone here at WFM and big congratulations on the EP, it’s a fine piece of work!

OhBoy!:  Hello!
Thankyou, You’re very kind.

WFM: Before we start the interview, what are your top 5 albums and why?

OhBoy!: There is only four of us, so to avoid squabbling we’ll do top 4 Albums.

Nicola’s choice- ‘Live through this’ by Hole. The soundtrack to my teenage years.
Learning to play this album helped to suppress many a teenage tantrum.

Jay’s Choice- ‘The Blue Album’ by Weezer.
Underated now against Pinkerton due to overplay, but speaks perfectly to an alienated youth.

Mark’s choice- ‘Abbey Road’ by The Beatles.
The perfect album in my opinion. It inspires me to make music.

Lee’s choice- ‘Control’ by Pedro the Lion.
Great melodic songwriting mixed with lyrics about misery, despair, sex and divorce. What’s not to like?

WFM: And one final question before we officially start, your musical icons and why?

OhBoy!: Brian Wilson, because he’s possibly the best pop songwriter of all time.
Kim Deal, because she’s badass.
Jonny Marr, because after all this time he still doesn’t seem like a dick.

WFM: Right now we can start! How did you guys come together then? Where did the journey begin?

OhBoy!: I wish there were some magical tale of destiny and triumph through adversity that brought us together….but in all honesty it probably just came down to a shared love of The Pixies, silly voices and alcohol.
Also we all wanted to be in a really great band.

WFM: Your new EP sounds really Lo-fi, similar to Pavement and the likes, were these guys a key influence to the EP? And which other ones are there?

OhBoy!: There is definitely a Pavement influence to the EP. There’s also a dollop of Sonic Youth in there,  a sprinkling of Yo La Tengo , and just a hint of The Jesus and Mary Chain.

WFM: Do you feel lo-fi indie music from the UK has taken a back seat, and why do you think this is?

OhBoy!: With the right Plug-ins just about anybody can make a record that sounds slick and get it played on the radio.

WFM: As this is your debut EP, how did you find the recording process? Did you feel like it was long process or did you find it quite easy?

OhBoy!: It was an absolute pleasure. It took us about 25 minutes to record.

WFM: On the topic of recording, who would you guys love to record with?

OhBoy!: We’d love to put someone just slightly outside of their comfort zone.
Someone like Billy Corgan would be great.

WFM: What can expect next from you guys? A mini uk tour? Or another couple of releases?

OhBoy!: We are playing a handful of gigs to celebrate the EP release, including a proper knees up in our hometown of Northampton.
It’s also a good excuse to get some of our favourite new bands to play with us.
Once the hangover has subsided, and the debris has fallen to rest, we’ll be getting the next release ready to go. We think it’s going to rattle a few cages.

You can read the review of their EP here, and their debut EP here.

The band will be playing on Tuesday 25th March as the Actress and Bishop, tickets can be brought through the link below!

http://www.songkick.com/concerts/19724619-double-happy-at-actress-and-bishop?utm_source=3286&utm_medium=partner&utm_campaign=facebook_tab&utm_content=7657349