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First issue!!TRANSCRIPT
-
DEAD ROADS
POST WAR YEARS
LIZ & THE LIGERS
-
JervoiseJackets
Pages 12-14
-
3WHITE LIES
Pages 6-9
The Life ofReilly
Page 5
POST WARYEARSPages 10-11
JervoiseJackets
Pages 12-14
DEADROADS
Pages 16-22
Lizand theLigers
Pages 24-29
Kevin Tuffyand The
ColdHarbourBand
Pages 30-33
STYLEICONS
Pages 34-42
TheAutumnkind
Pages 44-47
TheA-Train
Pages 48-51
MYECHOPages 52-55
TheBon
VivantsPages 56-59
SUNAND
BASSPages 60-63
REVIEWS
Pages 64-65
A Tweetfor the
ears
Pages 66-67
-
4
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The Life of
ReillyIn this issue, Claire Reilly meets White Lies, Post War Years and Zoe Graham of Jervoise Jackets...
5
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WHITE LIESThe very lovely and talented drummer of the amazing White Lies Jack Lawrence-Brown talks to Itch Illustrated about the band and whats to come in 2010.
6
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7
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Hello Jack, lovely to see you, now lets get startedHow did you guys meet and become the White Lies? The 3 of us have played music together since the age of about 16 in various guises. I have known Charles since I was 5 years old, and we used to go to a music school together when we were about 10 or 11 on the weekends, fumbling our way through all sorts of musical instruments. We started hanging out with Harry from the age of about 14 and fairly soon after that started playing music together as a band. White Lies started in about September 2007, and marked a point where we all felt we had matured to the stage where we fairly confident in our song writing ability, and were making music we were content with.
What made you chose the name White Lies? Choosing a name is such a weird process. We just wanted something that we didnt feel embarrassed about saying more than anything. We all sat in a pub for a few hours working our way through ideas, and White Lies was the outcome. There is no real reason why, it is a name that just suited the band.
What/who are youre musical and lyrical inspirations? As a band we dont often share the same musical inspi-rations. We each have our own favourite musicians and lyricists which inform the way we write and play music. When we started out playing music together, Talking Heads were the single music important band. When recording the debut album we listened to lots of Scott Walker, and lots of The Secret Machines debut album (Now Here Is Nowhere). Personally, The National are my all time favou-rite band. They possess amazing lyrical and musical depth, and have really carved out a brilliantly recognisable sound that is entirely individual.
8
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What kind of process do you have when you are writing new songs?It differs a bit on the record in the way the songs were written. The only real constant so far is that Charles writes the lyrics. Then usually Harry and Charles will work on a piano at Harrys house a basic melody for the lyrics. Once that is there, we lock ourselves in our practice room and play until we start to form a structure were happy with.
A lot of hype was built up even before the album was released, did you feel the pres-sure? We felt a lot of pressure from ourselves when making the record. The hype hadnt really started by that point. We had long finished making the record by the time a real buzz got going about us. The pressure for us was the fact that wed been given such a big opportunity to make a great record, and we didnt want to let ourselves down, as record-ing an album had been our only really solid goal since starting the band. The label kept coming over to Belgium while we working on the record, which added a bit more pressure. But maybe that helped us focus in end.
You have been touring all around the world, where was your favourite live show and why? There are many great live shows I remember, its hard to pick one. Our second night head-lining the Brixton Academy in December was a ridiculously exciting time for us. That was a moment that felt slightly unreal, playing in such a historic
venue with 5000 people there for us. I think also Glastonbury Other Stage was amaz-ing, though it was a bit too intense to have enjoyed it at the time. 40,000 people watching us, and a lot of cameras. Also, we played a festival in Poland last Summer which we hadnt got very high hopes for, but it turned out to be incredible. That was such an unex-pected triumph that Id say that was probably my favourite gig so far.Have you started thinking about a second album yet? Yes. Charles has written most of the lyr-ics for it already and weve booked in the time in our practice room to go and write it throughout March and April. Were going into the studio with a completely blank slate. Were not really sure what will happen.
What was your highlight from 2009? One of my highlights has to be playing on David Lettermans show in New York. That was an insane moment for us. We were very childish on that day. Also, the release of the album of itself was such a great moment.
And finallywhats new for 2010? Well probably keep it fairly quiet on the gig front this year. Having said that, were on a plane tomorrow to play some shows in Russia and Poland. The main focus if to write and record a second record that we are content with. Maybe some festivals in the Summer too, well have to wait and see. Thank you very much Jack, I look forward to seeing more of White Lies in the future..
Wor
ds
by C
lair
e R
eill
y. I
llu
stra
tion
by
Liz
Sto
tt.
9
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10
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Why the name Post War Years, Does it have a special meaning? We might be
called Post War Years for some deep political reason, but I doubt it. I like the idea that the years after a war are a positive time, all about regeneration and working
together and stuff, but this isnt why were called PWYs either. The real reason? I actually cant remember but I know we were
drunk at the time and thought it was a good idea, so yes; it has a very special meaning. Too special for words.
What sort of genre or style would you say you have? We are heavy, but not like heavy metal. Imagine one of the Wu Tang - lets say the Rza to save argument -
imagine the Rza saying heavy, and thats what we sound like. Heavy.
Where and how do you start writing songs? The way were working at the moment is one of us will demo a new tune in their bedroom, email it to everyone else and
the idea is that at some point we will get in the studio to take it from concept to reality, although this stage hasnt actually happened yet. We havent always
worked this way and whatever we do is always trial and error.
Is there a main songwriter in the group or do you all chip in? I think were quite rare in that all of us are writers and whoever writes the song will take the lead on that number. While this is good as you have more work to choose from and dif-
ferent stylistic ideas thrown in the mix it does mean that we are a bit of
a democracy, which can result in laziness and expenses scandals.
I heard you have chosen to do all the production yourselves, why is that?In the past we chose to take on everything ourselves and this is essentially because we are all control freaks. In truth it was a
bit of a head test though so I think were going to approach it differently
in future...
Reilly is seriously into
drummers this issueI may call this Reillys Drummers. This time
I am chatting with Fred McLaren from the highly diverse Post War Years.
11
Where was your favorite gig so far and why? Its a difficult
choice, our showcase at SXSW in Texas was incredible, the vibe in the room was just perfect
and it felt like nothing could throw us off course. Conversely, playing Brixton Academy was one of the most amazing experiences of my life -
where do you go from there? What an absolute honour to play what is arguably one of the best venues in Britain.
Are you writing anything new at the moment? Yes, we are currently working on our second album, which we will be recording soon. Keep your ears on
your head for more of that in the future...
Are you touring this year or doing any festivals? As we are working in the studio at the moment then the start of the year is fairly quiet, we are playing
some festivals though (Melt festival in Berlin is one were particularly excited about) and you can expect a tour later in the year, possibly with a single to wet
your whistle in preparation for the second album.
So what else is new for Post War Years in 2010? Simon says hes going to learn to drive, I dont think he will.
Words by Claire Reilly. Illustration by Liz Stott.
-
12
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London-based designer Zoe Jervoise is an up and comingnew talent set for a promising 2010. With her eponymous collection Jer-voise, Zoe has showcased her skills for creating unique and distinctive one-offs that have already caught the eye of the Critics Choice Brit Award winner and style icon Ellie Goulding and the fresh new Twilight star Jamie Campbell Bower. Renewal is at the heart of Jervoises style, giving vintage denim or leather jackets, shirts, waistcoats, trousers and t-shirts a new lease of live. When you think of tapestry you may think of your Nan sitting on the sofa with a needle and cotton thread making you a framed Win-nie The Pooh picture but inspired by her mothers art and tapestry designs collected from around the world, Zoe grew up in a world of diverse styles, colour, and quality My Mum has been making tapestry all her life, I never did the patterned ones, we always made up our own designs which makes it more interesting. Surrounded by the countryside and 60s-inspired bold Indian designs, the tapestries take on an almost mythical feel, anything can inspire me, peo-ple inspire me, especially creative people, thats why a lot of the people who wear my jackets are musical or artistic in some way. My designs are very 60s/70s inspired I love the artwork and fashions from that era. Art is an inspiration from modern art to Indian art to Aztec art. Most of Zoes clients to date include musicians and artists each asking her to design something that represents them The Horrors in-spired hauntingly, gothic images; One Night Only influenced spar-kly and flamboyant patterns whilst Marina and the Diamonds was the inspiration behind bright, geometric designs. The strong signature style of Jervoise is constantly attracting the support of musicians by recently be-ing exposed on the NME tour gen-erating more fans in Golden Silvers, Local Natives and Marina & The Dia-monds who went on to commission a limited edition range of bespoke T-shirts which will be available at marinaandthediamonds.com.
Zoe is also branching into films and photography providing herdesigns for costumes.Im in the pro-cesses of doing all new photos and a campaign shoot. Im working with two different people, Max Knight who is a great up and coming photographer I love everything he does, and actress Georgia King who has directed a few short films and I loved her imagery. Im also in the process of doing a line of tapestry denim shirts along with other items. Zoe doesnt want to use fashion models to advertise her cloth-ing range and opts on using Londons up and coming talents I want to use people that are real and can have a natural expression and look, rather then the more generic breed of mod-els. But I guess well see if Im right when its done. Since this interview I have been informed that the beautiful actress Imogen Poots, Jay Jay Pistolet and independent record label Chess Club owner Will Street are getting involved in the campaign.Understanding both the need for renewal and demand for innovative design, it is clear that for the Jervoise label, tapestries are just the begin-ning and using denim as frame allows anyone to feel comfortable in the designs I think denim is something that will always be fashionable and its hard wearing, we can wear it all year round. The denim also gives the tapestry that fashionable update that it needed. Other celebrity clients of Jervoise include George Craig of One Night Only and Burberry fame, Georgina King, Erik Hassel, White Lies, Coco Summer, Local Natives, Gwylum Gold from Golden Silvers, Lady & The Lost Boys, Yes Giantess and Mumford & Sons. It is certainly unusual to see such a traditional technique applied
13
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so effortlessly to cast-off clothing, re-newel is the future of fashion so before you have a wardrobe clear out and through away your old denim jacket send it over to Zoe to get aJervoise make over! Words by Claire Reilly. llustrations by Liz Stott
For Jervoise designs visit www.jervoisejackets.com or email Zoe personally for a special commission at [email protected]
14
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DEAD
ROADS
16
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DEAD
ROADS
If you, li
ke me, ar
e a little
bit bore
d of cer
tain
indie ba
nds tha
t are sou
nding a b
it tame t
o say
the leas
t domin
ating th
e radio,
then yo
u might
be
ready for
a heavie
r alterna
tive. De
ad Roads
are
bringing
vintage
seventi
es rock
to the at
tention
of
many in
search
of somet
hing wit
h real en
ergy and
an unpre
tentious
raw edg
e. Consis
ting of N
eil Fit-
ter, Patr
ick Powe
r-Ryce a
nd Sebas
tian Rod
riguez,
they hav
e been c
ompared
to early
Black S
abbath
and cre
ate a so
und full
of gritty
passion
ate voca
ls,
heavy ro
ck beats
and glor
iously ca
tchy guit
ar riffs
that will
stick in
your he
ad long a
fter you
first
hear th
em.
SHOW
CASI
NG...
17
-
Hello gu
ys! How a
re you?
Sebastian
: Fine t
hanks, f
eeling po
sitive
and cre
ative an
d eager
to get all
the idea
s we
have out
there.
So, what
s the lin
e up of y
our band
, then?
Neil: W
eve got
the mag
ic three
me on g
uitar
and voc
als, Seb
on drum
s and Pa
trick on b
ass
and bits
- we like
to add li
ttle part
s to the
songs
here and
there, b
ut becau
se we wa
nt to kee
p
it as a th
ree we h
ave to ge
t Patrick
hitting a
loop ped
al or stic
king a fr
ee hand
on the s
ynth
when he
can. Seb
backs u
p on voc
als, too.
How did
you all g
et togeth
er?
N: Seb a
nd I met
at uni an
d started
jammin
g
in his ho
use, driv
ing the n
eighbour
s to viole
nce
- in fact,
a lot of t
he music
we play
now has
it
roots in
those ses
sions. Th
en, when
we finis
hed
uni, we
decided
to move
to Lond
on and k
eep
it up. Aft
er a whi
le (and t
wo bass
players a
nd
another
guitar p
layer wh
o didnt w
ork out)
, we
stuck an
ad on Gu
mtree a
nd foun
d Patrick
.
Patrick:
Yeah, I
was look
ing for a
band to
join
on Gumt
ree and
I came a
cross th
ese two.
Origi-
nally I w
as lookin
g to play
lead guit
ar, but I
thought
a bit of c
hange m
ight be i
n order!
Where a
re you a
ll from?
P: Im fr
om Galwa
y in Irel
and. Via
London
.
N: Im p
retty En
glish.
S: Im fr
om Gibra
ltar, a Br
itish colo
ny situa
ted
in the so
uth of Sp
ain, opp
osite Mor
occo. Eth
ni-
cally, my
Dads si
de origin
ated from
Casabla
n-
ca and S
pain whi
lst my M
ums sid
e are fro
m
Genoa a
nd Malta
.
Ok, so w
ho would
you say
are you
r biggest
in-
fluences?
N: Perso
nally, my
influence
s are vas
t. In fact
,
on the M
yspace p
age, I tr
ied to lis
t all the
art-
ists who
se work
has affec
ted me i
n some w
ay
during m
y life an
d I foun
d there
were ab
so-
lutely lo
ads, and
there a
re proba
bly hund
reds
more on
top of t
hat, too.
Guitar-w
ise, the
big-
gest influ
ence is p
robably B
lack Sab
bath th
at
rosy cru
nch and
banshee
howl b
ut I try t
o
keep it ca
tchy. Im
also a bi
g fan of g
reat, dar
k
lyricists
like Nick
Cave, Le
onard Co
hen and
Tom Wai
ts.
S: I inhe
rited my
Dads re
cord coll
ection wh
en
I was 6,
so I have
been for
tunate en
ough to
grow up o
n a healt
hy dose
of Jazz g
reats an
d
superb b
ands lik
e The Ba
nd, Zeppe
lin,
If inspirations
gonna find you, you need
to make sure youre ready for it.
Neil Fitter
18
-
Hello gu
ys! How a
re you?
Sebastian
: Fine t
hanks, f
eeling po
sitive
and cre
ative an
d eager
to get all
the idea
s we
have out
there.
So, what
s the lin
e up of y
our band
, then?
Neil: W
eve got
the mag
ic three
me on g
uitar
and voc
als, Seb
on drum
s and Pa
trick on b
ass
and bits
- we like
to add li
ttle part
s to the
songs
here and
there, b
ut becau
se we wa
nt to kee
p
it as a th
ree we h
ave to ge
t Patrick
hitting a
loop ped
al or stic
king a fr
ee hand
on the s
ynth
when he
can. Seb
backs u
p on voc
als, too.
How did
you all g
et togeth
er?
N: Seb a
nd I met
at uni an
d started
jammin
g
in his ho
use, driv
ing the n
eighbour
s to viole
nce
- in fact,
a lot of t
he music
we play
now has
it
roots in
those ses
sions. Th
en, when
we finis
hed
uni, we
decided
to move
to Lond
on and k
eep
it up. Aft
er a whi
le (and t
wo bass
players a
nd
another
guitar p
layer wh
o didnt w
ork out)
, we
stuck an
ad on Gu
mtree a
nd foun
d Patrick
.
Patrick:
Yeah, I
was look
ing for a
band to
join
on Gumt
ree and
I came a
cross th
ese two.
Origi-
nally I w
as lookin
g to play
lead guit
ar, but I
thought
a bit of c
hange m
ight be i
n order!
Where a
re you a
ll from?
P: Im fr
om Galwa
y in Irel
and. Via
London
.
N: Im p
retty En
glish.
S: Im fr
om Gibra
ltar, a Br
itish colo
ny situa
ted
in the so
uth of Sp
ain, opp
osite Mor
occo. Eth
ni-
cally, my
Dads si
de origin
ated from
Casabla
n-
ca and S
pain whi
lst my M
ums sid
e are fro
m
Genoa a
nd Malta
.
Ok, so w
ho would
you say
are you
r biggest
in-
fluences?
N: Perso
nally, my
influence
s are vas
t. In fact
,
on the M
yspace p
age, I tr
ied to lis
t all the
art-
ists who
se work
has affec
ted me i
n some w
ay
during m
y life an
d I foun
d there
were ab
so-
lutely lo
ads, and
there a
re proba
bly hund
reds
more on
top of t
hat, too.
Guitar-w
ise, the
big-
gest influ
ence is p
robably B
lack Sab
bath th
at
rosy cru
nch and
banshee
howl b
ut I try t
o
keep it ca
tchy. Im
also a bi
g fan of g
reat, dar
k
lyricists
like Nick
Cave, Le
onard Co
hen and
Tom Wai
ts.
S: I inhe
rited my
Dads re
cord coll
ection wh
en
I was 6,
so I have
been for
tunate en
ough to
grow up o
n a healt
hy dose
of Jazz g
reats an
d
superb b
ands lik
e The Ba
nd, Zeppe
lin,
King Crim
son and
Floyd. A
lso, grow
ing up in
Gibralta
r meant
listening
to
Spanish
greats l
ike Toma
tito and
Paco de L
ucia whi
le at the
same tim
e the
increasi
ngly ang
licized c
ulture a
llowed m
e to
explore
bands lik
e Daft Pu
nk and T
he Prodi
gy.
P: Recen
tly, I can
t stop lis
tening t
o the Th
em
Crooked
Vultures
album. T
wo of my
main in
fluenc-
es are L
ed Zeppe
lin and Q
ueens of
the Ston
e Age,
so add t
hem toge
ther and
Im bou
nd to be
amazed.
Neil, you
write th
e songs,
what ins
pires yo
u? Do
you mes
s aroun
d and stu
mble on
a great g
uitar
riff and g
o from th
ere or do
the wor
ds come
first?
N: Mostly
its a ca
se of fum
bling ar
ound on
the
fretboard
until I h
ook onto
somethi
ng. Some
times,
Ill have
a clear id
ea of the
kind of
thing I w
ant to
write, bu
t then Il
l come up
with som
ething
different
. I try to
pick up m
y guitar
every da
y,
even if it
s just fo
r 5 minut
es. If ins
piration
s gon-
na find y
ou, you n
eed to m
ake sure
youre r
eady
for it. As
far as ly
rics go,
I usually
just ad-l
ib until
If inspirations
gonna find you, you need
to make sure youre ready for it.
Neil Fitter
19
-
I find th
e right w
ords, If n
ot, I hav
e books
of scribb
lings an
d ideas th
at I can
plunder
to get me
started.
S: Lyrica
lly its rea
lly intere
sting to
see how
some so
ngs form
from wha
t Neil wa
s ad-
libbing a
t the tim
e- as if h
es posse
ssed by
some gh
ost or oth
er or as
if meani
ng was
already
there an
d hes ju
st pickin
g up on i
t.
What ha
s been y
our best
gig to d
ate and
why?
N: We re
cently pl
ayed a sh
owcase
at Liqui
d
Nation in
Ladbrok
e Grove,
which g
ener-
ated som
e industr
y intere
st.
What do
you thin
k of the
music in
dustry a
t
the mom
ent?
N: Well, n
obody wa
nts to p
ay for mu
sic
these da
ys, becau
se nobod
y has to.
And if
they do p
ay for it,
its usual
ly just to
down-
load one
song for
80p, as
oppose to
a whole
album fo
r a tenn
er. Even
this will
fall by
then. I do
nt think
this is s
uch a tra
gedy, as
it gets yo
ur songs
out the
re easily
, which
is the mo
st import
ant thin
g. It also
keeps
bands ho
nest, bec
ause if th
ey want
money
theyre g
onna ha
ve to ear
n it by a
ctually
playing g
igs, and
getting a
live per
for-
mance c
onsisten
tly right
is the mo
st
difficult
thing.
Where d
o you th
ink the
best mu
sic has
been driv
en from?
N: Eithe
r celebr
ating sa
lvation o
r lament-
ing damn
ation.
How do y
ou feel yo
ur music
will fit i
n with
the mus
ic scene
at the mo
ment? Y
our
tradition
al rock s
tyle is q
uite diff
erent an
d
much he
avier th
an most c
urrent b
ands,
yet your
songs ar
e just as
catchy, d
o you
feel that
will help
you stan
d out bu
t still
appeal to
a wide a
udience?
For exa
mple
like how
The Wh
ite Strip
es achie
ved mai
n-
stream s
uccess?
N: Id ho
pe that
were do
ing the s
ame as
any goo
d band d
oes, whi
ch is to t
ake a mu
-
sical roo
t and de
velop it
in their o
wn way
for today
. Obvious
ly, a lot o
f our dire
ction
stems fro
m Britis
h rock c
irca 197
0, but we
dont ju
st want
to emulat
e that. W
e want
to take t
he best p
arts of it
and inte
grate
it into an
original
modern
sound. To
what ex
tent we
succeed
is not for
us to
judge, I s
uppose.
As far a
s todays
music sc
ene goes
, Im not
sure wh
ere
wed fit i
n, but
its clear
there a
re
other ba
nds out
there w
ith
a
similar
sentimen
t, even if
it
s not the
big tren
dy thing
at
this ver
y mome
nt. That
s
O
K, though
, as a ne
w band
sh
ould be w
riting stu
ff for ne
xt
year
, not for
this wee
k.
S: I t
hink the
res alwa
ys room
for
good
music,
whateve
r it may
be. So
meone o
nce said
that to
work
is to
charge a
ll things
you fash
ion
with a br
eath of y
our own
spirit. W
hen
we play l
ive, the
audienc
e can fee
d off
what the
music d
oes to u
s but wh
ether
your liste
ning to D
ead Roa
ds live o
r on
your hi-fi
or iPod,
Ive foun
d that th
e
buzz we
get at reh
earsal w
hen the
song
starts to
take for
m usual
ly transc
ends
to the lis
tener. So
as long
as we ke
ep do-
ing this,
I think t
here will
be room
.
You rec
ently go
t played
on BBC 6
music
on the T
om Robin
son intr
oducing s
how,
how did
that com
e about
and did
any-
thing co
me of it a
s a resul
t?
Im a big
fan of B
BC 6mus
ic, I thin
k Tom
Robinso
ns show
is a rea
lly good
thing
for unsig
ned acts
. I mean,
to have
an
accessib
le BBC r
adio stat
ion that
takes
you seri
ously is
really en
couragin
g for
any new
artist
and its
always n
ice to
hear you
r name m
entioned
on air. T
he
20
-
Where d
o you th
ink the
best mu
sic has
been driv
en from?
N: Eithe
r celebr
ating sa
lvation o
r lament-
ing damn
ation.
How do y
ou feel yo
ur music
will fit i
n with
the mus
ic scene
at the mo
ment? Y
our
tradition
al rock s
tyle is q
uite diff
erent an
d
much he
avier th
an most c
urrent b
ands,
yet your
songs ar
e just as
catchy, d
o you
feel that
will help
you stan
d out bu
t still
appeal to
a wide a
udience?
For exa
mple
like how
The Wh
ite Strip
es achie
ved mai
n-
stream s
uccess?
N: Id ho
pe that
were do
ing the s
ame as
any goo
d band d
oes, whi
ch is to t
ake a mu
-
sical roo
t and de
velop it
in their o
wn way
for today
. Obvious
ly, a lot o
f our dire
ction
stems fro
m Britis
h rock c
irca 197
0, but we
dont ju
st want
to emulat
e that. W
e want
to take t
he best p
arts of it
and inte
grate
it into an
original
modern
sound. To
what ex
tent we
succeed
is not for
us to
judge, I s
uppose.
As far a
s todays
music sc
ene goes
, Im not
sure wh
ere
wed fit i
n, but
its clear
there a
re
other ba
nds out
there w
ith
a
similar
sentimen
t, even if
it
s not the
big tren
dy thing
at
this ver
y mome
nt. That
s
O
K, though
, as a ne
w band
sh
ould be w
riting stu
ff for ne
xt
year
, not for
this wee
k.
S: I t
hink the
res alwa
ys room
for
good
music,
whateve
r it may
be. So
meone o
nce said
that to
work
is to
charge a
ll things
you fash
ion
with a br
eath of y
our own
spirit. W
hen
we play l
ive, the
audienc
e can fee
d off
what the
music d
oes to u
s but wh
ether
your liste
ning to D
ead Roa
ds live o
r on
your hi-fi
or iPod,
Ive foun
d that th
e
buzz we
get at reh
earsal w
hen the
song
starts to
take for
m usual
ly transc
ends
to the lis
tener. So
as long
as we ke
ep do-
ing this,
I think t
here will
be room
.
You rec
ently go
t played
on BBC 6
music
on the T
om Robin
son intr
oducing s
how,
how did
that com
e about
and did
any-
thing co
me of it a
s a resul
t?
Im a big
fan of B
BC 6mus
ic, I thin
k Tom
Robinso
ns show
is a rea
lly good
thing
for unsig
ned acts
. I mean,
to have
an
accessib
le BBC r
adio stat
ion that
takes
you seri
ously is
really en
couragin
g for
any new
artist
and its
always n
ice to
hear you
r name m
entioned
on air. T
he
only thin
g is, its
on late at
night, so
its not ex
actly prim
etime. Bu
t you do
get the b
adge to g
o on you
r website
, which
means p
eople tak
e a little
more no
tice of yo
u
when yo
ure tryi
ng to fin
d good g
igs.
Where d
o you ho
pe to go
in the n
ext
twelve m
onths?
N: Harde
r, better,
faster, s
tronger
et cetera
.
S: That
depends
on us; w
hat we p
ut in and
how we
approach
things. I
ts an ex
citing tim
e
though I
think op
portunit
ies are a
mixture
of chance
and wha
t we cre
ate both
on and o
ff
stage. I r
ead once
that on
e should
focus on
the
process a
nd the r
esult wil
l take ca
re of its
elf,
so I gues
s well kn
ow in 12
months.
P: To th
e top, boy
s!
Do you fe
el image
is still im
portant
in music
?
How wou
ld you de
scribe y
ours?
N: Image
is still im
portant
therei
n lies th
e
rub. Ima
ge is why
you liste
n to a lo
t of succ
ess-
ful acts a
nd go, T
hats ru
bbish! T
here are
so
many gr
eat artist
s out the
re who y
ouve ne
ver
heard of
because
they don
t have th
e right
jeans or
whateve
r. I mean,
Id say w
e definit
ely
have an e
ye for th
e aesthe
tic, but a
n image
should be
somethi
ng that
you cult
ivate yo
ur-
selves u
ntil you
have som
ething o
riginal. T
hat
has arti
stic valu
e - not so
mething
that yo
u rip
off from
the mai
nstream
.
S: Image
is everyt
hing, Im
age is no
thing. Un
-
fortuna
tely mu
sic revol
ves arou
nd socie
ty of
the spec
tacle. I t
hink tha
t the ima
ge we po
r-
tray is a
reflectio
n of who
we are,
though
I
still thin
k the mu
sic shou
ld speak
for
itself.
21
-
You cre
ate
a very b
ig and fu
ll
sound c
onsideri
ng
there ar
e only th
ree of yo
u,
do you t
hink you
benefit f
rom bein
g
a smaller
band? I
think it
helps ke
ep
your sou
nd simp
le and re
al, allow
ing
the mus
ic to spe
ak for its
elf witho
ut
sounding
cluttere
d or ove
r-produc
ed?
N: When
playing l
ive, a sin
gle guita
r
can soun
d bigger
and bett
er than t
wo.
But Im
not aver
se to add
ing more
layers a
nd textu
re to a tr
ack, pro
-
viding w
e find th
e right in
strumen
t
for the jo
b and yo
u have o
ne instru
-
ment occ
upying i
ts own sp
ace. Add
-
ing supp
lementar
y lines is
standard
practice
for recor
ding th
eres alw
ays
a lot mor
e happen
ing on a r
ecord th
at
you real
ise - but
you obv
iously h
ave
more co
nstraint
s when g
igging. Li
ve,
the bass
, drums a
nd guita
r will sti
ll
remain a
t the cor
e, but as
we devel
op
our act I
d like to
include a
few mor
e
sounds to
give the
songs a
wider
range.
S: Somet
imes, les
s is less
and mor
e is
more. M
ostly less
is more.
Check ou
t Dead R
oads at
www.mys
pace.com
/deadroa
dsmusic
Words b
y Liz Stot
t. All illu
stration
s by Liz
Stott. Ph
otograph
y by Liz
Stott an
d Kate
Vasquez.
22
-
Liz and the Ligers
SHOWCASING...
Liz and the Ligers describe themselves as a folk band with a twist of indie sound com-plimented with a pop feel. The London based band is in the mist of the big cities emerging musical talents at the moment but arent going to let the competition drag them back. Numerous radio plays on BBC6 and XFM and having recorded an debut EP at Guy Chamberss recording studio already put the band way ahead of the rest. Introducing you to unique song writing with catchy melodies and passion-ate, heart felt vocals Liz and The Ligers should be part of your soundtrack to 2010. Words by Claire Reilly. Illustrations by Liz Stott.
24
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25
-
You first began as a solo artist Liz, what made you decide to get a full band?Liz: Well I have played in a couple of bands before and I really missed performing with a full band around me. Furthermore I wanted the songs to sound live the way I heard them in my head when I wrote them! I always in-tended them to have a fuller sound.Gali: Plus being in a band without me is just weird, right?
So how did you get the band together?L: Well Gali and I played in a band previously together and were already close friends, so I got her on board! I always knew I wanted her to be in the band with me, so I made her learn bass especially! And Jack was a little miracle we found in replying to a gumtree add!G: Jack is a miracle, amazing talent and great hair. Yes, Lizs response to my answer of I cant play the bass was just, Its ok, youll learn on the job! You just cant disagree with that logic.Jack: I joined on the internet - luckiest little find ever!
How did you come up with the name Liz and the Ligers?L: Ha, well I am a huge fan of the film Napo-leon Dynamite and it is a reference to that. In it he describes a liger as being pretty much his favourite animal.G: Also, we have been able to coin such amazing taglines as Liger Love and Hear us ROAR. Plus its gonna make a great tattoo - Liz and I promised each other were going to get a matching band tattoo when our first record is finished.
26
-
One of your songs is about Wind in the Willows what inspires your writing?L: Oh a real variety of things! I find song writing very therapeutic, and often I use it as a tool to get off something that is on my mind, whether it is something happening directly in my life or that of a friends. I always write best when I am feeling really emotional or moved about some-thing, and I hope this comes across in my lyrics. Other songs I have written have been inspired from poems and books I love.G: I think my life has provided some material!
How do you begin to write songs?L: 9 out of 10 times it comes from me playing about on my acoustic guitar until I come up with something catchy. But sometimes the melody will come first, and sometimes I already have the lyrics and I put something I have written on guitar to the words.J : Liz then takes it to Denmark Street, shows us and we get down to some jamming!
Bassist Gali Admoni
Drummer Jack FlanaganPhotograph: Emilie Lashmar
-
Who are your main musical influences?L: I have so many, but I have a classical and jazz past as I grew up playing the trumpet and my dad is a jazz musician. However I think my main influences stem from a lot of sixties and seventies music such as The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Love and The Band. My guitar style has definitely been influenced by more folk guitarists such as Davy Graham. Currently though, my favourite band is the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Karen O is an amazing performer! I also love the recent album by Mumford and Sons.G: Yes I concur with Mumford and Sons, their new record is stunning. Also, its not always the case of just the sound being influenced per say - Id say Lizs vocal style can be akin to that of someone quite soulful like Dusty Spring-field, and her performance is just as sexy as her too. Whereas Id like to think I was like the Juliette Lewis of the band, but I prob-ably play more like Sid Vicious! I think Jack is influenced by the circus, or maybe cherry coke, or maybe aliens. Hes too incredible to be doing it alone.J : Sall about the pop and la soft jazz!
Where would your dream gig be?L: Hmmm, Id love to play Glastonbury, and also the Brixton Academy would be amazing! But if we talking dreaaaam gig I guess it would be pretty cool to play on-stage with ten trained ligers dancing in leotards!G: Two words - the TARDISJ: Reading festival main stage! Just be-cause Its so close to home and a real good weekend!
Liz, you studied at London College of Fashion, Do you think style is impor-tant within the music industry?L: Yeah I def do, very important. I suppose it shouldnt be, but people make snap judg-ments so a bands image is highly influential in portraying what the band is about quickly to someone before they hear the music.G: Which is why we play in sparkly pants and crazy shoes..?
There are so many London bands emerging at the moment, what makes Liz and the Ligers stand out?L: Wearing sequin hot pants on stage haha. That goes for Jack too! But god I dont know, I can only hope to write catchy songs that people remember and hopefully get them up and dancing! Other than that hopefully our personalities come across well live, we just like having fun on stage. Im not so worried about coming across cool, Id rather let our sound represent us rather than a cocky ...........attitude.G: But mostly its the pants thing.
Are you recording anything at the moment?L: We have loads of new songs to record, and will be doing so very soon!G: Finally a reason to use my studio!J: We also might be heading down to Southampton to record with a friend of mine at his studio called The Ranch.
What are your plans for 2010?L: To play lots of gigs, write more songs together as a band, record more and really give it our all!G: Maybe buy some more sensible stage outfits, but probably not.J: Move to the big city to be with the others!
Check out Liz and the Ligers atwww.myspace.com/lizstottmusic28
-
I think Jack is influenced by the circus, or maybe cherry coke, or maybe aliens. Hes too incredible to be doing it alone. Gali Admoni
Top and bottom: Singer Liz StottBoth photographs: Ross Taliana
29
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30
-
Kevin Tuffy has been on the circuit for years, hav-ing played with the likes of Mumford and Sons, Noah and the Whale and Lightspeed Champion and building up quite a name for himself. However it was only until he met Lizzie Earl (violins and strings), that they started writing all together and formed The Coldharbour Band. Along with Domi-nic Kennedy on guitar, banjo, mandolin and keys, Nick Rogers on drums and percussion and Brad Stamper on bass, they have been gigging all over London and are releasing their LP in 2010. They have been described as indie rock and are inspired
by the likes of Pavement, Arcade Fire and Modest Mouse.
Words and Illustrations by Liz Stott.
31
-
Hello guys! So Kevin, what made you want to get a full band together? Kevin: I like to listen to music that has real depth to it, quite extreme dynamic shifts to reflect the changing moods that the song is attempting to evoke. Im a pretty rudimen-tary guitar player so it was difficult for me to achieve anything even resembling that kind of vibe on my own so I sought out the help of a band.
How do you feel your sound is different now? K:I used to get lumped with the nu-folk movement or whatever the NME is deciding to call it this week and it wasnt really what I was interested in. Im a huge Dylan fan, and that includes the first couple of early 60s folk records on Columbia but past that I dont real-ly listen to folk music. I wanted to put together a rock band that could borrow from all sorts of other great records or bands and I think were getting somewhere close to that now. Brad: I think the sound is still very much Kevin Tuffy. We try and add a little something here or there but at the end of the day were trying to support the lyrics that Kevin has gathered such a reputation for.
How do you write your songs? What is the process? K: I write a poem first and maybe put melod-ic ideas and chord structures around a finished poem, again all quite simplistic, just the chords Id like to use as a bed for the vocal line. Thats where the musicians I work with come in... Lizzie: Then we just play along! When we re-cord we get to layer stuff up more heavily but in practice we just go with what sounds right [laughs]. B: I think we try and feed off each other as Kevin outlines the songs structure. Quite often they end in outrageously long jam sessions, that most of the time stay in the rehearsal studio, but now and again we leak them live! Sonnet for a Sunrise for example had been on the table for literally months before we came to a point where we would consider it giggable.
You have a real interesting variety of instruments, with the likes of mandolins and violins. What made you decide to not conform to the traditional guitar/bass/drums line-up? K: I got sessions booked up with this record for accordian, cornet, clarinet too. Bass drums and guitar are great but its nice to just play with sound when the song calls for it, some of the tracks on the record are pretty straightforward with regards to timbre too though. Im a sucker for strings, I used to play double bass (again pretty badly) and I just get excited and throw anything at a song and see what sticks. B: I think music that were used to hearing on the radio today is restricted to the basics for ease. Its far easier to pick up a guitar, bass and go to a studio and bang out an album whereas I think the music influences from us lot almost forces us to look in different directions.
Who have been your favourite breakthrough artists in the past year? K: The xx are incredible, their album is astound-ing, Girls from San Francisco made an incredible album last year and Chris from the band seems to really have lived quite an incredible life and you can hear all the heartbreak in his voice when he sings. Frightened Rabbit seem to be continuing towards UK success and Ive seen them a few times and theyre amazing, they have a new record out real soon. L: I cant think of any new artists! Im a bit stuck in the past, but I reckon Florence from Florence and the Machine has done amazingly and I like her voice and hair, and shoes. B: Take That! haha, Im joking, well kinda. Im with Kevin on Frightened Rabbit. Noah and the Whale and Mumford and Sons have had a bril-liant year. Personally Ive been listening to a lot of Yeasayer, Local Natives, Bon Iver and also The National who have been going strong stateside for a while now but Ive only just discovered them.
32
-
What do you bring to the live stage? How does your performance stand out against oth-ers? K: I guess those who are into songs would be into the live sets. Were energetic, we just get up there and try to reimagine the songs for the stage as best we can. L: Kevin can talk though! Especially if hes hung over with no sleep he can talk. A lot. B: Agreed, I think we have bring who were are directly onto the stage. Quite literally, from the night before, the pub, work, of-fice, college where ever weve just come from. There are no looks we try and achieve.
How would you describe your bands image? K: We make no special effort to dress any different to how we do if were going to the pub or going ice-skating. People come to see real people playing music about their lives, their ambitions and their ideas, for the kind of music we make I wouldnt give an audience anything other than myself. L: Sometimes I ask what shall I wear but they dont really give much feedback, theyre like whatever! Its only because Im a girl though and not for image. B: I think Kevins lyrics are so open and honest that if we dressed in a particular way or tried to influence the audiences opinion of who we are, it would be false. If Kevin can have the honesty to write about what he does, we should just stand there and back it up. No bullshit.
Lizzie, whats it like being the only girl in the band? L:Its fine, apart from the smells that secrete from them all.
Where do you see your music going? What do you hope to achieve in the next 12 months? K: I have a job and a life and I love making music but I know how strange things can be in the music industry having worked within in it for the past 4 years. I want to finish this record and put it out to tender... see what comes. Itll definitely be available to buy long before another year has passed, I leave every-thing else up to chance.
Check out Kevin Tuffy and the Coldharbour Band at www.myspace.com/kevintuffy
How do you feel about the real rise in popularity of the folk scene at the moment? Do you think it will last? K: I dont really get the whole scene thing, I think maybe it restricts listenership, possibly causes some record buyers to completely gloss over a great album because it doesnt conform to a popular genre at that moment. There have been great folky records coming out persistantly year-on-year for the past 40 years and no scene was identified. I imagine the music media will keep it going as long as it sells issues and then when it stops theyll cut it loose and move on, I wouldnt want to hazard a guess at how long that will take. L: I think its really good. I bloody love old shcool folk, I was brought up on Neil Young etc and think its good that people are getting into lyrics again. I remember playing Needle and the Damage Done to my friends when we were about 7 after shcool once and telling them it was about heroin. Oops. B: That doesnt surprise me Lizzie [laughs]. I think its all too easy to group acts together, sure theres a strong music scene in London. It seems to be in a constant state of flux with bands adapting and influencing each other all the time, I dont believe the Folk scene will die, just take a new direction. Id like to think the album wont pigeon hole us into any particular genre.
33
-
STYLEICONS
Buying music is all about the songs, right? Well no, its not really. You only have to look at the current top 20 to see that. Image clearly is hugely influential in the music industry, and I think it has been really ever since Elvis. Sex sells, and thats a fact.
So what is it about certain musicians that makes young girls scream mentally at their shows? And teenage boys idolise and emulate their favourite singers style? Being a successful musician represents the epitome of being cool, whether its being a glamorous rock guitar-ist or a sexy pop star, fashion and image goes hand in hand with the music, and it is all part of the overall package that helps sell the records.
I wanted to take a look at some artists whose fashion style I think has been hugely influential and representative of their time.
All words and illustrations by Liz Stott.
34
-
The Rolling Stones were always the cool and rockier alterna-tive to the Beatles, and Micks fantastic image of skinny jeans and a tight t-shirt, teamed with his long just out of bed hair-cut, certainly emphasised his cool stage persona and fantastic dance moves. Its interesting how the style of so many indie kids are so reminiscent of how the likes of Mick Jagger dressed, and Im not going to lie, I love him!
-
Left: Jimi Hendrix is famous for his head bands decorat-ed with colourful feathers and his beaded necklaces. His style is a mix between cowboy and hippie, and is very typical of late 60s early 70s fashion, full of purple, browns and oranges. Fashion-wise he was ahead of his time, having died in 1970.
Below: David Bowies fashion sense broke so many traditions. A straight man wearing make-up and highly effeminate clothes? Yet it worked, and my goodness did it work. The ladies certainly loved it and his exotic, elaborate image made him more market-able than ever. The truth of the matter is, Bowie could pull off anything better than most women could. Jealous much?
-
Debbie Harry has inspired many an alternative girl with her grungy dress sense, messy peroxide hair and red lips. She wore big t-shirts yet looked sexy in tiny shorts and dresses. She cer-tainly had a real rock chick image, but never looked too harsh
and always kept her fashionable edge.
-
Jarvis Cocker is king of the geek look that has seen a mass reoccurrence in recent years. His gigantic glasses dominate his face, his hair flops over his eyes and his tall lanky body dances around awkwardly on stage in fitted suits. Yet he looks cool, and he has always been unique when it comes to style. Many may have copied it, but Jarvis definitely has always had his own thing going on.
-
Left: Karen O from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs is truly a fashion icon. Her costumes and make-up on stage are truly mesmerising and really contrib-ute to the bands live performances. She adorns daring outfits which are always bright full of colour and interesting shapes and designs and really capture her energy. Her make-up is also incredibly colourful and edgy, which picks up great under the lights.
This page: Florence Welsh from Florence + The Machine has hit many a fashion page this year. Her style is very unique and she clearly doesnt mind expressing herself. Often on stage she is seen in floaty, beautiful dresses, with her body adorned in flowers, which extend from her music. Yet off stage she is often found in tailored and more masculine cut clothes, however they always have a quirky edge to them. For example I saw her at Read-ing last summer wearing a fantastic tweed suit jacket and shorts combo. Her hair is a great fashion statement in itself too, bright red and wavy, yet with a strong straight across-fringe, it certainly helps her to stand out.
Next page: When Lily Allen first hit the charts she had a real dare I say it, chav like quality to her style. She adorned big, gold hooped ear-rings, and trainers and then decided to mix it up and team them with a dress. Her initial style statement? Im quirky and different and have plenty of attitude. Although this worked in grabbing her much media attention, she has gradually toned down her chavy side in favour of a more mature look, and has been seen in some fantastic on-trend outfits looking far more glamorous. She even had her own clothes range in New Look to compete with the likes of Kate Moss.
-
44
AutumnkindThe
SHOWCASING...
Words and illustration by Liz Stott
-
45
Autumnkind
-
46
The A
utum
nkind
have
quick
ly
estab
lishe
d the
mselv
es at
the f
ore-
front
of L
ondo
ns in
die ro
ck sc
ene,
playin
g high
profi
le ve
nues
, reco
rding
and r
eleas
ing th
eir de
but E
P to
critic
al
accla
im an
d buil
ding a
loya
l follo
wing
both
onli
ne an
d at t
heir
show
s. With
hear
tfelt
intro
spec
tive v
ocals
, sear
ing
rock
guita
rs an
d a rh
ythm
secti
on th
at
sets
the p
ulse r
acing
, kee
p an e
ye o
ut
for th
ese b
oys i
n 201
0.
Hel
lo b
oys!
(All):
Hell
o Liz
.
Marc:
Your
hairs
look
ing ve
ry ex
celle
nt
toda
y.
Caleb
: Wer
e big
fans o
f hair
M: B
ig fan
s of b
ig ha
ir. We t
ry an
d cult
i-
vate
it as
muc
h as p
ossib
le. A
part
from
James
.
So, f
or th
ose
who
hav
ent
hear
d of
you
yet
, how
did
you
guys
get
toge
ther
? How
long
have
you
guy
s bee
n
The
Aut
umnk
ind?
M: A
s it i
s now
, its b
een a
bout
8
mont
hs. W
e had
a co
uple
of pr
eviou
s
incar
natio
ns bu
t the
y nev
er re
ally g
ot
going
. We s
hare
d a lo
ve o
f salt
and v
in-
egar
Ket
tle C
hips, a
nd fr
om th
ere o
n in
it wa
s pre
tty m
uch d
estin
ed.
James
: Whe
n we fi
rst au
dition
ed dr
um-
mers,
the k
ettle
chip
issue
was
para
-
moun
t in t
he se
lectio
n pro
cess.
So w
hat i
s the
ban
ds li
ne-u
p,
who
pla
ys w
hat?
J: I pl
ay ba
ss, so
I mos
tly st
and n
ear t
he
back
not d
oing m
uch.
M: B
ut he
s a gi
ant t
o all
inten
ts an
d
purp
oses
, so ev
eryo
ne st
ill se
es hi
m
doing
not v
ery m
uch.
C: W
e hide
him
beca
use h
e refu
ses t
o
grow
his ha
ir.
Simon
: I pla
y dru
ms an
d pro
vide y
outh
-
ful ch
arm.
M: I t
end t
o sin
g, mo
stly d
ue to
no
othe
r tak
ers f
or th
e job
, and
play
a bit
of gu
itar. I
also
play
the f
ool.
J: Tha
t sou
nds f
amilia
r.
C: I p
lay gu
itar...
Marc
sold
himse
lf
shor
t the
re- h
es a
great
guita
rist t
oo.
You
have
an
albu
m
The
Shi
ppin
g
Fore
cast
com
ing
out i
n
the
end
of A
pril,
whe
re
can
peop
le g
et a
copy
of t
his?
M: It
s goin
g to
be ev
eryw
here
you
could
possi
bly im
agine
.
J: Apa
rt fro
m sh
ops.
M: W
ell, y
es. A
part
from
shop
s.
S: Wel
l also
be se
lling i
t at g
igs.
M: To
wn ha
lls, fa
rmer
s mar
kets
Cale
b, y
ou u
sed
to b
e a
prof
es-
siona
l mag
ician
! Can
you
tell
us
a bi
t abo
ut th
is? D
id y
ou g
ive
this
up to
focu
s on
mus
ic?
J: I o
nce s
aw hi
m ma
ke a
whole
cup o
f
tea d
isapp
ear.
M: A
nd du
ring o
ne pa
rticu
larly
epic
13 m
inute
guita
r solo
, he m
anag
ed to
comp
letely
disap
pear
up hi
s own
arse
.
We w
ere s
pellb
ound
.
C: Th
eres
this
amaz
ing C
olleg
e in
Sout
h Afri
ca th
at te
ache
s the
perfo
rm-
ing ar
ts ca
lled t
he C
olleg
e of M
agic.
That
s whe
re I l
earn
ed m
agic,
and t
o
juggle
. I do
nt th
ink I e
ver t
houg
ht,
Im
going
to gi
ve up
mag
ic for
mus
ic, li
fe
goes
on,
this
is wh
ere I
am, a
nd no
w
I have
the e
lemen
t of s
urpr
ise up
my
sleev
e.
M: Iv
e see
n a fe
w tri
cks a
nd al
so sa
w
him ju
ggle
fire -
hes
actu
ally p
heno
m-
enal.
If eve
r a gi
g star
ts to
go re
ally
badly
we k
now
we ha
ve a
way t
o ge
t
the a
udien
ce ba
ck!
So w
ho a
re y
our m
ain
mus
ical
influ
ence
s?
M: H
ulk H
ogan
and E
ngleb
ert H
ump-
erdin
k have
got m
e thr
ough
some
toug
h tim
es.
J: Rag
e aga
inst t
he m
achin
e have
cer-
tainly
been
disc
usse
d man
y tim
es du
r-
ing o
ur se
ssion
s tog
ethe
r. Its
mos
tly
just m
e tho
ugh.
M: R
age a
re pr
oper
bu
t as f
ar re
-
move
d fro
m Th
e Aut
umnk
ind as
could
possi
bly be
. I tri
ed ra
pping
onc
e. It
wasn
t pre
tty.
S: I t
hink t
here
s de
finite
ly a b
it of
Foo
Fight
ers i
n the
re, p
artic
ularly
in so
me
of th
e new
er tu
nes.
M: I l
isten
to a
lot o
f Rad
iohea
d, Do
ves,
Smith
s, A Pe
rfect
Circl
e - st
uff lik
e
that,
but I
ve al
ways
had a
soft
spot
for
ambie
nty e
lectro
- Ro
ykso
pp, B
oard
s
of C
anad
a, O
rbita
l - it
ll fin
d its
way
into
our m
usic
some
day
Im su
re.
-
47
The A
utum
nkind
have
quick
ly
estab
lishe
d the
mselv
es at
the f
ore-
front
of L
ondo
ns in
die ro
ck sc
ene,
playin
g high
profi
le ve
nues
, reco
rding
and r
eleas
ing th
eir de
but E
P to
critic
al
accla
im an
d buil
ding a
loya
l follo
wing
both
onli
ne an
d at t
heir
show
s. With
hear
tfelt
intro
spec
tive v
ocals
, sear
ing
rock
guita
rs an
d a rh
ythm
secti
on th
at
sets
the p
ulse r
acing
, kee
p an e
ye o
ut
for th
ese b
oys i
n 201
0.
Hel
lo b
oys!
(All):
Hell
o Liz
.
Marc:
Your
hairs
look
ing ve
ry ex
celle
nt
toda
y.
Caleb
: Wer
e big
fans o
f hair
M: B
ig fan
s of b
ig ha
ir. We t
ry an
d cult
i-
vate
it as
muc
h as p
ossib
le. A
part
from
James
.
So, f
or th
ose
who
hav
ent
hear
d of
you
yet
, how
did
you
guys
get
toge
ther
? How
long
have
you
guy
s bee
n
The
Aut
umnk
ind?
M: A
s it i
s now
, its b
een a
bout
8
mont
hs. W
e had
a co
uple
of pr
eviou
s
incar
natio
ns bu
t the
y nev
er re
ally g
ot
going
. We s
hare
d a lo
ve o
f salt
and v
in-
egar
Ket
tle C
hips, a
nd fr
om th
ere o
n in
it wa
s pre
tty m
uch d
estin
ed.
James
: Whe
n we fi
rst au
dition
ed dr
um-
mers,
the k
ettle
chip
issue
was
para
-
moun
t in t
he se
lectio
n pro
cess.
So w
hat i
s the
ban
ds li
ne-u
p,
who
pla
ys w
hat?
J: I pl
ay ba
ss, so
I mos
tly st
and n
ear t
he
back
not d
oing m
uch.
M: B
ut he
s a gi
ant t
o all
inten
ts an
d
purp
oses
, so ev
eryo
ne st
ill se
es hi
m
doing
not v
ery m
uch.
C: W
e hide
him
beca
use h
e refu
ses t
o
grow
his ha
ir.
Simon
: I pla
y dru
ms an
d pro
vide y
outh
-
ful ch
arm.
M: I t
end t
o sin
g, mo
stly d
ue to
no
othe
r tak
ers f
or th
e job
, and
play
a bit
of gu
itar. I
also
play
the f
ool.
J: Tha
t sou
nds f
amilia
r.
C: I p
lay gu
itar...
Marc
sold
himse
lf
shor
t the
re- h
es a
great
guita
rist t
oo.
You
have
an
albu
m
The
Shi
ppin
g
Fore
cast
com
ing
out i
n
the
end
of A
pril,
whe
re
can
peop
le g
et a
copy
of t
his?
M: It
s goin
g to
be ev
eryw
here
you
could
possi
bly im
agine
.
J: Apa
rt fro
m sh
ops.
M: W
ell, y
es. A
part
from
shop
s.
S: Wel
l also
be se
lling i
t at g
igs.
M: To
wn ha
lls, fa
rmer
s mar
kets
Cale
b, y
ou u
sed
to b
e a
prof
es-
siona
l mag
ician
! Can
you
tell
us
a bi
t abo
ut th
is? D
id y
ou g
ive
this
up to
focu
s on
mus
ic?
J: I o
nce s
aw hi
m ma
ke a
whole
cup o
f
tea d
isapp
ear.
M: A
nd du
ring o
ne pa
rticu
larly
epic
13 m
inute
guita
r solo
, he m
anag
ed to
comp
letely
disap
pear
up hi
s own
arse
.
We w
ere s
pellb
ound
.
C: Th
eres
this
amaz
ing C
olleg
e in
Sout
h Afri
ca th
at te
ache
s the
perfo
rm-
ing ar
ts ca
lled t
he C
olleg
e of M
agic.
That
s whe
re I l
earn
ed m
agic,
and t
o
juggle
. I do
nt th
ink I e
ver t
houg
ht,
Im
going
to gi
ve up
mag
ic for
mus
ic, li
fe
goes
on,
this
is wh
ere I
am, a
nd no
w
I have
the e
lemen
t of s
urpr
ise up
my
sleev
e.
M: Iv
e see
n a fe
w tri
cks a
nd al
so sa
w
him ju
ggle
fire -
hes
actu
ally p
heno
m-
enal.
If eve
r a gi
g star
ts to
go re
ally
badly
we k
now
we ha
ve a
way t
o ge
t
the a
udien
ce ba
ck!
So w
ho a
re y
our m
ain
mus
ical
influ
ence
s?
M: H
ulk H
ogan
and E
ngleb
ert H
ump-
erdin
k have
got m
e thr
ough
some
toug
h tim
es.
J: Rag
e aga
inst t
he m
achin
e have
cer-
tainly
been
disc
usse
d man
y tim
es du
r-
ing o
ur se
ssion
s tog
ethe
r. Its
mos
tly
just m
e tho
ugh.
M: R
age a
re pr
oper
bu
t as f
ar re
-
move
d fro
m Th
e Aut
umnk
ind as
could
possi
bly be
. I tri
ed ra
pping
onc
e. It
wasn
t pre
tty.
S: I t
hink t
here
s de
finite
ly a b
it of
Foo
Fight
ers i
n the
re, p
artic
ularly
in so
me
of th
e new
er tu
nes.
M: I l
isten
to a
lot o
f Rad
iohea
d, Do
ves,
Smith
s, A Pe
rfect
Circl
e - st
uff lik
e
that,
but I
ve al
ways
had a
soft
spot
for
ambie
nty e
lectro
- Ro
ykso
pp, B
oard
s
of C
anad
a, O
rbita
l - it
ll fin
d its
way
into
our m
usic
some
day
Im su
re.
Sim
on, y
ou a
re th
e yo
unge
st
in th
e ba
nd a
t 18,
how
did
you
join
the
band
? And
do
you
find
you
have
lear
nt m
uch
from
the
othe
rs?
S: A m
utua
l frien
d rec
omme
nded
me t
o
Marc
when
the g
uys w
ere l
ookin
g for
a new
drum
mer, h
e gave
me a
call a
nd
invite
d me t
o au
dition
. I wa
snt s
ure
whet
her I
wou
ld ge
t the
gig o
r how
I
would
fit in
being
youn
ger, b
ut th
ings
turn
ed o
ut be
tter t
han I
could
have
imag
ined a
t the
time
.
All: A
www.
.
S: The
oth
ers h
ave ta
ught
me w
ell in
the a
rts o
f quo
ting
With
nail A
nd I
and
Nap
oleon
Dyn
amite
exc
essiv
ely an
d
eatin
g hor
rend
ous j
unk f
ood b
efore
gigs!
Wha
t are
you
r pla
ns fo
r the
rest
of t
he y
ear,
any
plan
s to
tour
?
M: W
ere h
oping
to to
ur. Tr
ying t
o ar-
rang
e som
ethin
g for
the s
umme
r
wed
like t
o tak
e a tr
ip up
Nor
th as
weve
got l
oads
of a
weso
me fa
ns
up th
ere b
ut ca
n nev
er pl
ay
show
s for
them
.
C: W
eath
er pe
rmitt
ing o
f
cour
se.
-
The A Train are a folk/pop/ alternative band, consisting of brother James (vocals) and Dan (guitar) McKean, along with
their bassist Ben from Teesside and a revolv-ing door of friends and associates; first and
foremost being Dave (on drums). They start-ed The A Train around spring 2007 from
the ashes of Monkey Rope, but Dan, Ben and James have been playing since they first formed a group (initially called The Others - before the Libertines-y Others broke through and they had to change the name) in Oxford in summer 2001. They have received much critical acclaim with the BBC describing them as Special... A band worth keeping
tabs on.Words and Illustrations by Liz Stott.
Showcasing...
48
-
49
-
In the summer just gone you released your first single Black And White Memories on CD and download, and followed that up with the download only single Dont Have Far To Go. How did that come about?James- I think the time just felt right for us to start releasing stuff. We felt that we had plenty of songs well worth hearing, and wed amassed some de-cent gear in terms of recording them. What with the state of the music indus-try at the moment, the majors arent likely to come along and take a punt on you, so we figured wed start releasing our own stuff and take it from there.Dan- We realised that wed reach the stage that wed been writing songs for several years without doing anything with them. Wed found a really good studio to record in and we were happy with what wed recorded. It seemed to be the right thing to release stuff the latest stuff wed been working on.
Will you be releasing anything else in the near future?D - Yes, hopefully our debut album, which will feature a mix of low-key acoustic stuff and more upbeat full-
band recordings with plenty of guitars, keys and harmonies.J- Were currently sending some new stuff around to radio at the moment to try to build on the buzz we created with the singles. We dont have plans to officially release the songs just yet, but were gauging the reaction to them, I guess. There is talk of releas-ing Dependence as a single at some point soon, though, and well certainly release an album one way or another this year.
What inspires you to write?J- Anything and everything. People, music, films, books... I think as a writer you have to keep your eyes open.D - Mainly pop music from the 1920s to the present day. Other peoples stuff can be hugely inspiring. As can other people. And mornings. I find myself at my peak in the morning.
James and Dan, what is it like being in a band with your brother?J- Ive never really known any different! I think it can be more intense than be-ing in a band with non-family members (and even that can be pretty intense!), but weve been in bands for 7, 8, 9
years now I think. Were used to it!D - Depends if you have a decent chap as your brother or someone like Liam Gallagher, I guess.
Who are your favourite and most influential bands?J - I find it difficult to say who are my biggest musical influences; in a way I think that the stuff that you listen to as a child and a teenager is the stuff that really informs how you sound, even if you dont much listen to them any-more. I always say The Beatles are my favourite group but Ive only got one or two of their records, and I hardly ever listen to them. Other favourites for me include Louis Armstrong, Van Morri-son, Tim Buckley, Outkast, The Beach Boys, Bob Marley, Neil Young, The Stone Roses, Dylan, Randy Newman, Elbow... I could go on and on, but I dont want to bore you too much. At the moment Im listening to Wilco, Broken Social Scene, Mos Def and African stuff like Victor Uwaifo and Augustine and his Rovers Dance Band.D - The Beatles, Leonard Cohen, Led Zeppelin, Hank Williams, Ray Charles, Cocteau Twins, The Smiths and Randy Newman.
What is it like being in a band with your brother?
Depends if you have a decent chap as your brother or someone like Liam Gallagher, I guess.
50
-
Where has been your best gig to date and why?J - Thats a really tough question. TheStoked Acoustic shows we put on at The Lion in Stokey were always fun. Our first gig as Monkey Rope way back in 2004 at the Wheatsheaf in Oxford is still one of the best weve played. The Argonauts Hunky Dory night and our own 93 Feet High And Rising (both at 93 Feet East) were both good fun too.D - I think our 93 Feet East gig in Octo-ber 2008 because we couldnt repeat it if we tried. Great venue, too.
Is fashion and style important to you as a band?D - Yes. Looking good is good.
Where are you based in London? J - We all live in sunny E17 at the mo-ment.
Do you find London a good city to be a musician in?J - Yes, and no. I think being in such a big city really forces you to get good. Youre not just playing to your mates in the local. But at the same time its more difficult to get noticed because there are so many venues, putting on
so many bands, every single night ofthe week.D - Despite the fact that many people in London love music and art, I dont think it is. The most successful (for whom London is always a good city) probably take great pleasure in be-ing central to the great music nights and festivals that London has to offer. However, most musicians in London are often in for a frustrating time. The sheer number of bands and the vast range of music on offer seem to encourage the laziest promoters to put totally inappropriate bands on the same bill. When is it ever good to have an arty Kate Bush sound-alike on the same bill as floppy-haired Blink 182-inspired teenagers? As a result theres no sense of community in the gigging scene. Fans of one band on the bill are often totally uninterested in the entirely different sounding bands on the same night.The city could do with more music magazines (perhaps separate maga-zines for separate genres), more thoughtful promoters, fewer bands on a promoters bill, in fact fewer bands in general There are so many fantastic musicians in London but theres a
danger that theyre not increasing their audience as much as they deserve to.
What do you hope to achieve in the next year?D - A collection of songs that we are incredibly proud of.J - World domination!
Check out The A Train atwww.myspace.com/theatrainmusic
What is it like being in a band with your brother?
Depends if you have a decent chap as your brother or someone like Liam Gallagher, I guess.
Dan McKean
51
-
52
-
MyEchoSHOWC
ASIN
G...
53
-
My Echo are a London based alternative/rock band, who formed mid 2003 when Pete Mar-tin (guitar) and Henry Gomez (vocals) honed their beginnings with acoustic collabora-tions in the hallways & classrooms of the London School of Fashion. Then along with Johnny Stoute (drums) and Dave Broido (bass) they formed the fresh and unique sound that is My Echo. Words and illustrations by Liz Stott.
Tell us how you would describe your musical style?Pete: I would describe our sound as me-lodic rock with a dark grimy edge.
Henry, you have a great elegance and stage presence when you perform. Do you feel that being in a band with the same guys for many years helps give you the confidence you need to really en-gage with the audience? Henry: After playing together for a long time we have become like family, I con-sider them to be my brothers and when I am up on stage I feel comfortable that my band have always got my back and I guess that transcends over to the audience.
So, how do you as a band write your songs?Pete: Most of the time I come up with a basic idea, I then take it to band practice where we all do our bit.
Who would you say are your big-gest musical influences?Dave: We have such a diverse range of influences and eclectic tastes, but I cant deny that early 90s rock is a real com-mon denominator for all of us. Bands like Stones Temple Pilots, Red Hot Chilli
54
Peppers and Deftones have been a huge influ-ence.
Pete and Henry, Im curious what did you study at the London School of Fashion?Pete: We studied Technical Effects for tv and film.Henry: Basically we made monsters and fake limbs.
What has been your favourite ever gig?Dave: Weve had so many great shows, headlining the Barfly in Camden is right up there, but I have to say supporting Rodriguez at the Shepherds Bush Empire was a wicked show for us. Henry: For me I love that weve packed out the Camden Barfly, both times we had a great gig and had a great response from the audi-ence.Pete: Shepherds Bush all the way for me, pretty epic being up on that stage after seeing many of favourite bands play there.
If you could play anywhere this year, where would it be?Pete: Download because the line up is amaz-ing then Ill get to play alongside stone temple pilots! my heros.
What do you think about the music scene at the moment, do you think it is easier for a band to self-release their songs? Or are there a few good and fair labels that are putting the artists interests first?Henry: The music scene is the same as ever,
-
the greats and the shit! Its just good to see women dominating the scene at the mo-ment. As far as self-releasing, anyone canself- release anything, but it makes life a lot easier to have the backing of a decent label, but finding a decent label is a tough cookie.
What does the future hold for My Echo? Any releases or tours?Pete: The music is coming and the tour is be-ing booked.
Check out My Echo at myspace.com/myecho
-
SHOW
CASI
NG...
56
-
Hello chaps, hope you are all good! So I want to talk to you about your new band, how is it all going? Zachery: Well, its funny you should start with that ques-tion because weve just decided to reshuffle the line-up as it just wasnt working so presently there are just the two of us. I suppose on the face of it that might sound like a negative its actually a real positive. We know what were looking for now and are being pro active about achieving it rather than plodding along in an unsatisfactory situation. Ultimately the most important thing for me is that in Daniel Ive met someone that I respect as a songwriter and as a person and that is conducive to doing something great.So, whose idea was it to get you together?Z: Our mutual friend Lewis introduced Daniel and myself. He also played bass with us until recently but it wasnt working out so weve kind of split-off rather than splitting up. Hes now writing and performing with my sister actu-ally. So were currently in the process of recruiting a new rhythm section but in the meantime Dan and myself are just writing and recording. Im really happy with the matu-rity and quality of the new stuff were doing now so theres no panic or rush to fill the places.How do you decide whose songs to use? And are you going to write any together soon?Z: We use the good ones! Dans songs tend to be more complex and romantic. Daniel: Youve made me sound like I write for Westlife.Z: Mine are generally more sort of observational commen-taries on things but were both capable of doing the op-posite. We will certainly be writing together. Its good to collide ideas sometimes because it takes you out of your comfort zone and you end up with something that isnt either one or the other but something entirely new. D: Zacs tunes are William Burroughs, mine are more William Blake.Who is your favourite band currently out at the moment?Z: At the moment I really like a new unsigned band called Parties in Belgrade. Ive seen them a few times in the last month or so and they have a real energy and honesty about them. I strongly recommend them.D: Yeah, I really liked Parties In Belgrade when we saw them live. Something Beginning With L are ace too. Every time I see them they get better. Beautiful girls and the bass players not so bad himself.How would you describe your music?Z: Personally I describe it as the sound of growing up but not growing old.D: Coming from the man who wrote a song called You Are Gay, thats quite a claim.What response do you want from people when they hear your songs?D: Nice tunes.Z: What does anyone want? We want people to be moved, amused or informed at the appropriate junctures. I want people to sense the authenticity and the sincerity that we try to get across in our songs. You wont get anything about spending the night in the jailhouse with us,
THE SOUND OF GROWING UP BUT NOT GROWING OLD
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unless we have really done it.What inspires you to write a song?D: Heavy nights; though Im trying to have a few less at the moment.Z: A newspaper headline, or a sentence overheard in a charity shop. A drunk Serbian man on the Northern Line dressed in all-brown clothing trying to talk to everyone. Memories, hopes, fears and things we refuse to be afraid of.What has been your best gig to date?Z: It certainly hasnt happened yet, although it was nice to play with The Dallas Guild a few weeks back. Another band we really respect.Youve been in a few bands before. Do you feel those ex-periences have helped you learn what does and doesnt work quicker?Z: Partially. Every new band brings a new set of circum-stances that have to be dealt with on their own merits but I suppose having been in bands does make you slightly more prepared.D: Yeah, you see through peoples bullshit a bit quicker. What are your feelings on the music industry at the mo-ment? Do you feel with the likes of X Factor that it is easier to be successful? Or has that made it difficult for actual hardworki