Brute Chorus, The
Filed under: Interviews by Liam2 Comments »
You have got the sweet spot in between sound checks so you might actually be able to get a clean recording!
Question one..Hello!
False! C!
People will be here tonight on the strength of your recent singles, but what else can they expect from your set tonight?
A bit of dancing, sweating, hand clapping, foot stomping. Our live shows are really, really energetic where the singles are a bit polished. The live shows are a lot more full on.
Going on tour before releasing an album is pretty much unheard of for a signed band, why did you go about things in this order?
We are not signed. We have licensed records to people. It’s a common misconception that we are signed. There is a hobby label that is run by the Hawley Arms and they gave us the opportunity to use a bit of their name to help us put out records. It was a way of getting us started basically.
Lets talk about your album, which you will record live in London on Saturday 28th February. Quite a risky move a live debut album…
We can never rest on our laurels. We have to keep going out and drumming up fans. Its challenge. Its that simple. Doesn’t have to be any more complicated than that. At least this way fans know what they are getting when they come and see us live.
You are gonna release a single with 2 days of recording the album…
We should be able to mix it the day after. Its going to be a song called “All The Pilgrims” which we haven’t recorded in any shape or form before. Its very new. We will play it tonight for you. JUST for you!
Who will be making a guest appearance on the album?
Our friend Tigs who sang on our first single. She will be doing a duet with us. Then there are various friends who are going to sing back up for us and be involved in that way just to flesh out some of the backing vocals and the harmony’s. Give it some extra depth. Matt Martin is a musician from Manchester and he will probably come down and play some banjo and so a bit of singing. Probably Johnny from “Opera House” if he’s back from the states in time. It’s just basically a lot of favours and a lot of people who wish us well who want to get involved.
How did you all meet?
Me and Nick went to school together in Cumbria and Nick moved down to Lodon where he met James at college and I moved to London and we started playing together. We had a different base player for a bit and then we found Dave last year on the internet which is where he lives.
After you met, what inspired you all to make music together?
Being vaguely interested in the music we made individually. I was playing on my own and I knew Nick from college and he started playing with me and then he said “hey lets start a band” and gradually as the months went by…
We all played different kinds of music. Dave used to be in a white hip hop band (laughs). Its more that we have got common interests among us than the music we made in the past.
Do you have regular jobs or do you do this full time?
A couple of us are bar tenders, Nicks a sound engineer. Matt’s a professional house husband.
This is a small tour in an intimate venue but you have also played festivals such as Glastonbury. Where do you feel more comfortable?
Glastonbury didn’t daunt us. It wasn’t that big of a stage. What’s in front of the stage doesn’t matter. Weather its big or small its just down to if it sounds and feels right. I don’t mind being side by side with this lot and at the same time I wouldn’t mind being stood 10 feet away and playing as long as it gels. Quite what makes it do that I don’t know, but if I could bottle it and sell it to people id be a rich man and not sat here.
Have you ever played a cover song live?
We did do a cover song.. We did “Fairytale of New York” with out friend not this Christmas but the one before. She didn’t learn any of her words so she just shrieked with this piece of paper in her hand. It was kinda tragic but very funny.
You are building up a solid fan base now. Any stalkers yet?
Yeah, we cant go to Coventry much. We have actually got a really nice fan base down there but maybe not anymore! We have some fans who transcribe our music onto rockguitar.com and stuff like that. There were those lads too…when we went to Inverness. We played a festival there and got stalked the whole weekend by this group of 16 year old lads. They called Nick “Frenchy” because he had a moustache…obviously! I was called Thierry Henry.
What do you think about questions like “if you had to be a crayon which colour would you be”?
Im not a massive fan. I think if you are going to ask them you have to be prepared t suffer the consequences. We did this email interview where we got sent 70 questions on our way up to Inverness. We were in the van for a long time! We just thought “fuck it! We will answer them all with song titles” We weren’t going for the obvious ones either. I don’t think you can answer those types of questions in a straight way. “if you were a tramp what would you put in your trolley?” I don’t know if that would tell you anymore about us. If you asked us those kinds of questions we are not going to be rude to you, we aren’t that kind if band but at the same time we are not trying to please anybody. If anyone actually read that thing then at least they would see that we knew like one hundred song names! We don’t even have an ipod! Times are hard. Ive got an iron wax cylinder.
What question or topic are you tired of people mentioning in interviews?
My moustache (unanimous)