London

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Indeterria meets Elly Bailey

Dear Readers,

Vanadian Avenue is on a mission to shed a light at the girls in the music indystry. We call it “The Girls Who Can” and we try to introduce you to the amazing women who makes things happen. They write, they book, they build stages, run lights, think of marketing campaings, sell tees and tickets at the doors. They are reps and managers, promoters, bookers and everything inbetween. Yet, despite doing a stellar job, having successful careers, they not always receive a fair share of attention and recognition. And we want to change that.

After speaking to Sahera Walker in May this year, we now had the pleasure to sit down with Elly Bailey, a photographer and journalist extraordinaire to discuss recent opportunities for women, her brand new photo-zine Why Generation? and photographic equipment. Please read on (and share) and Elly raised several  very important points in her interview and gives a sound advice to all young girls thinking of entering the business professionally.

Photographer, journalist, promoter and a writer – that’s a very impressive resume for a 22 year old. Please introduce yourself to the readers of Indieterria. Every career has to start somewhere.

Elly Bailey: Thank you! My name is Elly Bailey, I live in London. As you said, I am a photographer and journalist, mainly focusing on music. I write for sites such as The Zine, Gigslutz and This Feeling. I starting taking photos in 2016, originally shooting on film and then in 2018 I moved onto DSLR or digital photography.

 Tell us what inspired you to chose this particular career path? Was it a certain gig you attended or an album you listened to? Or maybe something completely different?

Elly Bailey: I attended the Academy of Contemporary Music, studying Music Business. ‘I think it was being surrounded by so many musicians and also attending so many of my friends gigs that made me want to start taking photos. I’ve always been very into documenting everything I do (I currently have over 29,000 photos on my phones camera roll!) and it was great to be able to document doing what I love best, e.g. attending gigs.

Elly at work

Music business is very male orientated but recently the tide is turning and women are getting noticed and praised for their contribution. There are also more opportunities for young females who want to enter the music business professionally. Last year you took part in the Music Venue Trust and PRS “Fightback Grassroots Promoter” for women. In your opinion, how important are schemes like this? Do they offer any real chance to learn the skills needed in this industry?

Elly Bailey: Taking part in the MVT and PRS venue fight back scheme was amazing as it gave young women the opportunity to put on their own live music event without having to worry about the money, as the scheme completely covered any costs, such as hiring the venue or equipment. I think schemes like this are incredibly important as they help to give young women the confidence boost they may need to take that first step into the music industry and also helps to give them hands on experience whilst making sure that they will be successful.

As a journalist you have worked for the popular GigSlutz website, The Zine and you run your own Youtube channel. If you could offer a piece of advice for girls who would like to follow in your footsteps, what would that be?

The cover of first issue of Why Generation zine

Elly Bailey: Websites such as Gigslutz, The Zine and many others are always looking for writers, so if you’re interested then just email away and ask! Taking that first step towards doing what you want to do can always seem incredibly daunting, but once you’ve done it, then that’s it, you’re on your way! Also everyone I’ve ever worked with have all been so lovely, which makes it so much easier to talk and network with people and find new work.

2019 is a ground breaking year. You have covered Wilkestock and Reading Festivals, interviewed The Sherlocks, False Heads, Sleaford Mods among others, reviewed high profile events such as This Feeling tours. What was the best gig you have seen so far?

Elly Bailey: This has definitely been a crazy year for me, so far I’ve somehow managing to attend 11 festivals, and still have more to go! I was feeling pretty low at the beginning of the year and also got pretty sick, so seeing FIDLAR at House Of Vans at the beginning on February was the perfect cheer up for me, seeing one of my favourite bands in such an intimate setting was the best. Festival wise, The Great Escape was so much fun, I discovered so many new bands that weekend. Also Download Festival was just non-stop laughter from beginning to end, the bands were amazing and the weather was horrendous and we had a sick time! And of course Truck Festival, my hometown festival, was a lovely weekend, surrounded by so many friends, I think we all really enjoyed it.

We need to ask about your new enterprise – a photo zine called Why Generation? You have teamed up with three other female journalists and photographers to create it. Tell us more about it. How did this idea come to be? Who are your co-workers? Is Why Generation a single issue release or are you planning to turn it into monthly/bimonthly magazine? Are you planning to keep it in this format or extend it to contain reviews and interviews in the future?

Why Generation editorial team

Elly Bailey: After I got home from Truck Festival, I went to an exhibition by Nan Goldin at the Tate Modern and saw that she started off making photo-books of her work and decided that I wanted to do something similar. I decided to stick with film photography to give the zine more of a niche and also felt that I have some great 35mm photos that I wanted to print. I contacted the other three photographers, slightly on a whim, and after the positive responses I got from them on the idea, I just jumped in head first and decided to just got for it!

When I first made the zine I wasn’t sure where it was going to go but I know now that I would like to do another issue with articles alongside the photos this time, and also potentially create my own website. After years of working for other people, it’s been great and also slightly scary to be completely in charge of what I’m doing, so who knows what will happen!

There is a launch party scheduled for 23rd of September to celebrate the release of Why Generation. Who is playing and what can we expect? Are tickets still available?

Why Generation? Event launch poster

Elly Bailey: Yes! It’s a free entry gig on 23rd September at The Monarch with three amazing bands playing: Ric, SPIT and Scary Lemons. Each are guaranteed to put on an amazing show. It’s definitely going to be something to liven up your Monday evening.

The famous last question – let’s imagine you can get your dream photography kit absolutely for free. What equipment is going into your shopping basket?

Elly Bailey: I do love my camera and have managed to get so many great photos out of it, but I will be the first to admit it’s nowhere near the best model on the market. With shooting gigs, you’re not allowed to use flash photography in bigger venues or at festivals, so you need a camera that lets in a lot of light, and annoyingly the best cameras for this are the more expensive ones, so one of those would definitely be going into my shopping basket.

Also a lens with a better zoom would be amazing, I’ve done a lot of standing on my tip-toes trying to get closer to the artist playing to make up for my lack of zoom.

You can follow Elly online:
https://www.facebook.com/EllyBaileyPhotography
https://www.instagram.com/elly_bailey_
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000978271449

Buy copy of Why Generation? online:
https://www.ellybailey.com/product-page/why-generation-zine

Contact: ellybailey27@gmail.com​

Why Generation? Event:
Event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/235155047375183/
Doors: 8 PM – 11:30 PM
Admission: Free Entry
Address: The Monarch, 40-42 Chalk Farm Road, NW1 8BG London, United Kingdom

Stage times:
Ric – 8:30pm
SPIT – 9:15pm
Scary Lemons – 10:15pm

Big thank you’s to Elly for answering the questions and if you are attending the event tonight, please send us your pictures or videos. We will gladly update the entry with your snaps!

Support your scene and have fun!
Rita and Malicia

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Indieterria meets The Gulps

Hello!

2019 seems to be the year of The Gulps. Whatever they do, they  do it perfectly, wherever they go, they win new fans. When they participate in an international competition, they easily win it, leaving their competition behind. And each of their tracks released so far is a real banger. If they continue on this stride, next year might see them  going right to the top. And frankly, this is what they deserve.

Lucky break has nothing to do with the results this London based quintet is receiving. They are one of the hardest working people we have met, and at the same time they are down to earth and  just genuinely nice. We sat down with The Gulps’ guitarist, Charlie Green to speak about the band, their influences and the new single entitled “Lola Cola”.

Official bio: 

Based in London and hailing from all different parts of Europe and the Middle East, The Gulps come together with a shared idealism for our times. Playfully reviving the original roots of rock and roll, they are a new wake up call and speak our truth, with enjoyment and optimism.

Lyrically informed poetry, sharing tales from our cities and experiences. With raw energy, The Gulps are a unique take on classic alternative pop, fuelled by the drive of rock music at its best.

The Gulps photographed by Jonathan Hallam.

Please introduce yourself to the readers of Indieterria. 

Charlie Green: The Gulps are a band of vivacious raconteurs who immigrated to London with a Mediterranean ferocity and an uncompromising skill for good music. We are a multi-various quintet who met at the intersection of smoke fuelled house parties and university, where the raw Gulp product was harnessed and the good times played.

Where are you based and who is in the band?

Charlie Green: We are a London based band hailing from different parts of Europe and The Middle East. Harry All is the lead singer, Charlie Green and Francesco Buffone are the guitarists, Simon Mouchard is on the bass and Raoul Khayat is the drummer.

Tell us something about the project – are there any goals that you managed to achieve to date?

Charlie Green: This has already been a huge year for the band, with the recording of the EP and touring. We secured a spot at Madrid’s Mad Cool Festival thanks to the votes of our fans and had the opportunity to play at the Truck Festival. We now have our sights on Space Mountain Festival in Granada and the recording of our first album.

What inspires you? What artists or genres had the biggest influence on you?

Charlie Green: Each of us bring our own biographical discography with us to influence the sound of The Gulps. Primarily, we draw upon the inspiration of rock’s household names such as The Strokes, Rolling Stones and The Clash to ground our compositions.

It`s all about the music – and we want to hear your tunes and how they have been written.

Charlie Green: You can hear all our tunes on Spotify, Soundcloud and watch our amazing videos directed by Sandra Crilo on Youtube. Also, we released the EP on vinyl earlier this year. Most of our songs start with an interesting riff or composition, then either Harry or me pen together the lyrics, based on what is stimulating us at the moment. After that, we take the new material to rehearsals and try it out with the whole band to test its potential.

The portrait of the band by Jonathan Hallam

Name your best song. What can you tell us about it?

Charlie Green: Our best song would be “The Kings House”. This song is about the old apartment where Harry and I used to live in London, on Camden Street. It’s where the magic happened, where we got into trouble with huge house parties and long smoky nights. It is a calling for freaks everywhere to celebrate their opulence, in a space opened to all.

How do you create your unique sound  and write the lyrics? What gear are you using?

Charlie Green:  We aim to write lyrically informed poetry, sharing tales from our cities and experiences. As for the equipment, we use different guitars and bass pedals, playing with distortions, delays, reverbs, to make our sound distinctive from others.

All in all, the marriage of guitars, Simon’s methodical bass, Raoul’s seamless drumming and Harry All’s energizing voice, allows us to celebrate our unique and youthful sound.

 

Are you touring? Where can we see you play live?

Charlie Green:  We have a number of shows lined up and you can catch us on:

Sunday 29th of September, Camden Assembly (London)
Friday 11th of October, Space Mountain Festival (Granada, Spain)
Saturday 2nd of November, Notting Hill Arts Club (London)
And from the 11th to the 15th of March 2020, The New Colossus Festival (New York)!

The Gulps at the pub by Xandru Zahra

Squad goals – where do you want to see the band in five years time?

Charlie Green:  This is a good question! We want to be touring around the world and playing big festivals such as Glastonbury, Coachella, Reading etc. We also want to go to studios to record new music and make The Gulps a new religion.

If any bookers or promoters want to get in touch – what is the best way to contact you?

Charlie Green:  They can contact us via email at thegulps.london@gmail.com, or just send us a message on one of our social media pages, they are listed below.

Imagine you can record an album with any producer, dead or alive in a studio of your choice. Who would be on your record?

Charlie Green:  We would love to work with the legendary George Martin, or Phil Spector (Beatles producers) but we are extremely happy working with ‘’Youth’’ at the moment. ‘’Youth’’ is a genuine producer with a long CV to his name, giving his soul and life to the music.

You can follow The Gulps at the socials:
https://www.thegulps.com/
https://www.facebook.com/thegulps/
https://www.instagram.com/thegulps/
https://twitter.com/TGulps
https://soundcloud.com/user-209918800
https://amazingtunes.com/thegulps/activity?page=2
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiL-v5G2Hnpgyb0it9E6mFw
https://thegulps.bandcamp.com/

Or listen to them on Spotify:

 

 

 

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Indieterria presents Rascalton + guests at Werkhaus, London

Dear Readers,

There are places you need to see during your life time (Paris, New York City, London). There are movies you have to watch (Casablanca, Easy Rider, Metropolis), dishes you need to try and songs you need to hear. And there are concerts you just have to go to. The closest one you have to attend is happening on September the 5th, in London at the newest venue in town: The WerkHaus. The line up is simply so good, it is obvious the event is going to be biblical. And if you miss it, then here’s a suitable quote from the Manual (aka the Bible) that will perfectly sum up your state of mind upon realization of what you have done: “There will be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 13:50).

Event poster

You have been warned.

More information about the event:
https://www.facebook.com/events/422683291684329/
https://www.seetickets.com/event/rascalton/werkhaus/1418645
Price: £6
Admission: 18+ (bring your ID’s!)

Werkhaus is located in East London at 85 Brick Lane, opposite Rough Trade East.  They share the address with Cafe 1001, but are located upstairs. They opened quite recently (just under two months ago) but they haven’t been wasting any time. The large space is now a night club, an exhibition space and a concert venue with DIY ethos focussing on the genres of indie rock, psych rock, post punk and grunge. Recent events they’ve put on have included live sets from bands such as Dutch Mustard, The Gulps, Scary Lemons, After London, Framatics, Mummy and Bikini Bombs, with upcoming bands playing including Juicebox, FILM, JW Paris, BUTE, The Howlers, GURU, Strange Cages, and many more.

Please follow them on socials at:
http://www.werkhauslondon.com/
https://www.facebook.com/werkhauslondon/
https://twitter.com/werkhauslondon
https://www.instagram.com/werkhauslondon/

What’s really special about the Werkhaus is, they are a place that allow female promoters to shire. The person behind the booking, marketing, program and social media is Sahera Walker. We spoke to her few months ago and if you’d like to read the interview, please do so, as it is always a pleasure to speak to a lady that wrote about Calva Louise, Yonaka and The Blinders before anybody else did!
https://cocamidemea.wordpress.com/2019/05/17/indieterria-meets-sahera-walker/

This Thursday, Sahara booked four emerging bands that are making waves on the indie circuit. They are Splinter, SNAYX, SNASH and Rascalton. The gig will start at 8:00 pm and the music will be playing well past midnight (there is a DJ set from Peggy’s World as well), so be prepared for a mad moshpit, tasty drinks and the best music in town. If you haven’t heard of any of the bands yet (seriously??), don’t you worry! Vanadian Avene is here to the rescue with some useful bios, links and stage times.

Splinter:
Stage time: 20:30-21:00

Splinter

Splinter is a modern punk band, delivering sharp, crunchy riffs tuned with rhythmic, cutting vocal satire. The trio is based in London and consists of  Mark Marven
Will Brown and Jordan Osborne. The drive in the hooks and melodies offer a powerful and catchy variety of songs led by intense, acidic and often humorous lyrics that drill deep into the ills of contemporary western society. No floppy art rock tunes or sentimental messages of heartbreak, more like a refreshing antidote to an ever more beige and vacuous pop culture, intent on promoting and celebrating shallow, vanity obsessed materialism.

https://www.splinterband.com/
https://www.facebook.com/SplinterMusicLondon/
https://www.instagram.com/splinter_gram/
https://splinter-band.bandcamp.com/releases
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSn446Ty79bCvQ8pA2q1MnQ

 

SNAYX:
Stage time: 21:15-21:45

Snayx – photo by Leila Rummery https://www.facebook.com/filmandvisual

SNAYX is a punk duo based in Brighton consisting of two friends: Ollie Horner and Charlie Herridge. Formed at the beginning of 2018, the band has played a string of well received gigs, building a solid reputation for wild stage presence and catchy melodies. Their newest single “Deranged” has received backing from BBC Introducing and is available for download on every platform. It comes with a great video so be sure to check them out.

“SNAYX play with so much passion, it will leave you feeling envious of the talent they possess” – BN1 Magazine

https://snayx.com
https://www.facebook.com/SNAYX/
https://twitter.com/SNAYXUK
https://www.instagram.com/snayxuk/
https://soundcloud.com/snayxuk
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZj9zhunBOwb8VswrFlMzuQ

 

SNASH:
Stage time: 22:00-22:30

SNASH

Formed in 2017 in Glasgow, Snash (Scottish for Insolence) has been called a “punk rock’s new hope”. SNASH shared the stages with Shady Poets, Strange Bones, Baby Strange, Rascalton, Bute and many others. Their enthusiastic and wild shows won them many a fan and took them on the road to Blackpool, Manchester, London, Liverpool, Cardiff and of course all over their native Scotland. Their new single “Warning” was released on June 3rd. Their music received a massive backing from BBC Introducing Scotland and Amazing Radio (Charlie Ashcroft).

“The latest proponents of muscular and unfiltered punk rock” – Tenement TV

https://www.facebook.com/snash.ruys/
https://twitter.com/SNASH_BAND
https://www.instagram.com/snash.ruys/
https://soundcloud.com/snash-251464477
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1cpPzjQUb3af3hrRQch5CA

 

Rascalton:
Stage time: 22:45-23:15

Rascalton – photo by Cameron James Brisbane
https://www.facebook.com/cameronbrisbanephotography

Rascalton are a deafening force of scatty punk vigour, with a sharp mosh-pit inducing edge to their music. Hailing from Glasgow, the punk four piece embed elements of grunge and dirty punk rock’n’roll in their sound, and are a force and half on stage. They have recently played with artists like Strange Bones, Calva Louise, and The Blinders, as well as playing packed out sets at Camden Rocks Festival and Deer Shed festival.

https://www.facebook.com/Rascalton/
https://rascalton.bigcartel.com
https://twitter.com/RSCLTN
https://www.instagram.com/rascalton/
https://soundcloud.com/rascalton
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC01Jrq4HP-gPk4eu7oJ5NkA

 

DJ Set: Peggy’s World
Stage time: midnight till late

London based Presenter, MC and Promoter always on the scout for fresh sounds and a Big Day Out.

Peggy’s World – photo by Sandy K. Moz
https://www.facebook.com/runninglibertine

Show: Every Friday, 11am-1pm
https://boogalooradio.com/

Radio submissions and booking inquiries:
peggypresents@gmail.com

https://www.facebook.com/PeggyFromEarth/
https://twitter.com/PeggyFromEarth
https://www.instagram.com/peggyfromearth
https://www.mixcloud.com/BoogalooRadio/peggys-daylight-rockery-feat-little-grim-300819

You are now ready to go! After reading this guide, we are sure you will be singing each song like from a hymn book at the Sunday service.
And amen to that!

See you there,
R+M

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Indieterria meets Bexatron

Dear Readers,

They are one of London`s best kept secrets, a band that took classic rock influences and dragged them into XXI century. Holding to their DIY ethos with pride, their amps turned up to 11 and writing songs that will make you shake your booty – Bexatron offer you a whole package of rock and roll fun.  You will not regret this ride. Get on! We sat down with Greg Radcliffe to speak about their beginning, gruelling recording sessions and touring Canada.

 

Band logo

Your bio introduces you as “an octane pop punk with a glam coat” from the heart of London. What an intriguing way to describe a band! Please tell our readers who is in Bexatron and how did the group start?

Greg Radcliffe:  Bexatron consists of BeXXX on vocals, Belle Star on drums, Adam Adorjan on bass and me on guitar. I had been for looking for a singer to front a band which eventually became Bexatron for months. I bumped into BeXXX in Bruno’s Cafe in Soho in London.

I thought she looked the business and asked if she could sing. She said yes. The rest is history. I knew the boys already so when they heard her sing, they jumped in.

 The band has been compared to rock greatest (Blondie, Joan Jett, The Pretenders) and lauded for bringing uncompromising rock with a charismatic female leader back to the frontlines. God knows we missed it.  Do you see yourselves as saviours of rock from repetitiveness and mediocrity?

Greg Radcliffe:  We’re not saviours. We are more pioneers of a genre of music that we like. Putting our own slant on it. We are constantly avoiding repetitiveness and mediocrity. I would say 75% of what we do ends up on the cutting room floor.

Bexatron live – photography by Tosh Marshall
https://www.facebook.com/ToshMarshallPhotography/

 Bexatron has released their debut album “Hey You” in December 2018 and a stand-alone single “Dirty Disco”. One of the things being mentioned in every review is how the records brings generations of guitar music fans together. It`s like you found a secret formula between classic rock antics while sounding fresh and appealing for young audience. What`s your secret?

Greg Radcliffe: There’s no secret (laughs) You hit the nail on the head. All the aforementioned artists, we have been disciples of. We are just spreading the word through our own interpretations. I guess that what keeps it fresh.

 In an interview for Vents Magazine you described the recording sessions as demanding and not without difficulties. Tell us where “Hey You!” was created and how do you manage to face gruelling recordings with such energy and positivity? 

Greg Radcliffe: “Hey You!” was created in Soho, Kilburn, Hackney, Barcelona. The recording was gruelling but we thought to stick to our guns and make the record ‘WE’ wanted. It could have easily ended up on X Factor. Underneath the songs are basically pop songs. However, we didn’t want that one-minute wonder sound. We’re here to stay.

You are now back with a new single “I`m Trash” – an angry track directed at the modern life and how powers that be can make us feel small and insignificant.  Where did the inspiration for the track come from?

Greg Radcliffe:  We wouldn’t say “I`m Trash” is an angry song. It’s reflective of, as you mentioned, modern day life and the society we live. The song like the whole album is pretty much based around London past and present.

Bexatron live shows are legendary – audience dancing, singing lyrics back at the band (in a slightly off-key manner) and generally having good fun. You just recently smashed it at Camden Rocks. How was it to play a home coming gig?

Greg Radcliffe: Camden is our spiritual home. It`s always nice to play to a packed Camden Assembly at 2 pm on the hottest day of the year.

The band is soon off to play your first tour of Canada. It seems like a natural step considering the amount of radio airplay you received there. What can your overseas fans expect from your shows?

Greg Radcliffe:  I think our audience in Canada expect to see the fourth dimension. So far, they have heard it from their radios or phones and seen it on TV screens. Now they are going to get the real deal up close.

Bexx in her element – photography by Tosh Marshall
https://www.facebook.com/ToshMarshallPhotography/

Talking about support from radio stations. Amazing Radio has been championing you a lot these days.  So does BBC Introducing. Do you have any DJs that were instrumental for your career that you would like to give a shout out to?

Greg Radcliffe: All’s been pretty grass roots radio wise. We need to mention Spizz on Resonance Radio, Peter Fox on Foxy Radio, Dave Renegade on Dark Hearts of Camden Radio, Gwen Ever on Deal Radio and Stuart Clack on The Premium Blend Radio. There’s many more, but the reason we’ve given them a shout is that they have all been to our gigs, not just spun our tune.

When all the touring obligations are completed, and you have some time for yourselves – do you plan to take longer holidays or rather just bury yourself in the studio again?

Greg Radcliffe: No holidays, we will just keep on promoting “Hey You!” through till festival time 2020. You can expect our next offering in October 2020. As we’ve already said 75% of our stuff ends up on the cutting room floor, but we’ve already got a fair whack done and start shaping it up when we get back.

Last (in)famous question – imagine that you can play any legendary venue in the world for your most dedicated fans. Where do you take them?

Greg Radcliffe:  Hammersmith Odeon in London.
Bexxx:  CBGBS in New York.
Adam Adorjan: Madison Square Garden in New York.
Belle Star: The Rounhouse in London.

The band live on stage – photography by Graham Hearn https://www.facebook.com/graham.hearn.9

You can follow the band on socials:

https://www.bexatronuk.com/
https://www.facebook.com/bexatronlive/
https://twitter.com/_BEXATRON
https://www.instagram.com/bexatron_ukofficial/
https://soundcloud.com/bexatron_london
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvDY-TyjsmRspVwYDI74MSg
https://open.spotify.com/artist/2vKP9JrDVQyfNroiqCdAkk?si=w_I3B9K_SMepx-vjmC4zAA

Big thank you to Greg Radclife for agreeing to this interview and to Mimi Brock-Stark of Lander PR for making necessary arrangements.

Shall we meet again on the blog for more kick ass music talk? You bet.

M/R

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Indieterria Review – “Red Hot Military Audition” by The Garage Flowers

Dear Readers,

They have been described as “explosive, dark and sexy” but that would be an understatement. The Garage Flowers are the most riotous, creative and bold four piece that London has seen since The Manics` infamous stay in the capital. In the era of safe pop music and forgettable starlets, The Garage Flowers have all qualities of proper rock stars: swagger, nonchalance, determination, perseverance and real, raw talent. On the record or on stage the band will hypnotise you, will grab your attention before you can blink and will leave you being absolutely, hopelessly in love with them. Had it been 1970`s The Garage Flowers would be Gods. Or maybe they were and now returned to show all the lads in parkas in the North how to do rock and roll properly.

The Garage Flowers in bloom. Photo by Sophie McCarthy https://www.facebook.com/sofielaurenmccarthy

2019 has already been very busy for the band. They have released acoustic version of their older single “Miss Maggie May” and premiered a proper belter “Panic Street Again”. They toured both internationally and on domestic front. Now they return with “Red Hot Military Audition” – their new single. On the cover you can see The Garage Flowers dressed in military attire that make one think of Manic Street Preachers (in the Holy Bible period) or The Clash. And we have to give it to the band  – they know exactly what they are doing. “Red Hot Military Audition” has the punk attitude of The Clash, with energy of Guns n Roses and melody line that James Dean Bradfield would love to claim as his own. There are even samples – something that Manics practised a lot on The Holy Bible. And yet, the song does not feel like a mash up of influences. It doesn’t feel dated either. It`s fresh, modern day indie record that you have on repeat and will sing to yourself without even realising it. Oh NME where are you in your large print format? We need your pages at the newsagents every week so bands like The Garage Flowers can look at us from every stand and remind us that rock and roll is still alive and kicking.

Give The Garage Flowers a year or two and you will see them on SXSW and touring large venues.

We have been lucky enough to be able to sit down with  Joe Capaldi – the voice and front man of the band and ask him few questions regarding the new single. You have no idea how busy and in demand those guys are!

Its only rock and roll but we like it! Photo by Eric Mouroux https://www.facebook.com/eric.mouroux

Please introduce yourself to the readers of Indieterria.  Where are you based and who is in the band?

Joe Capaldi:  The Garage Flowers are

Joe Capaldi on vocals/guitar from Kings Cross, London
Mike Serapinas on bass/backing vocals from Chiswick, London
Jonny Webber on guitar/backing vocals from Finsbury Park, London
Norea Persson on drums/backing vocals from Bethnal Green, London

Tell us something about the project – are there any goals that you managed to achieve?

Joe Capaldi: Our goal is as it always was:  to have a documentary made about us and have it narrated by Alan Clayson.

What inspires you? What artist or genre had the biggest influence on you?

Joe Capaldi:  In college I’d wear cardigans (whatever the weather) and keep a bottle of red wine with me all the time. Taking swigs from it when the teacher would leave the room to get much needed attention. I also started messing my hair up consciously – with hair gum (before I wisened to hairspray) to look more like my obsession at the time – Bob Dylan. I loved the whole myth of him. Would religiously listen to his music, watch the few interviews that were on YouTube and screen “No Direction Home” endlessly.

The sleeve to Red Hot Military Audition single

It’s all about the music – and we want to hear about your new single. Is there a story behind the song, where and how was it written.

Joe Capaldi:  I put together the riff before the band was even formed, and played it for Jonny one of the first times we ever met up. It was a lot faster then and had no singing. I always loved the title but everyone used to loathe it, I eventually won them over though, or just tired them with my stubborn way.

Are you touring? Where can we see you playing live?

Joe Capaldi:  We’ve actually got some very exciting dates we’re finalising now. I’m not yet allowed to announce them though. “All apologies”  as Kurdt Kobain said in 1993.

If any bookers or promoters want to get in touch – what is the best way to contact you?

Joe Capaldi:  You can contact us directly through our email address – thegarageflowers@outlook.com

Imagine you can record an album with any artist, dead or alive in a studio of your choice. Who would be on your record?

Joe Capaldi:  Ooooh great question! For me I’d say Tom Waits, at the moment I’m into putting instruments together that don’t normally go together, and creating atmosphere as well as great songs. I think he’d be great for painting a dark, demented atmosphere. VIVA WAITS.

Future looks bright. Photo by Elly Bailey https://www.facebook.com/EllyBaileyPhotography/

You can follow The Garage Flowers on social media at:

https://www.thegarageflowers.co.uk/
https://www.facebook.com/thegarageflowersband/
https://twitter.com/garageflowerss
https://www.instagram.com/the_garage_flowers/
https://soundcloud.com/thegarageflowers
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLTq_hTLgIq9HqMO78PkRng
https://open.spotify.com/artist/0GaTRMQodNVTRtNblmPIQW?si=c8GjOaFNScaFnjydYBRsfQ

We will update this blog in few days as there will be a video coming and we want to show you what the band has prepared! And obviously there will be tour dates to announce so please watch this space!

R/M

by

Indieterria meets Sahera Walker

Sahera Walker interview

Known as the Queen of Underground Scene in London, Sahera Walker is one of the most respected independent promoters working on the DIY scene. Her passion, music knowledge and intuition have been praised on numerous occasions and were recognized by industry professionals. Indieterria is following young, successful females who are taking the music business by storm and continue to change the industry rules. We have sat down with Sahera to discuss her zine, modern alternative music and her ambitious plans to turn Cafe 1001 into a hub of music, fashion and counter-culture.

Sahera Walker

Bio: Sahera is 20 year old music journalist based in East London, and she is the creative-owner of Indie Underground Blog

She started blogging in 2016, which is when she first set up her blogging site. She has since gone on to work in PR & live music, and now owns Some Might Say Magazine, and is the lead booker for live music events at Café 1001 on Brick Lane. She runs gigs for her magazine at Nambucca in Islington & The Five Bells in New Cross.

Indie Underground & Some Might Say have received support from BBC Radio 6, Flying Vinyl, Clue Records, This Feeling, The Truman Brewery, The Zine UK, Clash Magazine, 1234 Records, Roadkill Records, ArtBeats Promo, Coda Agency, Devil PR, and more. The digital and physical platforms Sahera runs all have one aim; to promote underground DIY music, and support creatives within the industry by printing, reviewing, and featuring their work. Always keen to work with new artists, Indie Underground is a growing platform which has gained an impeccable reputation for scouting new acts who go on to be huge within the indie industry

Sahera also works as a freelance photographer & journalist, focusing solely on DIY indie rock, psych rock, grunge, and post punk music

Promoter, PR professional, zine editor, writer, journalist – it’s hard to believe that one person can do it all. Who is Sahera Walker? Please introduce yourself to the readers of our blog.

Some Might Say zine promotional picture

Sahera Walker: Very kind of you! So my name is Sahera, I’m 20 years old, and I’m a music journalist and promoter based in East London. I’m the creative owner and editor of Some Might Say Zine and Indie Underground Blog, running launch parties for each zine that comes out. I have recently taken over the Live Bookings and PR for a new DIY space on Brick Lane too!

You created “Some Might Say” zine at the age of 18. Was there any specific reason why you decided to start a musical magazine?

Sahera Walker:  I really love the DIY authenticity of rock music, and to me there’s something really special about flicking through a physical print publication, and just seeing all the beautiful photos and art pieces in print, and soaking up new musical knowledge. I really love that vibe, and I wanted to bring that authenticity back into an industry where mainstream magazines are either dying out, or turning to conventional pop music instead. I used to love NME but they sold themselves out years ago, so I suppose I wanted to create my own print publication with no sponsors or external funding, its sole aim to promote fresh upcoming new music.

So far “Some Might Say” published five issues and the sixth one will be released shortly. What can we find in the newest edition?

Sahera Walker: It will be available to purchase by the end of May/ very start of June, via somemightsay.org. This Issue has taken months to work on, as it’s taking Some Might Say down a slightly more creative and unconventional route, so I hope the wait will be worth it!

Alongside with the zine, you run a popular music blog Indie Underground focusing on rock, post punk and DIY scene. In your opinion, how important is support from blogs and magazines for up and coming artists?

Sahera Walker: To me, it’s absolutely vital. The music industry is made into the thriving and vibrant scene that it is through DIY support, from people who love music and want to work, often for free, to promote and support new music. That’s where fans of bands end up becoming journalists, photographers, promoters, and bloggers, inspiring a real love and passion into their work. This supportive DIY scene is probably the most important thing for new bands, as without them who is going to fuel the underground music scene?

Several issues of Some Might Say magazine

You have put bands such as Yonaka, Calva Louise, False Heads or most recently Black Midi on many people’s radars. What captures your attention when it comes to indie bands? How do you recognize the “next big thing”?

Sahera Walker:  I do try! I think I was very lucky, when I got into music aged about 17 it was when bands like Yonaka, The Blinders, Strange Bones, Calva Louise, and False Heads were all starting out (the last three I’ve had play Some Might Say gigs for me, which I’m very proud of!), so I just naturally saw them at small venues playing to tiny handfuls of people. For me, I like unconventional bands that are passionate and exciting, and it just has to click in a special way for me to go crazy about a band. This doesn’t happen too often, as it’s more of a feeling you get from certain bands – it’s very special though, and all the bands you mentioned are ones who really gripped and excited me when I discovered them.

Gig goers often ask what they can do to help bands, something beyond buying a tee from the merch store. Would you have any suggestions?

Sahera Walker: I think going to gigs is the most important thing, as it supports not only the bands, but also the small venues and promoters who are hosting the gigs, which is fundamental to the scene as a whole. Bands that have a strong live following as well are the ones who end up being hotly tipped by journalists, on the radio, and then eventually scouted by agents and managers, so going to gigs really helps. But even the small things like social media posts, buying merch, streaming and downloading music; it all helps, and I know they mean massive amounts to the bands.

In April 2019, you joined Cafe 1001 as their official promoter and PR. Tell us more about this place. What can it offer to the emerging bands?

Sahera Walker: So Café 1001 is a venue space in Shoreditch, just opposite Rough Trade East. We are currently undergoing a really exciting refurbishment and rebrand in the venue, which will change the name and appearance into something a lot more DIY. We’re taking the venue down a more creative, subculture-philosophy inspired route, and alongside the gigs (focusing on indie/punk/grime/grunge) we want to have a lot of new DJs playing with us too. What we’re offering bands is payed gigs, in a fantastic DIY 200 capacity space, with a state of the arts PA and backline system. I also run PR campaigns and social media campaigns for my live events, so bands would be fully supported by us.

Some Might Say logo at legendary London Club, Nambucca

You are known for coming up with groundbreaking ideas. Your newest one is to create a rotating exhibition aimed at avant-garde DIY artists, music zine makers, live music photographers and designers. Can you provide us with more information about it? How long will it last? will artists be able to sell their works?

Sahera Walker:  Given the DIY subculture philosophy we are implementing, I came up with the idea of running a rotating exhibition in the venue’s front room. We will have art work, photos (art based, film, portrait, and live music), and film reels on display, as well as zines in the venue. The idea is to have a launch night (June 27th) with live music to accompany, and this will be a chance for the creatives involved to network and sell their work. We will then keep some of the work up in the venue, and keep the zines in the café space for people to browse through during the day. Then every three months, we will run another exhibition, where we can refresh the art and photos we have, and bring in some new zines to the space

Let’s play! You are given a whole page in The Guardian for a music column. What bands are you recommending to the public?

Sahera Walker: So many, I could write you pages on this! I’d have to narrow it down to Black Country New Road, The Murder Capital, Weird Milk, Kid Kapichi, Fontaines DC, Uncle Tesco, Legss, Happy Hour, Pip Blom, False Heads, Squid, Haze, LICE, Avalanche Party, Strange Bones, Calva Louise and JW Paris. Just a quick note, when I spoke earlier about those rare special bands who I just click with – Kid Kapichi are my current obsession, and I would recommend them highly.

The last question (but very important one). If any artist or musician wants to get in touch – how can they reach you?

Sahera Walker: I have contact forms on my websites which are usually the best shout to play a gig at my new venue:
https://indieunderground.blog/play-for-us/,

Send your submissions to:
https://indieunderground.blog/contact/
https://somemightsay.org/contact/

Or any London based bands, you can usually find me at a scatty punk gig in Camden or Brixton, so feel free to come up and say hi!

You can follow Sahera on socials:
https://www.facebook.com/sahera.walker/
https://www.instagram.com/youareallslaves/
https://twitter.com/sahera_walker
https://open.spotify.com/user/1143822162
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCssXbu_GT0ZU47I8xUmXEdw

https://www.instagram.com/somemightsayzine/
https://somemightsay.org/
https://www.facebook.com/somemightsayzine/

https://indieunderground.blog/
https://www.facebook.com/indieundergroundblog/

Articles:
http://northern-exposure.co/interview-sahera-walker-some-might-say/
https://www.thezineuk.co.uk/2019-futurepicks-the-music-people-on-and-off-stage/

The new issue of “Some Might Say” will land in a couple of days so don’t forget to order your copy. Supporting local zines, magazines and independent artists is vital for the scene to survive. Indieterria will keep shining light at the people behind the music – promoters, event managers, club owners, streaming services companies, radio DJ’s and hosts, photographers, managers or music scouts – they all are working in the background helping artists move from one level of their careers to another. They are essential yet they are rarely getting any credits or thanks. Let’s bring them into limelight!

Please stay tuned as we have something special planned very soon!

XXX
R+M

by

Indieterria meets Lower Loveday again

Dear Readers,

We are few days away from our first proper musical showcase at the legendary Nambucca venue in London. We truly can`t wait to see the amazing Tiger Mimic and Memes and this band – Lower Loveday. Ladies and gentlemen – we had a pleasure to meet them a year ago and had amazing time speaking to the band. Now we sat down (quickly) with Lower Loveday`s frontman Mark Washington and  the band`s drummer Tom Garbett for a refresher.  And we had few things to ask them! So read on and check out the band`s new banger of a single.

Lower Loveday logo

You can read our old interview  with the band here:

https://cocamidemea.wordpress.com/2018/02/23/indieterria-meets-lower-loveday/ 

We have spoken to the band exactly one year ago. A lot has changed in Lower Loveday – including a new member. Please introduce your new bassist to the readers of Indieterria.

Mark Washington (Lower Loveday): Yes, that year really has flown by and a lot has happened! Our new bassist is Ben Gillman from Worcester (West Midlands). He’s an excellent talent who’s played with a few bands in the area before joining us in December last year.

In March, you have released a new single entitled “Fire That Burns Inside”. Can you tell us what the song is about?

Tom Garbett: The song is all about a relationship struggle that I was having at that time and its summarising what I was feeling.  I was left in a rather awkward situation that was really hard to deal with so I decided to put my feelings down into a song. It is brutally honest in that respect. So in general it is a relationship conundrum I would say!

Lower Loveday have been championed on BBC Introducing West Midlands and BBC Hereford & Worcester

The song is promoted by a very interesting video. You show some fabulous dance moves and very colourful outfits. Who directed it and how do you remember working on the set?

Mark Washington:  Ah thanks very much! We had a lot of fun and managed to get it all shot in a day! We choreographed the dance ourselves which you can probably tell from the moves but we wanted to get people laughing and really enjoying the video as well as the song. It really had an amazing reaction! The video was brilliantly filmed and edited by Ben Parry at Indy Motion who are local to us in Evesham.

You are keeping a busy touring schedule. On April 27th you play iconic London venue Nambucca with Tiger Mimic and Memes, then on May 4th you return to O2 Institute in Birmingham to play with Open Arms. What can we expect from your live performances?

Mark Washington:  We’re really looking forward to these shows! You can expect lot of energy and good vibes a lot like our recent music video. We get the crowd involved, get them moving and try to get them to join in with the dancing and make sure they have a smile on their face too!

We heard that you are also looking to play more shows in the North. Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds are being mentioned as possible destinations. If any of the Northern promoters want to get in touch with you, what do they need to do?

Mark Washington:  Yes we have quite a few fans asking us to play further north than we have before! Promoters can reach out to us on any of our social media but the best way would be to send us an email directly to: lowerloveday@gmail.com

You can follow the band on the socials:

https://www.lowerloveday.com/
https://www.instagram.com/lowerloveday/
https://twitter.com/lower_loveday
https://soundcloud.com/lowerloveday
https://www.facebook.com/lowerloveday
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClGDR9XIPOo96KRox090yTg

You can catch the band playing a gig in London on April 27th – all info can be found at the event page below:

https://www.facebook.com/events/658720734568060/

 

Poster for our first showcase!

All right – enough fan girling here. Lower Loveday are officially going places and to miss them would be foolish. We will see ya at Nambucca.

Love,
Mal/Rita

by

Indieterria meets Memes

Dear Readers,

They appeared out of nowhere, with no warning and within a month have been BBC 6 Music single of the week, had Amazing Radio on their team and BBC Scotland taking notice. If that is not a very definition of taking the indie circuit by storm, then we don’t know what that would be. We have sat down with Memes to talk about their new single, future gigs and their lyrics. This band combines post punk fury with intelligence and wit of The Fall. Mark E Smith is probably looking down, nodding his head with approval and saying to John Peel that there are still good bands in the UK.

You can listen to Memes on 60 seconds CV on Steve Lamacq’s Recommend’s show at:
https://cocamidemea.files.wordpress.com/2018/11/memes_60-seconds_cv_steve-lamacq-recommends_25.04.2019.mp3

They are going viral and we couldn’t be happier!

Memes logo

Memes are:
John McLinden
Paul McLinden

At Indieterria, we take pride in researching each band we interview. However we weren’t able to find much about Memes. We learnt only that you come from Glasgow and that the band is made out of two friends named John and Paul. Introduce yourselves properly to our readers.

Memes: Memes is John McLinden and Paul McLinden and we are cousins and we are a new duo from Glasgow.

We love your enigmatic attitude. You have no biography on social media, just an email address and a couple of pictures are available. Tell us more about Memes. When did you start playing? Have you been involved in any previous projects?

Memes: To be honest, the mystery hasn’t really been intentional, the missing bio and lack of information on the band is mostly down to the fact that the band is being so new! That said, it’s hard for bands to maintain any mystique in the social media age, which is a shame, as it is one of the things we like about some of our favourite bands.

Memes came about from some downtime in another band we play with (we have been involved in various projects before). We just got together to record some ideas that Paul had written. We were just messing around really and DIY recording in a loft in Glasgow, but we liked the end result of ‘Blah Blah Blah’ and thought we would put a single release together to see if we could get any reaction. We only started working on Memes in February 2019.

Scottish blog Turn Up The Volume compared your music to The Fall and The Smiths with a “healthy dose” of Idles. What are your inspirations?

Memes:  Very flattering of them to say so, we would count those bands as favourites of ours for sure. We like anything that is interesting or provocative in some way. That could be anything from Talking Heads to Frank Sinatra to Steve Reich.

“Is that a picture of your grand pa?” – photography by Gary Dickie

In another review you were described as “Fast and furious lo-fi post punk that sounds like a frantic Mark E Smith after a day spent watching BBC Parliament”.  And we have to admit that your lyrics have the same wit and edge as the lead singer of The Fall. We will risk saying that he`d be a fan.  You are not afraid to be outspoken and yet do it in a subtle way. That’s a very rare quality in music these days. 

Memes:  There isn’t much in the way of being outspoken (or saying anything really) in the mainstream, but there are bands and individuals out there causing a stir. We haven’t deliberately set our stall out to say anything specific but hopefully the songs catch the imagination.

You just released your debut A side single “Blah Blah Blah”/”Funny man” and captured attention of everyone in the business. You have been a single of the week at BBC 6 Music as chosen by Steve Lamacq himself, you have been championed by Jim Gellatly on Amazing Radio, Tom Robinson from Fresh on the Net is also very fond of the song. This Feeling added the single to their Best New Bands playlist. Is this attention something you have expected?

Memes:  No, not at all. We liked the music and hoped others would, but having the airplay we have had for such a new project has been fantastic, we just have to back it up now! Music is a difficult nut to crack and we have only released two songs at the moment, but hopefully our next release will raise the game!

Talking about debuts, The Duct Tape, Edinburgh zine swears that 4 months before “Blah Blah Blah” came out you have released another song that was distributed during underground punk gathering. Sadly we haven’t been able to confirm this  piece of news anywhere else. True or not?

Memes:  Hmmm news to us! Could be another band called Memes but it definitely wasn’t us.

We would like to ask you about the story behind “Funny Man”. Are you able to disclose the person about whom the song was  written?

Memes:  It’s not about any one person in particular, just the many “funny” and supposed “characters” out there that you meet…that aren’t funny and have no character, you know the ones!

We keep mentioning The Fall in this interview and on 13th of June you will be supporting Imperial Wax Band (whose members were the longest serving and the last line up of The Fall). You must have the date marked on your calendars!

Memes:  Yeah, looking forward to that one. Given that The Fall has been mentioned as part of our sound, it will hopefully go down well with the Imperial Wax crowd.

Memes are just getting started – but you must have some plans made for the future. What can we expect? A new single more gigs or perhaps a bigger release such a EP?

Famous last question. Imagine you can play any venue in the world. Which one would you choose?

Memes:  This would have to be the Barrowlands in Glasgow, simply a great venue.

Memes ready to take on the world – photo by Gary Dickie

You can follow the band on social media:

https://www.facebook.com/memestheband/
https://soundcloud.com/memestheband
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAozXPvxbmFDRGmKhGVK8fQ
https://twitter.com/memestheband
https://open.spotify.com/artist/4UHOCHsbn2JNwXQJWzO2WT?si=zx3wwhmwQqWzSmIWdyeo8w

Memes can be contacted at: memestheband@hotmail.com

Additional reading :
https://turnupthevolume.blog/2019/04/08/scottish-post-punks-memes-hit-hard-twice-with-double-debut-single-blah-blah-blah-and-funny-man/

Memes will share the stage with hottest new indie bands – Tiger Mimic and Lower Loveday at iconic venue Nambucca on April 27th 2019. The event is free entry:

Showcase poster

You can find more info on socials at:
https://www.facebook.com/events/658720734568060/

We will be reporting on Memes in the future since they are about to go though the roofs. Just give them few months, they will give Sleaford Mods a good run! (and we like Mods, actually them and Memes on a tour is such a good idea!).

R/M

by

Indieterria meets Tiger Mimic

Dear Readers,

There are many bands on the indie circuit:  the cool ones, the mysterious ones, the ones you like. And then there are bands that you simply love from the first note. It`s so good to be a music obsessive – as Steve Lamacq says – you can fall in love at least twice a week! So yeah – here we go again being head over heels with a new band. They are Tiger Mimic, they are based in London and they will headline Vandian Avenue first showcase on April 27th at the iconic Nambucca.

We cannot tell you how excited we are and how grateful too. We sat down with Jess Rhodes  of Tiger Mimic to speak to her about the band history, their excellent debut EP and even video games.

This is the band you need to know. No excuses!

 

Tiger Mimic Logo

Official bio: Tiger Mimic is a London-based band with a sound that ranges from bitcrushed anthems to sinister bass grooves to rapid-fire rock poetry and more. Their debut EP, “Elephant Skeleton”, was recorded with Grammy Award winning producer Matt Lawrence at London’s Livingston Studio. Released in January 2019, its five songs showcase their diverse range of styles and influences.

Tiger Mimic:
Jess Rhodes  (vox, synth)
Bram Johnson  (guitar,  vox)
Ben Willis  (bass, vox)
George Latham  (drums)

You named the band after a butterfly that mimics appearance of its poisonous cousin, but you are one of the most original bands we have heard this year. Please introduce yourselves to the readers of Indieterria.

Jess Rhodes: Ah, thank you so much. That’s a very kind thing to say. We’re Tiger Mimic, we’re based in London, and usually we say we’re an “indie rock” band just to keep it simple, but we do have a lot of different influences. Jess sings and plays synth, Bram sings and plays guitar, Ben plays bass and sings back-up, and George plays drums.

You may have just released your debut EP, but the band has quite a history – including a relocation to another continent. Jess and Bram started out their respective projects while living and working in NYC. They met Ben and George after coming to London. Do you think that having musicians from both sides of the Pond helped to forge your unique sound?

Jess Rhodes: I was actually born and grew up (mainly) in Europe! I was exposed to music from every genre. My mom loved Arabic and Kurdish music (I didn’t really) but sometimes people tell me my melodies have a middle-eastern tinge to them, so it’s funny how you can get influenced by what you get exposed to growing up.

Moving from NYC to London was the best decision ever, and the fact that we met Ben & George was crazy lucky. We all have diverse influences and grew up listening to so many different things, but there is also a lot of overlap, so it’s hard to say how much effect geography had. Each member brings their own style to the band, though, and it has definitely given us a sense that nothing is off limits when it comes to writing songs.

Tiger Mimic – photo by Alan Wells
https://www.facebook.com/thealanwells/

When preparing to this interview we have found information that Jess is classically trained operatic singer. Can we confirm if this is true? We interviewed some amazing and unique artists on the blog but a soprano with a degree from Italian music conservatoire would be a first!

Jess Rhodes: I was indeed classically trained. I studied with amazing teachers in Paris, Italy, and NYC. I actually only did 6 months in Milan, and then decided to move to NY. I then went a different route and studied theatre. I love singing opera, I haven’t practiced in a while, but it’s something I really enjoy singing at times. However, I didn’t have a deep passion for it, and if you’re not 100% dedicated, you can forget about it. I wanted to write my own songs, and so I did. Once you’re trained to sing a certain way, it’s actually quite hard to break that, and so I really struggled to find my voice for a while. I always felt I needed to be as loud as when I sung opera, and then I realised I really didn’t.

Your EP “Elephant Skeleton” was released in January 2019. For this record you worked with Matt Lawrence, Grammy winning producer known for helping Adele. The story is that after hearing your demos Matt wanted to work with you and most of the material was written in his studio. Were you scared to collaborate with such a big calibre name?

Jess Rhodes: We were a little anxious before meeting him that we wouldn’t be a huge priority for someone with a CV like his, but he put that to bed immediately. It was amazing to work with him! He’s such a nice, talented, humble person. We actually didn’t write much in the studio, though, most of the songs had been written in NY and Paris right before coming to London. There were a few little flourishes and lyric tweaks and things like that, but the songs were pretty fully fleshed out when we went in.

Matt did give us some great guidance in rehearsals before heading into the studio, but he always posed it as a question, such as “Well, would this song be better if you added a bridge?”, or “What would it sound like if this part had a slightly different groove?”

One of the things we really appreciated was that he liked the music and didn’t want to change what we were already doing, but he would put forward these questions that made us consider whether we had explored all the possibilities with a given song. It was good to be challenged like that and I think we came out of that process with a much more critical ear for our work.

The future looks bright – photo by Alan Wells
https://www.facebook.com/thealanwells/

The EP is promoted by two singles – “Don’t Cover Up My Eyes” and the title track. We want to ask you about the video to “Elephant Skeleton”. It shows a 8 bit point and shoot game where an animal tries to recover his bones while the band members serve as evil bosses. Where did you get the idea from and who directed it. Also – will there be a continuation?

Jess Rhodes: The video game idea started sort of accidentally. Bram made a really short video of a dandelion seed floating over some hills just as a short promotional video teaser for Elephant Skeleton and it had that sort of lo-fi, video game look to it. We started talking about turning it into a full length idea and that’s when we decided to make the story about the elephants.

After one night of goofy brainstorming, we drew a little storyboard and then Bram put the whole thing together. He’s not trained in animation, so it was a huge learning curve and took quite a while, but it was fun watching it come together bit by bit. We sometimes think about cooking up a sequel video, but Bram is still a little traumatised from staring at a computer screen for months, so it’ll have to be for a future song.

The band just played first major festival – Cro Cro Land, taking to the stage next to such established acts as Bang Bang Romeo and The Lovely Eggs. We imagine it must have been a lot of fun and a lot of nerves in equal measure. Did you like it?

Jess Rhodes: Oh my God. It was the most incredible day ever. We would’ve gone to Cro Cro even if we hadn’t been invited to play, because the lineup was absolutely sick. I can usually get quite nervous before a gig, and although that was our biggest gig, I wasn’t as stressed as I thought I’d be! Maybe it’s because there was such a huge supportive community feeling going on the whole day!

Bram, on the other hand, had non-stop nightmares the night before about getting bumped from the show or something else going wrong, so it was a huge relief for him when we actually walked out on stage. Seriously, though, everyone involved was incredible. Angela Martin, Julia Woollams, the bands, journalists, photographers, event staff, engineers (sound and light), just everyone was so wonderful.

Your music has been described as a mix of guitar based indie, ska and 1960s pop bands. But outside how the music critics see you – do you have your own term for your sound?

Jess Rhodes: It’s like you say, we get a lot of different reactions to our sound, so we actually struggle a bit to settle on a genre when people ask. Indie Rock has been our go-to, since it’s a fairly broad category, but a lot of people have really specific (and sometimes angry) opinions about what Indie Rock actually is, so we have yet to find a term that satisfies everyone. Any ideas?

Poster for Nambucca headline gig

Tiger Mimic will headline iconic London venue Nambucca on 27th April – what can we expect from your live shows?

Jess Rhodes: Oh man, we can’t wait! We’ll be playing with the awesome Lower Loveday and Memes, and we already know it’s gonna be a great night! Nambucca is a really great venue, too, and we’re so happy to play there again.  Our live show has a lot of dynamic shifts, trading vocal parts, harmonies, and riffs. One thing we’ve always appreciated hearing after a show is that each song sounds completely different from each other, but they all still sound like us. That’s about as cool of a compliment as we could hope for.

We want to ask you about the story behind your song “I Took Off My Body”. It is probably the saddest song on the EP lyrics wise. At points it feels traumatic especially in the age of Me Too movement.

Jess Rhodes:  I Took Off My Body was actually written a few days before we went in to record it. Bram had this really cool instrumental guitar part and was playing it for fun, and I just started improvising over it and insisted we take it to the studio. It tells the story of someone removing the many layers of their body in an effort to find themselves inside (waiting in the dark, waiting for a light).

It’s a reflection on the world’s tendency to make judgements with their eyes, while ignoring whoever is inside that body. It is definitely a problem that’s been going on for a long time. It’s really sad that we live in a world where we have to be on our guards at all times.

For instance, I went to a gig a few days ago and a man kept bothering me, so I moved to the other side, and talked about it to a friend who was there too. Turned out he had also touched her and another woman inappropriately. So in the span of 5 minutes, he managed to make 3 (or more) women feel extremely uncomfortable. He was just seen by everyone else as the “annoying drunk guy” but his behaviour should be seen for what it is: completely unacceptable and absolutely disgusting. The Me Too movement is incredible, I think it shows just how powerful victims can actually be when they get together, and also shows how there should be no stigma or shame around the word “victim”. The only people who should feel shame are the perpetrators, harassers, and abusers.

Tiger Mimic are ready to take over – photo by Alan Wells
https://www.facebook.com/thealanwells/

In one year you have accomplished more than many bands in their whole life span: working with top producers, releasing EP, playing festivals. What else have you got planned for 2019 and beyond?

Jess Rhodes: Aw, that’s nice of you to say. We definitely try to work as hard as we can on this, it’s our dream and the main reason we came over to London. We’ve been lucky to connect with a lot of awesome people, there are so many unsung heroes around town who are so supportive of the scene and that’s been incredible.

As for 2019, we’re heading down to Brighton for the first time in May for the Brighton Mix-Up festival, which is super exciting. We’re hoping to get back in the studio in May too, if we can swing it, we have a lot of new songs ready to go. After that we’ll see what comes up. There are a few exciting rumours floating around, but nothing we can share yet, so hopefully we’ll have some big announcements soon.

Last question – if Tiger Mimic could become characters in a video game what title would it be? Final Fantasy? Tomb Raider? Mortal Kombat or would you have your own title. You can pick any game.

Hmmm… aside from the Elephant Skeleton video, in which we’ve already been game-ified, here are some nerdy answers for you:

Ben Willis: I’d be Commander Shepard from Mass Effect. I still remember my first inter-species love affair with fondness.

Bram Johnson: I’d be Manny Calavera from Grim Fandango. He’s a grim reaper in a crime noir version of the Mexican Land Of The Dead who spends years going to any lengths trying to save a soul that was cheated out of their rightful afterlife. I always liked that he was a regular guy, no bulging muscles or guns or anything, just tenacity.

Jess Rhodes: I’d be Sindel from Mortal Kombat. I’d love to be able to kick ass just by whipping my hair!

George couldn’t be reached for comment, but we’ll ask him next time we rehearse. Important information to know.

We absolute love Tiger Mimic. They are one in a million.

You can follow the band on socials:

https://www.tigermimic.com/
https://www.facebook.com/tigermimicband/
https://www.instagram.com/tiger.mimic
https://twitter.com/TigerMimic
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7qT0D9stk05ym53ziRGwzg
https://soundcloud.com/tigermimic
https://open.spotify.com/artist/296hyITffv9hw30ypToBi7?si=Khrq4iL0RT6Rbm2Bf0426g

You can purchase the EP “Elephant Skeleton” at the link below:

http://www.smarturl.it/tigermimic

If you fancy a bit of extra reading – here are some fantastic articles about the band from other independent blogs:

https://www.musicmusingsandsuch.com/musicmusingsandsuch/2018/9/16/interview-tiger-mimic
https://gigradar.co.uk/introducing-tiger-mimic/
https://www.croydonist.co.uk/tiger-mimic/
https://thegirlsattherockshow.com/song-of-the-day-tiger-mimic-dont-cover-up-my-eyes/

Tiger Mimic will headline the Nambucca on April 27th in London. The entry is free. You can find the info for the event on socials:

https://www.facebook.com/events/658720734568060/

We hope you enjoyed this little blog. We will be back
M/R

by

Indieterria review – Slease by False Heads

Dear Readers,

False Heads can easily be called a band that we love here at Indieterria. They have been on our  radar for over three years. We had a chance to interview them in August 2018 and a month later also reviewed their EP, proclaiming “Less is Better”  as one of our records of the year. We seen them live in Bristol at the minuscule The Mother`s Ruin basement and it was a glorious and sweaty affair. We met them at BBC Live conference in London. False Heads represent pure talent, determination and strong fellowship – all the qualities that make great bands. And now they return with a new single!

Slease cover by Will Hutchinson
https://www.facebook.com/will.hutchinson.921

“We go into the studio next week. Wanna hear what scribbling in a shipping container sounds like?” – wrote the band on their socials on March 1st and they meant it. Slease – their first single post “Less is Better” EP has been written in their rehearsal space somewhere in London  – a large, metallic shipping container. A place that may as well be an epicentre of world domination in the near future.

Slease premiered on 22 March 2019, dropping like a bomb from the sky. Three minutes and fourteen seconds of noise, dirt and impressive bass lines. But surprisingly, there is also a catchy chorus and melody that gets stuck in your head. The vocalist, Luke Griffiths screams out his lyrics with such a passion that you get the feeling you are on a political march (and we had quite a few big marches recently).

“The song was written last year” – explains Luke – “It`s about bad mental states. Addiction. But also how similar the left and right are in terms of tactics they use leaving people  politically isolated”.

The band posing outside their rehearsal space
Photo by Neil McCarty
https://www.facebook.com/neilmccartyphotography

Dark and gritty – False Heads are ready to take over
Photo by Neil McCarty
https://www.facebook.com/neilmccartyphotography

False Heads are a trio with Luke Griffiths on guitar and vocals, Jake Elliot on bass and Barney Nash on drums – but the songs they craft are so powerful  that you`d expect them to be at least  a  five piece. Slease is a good example – there is a wall of sound in this song, changing tempos, roaring bass and drums that will make you deaf if you find yourself  standing next to an amp at the gig.

The single is accompanied by a video directed by Brigitta Szaszfai (who also directed video to “Yellow” for the band last year) showing False Heads violently shaking and being blinded by bright lights in a darkened room.

As expected, Slease made a powerful impact within one week of its release.  John Kennedy  – influential DJ and champion of new music as Radio X described the song as fantastic. It has been added to “All New Rock” playlist on Spotify and “Best New Bands” playlist on Amazon.
The song premiered on Rodney on the Rock on Sirius XM in the US and became “next wave” track at BBC Radio 1 in the UK. It amassed nearly 5K streams in few days days on Spotify.

False Heads played two gigs in London and Manchester to promote the single. Their home town show took place at The Monarch on 21 March with The Estevans and Getrz supporting. On March 20, the band played Manchester`s The Soup Kitchen also with The Estevans. We don’t have to tell you that both shows sold spectacularly well.

Tour poster

False Heads by Nathan Whittaker/ MRC Live
https://www.facebook.com/Nathan.W6

False Heads live in London
Photo by Alan Wells
https://www.facebook.com/thealanwells/

There is something about False Heads that remind us of another band we used to follow in the early 90s. We would carefully gather every bit of information about them and the excitement was felt every time the name was mentioned. The band was called On A Friday at that  time and they went on to do a few interesting things since we first heard about them (like releasing The Bends or Kid A for example). Call it cliché – but we feel the same about False Heads nowadays. Keep them on your radars because they are not just an indie band we like. They are a band that will inspire your children to pick up instruments.  Wait and see.

Slease has gathered some rare reviews from blogs and magazines alike – and we would love to quote here some of them as we enjoy this sort of thing in our reviews:

“Outspoken, heavy post punk trio False Heads have just dropped their first track of 2019 and we are loving it” –  Vulture Hound
https://vulturehound.co.uk/2019/03/track-of-the-day-22-12-19-false-heads-slease/

“Keeping things gritty and fierce with new single “Slease” power trio False Heads have unleashed another monster punk-rock anthem” – Gig Slutz
http://www.gigslutz.co.uk/this-feeling-track-of-the-day-false-heads-slease/

“OOOOOH, we’ve got something awesome for you today! Yes indeed…here’s an incredible grungey alternative rock banger from False Heads. It’s called ‘Slease’ and it’s a bloomin’ masterpiece”  – SoundSphere Magazine
http://www.soundspheremag.com/videos/videos-of-the-week/watch-false-heads-slease/

“This is the first new single False Heads have released following their impressive EP, Less is Better. From the very first few chords, it is abundantly clear that this is going to be a step forward. The sound is immediately rougher, more aggressive and stripped down, and, one might say, more confident”  – Words For Music
https://wordsformusic.blog/2019/03/24/false-heads-slease-new-music/

“False Heads are without a doubt one of the most hard-working bands out there. After travelling up and down the country extensively in 2018 to promote their blisteringly confident EP Less Is Better and hooking us in with exploding riffs cemented firmly in the centre of punk sensibilities, this chaotic trio return with new single Slease” – Unique Lullaby
http://www.uniquelullaby.co.uk/2019/03/unique-to-check-out-false-heads-slease_18.html

False Heads
Photo by Neil McCarty
https://www.facebook.com/neilmccartyphotography

“With shows locked in to support the launch of ‘Slease,’ and the wheels of their debut album now in unstoppable motion, 2019 will be their most ambitious year to date and they want you to be a part of it. Who’s in?” – Rock and Loud Magazine
https://rocknloadmag.com/news/false-heads-drop-new-single-slease/

“[False Heads] crash into 2019 with one of their most explosive tracks to date” – Original Rock
https://originalrock.net/2019/03/07/interview-false-heads-talk-upcoming-single/

“False Heads remain one of the best and most authentic guitar bands” – Its All Indie
http://www.itsallindie.com/2019/03/false-heads-release-explosive-new-track.html

“Slease finds the East London trio in super energetic, ferocious punk mode, and memorable and easy to take in as it is, the dynamic song does not lack in any of the fierceness, the poignant lyricism and the impeccably well done production which have made the band thrive from the very beginning” – Destroy Exist
https://www.destroyexist.com/2019/03/false-heads-slease.html

“Sometimes a really crunchy and meaty bass riff is all you need to love a song. Thankfully False Heads’ latest track not only gives us that for an introduction, but continues down the path of beautiful raw punk in their new track “Slease” – Indie Central Music
https://indiecentralmusic.com/false-heads-release-stomping-new-track-slease/

You can follow the band on socials:

https://www.facebook.com/FalseHeads
http://www.falseheads.com
https://www.instagram.com/falseheads/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqivl1sWLJyZxP3Ywei3HGw
https://twitter.com/FalseHeads
https://www.musicglue.com/falseheads

You can buy or stream Sleaze from the link below:

https://ffm.to/falseheadsslease

You can also visit the band`s label These Bloody Thieves Records:
https://www.thesebloodythievesrecords.com/
https://www.facebook.com/thesebloodythieves/

We hope you enjoy this review. Come back soon, we have more!
M/R