Dork, March 2018

THIS MONTH...

EDITOR’S LETTER HIYA! “MY LIFE GETS TO START NOW” P26 PHOEBE BRIDGERS

“WE’RE LIKE A HAGGARD, NEWBORN BABY!” P28 INHEAVEN

“MORE BANDS SHOULD HAVE A THEME SONG” P18 SUPERORGANISM

“WHAT DO PEOPLE WANT AT THIS POINT?” P14 ISAAC GRACIE

“WE WANT TO PLAY STADIUMS ONE DAY” P16 LO MOON

“WHAT DO WE WANT THIS ALBUM TO BE?”

“WE WANT TO MAKE A LASTING IMPRESSION”

P9 PUBLIC ACCESS T.V.

P17 IDER

CONTENTS

“I ALMOST FEEL LIKE A LATE BLOOMER” P10 ALBERT HAMMOND JR.

“WE’RE GOING TO HAVE LOTS OF NEW MUSIC” P4 BASTILLE

DORK

Editor Stephen Ackroyd Deputy Editor Victoria Sinden Associate Editor Ali Shutler Contributing Editors Jamie Muir, Martyn Young Events Liam James Ward Additional Design: Martin Crandon

P24 GENGAHR

“SO MUCH SHIT HAS GONE DOWN NOTHING PHASES US”

DO YOU GET BANDS MORE EXCITING THAN SUPERORGANISM? Not at the moment, you don’t. You may not have heard their debut album in full yet, Dear Reader, but there’s enough out there to call it - they’re almost certainly one of the most exciting acts on the planet right now. From the buzz-fuelled ‘Something For My M.I.N.D.’ to the glorious ‘Everybody Wants To Be Famous’, they’ve got an energy that most of their peers could only dream of. The fact they’re anything but conventional only adds to that allure.

That’s why we’ve brought them to the cover of Dork for the first time.

If new blood runs through our veins, this lot have the heart of a lion.

Elsewhere, we’re as packed as ever with your faves, both established and soon-to-be. We give our old mucker Dan from Bastille a buzz to find out what they’ve got coming up in 2018, check in with Gengahr as they head for the wild side with their new album, and grab a belated word with Phoebe Bridgers, who gave us one of 2017’s best albums and is on her way to the UK for live dates. We’re on the road with INHEAVEN as they embark on their Dork Live! tour, chat with actual real life Stroke Albert Hammond Jr. about his new album with a startling subject matter, and get crafty with Diet Cig. All this and more, in your hands, right now. You lucky blighters.

STEPHEN ACKROYD Editor / @stephenackroyd

P4 UPDATE P12 DORK LIVE! P13 BANGERS P14 HYPE P18 FEATURES P30 REVIEWS P38 ANY OTHER QUESTIONS

Contributors Ben Jolley, Brad Thorne, Cal Cashin, Eleanor Langford, Erin Bashford, Jenessa Williams, Josh Williams, Liam Konemann, Rob Mesure, Steven Loftin Photographers Sarah Louise Bennett, Sam Nahirny Illustrators Russell Taysom P U B L I S H E D F RO M

THE BUNKER

W E LCO M E TOT H E B U N K E R.CO M

P O B OX 390, H A S T I N G S, T N34 9J P

All material copyright (c). All rights reserved. This publication may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, in whole or in part, without the express written permission of The Bunker Publishing Ltd. Disclaimer: While every effort is made to ensure the information in this magazine is correct, changes can occur which affect the accuracy of copy, for which The Bunker Publishing Ltd holds no responsibility. The opinions of the contributors do not necessarily bear a relation to those of Dork or its staff and we disclaim liability for those impressions. Distributed nationally.

DOWN WITH BORING

3

UPDATE IF IT’S NOT IN HERE, IT’S NOT HAPPENING. OR WE FORGOT ABOUT IT. ONE OR THE OTHER.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR BASTILLE? YO U ’ D T H I N K BAST I L L E WO U L D B E LO O K I N G TO G O AWAY TO WO RK O N T H E I R T H I RD A L BU M , RI G H T ? BU T N O - T H E REC O RD’S A L RE A DY W E L L U N D E RWAY, T H EY ’ V E G OT A N E W M I XTA P E , A N D T H EY ’ RE A BO U T TO H I T T H E ROA D FO R A TO U R T H AT RE I M AG I N ES EV E RY T H I N G T H AT ’S C O M E B E FO RE .

“

P

WO RDS : A L I S H U T L E R .

retty soon there’s going to be-” starts Dan Smith before the smallest of pauses. “I always say too much,” he grins. “We’ve got all this stuff we’ve been working on, and I just want it out there. This year we’re releasing our third album. We’re going to have a new mixtape. We’re going to have lots of new music out,” he promises.

The thing about Bastille is that there’s always a lot going on. Since the release of second album ‘Wild World’, all wide-screen possibility and dynamic reflection, the band have swelled and secured their position as one of the most interesting groups around.

Smart pop music with a manic grin, the tour took in everything from London’s The O2 to Reading & Leeds’ Main Stage via arenas across Europe. Bastille finished 2017 as a band who could head in any direction. Any direction, as long as it was up.

The band tried to pause before working on the flurry of next chapters. Honestly, they really did. “I tried to stop, and I lasted about a week,” says Dan, but the allure of the new was too much.

“It took three and a bit years for us to put out our second record and I want to move a bit quicker these days. I’m not someone who is going to stop and not be making music in some way. We’ve been lucky to tour constantly for about five years, so even just being in London, even if I’m doing music all the time, it still feels like a break.

And also, I’m so fucking lucky. It’s so fucking fun. It’s hard work sometimes, like anything you care about would be, but yeah. Why the fuck would I take a break when I love it?”

As if working on two releases at the same time wasn’t work enough, Bastille are also going back on the road. Their Reorchestrated Tour will see them strip back, reimagine and reinvent their back catalogue. They’ve done it once before, a one-off show at Union Chapel for homeless charity Streets Of London, but never ones to simply repeat themselves they’re currently

4

READDORK.COM

“figuring out how to expand on what we did last year,” Dan reveals.

“It was just nice to strip all our songs back and reimagine them in a different light,” he continues. “I love writing songs. I know it’s geeky, but it’s one of my favourite things to do. I also get totally lost in the production, and that’s a massive part of what we do as well. That show was a nice opportunity to look at both the albums, the mixtapes that we’ve done and strip everything back to the songwriting.

“I’m also a massive film soundtrack fan, I love certain elements of classical music, and I love how it fits into pop and alternative music. Getting to focus on the gospel choir, the strings and the brass was a fucking dream. All that stuff is there in

our songs anyway but because we made our albums in a little cupboard, we always just had to layer it up ourselves. We’d have to make some huge string section out of two people. It was the same with the vocals; it’d be me in my bedroom layering up this big ol’ choir of backing vocals. It’s fun for us to be able to do those songs with actual people doing it and hearing them how we’d always imagined them.”

While the tour is based on that Union Chapel gig, one of Dan’s favourite shows, there’s still plenty of room for surprises.

“We had two days to pull that show together and we worked with our mate Johnny who tours with us playing trumpet and singing but is also an amazing arranger. He pulled all that together while we were off on tour in a matter of days and

with no sleep whatsoever. It was a fucking amazing achievement.

“It’s nice to go back to it, looking at what we loved about it and what we think we can do better and adding different people in different parts and new songs. It’s going to be a supped up version of that show.

Getting to do that on a bigger scale at Royal Albert Hall and various other places around the UK and Europe is fucking insane, I’m so excited,” Dan beams. “I’m slightly distracted by trying to finish an album, but apart from that...”

Bastille have this manic energy. It’s there in the music, the live show, in their excitement for more and their ability to create. Usually stripping a song back to its core takes away that fizzing spirit. We’ve all heard

I OH YOU, IVY LEAGUE & SUB POP PRESENT

Rolling Blackouts C.F. Mainland Tour

Fri, May 18

Rescue Rooms, Nottingham

Sun, May 20 pop bangers fall asleep with an acoustic guitar, but Bastille are looking to shift, not subdue. “You have to hope they stand up to that. Because of the energy, often people don’t listen to the lyrics as much, or parts of the arrangement or production go under the radar a little bit; we always try and do so much in everything we do, perhaps sometimes that means things get overlooked.

“It’s nice to be able to reframe the songs.

Something like ‘Good Grief’ which is actually really sad but framed in a slightly uplifting way, to be able to sing that and show it in a different light, or its true light, is fun to do. This tour also allows us to know we’re playing to people who are deep fans of stuff we’ve done. It’s nice to bring out tunes we’ve never played before, tracks

from mixtapes and less aired tracks, which is fun for us. Having done arena touring in the UK and the different countries around the world, we wanted to do some kind of touring this year but going in the opposite direction for a minute.”

“We’re quite short term-ist,” Dan admitted to Dork last summer. “At one point we probably didn’t think we’d make a second record, but then we got to make a second album, and now I’ve realised I really want to make a third one. And maybe a fourth one, too. It’s easier to think into the future a bit more now.” That forward thinking has spread beyond the recorded chapters, and now the band are plotting for the future.

“I want this tour to be a success and allow us to do this as one arm of our touring.

Centre for Contemporary Arts, Glasgow

Mon, May 21

Gorilla, Manchester

Tue, May 22

Electric Ballroom, London . tickets at rollingblackoutsband.com .

“WE’RE GOING TO H AV E LOTS OF NEW M US I C O UT ”

“The whole point of the mixtape, and I think I’m there in my head with the album too, is to obviously care a lot about it, but not treat it so seriously. And to fuck with people’s expectations a little bit; it’s fun to do that.

It’s nice in the studio, if you’re stuck on a track for the record, to be able to jump across to a mixtape thing and it forces us to work with other people. We’re quite independent in how we work, so it’s a nice opportunity to bring other people into our little musical world for a minute. We’ve always felt like we’ve got a strong identity and we’ve always collaborated loads. The first things we put online, it was our songs, our mixtapes and us working with us other people. That’s been a part of who we are as a band and what we’ve been about all this time.”

We’re very lucky that sometimes we’re allowed to play in big venues and put on a show that is visual and says something that we think is interesting and important, but we also love playing grimy little gigs in pubs. That’s where we first started. I also love when we get the opportunity to do acoustic sessions and play our songs with a string section. It would be really great if this was a success and we were able to go and do bigger, louder tours and then at the same time go off and do these other ones because it plays to a side of music that I love, quieter, more reserved, more intricate.

From stripping things down on the Reorchestrated Tour to remixing songs for mixtapes and toying with energies live, a Bastille song never stops growing. They change shape, take on new forms and shift colour. They have a life to them because “they have a life to us,” says Dan. “We play them every day when we’re on tour and it’s nice to keep a record of that. It comes from confidence in the songs, we love them and know they can have different versions of themselves.

“In the same way we release our albums and mixtapes, the whole point is to try and kick away this notion that a band is supposed to do one thing, or release music in a certain way. Nowadays, it’s less and less relevant.

When we started a band doing a mixtape seemed ridiculous but for us, it was the most normal thing in the world because the musicians that we loved were doing that, so of course, we’d do it too.

“We just want to do stuff that excites us and that we think our fans will like and ultimately, what we want to do. At the moment, it’s been really nice making a shitload of music. The idea of doing this tour, maybe it looks fucking weird to people, but I don’t really care. I’m so proud of the show we did at Union Chapel; I’m interested to see in a bigger room how people react to it.

Our fans expect a certain thing, but we’ve hopefully painted a pretty clear picture of what to expect. And it’s a rewarding show as well; it’s not self-indulgent. Its fun and uplifting and sad. Hopefully its just a different version of the usual shit we do.”

Bastille have been working on their third album alongside the fourth instalment of their ‘Other People’s Heartache’ mixtape series. They’ll “probably be released all at once, [but] who knows,” grins Dan. “I see them as two slightly separate spaces but it allows us to try things we maybe wouldn’t do in our own records. At times, they totally overlap.

It’s a nice opportunity to collaborate with other people. It’s a much easier conversation, ‘We’re doing this song with a bunch of people for a mixtape, we’d love to have you on it’, than ‘Lets do a single together’.

“As someone that wants to be a writer and producer, I love doing remixes of other songs and love hearing people interpret ours, it’s all part of collaboration and it’s all interesting and exciting. The way we create music in the studio, you can never recreate that live. It’s always going to be about versions. I think that’s what makes the songs different in each of those experiences. It allows them to be them to be unique.”

Dan isn’t the most tight-lipped when it comes to what Bastille are up to. He’s openly been talking about their third album and new mixtape whenever he gets a chance.

“Because I understand why it’s interesting to mythologise bands. Some people choose to retain an air of separation but as a music fan, I’ve been that person queuing up at a gig or waiting for a record to come out or trying to find versions of songs online ‘cos you want to hear them and own them.

“I don’t have a high enough opinion of myself to think that we should act any differently to how I feel like I should normally be, and that’s how I am. If people are excited about music, what’s the harm in letting them know what’s going on? Maybe tomorrow we’ll switch off all our social media and go away for a month,” he teases, letting the idea float for a second. “We won’t do that.

We’re working on music and I’m excited by it. I know the one thing people aren’t going to hear yet is the music so, yeah. There is this tension between the world we set up in our videos and artwork, it’s very much not including of us, and then us as people who are just in a band and making music. That’s one thing I’ve always been really keen to separate.”

“I’m a lot more relaxed than I was going into our second album,” he adds. “I’ve said it a million times, but I feel really lucky. I just want to make music that’s fun to create and hopefully, people love. That’s it really. If we get to keep doing it, that’s awesome. That’s all I can really hope for. Obviously, the idea of an album is still the most important thing but the idea of wanting to move a bit faster, release more music and put less emphasis on certain things is liberating and exciting.”

Alongside that want to speed things up, the band are trying to take themselves more seriously. “Maybe because we’re quite self-effacing and self-deprecating, perhaps that feeds into how other people see us, but I don’t really care. I could probably do with being a bit more confident with our stuff, that’ll come with being a bit more relaxed though.”

Dan’s telling us “nothing at all” about what we can expect from the new mixtape, wanting to maintain the excitement. “I’m going to keep completely schtum about it, it’s still a work in progress and it’s more fun if it’s a surprise, so let’s keep it a surprise, yeah?” As for the third album, “we’re basically done,” he starts, before realising he’s about to say too much. Again. “I should stop talking,” he grins. P Bastille tour the UK from 10th April.

APRIL 10 Manchester, O2 Apollo 11 Edinburgh, Usher Hall 13 Bristol, Colston Hall 14 Sheffield, City Hall 16 London, Royal Albert Hall

Bastille aren’t the only fancy pants band to utilise a live orchestra; it seems everyone is having a bash at large-scale reinvention at the mo.

Here are a few other acts who’ve teamed up with trumpets.

FIELD MUSIC To celebrate the release of new album ‘Open Here’, Field Music played a few shows at the Northern Stage in Newcastle with the Open Here Orchestra. They’ve another date coming up too, at London’s Barbican on 25th May. THE 1975 A year and a bit ago, as part of Radio 1’s annual Live Lounge month, The 1975 performed a special hour-long set at the Blackpool Tower Ballroom with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra.

You can find it on YouTube.

DEAF HAVANA It’s not just indie-types, Deaf Havana worked with an orchestra to reimagine tracks from latest album ‘All These Countless Nights’.

They’re about to play with London Contemporary Voices and Parallax Orchestra for Brits week, too.

POLIÇA Poliça and chamber orchestra s t a r g a z e have just released a collaborative album called ‘Music For The Long Emergency’. They’d previously reinterpreted Steve Reich’s ‘Music For Pieces Of Wood’, too.

BASTILLE !

BY THE SEA

have Yep, the band show w announced a ne Open h’s at Scarboroug 28th Air Theatre on on July. Tickets are sale now.

6

READDORK.COM

THE SMITHS It’s so popular that earlier this year it was announced that three members of The Smiths - Mike Joyce, Andy Rourke and Craig Gannon - were going to reunite for shows with the Manchester Camerata Orchestra.

Except that, er, the dates were cancelled before tickets even went on sale…

TEASE

MATT MALTESE’S DEBUT ALBUM IS VERY NEARLY HERE. RECORDED IN LA WITH FOXYGEN’S JONATHAN RADO, IT’S A RECORD THAT ENCAPSULATES PRETTY MUCH EVERYTHING IT IS TO BE HUMAN. WORDS: SAM TAYLOR.

Hey Matt, how’s it going? Are you having a good 2018 so far?

Yeah, I am thanks. Busy like everybody is, but good.

Congrats on finishing your album. What’s it about?

Things I think most twenty-somethings reckon with - acceptance, longing, loneliness, falling in love, being loveless, being miserable, laughing at your own misery.

How did you come to hook up with Jonathan Rado?

Someone sent him ‘As The World Caves in’ video, and he invited me for a coffee.

Foxygen are one of my friends and I’s favourite bands, so it was a strange, wonderful thing. There he was, slurping cold coffee in fronta me!

What was it like in LA, did you get up to anything interesting other than recording?

I didn’t have very long there so not really, but the recording days were very fulfilling.

It was a great place to make music.

Tell us about your new single, ‘Greatest Comedian’.

It’s a love song, really. It’s me blaming fate for love failing. What’s the point in blaming yourself when you can drag a higher being into it?

Did you come up against any unexpected challenges when making the album?

Definitely. A lot of shutting down voices inside my head saying I should be doing something a different way, saying things in a song a different way. Not overthinking it was the biggest challenge, stupidly the less you think, the better it usually sounds.

What was your favourite part of putting the record together?

The actual recording part. Working with Jonathan Rado and Alex Burey and bringing the songs to life was the most enjoyable part of it all.

What do you have left to do before the album is ready for release?

Artwork, and come up with a scintillating press story of how I was discovered.

Do you have much planned for over the summer? There’s festivals and stuff, right?

Yeah, I’m playing Sound City in May and a Switzerland show in March. Hopefully a few more festivals in the summer too! Just need to get this album out into the big bad world first. P Matt Maltese’s album ‘English Prom’ is out 25th May.

Get A Hobby...

ALEX DIET CIG FROM

WE’RE SUPER NOSY, HERE AT DORK. WE WANT TO KNOW WHAT BANDS FAVOURITE PANCAKE RECIPES ARE, WHAT THEY WATCH ON TV, WHAT THEY HAVE ON THEIR BEDSIDE TABLE, AND WHAT THEIR HOBBIES ARE. In the first of a new series, Diet Cig’s Alex Luciano tells us all about what she gets up to in her spare time. It’s crafting, FYI. But not sticking together loo rolls like you did when you were a kid (just us?), she’s taken it to a whole new level.

Are there any crafting techniques you’d like to try but haven’t yet?

I’ve still never learned to knit or crochet, and I’d really love to learn. I think a lot of people learn when they’re kids and I just didn’t, so I’ve been a little intimidated by the idea. It’d be a perfect thing to take on tour though, so that’s definitely my next one!

Hey Alex! How did you get into crafting, then?

I’ve been crafting for as long as I can remember. My mom was always sewing and taught me how to use a sewing machine when I was young, so growing up we always made crafts and found fun ways to create together. I think one of our first projects was turning socks into little caterpillar stuffed animals!

You’ve previously sold some of your work for charity, haven’t you?

Yes! I started making felt brooches and patches and pennant flags last January and sold them on Etsy with 100% of all money generated going towards different charities. I did it for five weeks and each week donated to a different charity (Planned Parenthood, The Trevor Project, RAINN, The Southern Poverty Law Center and The ACLU).

It was a really fun way to raise funds for organizations that are doing important work, and we personally matched all the money that was raised for each one!

Did you find it tough to learn?

In general, no, but some projects are harder than others. My weavings (pictured) are sort of difficult to set up, I had to take a class to learn. But some things like embroidery and sewing I always picked up pretty quickly.

Do you find crafting a social thing to do?

I enjoy crafting with others, but honestly, it’s kind of my thing I get to do alone to like, decompress and chill out without having to be social. I like to throw on some trash TV and just work on my project.

Do you take crafting supplies with you when you’re on tour?

When we first started touring, I used to take a whole milk crate full of every kind of supply I could think of, but as we toured more often, I realised that it was a little excessive. I’ve recently decided to just pack my favourite markers and stickers and keep it to that.

How would you recommend newcomers get into the hobby?

Start following crafters on Instagram; it’s a great way to get excited and inspired to start.

Also, it’s good to remember you don’t have to be perfect and it’s okay to just craft for fun.

What’s your favourite thing to make?

Right now I love making frame weavings.

They’re super fun and don’t require as much of a planned pattern as the embroidery I was doing. I can just weave different colours in any way, and it’s really calming and fun.

They’re so beautiful when they’re done too; they look so lovely on my wall!

Anything else we should know?

Speaking of crafters to follow, our friend Kelly Ryan is an embroidery artist (she made our album art!) and she inspires me to keep crafting all the time! You should follow her on Instagram at @kellryan for some serious inspo. P Diet Cig’s album ‘Swear I’m Good At This’ is out now.

THIS IS HAPPENING THE LATEST NEWS. ISH.

G ET M O RE AS I T H A P P E N S AT RE A D D O RK .C O M .

KATE NASH HAS ANNOUNCED A BRAND NEW ALBUM

Kate Nash is back! Titled ‘Yesterday Was Forever’, her new full-length is set to arrive on 30th March. “’Yesterday Was Forever’ is an excerpt from a teenage diary,” she explains.

“I used to be mocked for being a silly little girl writing in her teenage diary, but these days I feel like the teenage girl is far more respected than she used to be and it’s teenage girls that have fought for that and taught people that lesson.” Check out new track ‘Drink About You’ on readdork.com now.

WILD AT HEART T H E RE ’S A G O O D C H A N C E

P U B L I C AC C ESS T V

A RE M OST W E L L- K N OW N FO R A N

E X P LOS I O N I N T H E I R N E W YO RK A PA RT M E N T. I T ’S B E E N A TO U G H F E W Y E A RS , BU T T H E I R S EC O N D A L BU M ‘ST RE ET SA FA RI ’ S E ES T H E M RE M A I N I N G H O P E F U L .

Hey John, how’s it going? Are you guys in a good place?

Physically, mentally, and spiritually, I’d have to say we’re somewhere between the penthouse suite and the sewers beneath our feet. Come float with us.

What’ve you all been up to since the release of your last album, then?

The hustle of everyday life. As soon as I had a break from touring, I locked myself away to write record two. I’m addicted to working and being busy, so there has really been no gap of downtime. I demoed for about three months then went to record the real thing for a month.

Now I’m just trying to be as patient as I can, but I’m dying for this record to come out and get back on the road. The hustle continues.

What’s your take on ‘the state of the world’ at the moment? Do you get caught up in the mess?

I can easily get down in and the dumps and think we are all doomed, but then I remember its in times like these that people are radical and come together to make change rather just complaining about things to like-minded people.

HOW TO GET AHEAD IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY

LESSON #1: THE SHERLOCKS’ GUIDE TO FESTIVAL POSTERS

The politics of the festival poster is no secret. Agents, management and promoters are frequently locked in intense debate over where each act should go. Can they have a bigger font? Why are they below that rabble - they can’t even sell out a bathroom. But what if you find yourselves lower down than you’d like. Easy. Fire up Photoshop and swap your name with that of a band you think you’re more deserving than - in this case, The Amazons. Yes. This really did happen. Brilliant, eh?

VAMPIRE WEEKEND ARE DOING... STUFF

Let’s not get carried away, but things are happening in the world of Vampire Weekend and they’re happening fast – especially if you’ve been keeping an eye on their website for the past six months. Which we definitely haven’t. Okay, maybe we have. Eagled-eyed fans have spotted that vampireweekend.com has had a revamp – signalling that ‘things’ are certainly ‘afoot’. It’s all rather exciting, especially with the news of their first live show in ages at End Of The Road this August.

Tell us about your new album what’s it about?

I always write about what I’m going through in my life in that moment. I draw a lot of inspiration from my friends. Some of the new tracks look back retrospectively on our earlier years as a band.

Some are about not being afraid to take chances. Remaining hopeful while questioning the present and reflecting on the pass. It’s truly just kind of the inner dialogue in my head. It can be quite hard for me to articulate exactly how I feel in a

MAGIC: THE GANG-ERING

The Magic Gang have finally announced their self-titled debut album.

Due on 16th March, the band also have a UK tour coming up, kicking off the run in Birmingham on 22nd March, before calling off in Manchester, Leeds, Glasgow, Bristol and London. Phew.

“WE’RE VERY RESILIENT” conversation so it’s with songs that I can listen back and then realise more what I’m trying to say. It’s almost therapeutic in the way that it clears things up in my head.

If your life calmed down a bit, what would you write about then do you think?

If my life ever got calm… I would just look to the other band members lives for inspiration, cuz those dudes are a total mess. Or just pull a David Bryne and write songs about shit like buildings and lampshades.

Are you guys still feeling the effects of your apartment explosion in 2015, or have you been able to move on from it now?

To be honest, I think we will always feel certain effects of the explosion. Luckily we all have shelter and are stable in that sense… but just this idea that one moment can completely alter your life and everything you own can disappear, makes you think about life differently. Not that I was ever particularly materialistic, but possessions now truly mean nothing to me.

Are you the kind of guys who’re able to shake disasters like that off, or do you dwell on everything?

At this point, so much shit has gone down in our lives that nothing phases us. Knock on wood, but we are very resilient I think and

ARCTIC MONKEYS HAVE CONFIRMED FOR LOADS OF 2018 FESTIVALS, WITH ONLY ONE IN THE UK

After a handful of headline billings, Arctic Monkeys have revealed a butt-load of festival sets all in one go. The band – who were already confirmed for Primavera and Firefly – will also perform at Best Kept Secret, Southside, Hurricane, Open’er, Rockwave, Rock Werchter, Nos Alive, Mad Cool, Oya, Way Out West, Flow, and Sziget. And TRNSMT, currently their one and only confirmed UK billing. Boo.

capable of taking bad situations and keep our heads held high.

HATERS GONNA HATE Y’ALL. How did you find the creation process for ‘Street Safari’? Did you hit any unexpected challenges?

I feel like a really saw the record as a whole in my head before actually locking myself away in a basement in the east village to demo it. The most important thing for me is to believe in what I’ve made, and know that I did the best I possibly could. That way there is nothing I can regret. That being said, responsibilities and relationships may suffer from inevitably being a little more selfish than I normally would be.

Album aside, what are your plans for the next few months?

Our plan is the same plan we’ve had from day one, to be a great band. We want to tour, put on great shows, release great records we believe in, and generally put out cool shit. I want to be a fan of our band.

Have you signed up for many festivals this summer?

We’re supposed to headline Glastonbury on the Pyramid Stage next year… so kinda gotta wait to see if we’re allowed to do anything else. P Public Access TV’s album ‘Street Safari’ is out 23rd February.

RAT BOY HAS RELEASED A NEW EP CALLED ‘CIVIL DISORDER’

Rat Boy sort-of surprise dropped a new EP ahead of his just-finished UK tour. A seventrack effort titled ‘Civil Disorder’, it’s a bunch of fun, and was only preceded by the single ‘Be My Anime’ a few days prior to release. The tour saw him play some of his biggest shows to date, including a night at the O2 Academy Brixton in London. Plus he took Ten Tonnes along for the ride, too. You can next catch him at Community Festival in July.

DOWN WITH BORING

9

“I SAW MY DREAM IN THIS RECORD”

H H A H IR A HA IR S AIR T IRS S Y T ST Y TY S YLLLLEEEES O S O SO T OFFFF H T E H T E IC R TH H IC HEER R A H IC N R A H D IC N A H D N A D N D FFFFA A O M A O M U AyoyoM O S M U OU S US S Ha ve Ha ve Ha uuuusee ve Ha ve see Ha yo ve see Ha Ma yo veyo seennnMa tty He Matty

youu see aly He tty seennnMa Ma ’s’s’s’sha aly He tty Matty aly ir? loo He ttyHe No aly ir? kkkkat loo ha He - se aly ir? loo ha it. ’s’sha rio No aly ir?

Th loo ha us at eeee19 rio No ir? loo ly, ha it. us at rio No ir?No Th 75 kkat se loo ly, it. us at rio No----se fro Th 75 se ly, 19 it. us atit. nt rio -se fro Th 75 se ly, 19 it.Th ma us ee19 nt rio fro Th 75 ly, nnnnha 19 ma us nt fro 75 ly, 19 an ma sssscu nt fro d 75 an ma tu tttthis nt ha fro d rn an ma tu ed nt ha cu d his loc rn nnha an ma tu th ed ha ks cu d his loc rn em an sscu th ed ha ks cu his loc rn em br anddtu tu th t ed igh ks cu his loc rn em br tu th t ed t igh ks his loc rn pu em br th ed t igh rp ks loc pu em br le. th t igh rp ks em br AAAAhin ae le. tttpu igh rp sth pu br ae le. t hin igh rp eti sth for pu ae le. c t hin rp eti sth th for pu for ae le. c e t hin rp eti sth ‘M th for for A ae le. eeee tttfor us th A hin aesth ic us hin eti Fo stheti ‘M th for for ic us r eticcccfor Fo ‘M th for for Ca ic us r rs’ Fo ‘M th for‘M Ca ic ? e us r rs’ Ma Fo ‘M Ca ????Ma usic yb ic Fo e. yb rs’ ForrrCa Ca e. yb rs’ Ma Cars’ e. yb rs’ Ma ?Ma e. yb Ma e. yb e.

T H E RE ’S M O RE TO A L B E RT H A M M O N D J R T H A N ‘J U ST ’ B E I N G 1/5 O F A RI D I C U LO US LY W E L L- LOV E D I N D I E BA N D ( T H E ST RO K ES , F Y I ); H E ’S A LSO P RO D U C E D O N E O F T H E M OST

“

I

P E RSO N A L A L BU M S YO U ’ L L H E A R A L L Y E A R .

t’s much easier to find yourself, or grow, through a mask. It just so happens that this story is true.” Identity is a key component to Albert Hammond Jr’s fourth outing. Having been named after his father, Albert Hammond Snr, it’s a topic that’s been on his mind for much of his life What his fourth solo album ‘Francis Trouble’ ultimately concerns though, is the loss of Albert’s twin, Francis, in utero. It’s a hefty topic, but he’s made the delivery as palatable as possible. In fact, it’s just about the most coherent and accessible Albert Hammond Jr record to date.

‘Francis Trouble’ is as much about finding yourself as it is following Albert’s journey. As a member of The Strokes, a pivotal band for a whole generation, the creative force brewing inside of him started to feel restrained, and during the band’s downtime, he found the freedom to explore.

“I almost feel like a late bloomer,” he laughs. “I wish I were eighteen and this was my first record, I could’ve had this richness in [the] music, and confidence in myself then, but I didn’t.”

He considered using a pseudonym, or even creating a new band, but quickly decided it wasn’t for him. “I’m already in a band. It felt like a band name is a weird unnecessary complication, for me.”

He pauses. “I’m in something that had a moment in time, so I felt like I wanted to bring myself forward. To change my name and take it out, it’s almost like I’m too late.”

Going from guitarist to frontman isn’t a new story, but for Albert, his alternating roles offer up a new lease on doing what he really wants to do, while accepting

“You can be the sole focus, and you’re trying to hide behind different things, but now I’m like, ‘Fuck it’,” he says.

“I’m right out there. It’s weird to play someone in that position because it’s a lot of insecurities and you have to face them and be hit by them. There are a lot of imperfections that you can’t hide, but that’s sort of what makes it more human and special to me. You can connect with people.”

It’s an immensely personal record, derived from the titular character, Francis Trouble. “I always felt like someone [could be] scratching this name into their high school desk; like it would be etched forever somewhere, you know? Some kid just getting into it and carving his name into a desk, this secret character that can do anything. I feel like I couldn’t have done it with a better record, to be honest.”

“I saw my dream in this record,” he continues, “and this guy playing big venues and growing. I was like; people will want to sing along to that, they’ll want to. It makes people feel united in the room - when they’re all singing along, and dancing to the instruments, that’s the mixture of the play. I felt like people listening to it would feel what I’m feeling. I don’t know. It makes you feel hopeful and that things are possible.”

The feeling of having crowds of people singing and dancing along is no strange concept to Albert. All things considered though, it’s a different ballgame entirely when the reason behind their revelry is your concept, and yours alone.

“I don’t know where that line is,” he says, referring to the separation between The Strokes and his current guise. “I was

TOP TOURS M UST S E E L I V E S H OWS F RO M A RO U N D T H E U K .

DEMOB HAPPY They’ve got a new album on the way. Check it out on the road.

Dates: Nottingham Rock City (6 April), Manchester Deaf Institute (7), Glasgow Broadcast (8), Newcastle Northumbria Institute 2 (9), Birmingham Flapper (10), Norwich 10

READDORK.COM

WO RDS : ST EV E N LO F T I N

what that entails - warts ‘n’ all.

there, and now I’m here all of sudden, it’s like a dream. But it seemed like we had that, and then that stayed in a place, and I don’t know, I needed to create. I had too much that couldn’t come out. It needed its own space.

“The Strokes are amazing, and they have so many amazing people… it doesn’t have enough space for me to do this, and I feel like this is too good to not have its own space. It feels like enough time has gone to separate it,” he adds with a chuckle. “It kind of feels like I waded through swampy water, and finally I’m out, and I’m gonna run for it!”

With his eyes on the future, mostly, the unknown is as exciting as it scary. The Strokes are an entity that abides by no need for salvation, whereas Albert is setting his feet firmly in a world of his own construction, where he’s the entertainer, and the one in control, but most importantly - just Albert.

“This whole thing, I was trying to make it so good that it’s not about being solo, it’s just something brand new, something where it can reach its own heights. It’s very hard. It’s not something that’s easily done for a guitar player from a band to separate themselves.

I like to be challenged, so-” he pauses tentatively. “I guess that’s my challenge.” P Albert Hammond Jr’s album ‘Francis Trouble’ is out 9th March.

Waterfront (12), London Borderline (13), Brighton Haunt (14), Bristol Louisiana (15)

GANG OF YOUTHS + KING NUN The Aussie gang team up with one of the UK’s buzziest new bands this May. Dates: Manchester Gorilla (8 May), Birmingham Institute 3 (9), Bristol Thekla (10), London Kentish Town Forum (12), Brighton Haunt (13)

GINGER SNAPS Catchy, off kilter indie pop genius that refuses to quit, Ginger Snaps takes infectious to the

next level.

Dates: Glasgow Stereo (24 April), Leeds Oporto (25), Birmingham Sunflower Lounge (26), Norwich Owl Sanctuary (27), Manchester Gullivers (1 May), London Waiting Room (2), Brighton Bau Wow (3), Leicester Cookie (4)

MARSICANS “Upbeat indie meets dirty pop from the north of England,” is how Marsicans describe themselves. Really good, we say.

Dates: Birmingham Sunflower Lounge

(1 March), London Borderline (2), Bristol Louisiana (3), Glasgow Garage (7), Manchester Deaf Institute (8), Leeds Church (10)

CROSSTOWW N CONCERTS

W

P R E S E N T S

16.02.18 SHEFFIELD

24.02.18 PORTSMOUTH

26.02.18 BIRMINGHAM

17.02.18 NOTTINGHAM

25.02.18 NORWICH

27.02.18 BRISTOL

O2 ACADEMY

ROCK CITY

PYRAMIDS

O2 INSTITUTE

THE WATERFRONT

O2 ACADEMY

28.02.18 LONDON ROUNDHOUSE A CROSSTOWN CONCERTS & FRIENDS PRESENTATION BY ARRANGEMENT WITH PRIMARY TALENT INTERNATIONAL

ALBERT HAMMOND JR

PLUS SPECIAL GUEST

- UK TOUR 2018 FRIDAY 16 FEBRUARY

WEDNESDAY 21 FEBRUARY

NEWCASTLE BRISTOL O2 ACADEMY

FRIDAY 23 FEBRUARY

O2SO ACADEMY LD OUT

CORN EXCHANGE

GLASGOW CAMBRIDGE

UK TOUR 2018

MONDAY 19 FEBRUARY

SATURDAY 17 MARCH

SHEFFIELD SATURDAY 10 MARCH EXTRA DATE ADDED

EMPIRE

SUNDAY 11 MARCH

NEWCASTLE O2 ACADEMY SOLD OUT

UT GREAT HALL SOLD O

NOTTINGHAM ROCK OUT SOLD CITY

SUNDAY 25 FEBRUARY

DOME

A CROSSTOWN CONCERTS, SJM CONCERTS & DF CONCERTS PRESENTATION

MANCHESTER ACADEMY LD OUT SO

SUNDAY 25 MARCH

NORWICH OUT UEA SOLD

WEDNESDAY 28 MARCH

BRISTOL

O2 LD OUT SOACADEMY

WEDNESDAY 21 MARCH

FRIDAY 16 MARCH

CARDIFF

O2 INSTITUTE LD OUT SO

TUESDAY 20 MARCH

MANCHESTER ACADEMY LD OUT SO

ABERDEEN

O2 ACADEMY

SATURDAY 24 MARCH

BEACH SOLD OUT BALLROOM

COVENTRY

O2 ACADEMYBRIXTON

BIRMINGHAM BRIGHTON

BIRMINGHAM

O2 LD OUT SOACADEMY

MONDAY 19 MARCH

TUESDAY 20 FEBRUARY

FRIDAY 23 MARCH

SHEFFIELD

O2 LD OUT SOACADEMY

SATURDAY 24 FEBRUARY

LEEDS LONDON

O2 ACADEMY FRIDAY 09 MARCH

O2 ACADEMY

SATURDAY 17 FEBRUARY

THURSDAY 29 MARCH

SOUTHAMPTON O2SO GUILDHALL LD OUT

TUESDAY 27 MARCH LONDON ALEXANDRA PALACE T H E W O M B AT S . C O . U K

THE NEW ALBUM ALWAYS ASCENDING OUT 09 FEBRUARY 2018

• BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE WILL RUIN YOUR LIFE NOW AVAILABLE TO PRE ORDER •

FRANZFERDINAND.COM

A CROSSTOWN CONCERTS, SJM CONCERTS, DF CONCERTS AND PVC PRESENTATION BY ARRANGEMENT WITH PRIMARY TALENT INTERNATIONAL

UK TOUR 2018 LD OUT = 05 APRIL BOURNEMOUTH O2 ACADEMY 03 APRIL BRISTOL SO O2 ACADEMY

06 APRIL CAMBRIDGE CORN EXCHANGE = 07 APRIL BIRMINGHAM O2 ACADEMY OUT LD OUT = 10 APRIL NOTTINGHAM SO LDCITY SOACADEMY 09 APRIL MANCHESTER ROCK OUT 12 APRIL GLASGOW 02 ACADEMY = 13 APRIL SHEFFIELDSO O2LD ACADEMY

14 APRIL LONDON ALEXANDRA PALACE

A CROSSTOWN CONCERTS, SJM CONCERTS & DF CONCERTS PRESENTATION BY ARRANGEMENT WITH CODA AGENCY

THEVACCINES.COM

Pre-order the new album COMBAT SPORTS now

T I C K E T S AVA I L A B L E F R O M

SEETICKETS.COM - GIGANTIC.COM - ROUNDHOUSE.ORG.UK - TICKETMASTER.CO.UK STARGREEN.COM - GIGSANDTOURS.COM - GIGSINSCOTLAND.COM @CROSSTOWN_LIVE -

/CROSSTOWNCONCERTS -

@CROSSTOWNCONCERTS

DORK

WE’RE TAKING THE BEST BANDS ON THE ROAD, EVERY MONTH.

CALENDAR EVERYTHING GOING ON THIS MONTH.

LIVE!

2 N D M A RC H

TODAY YOU’LL FIND OUT JUST HOW GOOD SUPERORGANISM ARE

Mark it in your, er, calender - Dork cover stars Superorganism are releasing their debut album today. It’s alright, we guess...

1 2 T H M A RC H

SIGRID’S HERE!

D R E N G E A R E BAC K , A N D THEY’RE DOING H A N D M A D E F E S T I VA L !

P RE PA RE YO U RS E LV ES , T H E LOV E L ESS B ROT H E RS A RE BAC K A N D T H EY ’ RE P L AY I N G F EST I VA LS . AT T H E T I M E O F P RI N T T H E RE ’S N OW T A BO U T N E W M US I C, BU T Y ’ K N OW - I T M U ST B E SO O N , RI G H T ?

This spring Dork is teaming up once again with Handmade Festival, for a few days of fun and frolics at the O2 Academy in Leicester.

Heading up the bill are Circa Waves and absolute faves Drenge, who apparently have an album coming - the follow-up to 2015’s ‘Undertow’ - very soon indeed, so keep an eye out for that.

Former cover stars The Big

Moon (remember September 2016, that was a long time ago, wasn’t it?) are also putting in an appearance, as are IDLES, who are newly signed to Partisan Records and not far from dropping the follow-up to Album of 2017 contender, ‘Brutalism’.

Spector are playing too, along with Little Comets, The Orielles, Dinosaur Pile-Up, Future of the Left, Turbowolf, Girl Ray, Get Cape Wear Cape Fly and Findlay.

The new band showing is also top-notch, with showings from Anteros, Sports Team, Indoor Pets (formerly Get Inuit), Peaness, Nelson Can, Weirds, Her’s, Phobophobes, Easy Life, Gender Roles and more.

Honestly, it’s going to be great.

The weekender will take place from 5th-6th May at the O2 Academy in Leicester, with tickets on sale now from handmadefestival.co.uk. P

D O R K L I V E ! D AT E S 27 Daphne & Celeste, Boston Music Room, London 29 Alex Lahey, Think Tank, Newcastle 30 Alex Lahey, The Mash House, Edinburgh 31 Alex Lahey, Black Box, Belfast APRIL 01 Alex Lahey, Grand Social, Dublin 28 Are You Listening? Festival, Reading FEBRUARY 22 Catholic Action, The Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham MARCH 03 Caro, The Flapper, Birmingham 20 Alex Lahey, Botanique Witloofbar, Brussels 21 Alex Lahey, ACU, Utrechy 23 Alex Lahey, Omeara, London 24 Alex Lahey, Studio 2, Liverpool 24 Alex Lahey, Hare and Hounds 2, Birmingham 26 Alex Lahey, Bodega Social Club, Nottingham 27 Alex Lahey, Record Junkee, Sheffield

12

READDORK.COM

MAY 05 Live At Leeds, Leeds 05-06 Handmade Festival, Leicester 17-19 The Great Escape, Brighton

MORE BANDS FOR L I V E AT LEEDS...

A new batch of bands for this year’s Live at Leeds is here, and it features plenty more Dork faves.

Leading the new names are The Magic Gang, Ten Tonnes, Sorry, Yungblud, Sports Team, Her’s, Pulled Apart By Horses, Ash, Sunset Sons, Denzel Himself and Pip Blom.

“Can’t wait for Live at Leeds!” exclaim The Magic Gang. “Last year’s show at Church was one of our favourites from 2017.”

They join the likes of Peace, Circa Waves, The Horrors, Bloxx, Anteros and former Dork cover stars, Blaenavon, Pale Waves and Spring King at the event, which takes place on 5th May in venues across the city. Tickets are on sale now.

AND THE G R E AT E S CA P E !

May’s going to be a busy month, huh? Dork’s also heading up a stage by the seaside, visiting The Great Escape in Brighton from 17th-19th May. We can’t tell you who we’ve got playing yet, but we can tell you the festival is jam-packed with buzz.

The bill already features Bloxx, Sports Team, Stereo Honey, Ten Tonnes, The Ninth Wave, The Orielles, Easy Life, Her’s, Hero Fisher, Dream State, Feet, Hockey Dad, Lo Moon, Phoebe Bridgers, Suzi Wu, Denzel Himself, Freak, Girlhood, Hotel Lux, King Nun and Pale Waves.

The pop superstar is back for a tour that features nights in London, Bristol, Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Dublin and Manchester. Bad luck if you don’t have tickets, though - it’s been sold out for ages.

13 T H M A RC H

SOPHIE DEBUTS HER NEW SHOW IN LDN

Following a couple of tracks - ‘It’s Okay To Cry’ and ‘Ponyboy’ - released late last year, SOPHIE has announced details of a new London show. She’ll play Heaven today!

1 6 T H M A RC H

FICKLE FRIENDS UNLEASH THEIR DEBUT

Fickle Friends are great, aren’t they? Today marks the release of their banger-packed debut, ‘You Are Someone Else’. The new issue of Dork is also out today, FYI.

20 T H M A RC H

DORK AND ALEX LAHEY ARE TEAMING UP FOR A TOUR

Yeah okay, you’ve already read all the dates. They’re even on this very page. What can we say, we’re excited. Deal with it.

Today marks the start of a BRILLIANT tour.

22 N D M A RC H

THE MAGIC GANG HIT THE ROAD

Joined by Our Girl and Boy Azooga, The Magic Gang are off on a six-date run that kicks off in Birmingham, and includes a night at London’s Electric Ballroom.

24T H M A RC H

PANIC’S ‘PRETTY.ODD’ IS TEN

What a release day 24th March 2008 was.

Not only did Panic! At The Disco drop ‘Pretty. Odd.’, but nu-ravers Does It Offend You, Yeah? also dropped their debut.

Amazing.

27 T H M A RC H

DAPHNE & CELESTE SAVE THE WORLD

Yep, they’re back. Millennial pop sensations Daphne & Celeste - they of ‘Ooh Stick You’ fame - are returning with a new album on 30th March, and we’re throwing a launch party. It’s at London’s Boston Music Room on 27th March, and tickets are on sale now.

Ping pong.

BANGERS THE MAGIC GANG

GETTING ALONG

It’s getting a bit ridiculous. We’ve been gathered around here in the Dork offices scrolling through dictionaries. Big, small, some in different languages, even a picture one. It’s been an interesting time, but we can happily say – with plenty of conviction – that there are no more words to describe how ace The Magic Gang truly are. With ‘Getting Along’, they’ve somehow managed to bring the fevered energy and pints in the air spirit of taking over the world and distilled it into an under-three-minute banger we’ll all be screaming along to. Okay, maybe we do have some words then. Jamie Muir

TOVE STYRKE

CHANGED MY MIND

Nobody should be surprised that Tove Styrke has dropped another banger. After providing two of 2017’s standout moments, ‘Say My Name’ and ‘Mistakes’, the Swede is in a rich vein of form. With her latest, ‘Changed My Mind’, she’s showing no signs of letting up, either.

Produced by frequent ‘collab-er’ Elof Loelv, it’s an ultra catchy slice of Scando-alt-pop about an on-off-on-off-on-etc relationship.

We’d expect it to form part of one of the shiniest albums of 2018. More on that ‘soon’, hopefully. Stephen Ackroyd

THE VACCINES

NIGHTCLUB

If there’s a band who’ve been promising to break through the ceiling of A list festival headliner status, then it can only be The Vaccines. In 2018, that final leap feels imminent – especially after the thunderbolt of comeback track ‘I Can’t Quit’ and now, with ‘Nightclub’. It’s the sound of a band not playing around anymore, knowing full well their desired destination. We may not hear a more confident statement in 2018, and for The Vaccines, it’s the track that proves

why certain ceilings need to be demolished, pronto. Jamie Muir

PALE WAVES

THE TIDE

What’s left to say about Pale Waves? Only a handful of tracks in, and the superlatives are already running thin for British indie-pop’s anointed rulers-in-waiting. With a debut EP due, its third track - a reworking of one of the band’s earliest offerings - shows no sign of letting standards slip. Bristling in house coloured neon, Pale Waves’ command of aesthetic is their greatest strength - each new cut fortifying those around it. ‘The Tide’ has all the tricks - that magpied 80s sheen, a nonchalant goth-pop shrug in the face of sugar sweet hooks - but crucially breezes with the confidence of a band who increasingly know exactly who they need to be. Pale Waves’ days in the shadows of their label-mates and peers are coming to an end. Next step, world combination. Stephen Ackroyd

GEORGE EZRA

PARADISE

With ‘Don’t Matter Now’, George’s reintroduction last year, we saw a distinct

THIS IS HAPPENING THE LATEST NEWS. ISH.

G ET M O RE AS I T H A P P E N S AT RE A D D O RK .C O M .

vibe coming from Mr Ezra - one of throwing troubles out of the window. It’s a sensation that’s firmly felt in ‘Paradise’, amplified with a grin and a smile. Wrapped in a blanket of bursting acoustic guitars, chant-alongs and fevered energy, it’s impossible not to be caught in its whirlwind. Packing bigger hooks than ever, ‘Paradise’ is made for the big leagues. Jamie Muir

LET’S EAT GRANDMA

HOT PINK

No, ‘Hot Pink’ isn’t where anyone expected Let’s Eat Grandma to go next. And no, absolutely nobody is going to raise even the smallest complaint. Far from previously shabby - their debut full-length made Dork’s 2016 best albums list, remember - the first taste of what comes next is a revelation.

Working with zeitgeist mastermind SOPHIE, her glorious mind matches perfectly with the creative energy of the youthful duo. Bratty, brash, brilliant and boastful, they’ve got the sass of the smart kids blended with genuine spirit. Quite probably the most interesting, and quite possibly essential, return of 2018 so far, all eyes are firmly fixed on Let’s Eat Grandma now. Stephen Ackroyd

LILY ALLEN HAS KIND OF ANNOUNCED HER NEW ALBUM, ‘NO SHAME’

Lily Allen has revealed a few more details for her new album. Titled ‘No Shame’, there’s no release date yet but it’ll be released in “early summer” following a handful of live dates.

She’ll play Gorilla in Manchester (20th March), Tufnell Park Dome in London (21st) and King Tuts in Glasgow (23rd).

Lily has also dropped a new video for her recent track ‘Trigger Bang (Feat. Giggs)’, which you can watch on readdork.com now.

CHVRCHES

GET OUT

Whether CHVRCHES have grown to become megastars, or the world has turned their way to make an exceptional band feel all the more important, 2018 and the trio’s as yet unannounced third album feel to be caught in their own perfect storm. Since day one, they’ve been a band who blend the sweet and salty in perfect measure. Working with pop mastermind producer Greg Kurstin may change the proportions, but as ‘Get Out’ proves, the final results are as delicious as ever.

Built around a sticky-as-velcro hook, the first track from the record that must surely push the Scots into the triple A list manages to bridge two points with ease. On one hand, it’s immediate, fresh and exciting - a calling card for what’s to follow that more than holds its own. On the other, it’s CHVRCHES at their finest - a lineage that runs back to breakthrough banger ‘The Mother We Share’, refreshed and reinvigorated, but still fully present in every note. Recalling the finest points of Tegan & Sara’s electro-pop masterpieces, there’s no higher compliment to give. Get in, while you still can. Stephen Ackroyd

HINDS HAVE DEFINITELY ANNOUNCED THEIRS, THOUGH, AND IT’S DUE IN APRIL

Hinds’ new album ‘I Don’t Run’ is due on 6th April via Lucky Number. It’s preceded by both a video for lead track ‘New For You’ (watch now on readdork.com) and comes with a handful of live shows, too.

The band will play: Glasgow, SWG3 (15th April), Manchester, Gorilla (17th), Bristol, The Fleece (18th), London, Electric Brixton (19th) and Brighton, Concorde 2 (20th).

DOWN WITH BORING

13

HYPE ESSENTIAL NEW BANDS

14

READDORK.COM

ISAAC GRACIE SING ER-SONGWRITER

W

“

I SA AC G R AC I E

IS FIGURING OUT THE WORLD THROUG H

S O A R I N G T U N E S T H AT C O M E S T R A I G H T F R O M T H E H E A R T .

hat do people want at this point?” Isaac Gracie ponders during a break from the mastering of his as-yet-unannounced debut album. It’s a question that’s hard to answer, especially for young, burgeoning solo acts who can quite easily get lost among countless other singer-songwriters, and it’s this thoughtfulness that is Isaac’s greatest weapon.

His appropriately titled debut EP ‘Songs From My Bedroom’ was quite literally that - a bunch of tracks recorded at home using a guitar and GarageBand. What’s come since though has ebbed into frenzied rock, acoustic-folk and whatever’s in between.

Which begs the question, where does he fit in?

In all honesty, Isaac doesn’t really know.

He’s just Isaac Gracie, a twenty-something from Ealing. “I don’t suppose that I’m breaking too much from convention,” he cooly muses. “But just the mere fact that I don’t know how to clarify where I fall in with these things, or even how I write a song, means there is a little bit of difference there.”

While his standard singer-songwriter influences sear through - your Bob Dylans, Jeff Buckleys et al. - Isaac also takes inspiration from modern muso-type bands such as The National and Parquet Courts, all the way through to everyone’s favouriteto-hate contemporaries Coldplay and Snow Patrol, which he certs as “just massive - melodic.”

“When I first started I was doing demos in my bedroom, and that was the first taste people got,” he starts. “And while it was a good indication of me and my songs, and how, in a minimalist sense, I’d like them to be, it’s not necessarily an indication of how, given the opportunity, I’d like to present it.

WORDS: STEVEN LOFTIN

“ W H E N I F I RST G OT I N TO T H E M U S I C I N D U ST RY , I WAS F RE A K E D O U T BY A L L O F IT ” “A large part of my relation to the songwriting thing - and why I’m glad to be here now and to have this band around me to make that sound - is because it will ideally grow from a small place of honesty and vulnerability to this large unfurling blooming picture. I think in a lot of my songs, that’s the structure behind it. In a way that’s the only structure that I know how to do.”

Having a band around him allows Isaac to focus on “sculpting a sonic identity”, and his world of ideas is growing. He describes his formative tours as a “tiresome experience”, recalling them with a haunted fondness. “I was literally on my own. It does get a bit tricky trying to find meaning, and to find yourself, in all of that.”

“Also, you don’t value your own shit enough,” he continues. “You can’t tell yourself, ‘Yeah, I’m worth this’. You can’t so easily build yourself above all that takes you down because there’s no framework around you to keep it up.”

Taking that initial step into solo-dom was a brave feat. “It’s scary!” Isaac exclaims. “When I first got into the music industry, like two years ago, I was freaked out by all of it, and I still am.” The somewhat fractured music ‘scene’ didn’t help, either. “I can purport to desire to be a part of a scene, or for there

to be scenes or for there to be that kind of organic communal reaction to a certain sound or a certain vibe that grows,” he says, “but it doesn’t look like it’s happening here.”

“It does look like it’s happening in America a little bit,” he ponders, referencing acts like Phoebe Bridgers and Julien Baker. “I’m jealous because that’s a cool look, man.

They’re all making music that I think is kind of the best out there now. At the same time, I’m very introverted and have been for like the last two or three years. To idolise a scene is what I may do, but to expect that it would ever really be a part of my life, I doubt very much.”

While the future is certainly in Isaac’s hands, scene or not, the journey from the bottom is one that’s close to his heart.

Recently featured on BBC Radio 1 as a talking head around the discussion of small live music venue closures, Isaac is conscious of the hurdles that keep these organic collectives from flourishing.

“The more we close down places where culture or creativity is an important part of the puzzle, then we just become a boring species, you know? We don’t have anything to bring light or difference into things; we just have Pret and McDonald’s.” P Isaac Gracie tours the UK from 11th April.

His debut album is out very soon indeed.

RECOMMENDED NEW NAMES

BAD WAVE

Dork premiered the ridiculously cool video for Bad Wave’s new track ‘Money’ earlier this year; it’s an obscenely infectious banger that’ll have you ‘do do do’-ing for days after you first hear it. The LA duo is comprised of two former surf-rockers, Tucker Tota and Patrick Hart, who first connected over a fondness for Weezer. That’s the start of most good things, right?

BREATHE PANEL

This four-piece - Nick Green (vocals, guitar), Josh Tyler (guitar), Benjamin Reeves (drums) and Alex ‘no not that one’ Turner (bass) - are from the current home of all things buzz, Brighton. Breathe Panel have shared stages with the likes of The Big Moon and Honeyblood, dabble in shoegaze, garagerock and psychedelia, and enjoy “taking long walks on the South Downs.” How romantic.

BAD NEWS CLUB

Arriving with a flash of chilling honesty, Bad News Club - the third of this month’s three Bs - has brought all the feels with debut cut ‘The Painter’ (listen on readdork. com now). The Haslemere-based wordsmith weaves devastating pain and unfiltered reality throughout the stripped raw number, a glimpse into a voice that’s destined to captivate over the coming years ahead.

NERVUS NERVUS “Nobody loses all the time,” sing Nervus towards the front of new record ‘Everything Dies’. Down but not out. Glass one-third full, the band’s second album is a fierce burst of trying to make good in a world that would rather you didn’t. “Hope life begins at 29,” offers ‘Sick Sad World’, breaking into a smile. “I might be on my back, but at least I’m looking up,” continues ‘It Follows’. It’s not the silver lining the band are after; they’ll settle for a break in the weather.

The title “is not bleak,” promises the band’s Em Foster. “It depends how you look at it, but it’s just a fact,” she grins. “It’s a realistic title. You’ve got to see stuff in terms of how temporary and transient everything is. You’re not going to be stuck in the same exact situation forever. If you’re in a great situation, it’s a reminder to not take that for granted. If you’re in a crap situation, it’s an offer of hope. It’s a reminder to people to stop being knobheads.”

Still scratching at the bones of her troubles, ‘Everything Dies’ sees Em take control of the situation. “I’m a lot more confident now. Before, I was talking about things from a perspective where I didn’t feel confident in myself,” she starts. Using the first record to come out as trans, while also dealing with alcohol addiction and mental health troubles, debut album ‘Permanent Rainbow’ was, at times, almost uncomfortable in its intimacy. ‘Everything Dies’ is full of pride. Unwavering in its stance, it’s a record that knows where it belongs.

The reaction to their debut “made me feel more anxious about writing lyrics and being open,” says Em. “[For this album] I also had to make sure I’m being responsible in what I’m writing and how I’m talking about things. It made me readdress my responsibility to not talk out of turn.”

“I don’t speak for anyone but myself,” she continues. “Things can get better, but that doesn’t mean they will. Or that it’s easy.

There’s some incredibly positive stuff happening for recognition of trans people and representation of trans people, but I think the backlash from that affects other people much more than it affects me. I’m middle class and white. I have the support of my friends and family. I’m just trying to be a positive role model with what I’m saying, and not talking for people.

“I think a lot of people would think a lot less about it than I do, but that’s just the way my brain works. I’d hate to be the person who went onstage and said, ‘Oh yeah, coming out is awful. Don’t do it’, because it wouldn’t be true. Offering people no hope, I couldn’t do it. It would be a lie. I wouldn’t say it’s tough speaking publicly about these things because that’s something I’ve chosen to do, and I can opt out of it at any moment. There are tougher things, y’know?” P Nervus’s album ‘Everything Dies’ is out 9th March.

DOWN WITH BORING

15

ISLAND ISLAND London four-piece ISLAND release their debut album in April; it’s a rich opus that relishes in freedom and escape. Words: Sam Taylor

LO MOON LOS ANG ELES TRIO

LO MOON

UNLEASH THEIR DEBUT ALBUM.

“Y

’know, what I’ve learnt with this band is that everything happens slowly, and it’s a beautiful thing,” states Matt Lowell. It may seem like a simple line, but it means much more. In the space of just over a year and a half, Lo Moon have become a band weaved with mystery, chilling presence and an ability to shine stray lights into dark spaces.

Not blazing the safety light loud and proud, but waiting for the moment to pull you out of the darkness. Time is vital, irreversible and inevitable. “It’s just the way that we operate,” Matt continues, “it’s the way the music was built.”

For Lo Moon, now feels like a moment they’ve been building towards long before they even existed as a band - pulled together from across state and country lines.

Crisanta from Denver, Sam from London and Matt from New York - the chances of them running into each other’s lives may seem near-implausible, but fate had other ideas. Now they sit on the cusp of their debut album, a collection that captures the essence of who they are and lays it out in stunning panoramic majesty, more like an (e)motion-picture soundtrack of stylish synth-pop dipped in noir sauce. A long way indeed from the lonesome nights spent in New York City that Matt spent crafting and scrapping together cuts and tracks from a passion that took over his very life.

“Growing up, there was always music playing in the house,” he recalls. “I grew up playing hockey, but then I started to play drums on the side and then picked up the guitar once I got to high school. It’s weird, music has always been a huge fabric, a massive part, of my being but it wasn’t until the junior year of high school when I decided that this was the only thing I want to do for the rest of my life. It’s the only thing I think about and some days that drives me absolutely fucking mad, but that’s what you sign up for.”

The decision to move to LA was one Matt felt needed to happen, an important step out of his comfort zone in New York. “A

16

READDORK.COM

A RE A BOUT TO

WORDS: JAMIE MUIR

“ W E WA N T TO P L AY STA D I U M S O N E DAY ” bunch of people I knew from LA were trying to convince me that the music industry was moving out there,” he says. “Everyone was migrating, an exodus to LA almost. I had ‘Loveless’ and a bunch of songs, and I just needed to find out what could happen if I went there. I needed to find the right people to surround myself with. I came to LA with an idea of what I wanted to accomplish, and it was to discover more about myself as an artist and to discover what I had to offer as an artist as well. To work out what it was I wanted to say.”

Ready to capture hearts, Lo Moon are a band who manage to straddle something classic yet new at the same time - like an open book that pulls you closer, and once you’re there, you’re hooked. For a trio that pours every heartfelt passion into their music, it feels like just the beginning - the opening flash for a catalogue that in twenty years time will have become cult favourites.

Saying that, they’re not afraid of wearing their ambition on their sleeve.

“I’ve never shied away from the fact we want to play stadiums one day,” Matt confidently states. “I just think that’s the kind of thing that gets me high. If you can grab that feeling of people connecting with the music emotionally then they will fill stadiums to come and see you. It has nothing to do with being famous or being a pop act - I think that when you get to that stage, and you have this ability to make people feel something, that to me is just so powerful.”

From their family to the world’s, Lo Moon are about to mean a whole lot to so many people.

Lo Moon’s self-titled debut album is out 23rd February. P

BIG M OONS NASA (you know, them space chaps who send people up and off this planet) is 50 years old this year. That’s pretty bonkers eh? That’s 40 years older than Friendly Fires’ debut album. Mad. To mark it all, Matt let us know his favourite astronauts of all time.

JOHN GLENN

The first American to orbit the Earth, and he did it three times to really celebrate - as Matt says “what a hero”.

SANDRA BULLOCK IN GRAVITY

Now that’s a cracking film.

GEORGE CLOONEY IN GRAVITY

Much better than Ocean’s Thirteen right? Matt, you may need to watch more films with astronauts in.

Hey Toby, are you guys enjoying 2018 so far? What’ve you been up to?

Being the year of our debut album, we welcomed 2018 with open arms! As weird as it may sound, we’ve been working on new music already this year. It’s nice to get the creative juices flowing after a long Christmas break.

Congrats on finishing your debut album what was the creative process like? Were there lots of ups and downs?

Thanks. The creative process is very much varied with us - ideas always come from the most bizarre and unexpected places, usually forming into a song quickly, but it’s the structure and detail that we spend so much time trying to nail. It’s the same in the studio - we get completely hooked on the tiniest little elements of the tracks/ mixes, which inevitably comes with huge ups and downs, but in the end, that’s how we achieve exactly what we’re aiming for.

Was this your first time having a bash at writing a full-length?

Yeah, it was. It was refreshing to have the opportunity work on a full body of work.

Initially when we’d decided we were going to write an album, we didn’t have much of a purpose, and as a result, the writing process was bit slow and stale. However, after lots of time spent on the road touring, we realised we wanted to make a record that could soundtrack any type of journey - be it in a car, plane, train etc. With this theme of ‘driving’, everything started taking shape and the songs kind of fell into place in a very short period.

Did your aims for the record evolve much while putting it together?

We decided early on what the track-list was going to be, and we knew we wanted to capture everything as live as possible - so we quite literally went into the studio and played the record from start to finish together, as we would a live show. Having laid the foundations of the energy and vibe, we then overdubbed a few bits here and there. At times we thought about adding to the instrumentation on a few tracks, but ultimately we wanted the whole record to translate exactly from the recordings to the live show.

What else do you guys have planned for the next few months?

As well as continuing to work on lots of new music, we will be hitting the road again to play lots of shows around the UK and Europe. The tour will lead up to our biggest headline show to date at KOKO in London, which is going to a huge highlight.

Headlining KOKO must feel nuts.

It does feel completely nuts! When we first started playing together, I always said that KOKO was one of my dream venues to play, so it’s a huge honour to be able to headline there. P ISLAND’s debut album ‘Feels Like Air’ is out 6th April.

IDER

S

eaking to IDER the morning after performing in Groningen’s stunning Lutherse Kerk church as part of Eurosonic Festival, Megan Markwick and Lily Somerville are in high spirits. “The venue was beautiful,” they agree. “It felt a bit naked; everyone was watching, stood silent...”

Having met while studying music at university, they were put together “on a project” in their first year. “It’s all by chance,” Megan jokes. “We just became really good mates and started working, writing music and singing together,” Lily adds affectionately. “We quickly realised that we had chemistry vocally, and when we suddenly realised our voices sounded good together, we decided to stick it out. There was a real connection straight away,” they agree; “and with the timing, we do feel like we form one voice together.”

Post-uni, Lily moved into Megan’s London home three years ago, and that’s how IDER - a

ON THE GRAPEVINE WHAT YOUR FAVOURITE NEW BANDS ARE UP TO.

G ET M O RE AS I T H A P P E N S AT RE A D D O RK .C O M .

LONDON DUO

IDER

H AV E S P E N T T H E P A S T F E W Y E A R S R E L E A S I N G

B A N G E R A F T E R B A N G E R , A N D W I T H B I G P L A N S A F O O T, 2 0 1 8 M I G H T JUST BE THEIR YEAR.

perfectly formed combination of harmonised vocals and ambient electronics - was born.

“She’s the third member of the band, IDER is our combined voice - an old Swedish lady,” they laugh, having since released affecting, emotive EPs on Glassnote Records and supported Oh Wonder in Europe. Having both learnt to play the piano when they were younger and started singing as teenagers, Megan and Lily have always had a love for music. From listening to Bob Dylan, Cat Stevens, Bruce Springsteen and Joni Mitchell thanks to their parents’ record collections to getting into Dido, Shania Twain and Avril Lavigne growing up, their musical taste is

WORDS: BEN JOLLEY

ever-expanding.

With an increasingly diverse taste nowadays - listening to everyone from Frank Ocean, and Sza to Wolf Alice and Kurt Vile - it’s unsurprisingly difficult to describe IDER’s sound by genre. “I love that it’s hard to describe,” Lily considers. Instead, they’d rather their music provokes feelings and emotions. “We just want people to feel powerful, warm, in touch with themselves and thought-provoked. We want to make a lasting impression when people listen to us or see us.”

“ I LOV E TH AT O U R SO U N D I S H A RD TO D ESC RI B E ” KING NUN, BAD SOUNDS AND MORE ARE PLAYING COMMUNITY FESTIVAL

The latest batch of bands for London’s Community Festival has been announced, including King Nun, Bad Sounds, Ten Tonnes and Yungblud.

2018’s event will take place on 1st July, headlined by Two Door Cinema Club, with The Vaccines, Circa Waves, Sundara Karma, Rat Boy and Pale Waves also on the bill.

PALE WAVES HAVE FINALLY REVEALED ALL THE DEETS FOR THEIR NEW EP

Former Dork cover stars Pale Waves were meant to be releasing a new EP earlier this year, but they kind of talked about it a bit and then didn’t confirm much of anything about it. But that’s okay, because now we have all the info: it’s called ‘All The Things I Never Said’, and it’s out on 16th March.

Now busy readying songs for their first record, mainly writing in their London bedroom then recording at the studio, IDER say they are “delving deeper” and that “a lot of stuff has been channelled recently. “We write very personally, so it’s always coming from the perspective of two young women living in London in their twenties, trying to figure life out,” Megan laughs. Lily adds that the songs they’ve been recording for their debut album are “even more honest and raw - there’s no more beating around it - we just say what we want to say.”

While they dream (half-jokingly) of playing Wembley in the future, focusing on the lyrics and harmonies is what’s at the heart of IDER; as well as having fun being on the road with your best mate. “We just want to push ourselves and make sure we’re really saying what we mean. Because when you do that, how can that not relate? We’re all feeling the same shit really... just in different ways.” P IDER play Rich Mix in London on 27th March.

GLASGOW’S TRNSMT HAS SIGNED UP SIGRID

Loads of new bands have been announced for the King Tuts stage at TRNSMT this summer. Leading the way are Sigrid and Pale Waves, with Anteros, The Ninth Wave, The Magic Gang, Confidence Man, Island and Gang of Youths also on the bill. TRNSMT will be held across two weekends in Glasgow, 29th June-1st July and 6th8th July.

DOWN WITH BORING

17

18

READDORK.COM

DOWN WITH BORING

19

T

here’s a new hive mind in town.

In early 2017, Superorganism’s first single ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D’ appeared online. It’s difficult to say what that was like because what Superorganism do isn’t like anything else. It’s like trying to compare apples and oranges - only the oranges are neon and hexagonal, and don’t actually seem like they come from this planet at all. ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D’ was sharp and shiny, hyper-modern and so fizzingly delicious that you wanted to live inside it.

Then it disappeared. Some problem to do with an uncleared sample. After that came two more singles, ‘It’s All Good’ and ‘Nobody Cares’, before ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D’ resurfaced and was finally joined by a fourth single towards the end of last year.

That final track in 2017, ‘Everybody Wants To Be Famous’, was the band entering warp speed. It’s fantastical and bubbling, and was launched with a video by Superorganism’s visual artist Robert Strange that features 17-year-old singer Orono traipsing through a digital universe of the band’s own making.

Like their earlier clip for ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D’, the video paints Superorganism’s world as a computerised, animated realm filled with cartoon animals and video game style quests. It also includes a mocked-up faux YouTube called ‘Dank Videos’ where faceless commentators spin the conspiracy theory that Orono is actually a hyper-realistic hologram.

In an interview on Channel 4 news not long after the video’s release, Robert Strange joked that the band are ‘quite a cartoonish group of people’. He wasn’t wrong. Robert himself looks like he’s wandered out of the 70s, all long hair and double denim.

Then there’s guitarist Harry’s wild mop, a drummer called Toucan, plus synth player Emily, today dressed in a purple t-shirt featuring a pair of leaping dolphins and earrings in the shape of McDonald’s fries.

Not to mention the minuscule Orono, and joyful, cackling backing singers Ruby and B with their shockingly purple lipstick. A motley crew, and that’s before we even get to the fact that third backing vocalist Soul is out of the country and has sent a portrait of himself as a stand-in for today’s shoot.

The members of Superorganism just keep coming, like clowns piling out of a battered old Volkswagen Beetle.

The usual gang is whittled down to just two for today’s chat. Emily is excitable and expansive, the ideas rushing in from all directions as he speaks. Orono, on the other hand, is droll and sharp-witted despite the crushing weight of her Japan-London jetlag. She is also definitely a tiny Japanese teenager, and not the result of some clever digital trickery. We think. The hologram thing wouldn’t be such a huge stretch, though, considering the fact that for a long time Superorganism’s work was all conducted in the virtual world.

“It was all over Facebook at one point,” Orono explains. “When we started initially.

Emily sent me a message the day after my 17th birthday just like, ‘Hey, we have a demo of this song, do you wanna write some lyrics and sing on it?’. I did that; it was like a Sunday morning or whatever. My roommate was sleeping so I sang very quietly, it was a bit of a lullaby vibe I think. We did that for several months.”

That lullaby became ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D’. By the time Orono chimed in on the demo, most of the rest of the band had moved to London and were piled into a terrace house together, but the internet was

20

READDORK.COM

still crucial to their work. Emily and Orono had met in person a few years earlier, after Orono went to see a previous incarnation of the band play in Tokyo. And even then, the meeting only happened because Orono had been digging around on the internet.

“I found their music through YouTube recommendations,” she says. “The algorithm worked.”

“The algorithm put us together, man,” Emily says with a grin.

“Then I found out that they were doing a little tour in Japan. I went to their gig in Tokyo, and we became buddies after the show. Then we went to the zoo the following day.” She pauses. “And the Hard Rock Café.”

It’s not what you’d call the classic Tokyo tour, the zoo and then the Hard Rock Café, but Superorganism delight in the weird.

dorm room. It was one of those moments where it just clicks super well, and it was like, ‘Oh cool, let’s do another one, let’s do some more. Let’s just keep doing this; this is fun’.”

By the time Orono graduated high school and moved to London in Autumn 2017, the band had gotten so many tracks down already that their debut album was finished up in a matter of weeks. The influence that their online origins have had is impossible to separate from the finished record. There are markers of it everywhere - in the lyrics and sounds they choose to sample, in their artwork, their videos. It’s clearest on their track ‘Reflections On The Screen’, which nods to online relationships and takes a look at the way that so many of our interactions now play out in spaces that don’t physically exist. This is no futuristic Black Mirror-style dystopia, though. True to their nature, Superorganism are much less bleak about the whole thing.

people work with a team-writing style of mainstream pop where a few producers will work on a song and then send that file to someone else who’ll work on it and send it on. I’m so fascinated by that because I find it really reflects how modern society works where everyone’s just like putting out something and then people are adding to it. We will walk between rooms and talk to each other when we’re working on stuff [at home], but also chatting online and sending stuff is…” he shrugs.

“It’s just convenient, and we’re very comfortable doing it.” Orono picks up.

“So we tend to do that at all times, yeah,” says Emily. “I remember the first time, years and years ago, I sent my flatmate a Facebook message instead of walking to their room, and we laughed that it was a weird thing to do. It’s such a funny thing to think about now because there’s nothing weird about that at all – to me, at least. I think a lot of internet culture seems scary and even dark and bad at first, and then it just becomes absorbed into normal mainstream culture. Like internet dating, for example, no one would be ashamed to say they’d dated on the internet these days.

Whereas in the past I’ve known people who were embarrassed and didn’t want to say ‘I met my partner on the internet’. It’s a different perspective, and it changed so quickly.”

“I told some of my friends at school, ‘Oh I’m meeting up with this friend that I met on Twitter’ and they’d be like, ‘Why would you do that? That is so dangerous, Orono you’re so edgy’, and I was like, ‘What are you talking about?’” says Orono.

The perspectives have changed so quickly that since the early 2000s there have been countless distinct internet phases for the band to draw on, inspiring both their music and their artwork to build their particular universe.

“It just felt right, y’know?” Emily laughs.

After their Japanese tour and zoo excursion (“the Jack-Ass Penguins were the best ones,” Emily says), they stayed in touch thanks to the wonders of social media. Then, when Emily noticed Orono “had a couple of cool demos up on Soundcloud”, collaborating on ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D’ seemed like the natural next step. “[Soundcloud demos are] just classic teenage bullshit nowadays,” Orono smirks.

“Actually, my Dad was like, ‘You should take those down right now ‘cause they’re embarrassing’.”

“Oh, what! I reckon they’re cool man, don’t do it.” Emily insists.

“I was like, ‘I know. I’m already onto it, several months ago’,” says Orono.

Emily’s always had faith in Orono, by the sounds of things. The first time the rest of the band heard her work on their first single, it blew them away.

“So we sent this track to Orono while she was at school in the States, and when we got it back we put it on the stereo, and we were just like, ‘Whoa, dude, did you actually just write that?’” he says excitedly. “It was crazy because it only took her an hour or something to write it and record it in her

“It’s a major part of everyone’s lives, right? I think that’s one of the most relatable songs on the record, because everyone’s on their phones and laptops nowadays just looking at bullshit,” Orono shrugs.

That casual, catch-all ‘bullshit’ seems like the right word for it. Practically all recorded human knowledge is at our fingertips, and what are we doing? Looking at dog memes.

Playing that one GIF of a seal spinning around to jewellery box music on repeat.

Orono’s not preaching, though. This is just modern life, and Superorganism don’t seem to think it’s rubbish.

“You might see your loved one sitting next to you watching Netflix in the reflection more than you actually look at them,” says Emily. “Honestly, it’s a little bit like that. I just feel like everyone we know is obsessed with the internet. Not in a weird way that just seems to be modern life. There are all different ways of meeting through the internet these days. Whether it’s finding a job through the internet and meeting people at work or dating through Tinder, and putting music together as well.”

Luckily, the 21st-century pop-factory approach suits them down to the ground.

“Putting music together over the internet makes so much sense to us. We love all the mainstream pop stuff, and a lot of

“[Robert] does all the animation and live visuals as well as the video clip stuff. He’s the final piece of the puzzle, so when we’re coming to finishing up the demos for songs he gets involved and starts putting the visuals together as we’re getting the songs finished,” says Emily. “So there’s back and forth like that, and I think he does a great job of painting the words with these kinds of images. He uses lots of images from, like, earlier 2000s internet culture and I think in general he uses lots of memes from different internet eras,” he grins. “The internet eras are very small ‘cause the internet’s only been around for a while. But I think we do the same thing with our music, we’re into all these different eras of stuff, and we tend to get obsessed with these different eras and just take little bits and pieces I guess.

That’s the end result.”

Superorganism’s world is one of contemporary nostalgia.

The videos for ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D’ and ‘Everybody Wants To Be Famous’ bring to mind early 2000s chat rooms, flip phones, and neon MySpace skins. There are rainbow colours and soaring cat heads, a whale swimming through the sky, 8-bit video game graphics.

Superorganism are magpies, picking and choosing the shiny parts of life to weave into their

show. They’re rulers of their own retrofuturistic digital realm.

“It’s important to us first of all that we’re in control of all the things that we’re interested in,” Emily says. “That’s why we do everything at home, from writing and recording it, and also mixing it to doing all the visual stuff and then rehearsing the show in our bedrooms. It’s important to us that it’s the expression of our little hivemind, rather than a collaboration between us and other people outside. We’ve created our hub, you know?

“I think that when you do that, when you have eight people kind of looking inwards, in a way, you start to build this kind of world. It’s inevitable. It’s like when you have this group of friends that always hangs out, and they start to have in-jokes or things like that. It’s sort of like the group starts having a personality, and it’s like that for a band as well. For us, that personality is part of that world.”

“I think that’s why we’re so into creating an immersive project,” Orono agrees, “because we’re so interested in various things all across the board.”

Their varied interests mean that each member of the hive mind weighs in on all aspects of Superorganism. From the lyrics and the melody to song structure, imagery, lighting and effects in their live shows - all members have equal input.

“It’s very collaborative,” Orono says. “Not just lyrics but even the video stuff and the album artworks, the melodies, everything we all have a say in. Emily could come up with some ideas for the lyrics of a song, and he would send it over to me and be like, ‘Hey this part’s cool, or that part’s cool, maybe I could add this cool part that I wrote today’ or whatever. Nobody’s in charge of one single thing.

“I think that’s kind of what sets us apart, ‘cause I don’t think a lot of groups are as collaborative. Usually, it’s one guy, and he’s like, dictating the creative direction of the band, and the other guys just follow. I don’t think we’re like that at all.”

Their equal opportunities, all-for-one approach helps them swerve the pitfalls that might come with clashing egos.

“I’ve seen lots of stories about bands I love where they’ve got multiple songwriters in the band, and they clash and end up breaking up because they want to play their own songs or whatever, and I feel like that’s missing the point,” Emily agrees. “It’s really important to put your ego in the success of the group as a whole, as a team, because in general bands that have crazy good songwriting careers tend to have multiple songwriters.”

“Putting minds together produces amazing stuff,” Orono agrees. “It’s important to put that pride in the whole group. Which I think everyone in our group does, it’s just how we

think. If the band’s doing this thing that’s great, then it’s good for every single person.

I think that’s how we end up feeling. So in that way, it doesn’t matter who did what and so we end up taking turns doing quite a lot of the different things.”

Collectivism is just the Superorganism way.

Everything they do lives up to their name, staying true to their ‘we are one, but we are many’ hive mind approach. They’ve even gone so far as to weave their statement of intent into a theme song on the album; the conveniently titled ‘SPRORGNSM’.

DOWN WITH BORING

21

“It’s good to have a theme song,” Emily laughs. “I feel like more bands should have a theme song. I love bands with theme songs. The first one that comes to mind is Devo. They used to play ‘Are We Not Human? We Are Devo’, and they would just play that refrain. Apparently, they would do that for like 20 minutes because they were trying to piss everyone off. I think that’s so great. I love seeing bands that sing about themselves.”

This is the part where their wide-ranging influences really come in.

“Something that blew my mind about rap music, in general, is that it tends to be much more self-referential than maybe indie music for example. The first single of the second album of a rap artist tends to be like, ‘Hey, I’m back!’ literally referencing their place in your life. I find that so fascinating and that’s not really something I’ve seen as many indie bands do. It’s a tricky line to walk I guess, but I love the idea of it being like, ‘Hey, this is us’,” Emily says. “And I guess it’s a bit like The Monkees, we all live in the same house together as well, so I guess it feels apt. That wasn’t the one I

was thinking of when we wrote the song I don’t think, but it’s the one I think of now that we live in the same house and we’re all together.”

“Leonard Cohen has a theme song,” says Orono, snapping out of a jet-lag induced daze. “I like that one.”

“I’m trying to think of other bands that have a theme song,” Emily says.

“The Unicorns,” Orono suggests.

“Yeah, the Unicorns have a theme song.

Quite a few bands have theme songs.”

Orono nods. “All the good ones.”

That’s not to say that Superorganism are always looking inwards. Their debut album is littered with tracks about the world at large, from social media obsession in ‘Reflections on the Screen’ to the strange panic attack fever of ‘Relax’. Then there’s ‘Nai’s March’, a rumination on climate change, the approaching apocalypse, and our human tendency to carry on in blissful ignorance.

“We’re just mindlessly walking around every day,” Orono says drily. “For example living in Japan or New Zealand you get these fucking gigantic earthquakes all the time, but everyone’s like, ‘It’s fine, it’s cool’, we’re still a functioning society. But when you think about it that’s so stupid. Because you build everything up and it could just fall apart at one point.” She shrugs and smirks a little bit. “That could be a metaphor for your life; I don’t know.”

Emily laughs. “Totally,” he says. “There’s a bit when we play ‘Nai’s March’ live where it kicks in, and there are these synthesisers where it feels like the end of the world, it goes-” he puts his hands out and imitates a deep, earth-rumbling vibration. “That to me is the feeling of maybe standing on top of a skyscraper in Tokyo and seeing the impending doom arriving. It’s kind of disastrous. It’s extreme; it’s theatrical. I love that ‘impending doom’.”

“But with frog sounds,” Orono adds.

Emily nods. “You know, the frogs will be there in the apocalypse.”

Superorganism never get too serious about things. For all their musings on modern life or the approaching end of the world, there’s always a frog sound or arcade game effect to add a touch of buoyancy. There’s a light shining at the end of the tunnel. Take that panicky fever dream ‘Relax’, the penultimate track on their debut album. As Orono sings a cyclic “turn on, tune in, drop out if you can” there’s the sense of someone gently coaxing themselves through an anxiety attack. A sort of one foot in front of the other form of smiling resistance.

“It’s like, it’s that feeling of being on edge all the time. It’s that feeling of impending doom,” says Emily. He stops and considers for a second. “Actually, these songs are quite uplifting, but with any great uplifting feeling, there’s always the down and the up.

I feel like we do both of those on the record.

The extremes. That’s what we like to do. The extreme lows, extreme highs.”

Superorganism are not in the business of half-arsing anything. Everybody wants to be famous, sure, but they are actually making the trip. P Superorganism’s self-titled debut album is out 2nd March.

22

READDORK.COM

HE

AV Y

PO

AN

D

P, R

FR

EA

IE

D IN G ND M E S PR NC ES AP EN T…

In aid of

SATURDAY 28th APRIL 2018 READING

- Second Line-Up Announcement -

IDLES

FIELD MUSIC PHIL TAGGART

STEVE LAMACQ

(BBC Radio 1)

(BBC 6Music)

ASH THE AUTHOR AK/DK CARNIVAL YOUTH FEBUEDER HAVE YOU EVER SEEN THE JANE FONDA AEROBIC VHS? H HER’S H MUSH SALTWATER SUN H THE AUGUST LIST H VIENNA DITTO H WARM DIGITS H YONAKA H

H

H

ANIMAL HOUSE H DEERFUL H DRUG STORE ROMEOS H EAT DADDY EAT H EVER HAZEL HERE COME THE YOUNG MEN & UNCLE PEANUT H NOBODIES BIRTHDAY H THE ADY BAKER SOUND THE AUTUMN SAINTS H TIGER MENDOZA H TINY GIANT H TWIN SUN H VINYL STAIRCASE + many more acts still to be announced VENUES:

/AreYouListeningFestival

Milk (18+) Oakford Social Club† (18+) Purple Turtle (18+) Rising Sun Arts Centre† (14+)

@AYLFest (#aylfest)

St Laurence Church

AYLFEST (#aylfest)

(14+)

South Street Arts Centre (14+) Sub89 (U/16 with adult)

Tickets: £20.00 early advance

areyoulistening.org.uk

Tickets available at: areyoulistening.org.uk • readingarts.com • wegottickets.com Entry to venues is by wristband only, except venues marked † which offer limited single entry on the day from £5.00.

Reading Mencap charity number: 1118287 readingmencap.org.uk

Your wristband grants access to all of the venues on the day, subject to capacity and age restrictions • Line-up subject to change • Proof of age may be required

Reading mencap The local voice of learning disability

G ROW

F

IT TO O K A W H I L E FO R

elix Bushe is adjusting - in more ways than one. 2018 already feels like a year bound with importance, and it’s something he knows all too well. It’s the time for Gengahr lay out the answer to that all-important question every gliding new band has to answer - what comes next?

It’s a question he found posed over and over as they came to terms with life after debut album, ‘A Dream Outside’. An opening statement with lush dream-pop oozing out of every pore, how they’d go about its follow-up was a weighty decision, and adjusting to their experiences over the past few years was something ready to be engulfed by Gengahr as a band. The other reason Felix is adjusting? Well, he did just fly back from Australia - that’ll do it.

“It all feels quite a bit different,” points out Felix, contemplating the position the band of mates from Stoke Newington now find themselves. “When you put out your first album it’s all sort of fun and games; you don’t know what’s going to happen or what to expect or even what’s possible. Putting a second album out, it’s a pretty nervewracking time - I guess it does become a bit scary in a way.”

24

READDORK.COM

GENGAHR

T O F I G U R E O U T W H AT T H E Y W A N T E D T O D O W I T H T H E I R S E C O N D A L B U M ,

BUT THEY’VE HIT UPON A WINNING FORMULA. It’s a brave and confident step that Gengahr take with ‘Where Wildness Grows’, a second album that does what every great second album nails - taking the heart of everything they first laid out on their debut and expanding it into a different beast; a bigger force. Led by storming thunderbolt ‘Carrion’, it’s a record comfortable in its skin, measured and immediate in a way that means it can pierce through mood or moment with ease. A step-up into something bolder, the band knew where they wanted to take it. “We wanted to take it away from feeling like a bedroom project,” explains Felix. “We wanted to take things into the album that would fit when recording in a bigger studio; we felt that the songs had the potential to sound bigger.”

“I mean, when I say sound bigger, we’re not thinking Foo Fighters here, but there is definitely a sense of finding something that’s comfortable for you as a band. For us what that meant was a fairly subtle change to the listener’s ear, but for us, it was moving into a bigger room and keeping things live.

More of that energy we get from playing live and touring. It was quite an organic change, not a massive big move. It didn’t need to be, it had to be a natural progression and feel like once we’d done it in the studio, we could walk out of there and go straight on stage and it would sound bigger and better than before.”

WORDS: JAMIE MUIR

The live realm was exactly what Gengahr needed to experience with ‘A Dream Outside’.

A record born indoors and gazing inwards, the moments travelling across the globe to play it live was a startling difference to the surroundings it was born into. It drew many a plaudit and meant a staggering amount to fans, and for the band themselves, it was an eye-opening look at success; they knew that the pressure was on.

“The way I see it,” begins Felix, taking a breath to reflect on that initial step, “our success is still quite cult-y. We were more the type of band people liked because it was a cool thing to like our band, rather than being a mainstream choice. We weren’t getting smashed on Radio 1, y’know? Our success was relative and among what felt like a small, selected audience - but the kind of people that felt into our music were also the kind of people that I would like to talk about music with.

“It felt like we were in kinda a good place.

I don’t know if that all makes sense, but it felt like the fans we were picking up were into the same music we were, which was quite a relief in a way. It’d be terrible if you suddenly realise that the people who listen to your music are also massive fans of loads of other bands that you don’t like or connect with.”

‘A Dream Outside’ was an interesting breakthrough for the band, especially in its origin. “We didn’t get to play the first album before we’d recorded it,” notes Felix, “so when we came to playing live there were a few more gears that we could never really get to, because of the way the album was recorded. We’d end up changing bits to suit what we did live. What we wanted to do was work out how, on a second album, we could do soft and more intimate stuff like we did on the first album but also add a kinda angrier, more rumbustious sound that we were doing live and make things a bit more grandiose and huge. Trying to saddle the two things was something that was tricky to achieve - and I think we’ve done it relatively successfully.”

There’s an unmistakable sense of beefiness and strength behind that progression into ‘Where Wildness Grows’. Still unmistakably raw and cut to the bone, yet more measured and powering in sound, it’s an album that knows exactly what it’s doing and revels in the world it creates. There’s a feeling and a sense of touch that comes with listing to a Gengahr record, one that pulls you close and whispers into your ear to start feeling every word. Yet, its beginning is an uncertain realm that even the band couldn’t see coming.

N UPS Felix recalls: “There was such a big gap between writing the first record, and when we started writing the second there was quite a build up, a feeling that there was a lot of drive to start writing again almost as soon as we got off the road. I thought as we wrapped up the last few dates on tour, ‘Oh shit, I can’t believe we haven’t been writing anything for this long’. The whole experience at that time felt quite bizarre. As a result, we wrote songs quite quickly at first, but there was so much to sift through. We had to work out that we had that would be an appropriate step forward, rather than just accepting tracks for simply being good. We had to ask ourselves, what do we want this album to be?”

Tinkering with tracks, recording in different settings and dealing with the everyday struggles around them, Gengahr were in a period of transition. The success that came with their debut gave them confidence, but that ease never sat well with the band who creatively were bouncing off the walls.

Those ideas spill and overflow with ‘Where Wildness Grows’, served with a measure of knowing in the band that they’re realising the place they deserve to occupy. That vision for how it would all play out wasn’t always there, Felix acknowledges. “When we recorded the whole album the first time around, we did the tracks in a much more controlled and contemporary way, editing stuff and really making sure everything would be perfect. I think it ended up sounding quite big, maybe too big.” When listening back, Gengahr got the feeling of

a robotic band trying to serve up a by-thebook account of the big second album, when in fact the beauty in their first record came from the slight imperfections and roughness around the edges.

“It was not really human enough in the end,” points out Felix, “so we made that decision to throw it all in the bin and start again, and with that ambition, we realised that what we were struggling to achieve was probably quite easy to do all along. All we needed to do was play the songs together and get in a good room and allow it to sound a bit more human and sound like it’s being played by four musicians in a room, played well rather than fixing it all later. I think that’s why the record has that sensitive feeling and has that kind of fragility that comes from being played live and being pretty raw. We kept it to what we can do in a room together, and that was a shared ambition from the first record. We didn’t want to chuck things in there that we didn’t think we could do live - and that’s stuck through as one of the key elements of the Gengahr sound. That honesty and musicianship.”

What was thrown in the bin ultimately is a blessing, because ‘Where Wildness Grows’ proves itself an impeccable statement of the future. Weaving delicately crafted cuts with emotionally naked songwriting, it creates a sound that matches the band’s ambition. Reverberating live and born for those moments where you catch a band and think, ‘Jesus, they’re onto something special’. ‘Before Sunrise’ is a shape-shifting

chameleon that was born to be cried along to on a Reading weekend, ‘Mallory’ is an almost unabashed love song for nervous 2018 life, and ‘Is This How You Love’ is a pogoing firestarter ready to soundtrack youthful abandon - and that’s only the first three tracks. Being bold and being honest has proved indisputably fruitful.

“That songwriting process is always going to be pretty organic for us,” comments Felix. “We’re not gonna be plastered over billboards everywhere - it’s not the nature of what we do. It’s always going to be something where someone listens to it and then passes it on to a mate - it’s always felt quite grassroots-y in a way, right from the beginning.” That feeling is primed in all that Gengahr do, a band who are committed to creating the ideas and paintings in their mind and bolstered by the support they’ve seen so far - makes them even more determined to stick to that gut feeling.

“I feel less nervous now,” clicks back Felix, returning to the emotion that comes from the starting gates of a whole new chapter.

“Now I think, well, whatever happens happens. I don’t have as much pressure on myself other than to achieve. Such dizzying heights of fame were never something we wanted to achieve, we just want to create good albums, and that initial goal we set out to achieve hasn’t been lost. The first album was a really nice gig, it all sorta happened in a nice way for us, and it gave us this nice platform to carry on doing what we wanted and that didn’t get taken away from us,

which is the biggest positive going into making another album. Having that vision and drive to achieve the same things you did on the first album but with a little more assurance that you’re doing something that other people are enjoying as well.”

A record that places Gengahr in a realm of truly special British bands, ‘Where Wildness Grows’ deserves to be poured over and delved into for many a moon to come, ready for those late nights and lonely hours where you need to escape the world. In that vision and in that level of importance, Gengahr are stepping out into an assured playing field where they’re destined to hit it out the park.

On the top of your skin, and in the bottom of your gut, there’s only one thing you can do and that is to feel Gengahr.

Felix and the band? Well, they’re already writing the next chapter. “I’ve always got one eye on what will happen and what we want to do next,” explains Felix. “But really, a lot of the power is in the audience; they determine what a band can and can’t do, so I’m interested to see how many people connect with the album and I hope it kicks us on further.”

If nature has one unstoppable rule, it’s that evolution is the key and only those that adapt can truly rule the roost. Gengahr have shifted into a special lane, and now they’re the prime attraction. P Gengahr’s album ‘Where Wildness Grows’ is out 9th March.

DOWN WITH BORING

25

“MY LIFE GETS TO START NOW” PHOEBE BRIDG ERS

DROPPED ONE OF THE

B E S T A L B U M S O F 2 0 1 7. N O W S H E ’ S H E A D I N G TO TH E U K FO R L I VE S H OWS , A N D I T ’ S T I M E T O S E E W H AT A L L T H E E XC I T E M E N T I S A B O U T. . .

WO R D S : M A RT Y N YO U N G

26

READDORK.COM

A

ny successful musician will have loyal fans, but none can be quite so devoted as your good ol’ mum. For Phoebe Bridgers, one of 2017’s biggest breakout stars, her’s has always been her fiercest champion. “My mum started a Facebook group that is only my press,” laughs Phoebe from her home in LA. “I can’t believe she did that and a lot of my friends are in on it which is pretty embarrassing, but it is nice to see that stuff.”

It’s fitting that Phoebe’s mum has started a very modern kind of scrapbook to collate her daughter’s achievements, as her stunning breakthrough album ‘Stranger In The Alps’ is an assured collection of beautifully crafted songs founded on the importance of memories, both traumatic and treasured. Even though the album is her first officially released work, for Phoebe it feels like she’s been doing this a long time.

“Music makes it into every corner of my life,” Phoebe explains. It’s always been this way, and her mum has been an inspiring factor for the singer, who started writing songs from an early age. “I had a super supportive mum,” she continues. “She was supportive of me before anyone should have been.

She was like, ‘You’re the best ever!’

“Because of that, I got to go to a public art school in LA called LACHSA. I went there for four years and studied vocal music. I just started playing shows. I played with bands sometimes, but mostly solo. I met the producer of my record when I was 19. I got a ninehour guitar lesson from him, and we decided to make the record. I feel like I’ve been living my life like I’ve put out music for so long, but technically this is the first major thing I’ve ever released. I feel like my life gets to start now.”

The album that she created is filled with the experiences she’s accumulated over the years, and subsequently, it’s filled with deep emotional resonance. ‘Stranger In The Alps’ is bleak, at times overwhelmingly so. Ultimately though, it’s filled with a resolute spirit and feeling of hope that tempers the darkness. The heavy

nature of the record is something that Phoebe recognises, but it perhaps wasn’t strictly intended that way.

“It’s definitely a very heavy record as far as subject matter goes, there’s a lot of death,” begins Phoebe. “I only figured that out way later. I was listening to the album and was like, wow, this is really heavy. It’s intense for me because I think I have become more well adjusted to adult life since I wrote most of those songs. I still like the person who wrote those songs, I just feel bad, like, ‘Oh, shit that’s a lot of really dark stuff in a row’.”

Part of Phoebe Bridgers’ success and one of the reasons why her album is gaining a new audience every day is that her songs are so relatable.

They’re intense, but that’s life. Phoebe expresses the feelings and emotional turbulence that we all experience, particularly on ‘Motion Sickness’, the one song on the album that most listeners have taken to heart.

“I love that people think of that song as a positive thing because it is like a burn, it’s a diss track,” laughs Phoebe.

“Because it has such a buoyant melody and because I’m being a little bit funny about it, a lot of people connect with it and don’t think of it as dark as the rest of my record. People dance to it and cover it all the time, but in double time.”

While depression colours the songs and has been a factor in Phoebe’s life, she meets it on this album with a matter-of-factness and a strongwilled spirit to be emotionally honest and upfront. It’s the only way she knows.

“It’s just the way I feel about depression and all that stuff,” she says.

“Even when there’s a resolute lyric it’s ironically resolute in the way you can feel like you’re going to feel that way forever. It was my intention to relay as much of my own feelings as possible.

I didn’t feel a crazy responsibility to shield people from dark stuff, that maybe has changed now I know people are going to listen to my next album. I’m glad that I have a little bit of hope. I do think that all feelings are temporary.”

It’s a feeling that everyone can relate to when you’re down, finding the saddest song who can think and wallowing in haze of blissful misery.

“I like when people come up to me

“I’D LIKE MY NEXT RECORD TO BE A COUNTRY RECORD AND FOR NOBODY TO BE SURPRISED”

with something dark that’s happened to them and share it with me. It feels good to have a community. I just know that when I’m miserable, all I want to do is listen to music that hurts my feelings even more.”

Having such a dark and intense album might lead you to believe that Phoebe herself is a withdrawn, morose character rather than the funny, smart and hugely engaging character she actually is. Fortunately, though, she’s not yet had too many experiences of people incorrectly judging her.

“I haven’t had an uncomfortable experience with that yet,” she says.

“It’s only been fun to make people see that I’m not hiding in a corner smoking a cigarette. It’s fun to make people see that I’m not that person that they expect me to be. One of the first labels that tried to sign me when I was 17 or 18 was like, ‘Why is your Twitter so funny? You should be tweeting Elliott Smith lyrics or something’. I was like, what the fuck? That’s the only time someone’s tried to make me not have my own personality. I think everyone is multidimensional.”

The thoughtful and deep music Phoebe makes is borne out of a love of similarly relatable music. “I connect with songs that are weirdly specific but also universal,” she explains.

“There’s a song by Mark Kozelek called ‘Ceiling Gazing’ that’s just him rambling about his day, and it sounds like a thought process. It’s so specific.

He talks about his sister getting a divorce. I don’t have a sister getting a divorce so why do I feel so much when I listen to that song? That’s always the music that I’ve been drawn to. It’s easy for me to realise that when I’m writing and not be afraid of my own specific experiences. It is cathartic to write songs like that.”

The continued success of ‘Stranger In The Alps’ has found a whole new audience for Phoebe Bridgers, and she’s set to capitalise on that with her first proper tour, including dates with Bon Iver and a trip to The Great Escape in May as well as exploring Europe for the first time. “I love the countryside,” she enthuses. “I haven’t seen Stonehenge.”

Musically though, it’s only the start Phoebe’s sights are set on the bigger picture. “I would love to be a forever artist,” she proclaims. “Neil Young talks about playing really small shows and giant shows every other year. The success of an album didn’t mean the success of himself as an artist. I would love that freedom and for people to still listen to me even if I release something they don’t like.

“I like artists like Bjork. Bjork could release a spoken word album, and people would be like, yeah, it wouldn’t be crazy news. I’d like my next record to be an electronic record or a country record and for nobody to be surprised.”

Those are lofty ambitions but make sense for an artist who knows exactly who they are and where they’re going. An artist like Bjork will always be Bjork, and Phoebe Bridgers will always be Phoebe Bridgers. P Phoebe Bridgers’ album ‘Stranger In The Alps’ is out now. She’ll support Bon Iver in London on 4th and 5th March.

DOWN WITH BORING

27

O O D

G L AL C E N. ..

D R H I L E UK, DS IN TH NEW BAN T A P. S E L O CTO RY L HE CO PON A VI ONE OF T ARKED U B M E E R I V HA F THE N I N H E AV E ELEASE O EAR, NG THE R R LAST Y E FOLLOWI B M E T EP S S N I T U O F SP OT LED DEB P LOA DS S E L F -T I T .

UR HIT U N O U T R D M E U G LB RK-BAD ON THE A THEIR DO A N C E TO H C A T E N’T G FUN. THEY DID OA DS O F T. I T WA S L E BENNET OFTIN. STEVEN L WORDS:

INHEAVEN, Reading Face Bar, 6th February 2018.

28

READDORK.COM

PH OTOS:

OUIS SARAH L

N

ot only is tonight in Cambridge the second date of INHEAVEN’s headline tour, but it’s also guitarist Jake Lucas’s birthday, and something of a homecoming as drummer Joe Lazarus actually lives here. With family and friends piling in to see them, the band are in good spirits.

As they rattle around the empty venue before the show, the four-piece bring the gang mentality of The Clash and stylistic observation of The Strokes into a melding factory of their own creation. The room quickly sees stars and stripes draped over instrument cabs, roses adorning every spare surface, and a large blood-red velvet style backdrop.

“We’re really into that,” singer and guitarist James Taylor admits. “My favourite thing is when you walk into a gig, and you feel a part of it. A band with a smoke machine, and like, one light bulb is not inspiring, is it?”

“It could be cool though, just one light,” singer and bassist Chloe Little swiftly interjects. “I like the sound of that!”

It’s clear they take this approach very seriously. During the show’s set up, James and Chloe can be seen scattering roses across the stage, with every position picked meticulously, as if each stem is holding its own individual role in their grander scheme.

“We design all the backdrop and the drum skin and everything so that when you come in it’s like our world,” James says. It’s all of these

little flourishes that come together to create the environment that matches the sound they unleash: proof that INHEAVEN has cracked the balance of both style and substance.

As if kicking off the new year with a tour wasn’t enough, they’re also jetting off to the US for the first time in March with fellow Dork faves, Pale Waves. It’s not hard to see why the band are excited about hitting the open road across the pond.

“A lot of our favourite bands are from America,” James begins. “We’re looking forward to going to Seattle, Chicago, New York…”

But it’s not all just going to be about the long drives and bright lights.

“Have you seen all these crazy food Instagrams in America, [and] food bloggers?” Chloe asks excitedly. “[I’ve] been screengrabbing things that I want to eat in certain places, because I love a list. So I’m making a ridiculous list of all the places that I want to eat.

Not oh, ‘I want to see Niagara Falls…’

“It’s easy to want to sit and do nothing when you’re touring,” she continues.

“Because it’s weird hours, and you have to get up late and things like that. You have to make a conscious effort when you’re in new places to try and see something or to be reading or writing every day.”

Cutting their teeth on tour over the last three years, the band’s time on stage has helped them develop who they want to be. “Each individual character comes out when you see us live,” says Joe. “Everyone has their own thing, and you get to really see that.”

They’ve learnt a lot, too. “Every night of the gig you go home, and you’re like, ‘Why did I do that?’ And the next gig you won’t do those things,” James

confides. “It’s kind of like a slow build, character building, and developing how you want to be on stage. That’s something you only get from touring, and I think we’ve got that from being on the road. I’m looking forward to seeing where that goes next.”

“Last year was a bit of a blur because there was a lot of shows,” recalls Chloe.

“I think time goes very quickly,” James adds. “Like you’ll go on tour, and it’s freezing, and then you come off tour, and you’re in your t-shirt, and you’re like, ‘What happened?! Where am I, what year is it?”

Losing time to the road is only one of a few things that touring can take from a band. “You kind of just live in exile from the mainstream society when you’re in a band,” Chloe explains.

Negatives aside, INHEAVEN love the road. It’s why they’re doing this in the first place, and currently where they’re thriving. “Speak to us in five years time when we’re all, ‘It’s fucking shit!’”

James laughs. “But yeah, we love it at the moment. Playing live is when the record comes to life, and you really see - I think other people, that’s who makes the record. You can make a great record, but it’s the audience reaction to it that makes a great record even greater.”

“Everyone wants to be out on the road the whole time if they can,” James confesses. “That’s what we’re building up to, I guess. Right now we’re like newborn babies, every city we go to, it’s like seeing stuff for the first time.”

“We’re like a haggard, newborn baby!”

Chloe interrupts, laughing. “A roadworn newborn baby.” P INHEAVEN’s self-titled debut album is out now.

DOWN WITH BORING

29

REVIEWS THE OFFICIAL VERDICT ON BASICALLY EVERYTHING.

SUPERORGANISM SUPERORGANISM eeeee

SO M ET I M ES , T H E H Y P E M AC H I N E D O ES N ’ T G O FA R E N O U G H .

T

here are a lot of positive things for a new band to be.

Exciting is a must; nobody wants to be boring. Intriguing is a good one, a touch of mystique can help. A good personality is important to drag oneself out of the grasping hands of the less engaging masses. Superorganism have something few others could

ever hope to posses though.

They’re positively infectious.

The sparks of energy that only exist when seemingly impossible things collide, it only takes a quick glance at the collective to realise they’re a little different to the norm. But crucially, this isn’t about visible oddity. It’s about sounding like the best, coolest - and most importantly fun - party in town.

From the slack strive shuffle of ‘Everybody Wants To Be Famous’ to the fantastical ‘SPRORGNSM’ (all the best bands have a theme song - Ed), every beep, bloop and twang has a once in a generation

swagger. Like the first point Avalanches headshrunk new frontiers the better part of two decades before, it’s nothing short of fascinating.

With a quiet confidence rarely afforded for debut records, Superorganism never sound showy or arrogant. Never forced or contrived. Nothing about their wonky pop is cynically replicated to shift units or hit suit and tie targets.

In the soon to be iconic Orono, Superorganism have bottled lightning; an almost nonchalant focus point for the raging neon

extravaganza exploding around her. ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D.’ is as bogglingly brilliant as it sounded first time around, ‘The Prawn Song’ bubbles with undersea adventure, while closer ‘Night Time’ is alight with euphoric fireworks.

In 2018’s pantheon of debuts, there will be few as exciting as this - and precisely zero that stand up to direct comparison.

Expanding their live-in London HQ into a self-sustaining ecosystem full of life, Superorganism is catching with little sign of recovery. Sick leave is going to be great. Stephen Ackroyd

HEAR THE HOTTEST NEW RELEASES AS THEY DROP, 24 HOURS A DAY, 7 DAYS A WEEK, 365 DAYS A YEAR.

L I S T E N N O W AT R E A D D O R K . C O M O R V I A T U N E I N O N I O S A N D A N D R O I D .

30 30

READDORK.COM READDORK.COM

GEOWULF

GREAT BIG BLUE

eeeee Certain records can transport you to a moment in time. It’s in that vein that Geowulf’s debut album shines as a scorching summer soundtrack of glinting poolsides and wide-eyed classic American grooves. With the effortless melodies they craft, Geowulf have been promising something mesmeric for a while now and with ‘Great Big Blue’ they deliver on it. Knowing nods are there across the album’s eleven tracks, together a cohesive snapshot that blends charm and swagger into a mixture you can’t back away from.

There’s always a touch of Lana Del Rey to the vocal swoons of lead singer Star, but it comes to the fore with the encompassing ‘Summer Fling’ - a Bond soundtrack for when it’s set on Californian coasts. With ‘Great Big Blue’, Geowulf lay their intentions and influences clearly - and in its moments of grandeur and daring, it signals something undeniably rich that’ll have you hooked in a stunning daydream. Jamie Muir

U.S. GIRLS

IN A POEM UNLIMITED

eeeee ‘In A Poem Unlimited’, the sixth studio album by Meg Remy, aka

US Girls, lavish, luscious textures are weaved together to make for a record that is groovy and gorgeous in equal measure. A skewed pop record that proposes multiple images of empowered women coming to terms with the force they possess, Remy’s sharp quips meet angular space disco grooves and glorious arrangements that marry beats, horns and strings in pop euphoria.

Truly one of this decade’s most underrated songwriters, on this record, Remy is the visionary pop star we don’t deserve, but are lucky enough to get anyway. Cal Cashin

MOANING

MOANING

eeeee Moaning’s self-titled debut pulls at the very notions of being alive.

Through its darkness, the trio create a light-shining record that’s defiantly honest - not proclaiming to have the answers, but instead rips itself open with brutal confusion and vital questions.

Always asking and prodding at more, it’s an avalanche of angular cutting emotion, pulling to mind the outsider vibes of Interpol, Joy Division and The Cure. ‘Don’t Go’ is an immediate adrenaline rush of a single, while the rallying cry of desperation can be heard through ‘The Same’, the soaring realities build on ‘For Now’, and the uncontrollable scream of ‘Useless’ is startling in its power. Jumping between mountain-sized anger

into aching vulnerability, it wraps itself in a world that confronts everything head on and isn’t afraid to take the consequences.

‘Moaning’ captures an entire generation’s angst and fears into one devastating bottle, finding the best way out of the dark is to scream in its face. An undeniably essential record. Jamie Muir

BELLE & SEBASTIAN

HOW TO SOLVE OUR HUMAN PROBLEMS

eeeee Belle & Sebastian’s new album isn’t really an album. It’s actually three EPs put together titled ‘How To Solve Our Human Problems’ with the songs being recorded as they were written giving the songs an air of spontaneity. To a certain extent, it’s worked with songs such as ‘The Girl Doesn’t Get It’ and ‘Cornflakes’ standing out amongst what a collection of good songs. ‘Poor Boy’ has an Arcade Fire sheen, whereas ‘Best Friend’ is a delightful example of what has drawn so many to Belle & Sebastian over the years.

Songs like ‘I’ll Be Your Pilot’ and ‘There Is an Everlasting Song’, whilst good, are almost instantly forgettable and there is a feeling at points that if some fat was to be trimmed, such as ‘Too Many Tears’ and ‘Same Star’, this would be a better record. At times, it shines with brilliance but then at others it feels as if it’s easily discarded. Josh Williams

HEY RICH FROM HAPPY ACCIDENTS, RECOMMEND US SOME STUFF

TV show you couldn’t live without: Phoebe and I don’t have a TV, so could probably survive if I had to, but I reckon Neil would say football.

Best purchase of this year: The year has just begun, so I’ll have to say my new toothbrush protector. It keeps it from getting grubby on tour; it’s a total game changer!

Anything else you’d recommend: Our top tip is making a bit too much dinner so you can have leftovers the next day. Saves you buying lunch or having to prepare something else.

We collectively recommend a stir-fry. P

WHERE WILDNESS GROWS

T

eeeee

here’s no doubt, Gengahr’s debut full-length ‘A Dream Outside’ was a remarkable piece of work.

Coming in the midst of a new wave of exciting, emerging talent, it sparkled with promise that went beyond critical acclaim. While it may not have catapulted them into the realms of massive arenas, it set foundations to build future rocket ships to the stars.

In comparison, ‘Where Wildness Grows’ is Gengahr’s light speed engine. More organic and - for want of a better word - real than science-fiction metaphors suggest, it’s a record that doesn’t just build but evolves, reaching out like rapidly stretching vines.

From the woozy ‘Mallory’ to the

PUBLIC ACCESS TV

STREET SAFARI

eeeee

Last good record you heard: The new Lemuria album is really great. Super creative, upbeat, important, quirky, punk, or something!

Favourite ever book: Can I be generic and say Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut? I only tend to read books once so it feels odd to highlight a favourite of all time, but I remember this making more of an impression on me than others.

GENGAHR

HAPPY ACCIDENTS EVERYTHING BUT THE HERE AND NOW eeee

A

ll I seem to be thinking ‘bout is everything but the here and now,” sings Rich Mandell on the second full-length from Happy Accidents. The trio of twenty-somethings can hardly be blamed for wanting to avoid the present as we go hurtling into 2018, and the record continues to chart the ups and downs of life as a youngster in contemporary Britain. Lo-fi guitars combine with subtle synths and twinkling keys to create the ‘sunglasses and stripy Topman t-shirt’ aesthetic that runs through ‘Everything But The Here And Now’. It’s not a huge departure from previous efforts,

Public Access TV sound like they’re born from a different time. One where the stereo-warmth of ear worm guitar licks reigned supreme.

Where creativity in guitar music was waiting to be discovered each and every month, and the nightclubs and discotheques were soundtracked by the latest and greatest it had to offer.

They’ve returned bursting with confidence, and on ‘Street Safari’ they have a vision. Sharp-suited, cracking a glorious smile and with Saturday Night Fever playing over and over in their minds - Public Access TV are a dazzling reminder that letting your hair down at the disco is always something we should make time for. Born from a different time, but just as important now. Jamie Muir

GWENNO

LE KOV

eeeee but it’s a more refined version of their punk laden indie-rock. It isn’t all surface though, and the band showcase a penchant for crafting upbeat anthems out of their everyday adversities. This album will undoubtedly soundtrack the summer. Brad Thorne

Exploring the unstoppable progress of tech and the desire to keep minority languages and cultures alive, former Pipette Gwenno Saunders’ ‘Le Kov’ (‘The Place of Memory’) is sung entirely in Cornish. But rather than being distancing, ‘Le Kov’ invites us in, with a bewitching, otherworldly,

driving ‘Carrion’ and the sparkling, standout title track, Gengahr’s beautiful mind weaves patterns far beyond the basic.

Breaking the templates, this isn’t the sound of a band too concerned with being smart to write songs.

Matching higher callings with raw emotion, Gengahr continue to grow. Stephen Ackroyd

sound palette, only enhanced by the unfamiliar tongue. ‘Eus Keus?’

- based on an idiom about cheese - is playful as it might be, while ‘Daromres y’n Howl’ (‘Traffic In The Sun’) ropes SFA’s Gruff Rhys in for a bluesily loping, dissected driving song. ‘Le Kov’ is a treat, no matter where you’re from. Rob Mesure

TABLE SCRAPS

AUTONOMY

eeeee Birmingham three-piece Table Scraps are a savage proposition, a group whose raucous noise concoctions sound less like songs and more like chance incantations to summon the devil himself. On second LP ‘Autonomy’ the menace is raised, the bar is higher; this garage psych troupe are further down and significantly dirtier than before. Like The Cramps, The Misfits and Screaming Lord Sutch before them, a kinda spooky aura encompasses the band; they’re not frightening, or unlistenably scary, but the enjoyment of their sound is greatly enhanced by the Halloween spectres that haunt this record and give it its own unique strut. From the ghostridin’ country garage epic of ‘More Than You Need Me’ to the simple, yet malevolent cries of “I am Frankenstein! I am Frankenstein!” on the track of the same name, Table Scraps have a monopoly on sabretoothed garage rock joy. Cal Cashin

DOWN WITH BORING

31

SOCCER MOMMY

CLEAN

eeeee When Sophie Allison - that’s Soccer Mommy to the rest of us - quit school to go all in on her art, she probably had doubts.

Everyone would. She shouldn’t, though. Not on the strength of her latest full-length ‘Clean’, the Follow up to last year’s bedroom-recorded compilation ‘Collection’. Opener ‘Still Clean’ has a clarity that’s enough to stop even the most distracted listener in their tracks. With production values levelled up, this isn’t an album that throws out the old to find new, easier paths. Instead it builds on strong foundations. ‘Cool’ is equal parts love and hate, while ‘Your Dog’ is a juxtaposition of emotions wrapped around an inner strength most artists take decades to perfect. Soccer Mommy’s music fits perfectly into a universe filled with creative, brilliant peers - one where her star shines brighter than most. Stephen Ackroyd

LUCY DACUS

HISTORIAN

“WE GOT TO TRY OUT A BUNCH OF COOL IDEAS” T H E D E B U T F R O M T W E N T Y-Y E A R - O L D N A S H V I L L E N AT I V E S O P H I E A L L I S O N TA C K L E S A L L T H E PA I N S O F G R O W I N G U P : F R O M D O D G Y R E L AT I O N S H I P S T O F I N D I N G YO U R O W N I D E N T I T Y. Hey Sophie, how’s it going? What’s life like for you at the moment?

Life’s been going great. I get to spend a lot of time touring and playing shows, which is pretty much all I have ever wanted to do. I’m getting to travel and see lots of new places that I’ve always wanted to go to.

How did you find recording your debut album, were there any unexpected challenges?

It was challenging to get everything done on time. I had so much touring scheduled so we had to squeeze the album sessions in to fit my schedule and the producer’s schedule.

Everything else about the process was really fun and exciting though.

Did you enjoy your time in the studio?

Yeah, I had a great time. It was a great group of people - me, Gabe Wax and Julian Powell - and we got to try out a bunch of cool ideas on these songs. It was a great experience.

What was your mindset like going into it?

I just wanted to make something cohesive and representative of myself. It felt like it was my chance to make a great album and show everyone who I am and 32

READDORK.COM

what Soccer Mommy is.

Is your music influenced by what’s on the news and the like? Do you keep up with that stuff?

I don’t think it really influences my music. My music is just an expression of the parts in my life where I have trouble saying how I feel (relationships, insecurities). I usually express how I feel when it comes to politics and social issues in conversation.

Are any of the album’s songs particular favourites?

I think ‘Scorpio Rising’ is my favourite. It’s definitely the most intimate for me, and I’m proud of how it turned out.

What’s been the highlight of your time as a musician so far?

It’s been so fun getting to play live a lot. I think playing my songs live is cathartic for me, even if I struggle with over-analysing my performance. It helps me get all the feelings out of my system.

Do you have lots of plans for 2018?

Yes! I’m going to be playing lots more shows across Europe and in North America… and I’m releasing my debut album, ‘Clean’! P Soccer Mommy’s debut album ‘Clean’ is out 2nd March.

eeeee If the Richmond, Virginia-based artist’s first album - 2016’s ‘No Burden’ - was made because she could, seizing the opportunity of an open day at a Nashville studio, quickly assembling a band, ‘Historian’ is “the album I needed to make”, according to Lucy Dacus. And it shows. It’s a dark but graceful rock album or perhaps a heavy singersongwriter one - with songs that are at times intensely, almost uncomfortably personal. But “hope survives, even in the face of the worst stuff”, and even in its darkest moments, silvery shreds of optimism shine. Dacus is a great lyricist. Rob Mesure

ANNA BURCH

QUIT THE CURSE

eeeee Anna Burch’s debut ‘Quit the Curse’ is a fluent collection of sun-soaked guitar pop that keeps going for your jugular.

The album is a ragged tale of nonchalant lovers and selfassurance, under Detroit’s stark city lights. Opener ‘2 Cool 2 Care’ is an honest serenade to an aloof lover, Anna’s crooning vocal scathing its victim. The layered guitars and delicate harmonies continue throughout the record. ‘Tea-Soaked Letter’ is a delectably catchy single, its spiralling guitars enveloping Anna’s spiked lyrics (“I feel so alone/I forgot to fake the way that I was feeling/now all my cards are showing”). Sonically cohesive, the record plays with folk and country alongside its indie rock roots. Anna has polished her brand of soft, saccharine, harmonic indie rock, and with that, presents these nine songs as a modern tale of cities and people.

‘Quit the Curse’ is a cogently written record, characterised by its barbed lyrics and dreamy instrumental. Erin Bashford

WILD BEASTS

LAST NIGHT ALL MY DREAMS CAME TRUE eeee

T

he humble live album - so often indicative of a lucrative cash-in or an excuse to break out of an album deal, delivered with little thought or precision. But when used correctly, it can be a kind of magic, a slice of history captured in its purest form. Their parting gift upon their split, ‘Last Night…’ is Wild Beasts’ way of setting alight the ship before it sails off into the distance. As such, it sears with aggression and urgency. A tracklist that draws on old and new, the energy of their live show is on fine display, picking out the delicate instrumentation that underlies their studio recordings and showing just how complex their songwriting can be. ‘Hooting & Howling’ celebrates Hayden Thorpe’s falsetto as dreamily as ever, while the live take of Boy King’s ‘2BU’ sees Tom Fleming in resolutely brutish mode, a butterfly

ROLO TOMASSI

TIME WILL DIE AND LOVE WILL BURY IT

eeeee It is a known trend that each Rolo Tomassi album is better than the one before it. ‘Grievances’, released in 2015, was addictive and ambitious from the offset, a confusing heady medley of fury and malevolence. Now, ‘Time Will Die And Love Will Bury It’ continues in that time honoured tradition by eclipsing what came before. The album lacks the cohesive feel of ‘Grievances’, but instead brings a tighter sound with new layers of complexity.

That unpredictable Rolo Tomassi style still ties the album together, but ultimately this release has more to offer than ever before.

That furious intensity that Rolo Tomassi do so well still hasn’t gone anywhere, but with ‘Time Will Die And Love Will Bury It’ they have brought a new depth to what they do best. Eleanor Langford

S. CAREY

HUNDRED ACRES

eeeee On his third full-length outing, S. Carey strips everything away, leaving you to pick up the pieces.

The desolation that runs around the delicate instruments and vocals leaves nothing to hide and instead bares all - with absolute heart-wrenching abandon.

‘Hundred Acres’ presents Carey at his most together, with the feeling that each of the tracks

of a melody teasing around his head as he thrashes around trying to catch it. Far from fading away, the quartet’s final swan song shines brightly, a romantic testament to one of art rock’s finest. Farewell Beasts, you will be missed. Jenessa Williams

were chosen to represent a different aspect of his strengths through a forced pairing.

For example, the impossibly quick-picked guitars of ‘Hideout’ standout when compared to the slow, pounding beat of ‘Emery’.

It’s a joyous, delicate album that fully cements S. Carey’s consistent strength in songwriting. Steven Loftin

JONATHAN WILSON

RARE BIRDS

eeeee You can throw out every perception you held about Jonathan Wilson. Anything goes on ‘Rare Birds’, a collection of songs more diverse than anything he’s produced before. The winsome Americana of old is largely replaced by a desire to push to different places and crash through previously held boundaries. It’s an album that’s vast and expansive.

There’s a sense of freedom and infectious wonder that shines through songs like ‘There’s A Light’ and the glammy Tame Impala like opener ‘Trafalgar Square’.

The sound is largely influenced by the sort of sonic visionaries working in the 80s who saw music and technology as something to behold, people like producer Trevor Horn and studio wizards Talk Talk. There’s a lot to take in with the album stretching to well over an hour, but Jonathan Wilson was never a man to short change his audience. If you want to go on a musical journey, then ‘Rare Birds’ is an album for you. Martyn Young

DJANGO DJANGO

WATERPARKS

DZ DEATHRAYS

MARBLE SKIES

ENTERTAINMENT

BLOODY LOVELY

eeeee

eeeee

eeeee

Scottish art rockers Django Django are back with ‘Marble Skies’, a more focused and realised ten track piece of work which retains the band’s sound while exploring new avenues.

It opens with the energetic, Kraftwerk-inspired title track.

Propelled by the percussion of Anna Prior (drummer of fellow indie oddballs Metronomy), it’s a breathless opener with one of the band’s biggest choruses to date: “Take us as we are/We have come too far,” Vincent Neff sings defiantly. It’s followed by the glorious dancehall-flavoured ‘Surface To Air’, sung entirely by Rebecca Taylor from Slow Club.

Django Django’s third effort doesn’t quite reach their previous heights, but it’s a solid effort from one of indie’s success stories.

Alex Thorp

In recent weeks, Waterparks frontman Awsten Knight has written about his difficulty with ‘Entertainment’, his band’s latest album. Lyrically poking at still open wounds, it’s that raw honesty that seals the three-piece’s ability to connect.

In a genre where new faces struggle to stand toe to toe with their increasingly aging legendary peers, Waterparks have broken through with ease. Every moment of awkward emotion is matched with day-glo, singit-back pop punk perfection. An ear for a chorus spins even the saltiest subject in pure sugar.

A juxtaposition that’s proven effective time and time again, ‘Entertainment’ may be more popcorn than a three course dinner, but it hits the spot every time. Dan Harrison

DZ Deathrays’ commitment to the glorious din is admirable.

From the moment the first riff of the classic rock meets Jane’s Addiction ‘Shred For Summer’ crackles into life, ‘Bloody Lovely’ is the lighter paper to an unholy inferno. It’s the progression in the Aussie two-piece’s sound that really comes to the fore, though.

While it all sits under a garage punk umbrella, the scuzzy, riotous thrash of ‘Total Meltdown’ is fantastically fun, while ‘Feeling Good, Feeling Great’ is equal parts sweat and swagger. It’s ‘Bad Influence’ that acts like a singular silver bullet, though.

Just over a minute in length, it’s like Scott Pilgrim’s Sex Bob-omb come to life. There’s no greater compliment than that. Stephen Ackroyd

EZRA FURMAN

FRANZ FERDINAND

T

A

ALWAYS ASCENDING

TRANSANGELIC EXODUS

eee

eeee

his feels like an end of a beautiful, insane chapter.”

That’s what Ezra Furman said about ‘Big Fugitive Life’, collecting the last few scraps by his band The Boy-Friends: Jorgen, Ben, Sam and Tim. Now, they’re gone, and he’s back with The Visions: Tim, Sam, Ben and Jorgen.

The personnel might be the same, and there might be songs with a similar shape to what went before - “an off-kilter version of a retro band”, in Furman’s words, with such righteous touchstones as Springsteen, Lou Reed and Jonathan Richman - but ‘Transangelic Exodus’ is a different beast to the raucous, garagey ‘Day of the Dog’ or 2015’s giddy, rousing ‘Perpetual Motion People’. And it has teeth, gnawing ragged, gory chunks out of the Boy-Friends’ soda-shop doo-wop and rock’n’roll; peeling away the flesh and exposing distorted, toxic plasma pulsing through the heart of the American Dream.

explosive, ‘Driving Down to L.A.’, the car might be heading “into the ocean, maybe”, while ‘God Lifts Up The Lonely’ - addressing Furman’s Jewish faith, with a final verse chanted in Hebrew - admits, over cello and warm, woody bass, that “we’ll never make it on the mean streets”.

‘Suck the Blood From My Wound’ a grubbily jubilant ‘Thunder Road’ begins the album’s loose narrative, exploring Furman’s gender-fluid identity through the idea of people becoming angels, growing wings which are surgically unfurled. Ezra springs his postoperative angel from the hospital and hits the highway, heading “off the grid… off the meds… out on our own”, toying with timeworn romanticised ideas of gleaming bonnets and the longed-for freedom (“to them, we’ll always be freaks”) of the open road. It’s a theme the album returns to, but in the sparse and freaked-out, then

But for all the lows - the tender ‘Psalm 151’, or the barfly noir of the Tom Waits-ian ‘Come Here And Get Away From Me’, there are highs - the fidgety, angular ‘Maraschino-Red Dress $8.99 at Goodwill’, or the final, triumphant ‘I Lost My Innocence’ , ticking the off-kilter and retro boxes.

And in ‘Love You So Bad’, there’s something like perfect pop.

Heartfelt and sparse, with ELOesque backing “s-so bad”s and a sawing cello pulse, it’s one of Furman’s purest and best songs.

Less of an instant hit than ‘. ..

People’, less of a rush than ‘. ..Dog’, this is a fascinating, mature set from an artist who feels as vital as ever. Hopefully, it’s not so much ‘next chapter’ as the beginning of a whole new saga. Rob Mesure

lways Ascending’ is a sizeable rebirth for Franz Ferdinand after losing one original member but gaining two in return. It’s easy to separate the touches of the band’s classic sounds from the new, futuristic influences but ultimately they combine well with tracks like ‘Finally’ blending sound together nicely while ‘The Academy Award’ combines familiar, classic sounds with dissonant vocals to create a hypnotic campfire tale.

Everything has a greater electronic twinge than before, yet Alex Kapranos’s voice and Bob Hardy’s basslines remain such a defining feature of the band’s presence that you’ll not for a second dare think you’re listening to anyone else.

There’s more variety than casual fans might expect as the band go out on a limb to take more risks than ever before via a hefty swing in production changes and the grooves seem to be for movers

MARMOZETS

KNOWING WHAT YOU KNOW NOW

eeee With their second album, ‘Knowing What You Know Now’, Marmozets waste no time in getting back to business, kicking off with the unhinged and danceable brilliance of ‘Play’. It’s a good indication of what to expect from the record, as the band showcase their madness in a more refined form than previous outings. This would be the album to cement Marmozets’ place above their peers, if they had any. Instead it serves to remind the world why they’re truly one of a kind. Brad Thorne

with far less rigid shapes than previous albums.

It’s impossible to ignore electronic input - a real change in tone from 2013’s guitar-fest ‘Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action’ - yet this slightly unpredictable path signals a willingness to adapt. Trying to reinvent yourself is never easy to do, but this feels like a renaissance for a band whose songs still routinely swell around football grounds. This album isn’t for the three-minute indie song lovers, more those willing to wander just outside their comfort zone. Ciarán Steward

TONIGHT ALIVE

UNDERWORLD

eee Tonight Alive have gone in for reinvention. Now signed to Hopeless Records, ‘Underworld’ sees the band veer away from the poppier, anthemic choruses of old, for a more twisted collection of tunes.

Jenna McDougall’s catchiest vocal hooks match the heavier guitar sound well, and though at times it’s a little clichéd lyrically, with tracks like ‘Temple’ and guest spots from Lynn Gunn (PVRIS) and Corey Taylor (Slipknot), this exploration results in a fair few bangers. Nariece Sanderson

DOWN WITH BORING

33

“THIS IS A BIG SHIFT” E V E R Y B A N D S AY S T H E I R N E W R E C O R D I S A B I T

D I F F E R E N T , R I G H T ? N O O N E WA N T S T O S TAY T H E SAME FOREVER. FOR

OUGHT

T H AT M E A N S G O I N G

DEEPER THAN THEY’VE EVER GONE BEFORE...

T

WO R D S : M A RT Y N YO U N G

here comes a point for every band to broaden their horizons and make a step up to the next level.

For Canadian post-punk mavericks Ought, that time is now. Of course, when you’re in the middle of things that ‘step up’ might not seem quite so apparent, but frontman Tim Darcy is aware that this time on their third album ‘Room Inside The World’, is a little bit different.

“We’ve been sitting on this one for longer than any other record we’ve made. We’ve put the most time into it,” he begins. “If you want to look at it in broad strokes, then this is a big shift. I feel like it’s in conversation with the other records, though. As much as we invested time in pre-planning and sharing ideas, there are also moments on the record

LO MOON

where we’re trying to build upon things we were getting at on the other two records, but trying to do them more deeply and say them in new, updated ways.”

as opposed to reactionary responses to the ailments of the world. I’m trying to think about ways to be a positive force.”

Positivity in the face of turmoil is something to be cherished. Ought consider the human condition and our responses to adversity more than most, but this time the expansion in their sonic and emotional palette has brought about new ways of thinking. ‘Room Inside The World’ excels at being both softer and more considered while still retaining a sinister underbelly. It’s a thrilling and compelling mix. For Tim Darcy though, it’s a record of universal truths. “There are themes of romantic love and figuring your shit out, just human stuff,” proclaims the singer.

Perhaps the main catalyst for the band’s assured progression has been their strong inter-band relationship, forged from their punk ideals. “Communication is the biggest single element,” explains Tim. “We played together so much that we gelled this sound.

There was no real map at the beginning.

It’s been an interesting way for a band to evolve. Coming into the third record, we were able to be really upfront about what people could bring to the song. We write everything together, and we share writing credits.”

There’s certainly no lack of personality and character here as they have progressed vastly from the band who started out askew, playing none of the instruments that they’re used to. Ought are a band now approaching the peak of their powers, but there’s still much to do. “Even since we finished making the record, I’ve got better at writing songs,” explains Tim confidently. “To stay alive both artistically and physically you need to always be growing. It means constantly pushing your comfort zone. To continue making work that is meaningful you have to grow.” P Ought’s album ‘Room Inside The World’ is out now.

Ought’s frenetic punk assault has always been considered and questioning. This time though, the themes are even bigger and more universal, something that’s become more and more apparent to the singer as he has grown to live with the songs. “I write very in the moment, and then the overarching themes become evident to me as I look back,” he explains. “There are definitely themes of human connection. Also, creating space is a big part of the record. Finding room for creation that is positive

DAVID BYRNE

LO MOON

AMERICAN UTOPIA

eeee

eee

Lo Moon believe in doing things properly. Since making their first big splash with debut song ‘Loveless’, they’ve built the kind of foundations most rush into place at the first sniff of success.

Seven minutes of glorious, allenveloping synth-driven comfort food, it’s still a standout moment on their self-titled debut fulllength, but it’s far from the only one. An album driven by human emotion, ‘Lo Moon’ sits between experimental rock and lush electronica. Never boring, but never overtly difficult either, it’s the kind of record that connects on all levels. From the smooth creep of ‘The Right Thing’ to the wistful blast of ’Real Love’’s powerful chorus, there’s a depth to every sonic shift. Slot firmly into their own groove, what could easily have become an artistic overreach instead becomes an effortless success. That’s what you get for doing things properly.

Stephen Ackroyd

David Byrne is back! And he’s really back this time, not just making a strange opera about Imelda Marcos. ‘American Utopia’ is Byrne’s first solo album in 14 years, and ties in with his recent Reasons to be Cheerful talks, which try to find optimism in the world around us. A search for answers runs through the whole of ‘American Utopia’, providing a melancholy backdrop to an often funny, silly and absurd album. It’s a mixed bag however, feeling like a stream of consciousness put to music. Byrne flits between topics, exploring existential thoughts on freedom (‘It’s Not Dark Up Here’), dogs as a metaphor for human limitations (‘Dog’s Mind’) and what heaven would be like for a chicken (‘Every Day Is A Miracle).

David Byrne is still a unique character in modern music. At its very best, ‘American Utopia’ features some of Byrne’s most accessible and most fun songs in years. Jake Hawkes

You need these albums...

OUGHT

ROOM INSIDE THE WORLD

eeee Canadian post-punkers Ought are a restless band. They’re a defined by tension and pressure. Consumed by a desire to explore all the torture, cruelty and beauty of the modern world. They take this observational quality to the next level on their thrilling third album ‘Room Inside The World’.

This is a more considered and focused album than they’ve produced before. It’s the sound of Ought truly mastering their craft and focusing on their concerns with razor-sharp precision. At the heart of everything is the magnetic presence of singer Tim Darcy who’s idiosyncratic and frenetic character provides a constant source of intrigue. On The Cure-like rumble of opener ‘Into The Sea’ he sounds fevered and disgusted while on

‘Desire’, he sounds becalmed and tender augmented by a glorious gospel choir.

There’s a range and depth to the album that hasn’t quite been there before.

This diversity allows for different sounds and approaches. They’re a band moving beyond their typical post-punk roots.

Despite the bleakness and uncertainty, ultimately it’s an album of hope and beauty. Ought recognise that these are difficult times but salvation in knowing yourself and believing in what’s right is still possible. Martyn Young

The best albums from the last few months.

JULIEN BAKER

TURN OUT THE LIGHTS

Sometimes joyful, sometimes haunting, ‘Turn Out The Lights’ is constantly and wonderfully arresting. Julien’s music has this was of finding its way into your very being; it’s scary, conflicting, but reassuring. It’s an album that sparks with brilliance. Ali Shutler

34

READDORK.COM

CHARLI XCX

ST VINCENT

POP 2

MASSEDUCTION

Pop has always been about the future. Shaking things up, messing with minds and coming up with something life changing.

Nobody understands this more than Charli XCX, her latest mixtape ‘Pop 2’ further forging her own unique path on a bonkers and brilliant collection. Martyn Young

There aren’t many artists like St. Vincent, and ‘MASSEDUCTION’ isn’t just the next record off the conveyor belt.

She’s created a full-length that takes every brilliant, twisted idea and supersizes it.

As wider horizons open, she’s grasped her opportunity with both hands. Stephen Ackroyd

CATHOLIC ACTION

IN MEMORY OF Direct and sharp, ‘In Memory Of’ is a record of palpable swagger. For an opening statement, many would be hard-pressed to get close; it’s the sound of a band fully enjoying their time and unabashed in throwing themselves into each huge moment. Jamie Muir

PARAMORE UNITE THE O2

WORDS: ALI SHUTLER PH OTO : SA R A H LOU I S E B E N N ET T

T

our One was a hard reset for Paramore. Carried with a sense of learning to walk again and asking questions about where, and if, they still fit into peoples lives against a backdrop of venues normally off-limits to rock bands, it took the discovery and doubt splayed across ‘After Laughter’, threw caution to the wind, and found out what would happen dancing in the spotlight.

backdrop.

After a North American jaunt for Tour Two, Tour Three sees the band returning to Europe and back on familiar ground. Gone is that trepidation. The expectation of others washed away in the storm, replaced by a free-for-all of glee and ugly crying. Sure, Paramore have been here, at London’s O2, before – but not like this.

These questions of love also stretch backwards, as the band come to terms with accepting who they used to be. ‘Misery Business’ gives space for the band to talk about the journey they’ve been on. “Not only have we grown up in front of you, we’ve grown up with you,” starts Hayley. “We’re about to play a song for you right now, and it’s probably the reason we met most of you in this room tonight.

Credit should never be taken away from that but, disclaimer, we are not those people anymore and neither are you.”

From the opening crash of ‘Hard Times’ and a playful flourish of Blondie’s ‘Heart of Glass’, the band live by that belief.

‘Ignorance’ is delivered through a megaphone, distorted anger from the past, as the microphone stand is kicked away and Taylor and Hayley play catch with the electricity it creates. ‘Still Into You’ “goes out to Paramore,” all rekindled affection and eternal love, while ‘Forgiveness’ tries both venom and tenderness on for size over a grainy, polaroid

‘After Laughter’ is a record about love. From the acceptance, uncertainty and confusion that comes with loving other people to trying to cherish the difficult parts of yourself, it’s complex and sprawling, delicate and intimate. ‘Caught In The Middle’ deals with the weight of dreams and reality’s toll, while ‘Pool’ thrashes and looks for a safe haven, kicking up grit and dust in the process.

Paramore are very much not that band anymore, but the inclusion of ‘Misery Business’ and its delivery – full of weight, sincerity and charged excitement – shows a band at peace with putting misguided ghosts to rest and letting their growth encourage others. As ever, they use the

space to share the spotlight with a fan, tonight welcoming Lauren to the stage like an old friend.

It’s not been an easy path to get here though.

It’s simple to describe what the band has gone through – line-up changes, fights and fall-outs under the bright lights – as soap opera drama, but really, it’s just reality played out on the big screen. ‘Idle Worship’ sees Hayley struggle with the weight of expectation. It creates care and hopeful whispers before the wild and unruly ‘No Friend’ comes out to play, mewithoutYou’s Aaron Weiss giving Taylor a chance to wring every inch of life from his guitar.

A version of HalfNoise’s ‘French Class’ sees Zac Farro take centre stage with his party popping chase, teaming up with Hayley for a dance routine that was born in front of bedroom mirrors and hairbrush microphones, while the triumphant edge of ‘RoseColored Boy’ does away with the silver-lining, asking “just let me cry a little bit longer” without apology.

This is what Paramore is right now. Whatever’s left to come, be it tears or the tango, they’re ready, hungry and facing forwards. “Tonight, you are London. You are Paramore. Thank you for keeping us alive for a really long time.” P

SUPERORGANISM, PALE WAVES AND MORE KICK OFF 2018 IN STYLE AT EUROSONIC NOORDERSLAG WORDS: BEN JOLLEY PH OTO: SA M N A H I RN Y

Even in the face of an almighty flight-stopping storm, icy minus temperatures and a torchlit protest against gas excavations, the 32nd edition of Eurosonic Noorderslag somehow overcomes all the obstacles in its way while showcasing an exciting snapshot of the music year to come. Spread across the rainy city of Groningen, Netherlands, the mid-January four-dayer offers performances from hundreds of bands and artists from the worlds of rock, indie, pop, electronic and everything in between.

If there’s one thing that’s immediately obvious from this year’s ESNS, it’s that the Danes are smashing it right now.

Phlake deliver cinematic, sensual “rhythm and balls” R&B-pop, Velvet Volume bring angsty 36

READDORK.COM

punk-with-pop, Scarlet Pleasure’s infectious synth-y hits are not dissimilar to Years & Years, and elusive producer Vera’s futuristic yet sophisticated take on dance music is unlike any other artist playing this weekend.

As the focus country of this year’s festival, Denmark is putting itself on the musical map; and there’s one band that embodies that energy with their rave-inducing live show. Off Bloom’s takeover of the Grand Theatre is full of energy and quickly turns into a wild party by the time the ravey synths of ‘Golden Dreams’ hit.

Denmark isn’t the only Scandinavian country worth mentioning, though; Finland’s ascending green-haired queen of pop, Alma, packs an indoor

tented stage with her catchy chart hits ‘Chasing Highs’ and ‘Phases’, while Norwegian ‘club boyband’ Rytemekluben bring PC Music-style hyper-pop to a midnight party and Sweden’s Skott delivers a hauntingly powerful rendition of ‘Glitter and Gloss’.

Another British band who sound just as powerful onstage as on record are Dork cover stars Pale Waves. Playing a tented outdoor stage, they are effortlessly cool, with infectious hooks and choruses aplenty and full of personality.

The UK is well represented, too. Fenne Lily’s enchanting yet unpolished voice and IDER’s perfectly-timed vocal harmonies silence attentive crowds in a packed, grand church thanks to their authentic, honest performances. At the heavier end of the scale, YUNGBLUD causes a roadblock for his performance at Huize Mass, but there’s just enough room to squeeze in to see Brighton’s Yonaka pack Groningen’s rock institution Vera with their hook-laden rock riffs.

The one show that everyone wants to get into, it’s one-in one-out for Superorganism.

It’s completely worth the wait, though, as psychedelic/retro visuals including a gif of a prawn are teamed with glitter-faced vocalists performing cheesy synchronised dance routines.

They’re anything but boring to watch, and it’s hard to deny their knack for crafting earworm hooks and choruses - especially on breakout oddity ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D.’ P

Academy Events present ACADEMY EVENTS, STAR SHAPED & FRIENDS by arrangement with ATC LIVE presents

MARCH 2018 01 LIVERPOOL Arts Club 02 SHEFFIELD SOLD OUT O2 Academy2 03 LEICESTER SOLD OUT The Scholar @ O2 Academy 09 BRISTOLOUT SOLD The Fleece 10 OXFORDOUT SOLD O2 Academy2 15 STOKE The Sugarmill 16 LEEDS OUT SOLD The Wardrobe 17 NEWCASTLE SOLD OUT O2 Academy2

THE NEW ALBUM RELEASED 9th MARCH 2018

MARCH 2018 27 29 30 31

22 LIVERPOOL OLYMPIA 23 MANCHESTER ACADEMY 24 LONDON O2 FORUM KENTISH TOWN 26 NOTTINGHAM ROCK CITY

BIRMINGHAM O2 INSTITUTE BRISTOL O2 ACADEMY NEWCASTLE O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW BARROWLAND BALLROOM

WWW.THEFRATELLIS.COM

PLUS SPECIAL GUESTS

01 - 03 MARCH

09 - 10 MARCH

15 - 17 MARCH

APRIL 2018 05 BOURNEMOUTH The Old Fire Station 06 BEDFORD SOLD OUT Esquires 07 NORWICH SOLD OUT Arts Centre

05 - 07 APRIL

FACEBOOK.COM/SLEEPEROFFICIALLY

An Academy Events,VMS Live, DHP and DF Concerts presentation by arrangement with ITB

ACADEMY EVENTS, DF CONCERTS AND COLSTON HALL BY ARRANGEMENT WITH ITB PRESENTS A

C

A

D

E

M

Y

E

V

E

N

T

S

P

R

E

S

E

N

T

S

LOVE FROM

STOURBRIDGE 20 1 8

G U E S T

D J

G R A H A M THURSDAY 29th MARCH

S E T

APRIL 2018 15 MANCHESTER O2 RITZ 16 GLASGOW O2 ABC 17 BIRMINGHAM O2 INSTITUTE 19 OXFORD O2 ACADEMY 20 BRISTOL O2 ACADEMY 21 LONDON O2 FORUM KENTISH TOWN

F R O M

C R A B B

WEDNESDAY 4th APRIL

THEWHITEBUFFALO.COM

THURSDAY 12th APRIL

LIVERPOOL LEEDS BRISTOL O2 ACADEMY O2 ACADEMY O2 ACADEMY FRIDAY 30th MARCH SATURDAY 31st MARCH

LONDON O2 SHEPHERDS BUSH EMPIRE SUNDAY 1st APRIL

LEICESTER O2 ACADEMY

THURSDAY 5th APRIL

FRIDAY 13th APRIL NEWCASTLE O2 ACADEMY BOURNEMOUTH O 2 ACADEMY FRIDAY 6th APRIL

GLASGOW O2 ABC SATURDAY 7th APRIL

NEW ALBUM ‘DARKEST DARKS, LIGHTEST LIGHTS’ OUT NOW ORDER AT EARACHE.COM/TWB

ACADEMY EVENTS & CLUB.THE.MAMMOTH.

BY ARRANGEMENT WITH SPIDER TOURING PRESENTS

T H E PA I N S O F B EI N G P U R E AT H E A RT

PLUS SPECIAL GUESTS

OUT APRIL SATURDAY SOLD14th SUNDAY 15th APRIL

MANCHESTER BIRMINGHAM O2 ACADEMY O2 RITZ

T H E W O N D E R S T U F F. C O . U K

|

N E D S A T O M I C D U S T B I N . C O M

PLAYING RAISE AND MEZCAL HEAD IN FULL, PLUS ENCORE OF OTHER HITS

U K

E X C L U S I V E

S H O W

WEDNESDAY 14th MARCH 2018 O 2 ACADEMY ISLINGTON, LONDON

presents

NEW ALBUM THE ECHO OF PLEASURE OUT NOW

A c a d e m y

E v e n t s

b y

a r r a n g e m e n t

w i t h

MAY 2018 14 HEBDEN BRIDGE THE TRADES CLUB 15 NEWCASTLE O2 ACADEMY2 16 GLASGOW O2 ABC2 17 MANCHESTER BAND ON THE WALL 18 LONDON O2 ACADEMY ISLINGTON

C o a l i t i o n

Ta l e n t

p r e s e n t s

F R I D A Y 11 t h M A Y

2018 UK TOUR WITH SUPPORT FROM

AN ACADEMY EVENTS & FRIENDS PRESENTATION

TICKETMASTER.CO.UK & ALL USUAL AGENTS

O 2 F O R U M K E N T I S H T O W N L O N D O N

SUPERFOOD ANY OTH ER Q U E S T I O N S WITH...

This month, Dom from Superfood runs the gauntlet of our random, stupid queries.

What have you been up to today?

To be honest, I haven’t been up long, my housemates decided to have a little Sunday night get together at about 11pm last night, so I didn’t get much sleep and am being passive aggressive through an article. I hope one of them sees this its way better than a Post-It note. STOP PLAYING BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN. Tell us a secret about yourself?

I can talk to squirrels.

What’s your favourite thing about being a musician?

The financial stability and confidence that comes with letting people know exactly how you feel.

What was the last thing you broke?

My hoover. And I’m gutted because it was a Dyson, I thought they were bombproof.

When’s your birthday?

5th July. The day after Will Smith blew up all the aliens.

What’s your biggest accomplishment?

Getting music I recorded on my laptop onto Radio One. What strength Nandos sauce do you order?

I like to let the chicken be chicken and make it sing with the sauce on the side.

Have you got any secret tattoos?

I’ve got an extremely small dot on

38

READDORK.COM

my knuckle, but I’ve always wanted a king prawn on me somewhere.

What’s the best song you’ve written or played on?

There’s a track from our next batch of tracks called ‘Shapeshifting’ that I’m very proud of.

If you could have a superpower of your choosing, what would it be?

Being able to locate everything in a kitchen as you walk in, I normally am pretty good at guessing where the cutlery is but would just like to

be certain. That and being able to control the weather when you are hungover.

How punk are you out of ten?

10.

How tall are you?

6ft.

What did you last dream about?

Being pulled down a ‘golf hole (?)’

by Micheal Jordan.

Who’s your favourite pop star?

Little Mix are my absolute favs atm.

What’s your biggest fear?

Quicksand.

What’s the most impressive thing you can cook?

I cook a great charred cauliflower curry. Just any curry in fact.

Have you ever won anything?

I won a knock-off iPad thing in a machine at a service station a few months ago; it was a special moment.

Do you believe in aliens?

Yes. If you had to bathe in a foodstuff for charity, what would you pick?

Pickled Onion Monster Munch. I imagine it’d be quite exfoliating as well.

Have you ever fallen over onstage?

A few times. P Superfood’s album ‘Bambino’ is out now.