PLEASE INTRODUCE YOURSELF FOR US WHO ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH YOU AND YOUR MUSIC AND TELL US A BIT ABOUT YOURSELF.
We’re an alternative rock 4-piece from the North West of the UK. Alt rock is by far the easiest way to describe our sound, as it can change from song-to-song. But we manage to keep a thread going through it all so it still sounds coherent as the same 4 guys writing the songs. We love get in amongst whatever makes us tick, rather than just feeling confined to a single sub-category of rock music. Playing fast is almost always a must, though.
TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR NEW ALBUM OR SINGLE?
Our last single, Bleeding Out, has a pretty hard rock vibe. You’d be forgiven for thinking that the next one up isn’t even from the same band. We take a lot of pride in that, and we love both songs. We grew up listening to a lot of rock, punk, and emo. You Don’t Wanna Know is a love-letter to the latter of that trio, and we can’t wait for people to hear it, and the way we’ve put out own stamp on the genre.
WHAT INSPIRED THE ALBUM OR SINGLE?
It was actually Pete, our drummer, who implicitly stated he wanted a mid-west emo track for the album we’re working on. I guess he’d been watching too many Instagram reels where people edit arguments from TV over those signature clean, arpeggiated guitars. That’s where You Don’t Wanna Know came from. Those videos always have a comic edge to them, but we wanted to give it a more earnest attempt.
Lyrically, it comes from a place of frustration. It narrates the dynamic that exists between so many friends. People have a tendency to lie about how they’re feeling when they’re feeling shitty, so that they don’t feel like a burden. It can end up in a bit of feedback loop where everyone just holds onto their negative emotions to save others from themselves. I guess it’s a bit of a cynical angle, but one that I hope also pushes the belief of sharing your problems to make them easier to handle.
CAN YOU SUM UP THE SINGLE IN A FEW WORDS?
Honest, energetic, soaring.
WHAT RECORD CHANGED YOUR LIFE AND WHY?
The first album I ever remember adoring in its entirety was probably something by Busted. But it was American Idiot by Green Day that really got me passionate about music. Everything from the unapologetic lyrics to the theatrical presentation just grabbed me by the soul and never let me go. It made me want to create.
DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE MUSIC VIDEO FILMED BY YOUR BAND OR ANOTHER ARTIST?
My favourite video of ours is for Warning Shot. It was such a simple concept, but I’m really proud of how it came out. The take we ended up using was the last one, where we just used up everything we had left in us. I guess that’s what it took, because it worked really well.
Choosing a favourite video from other bands is super difficult. Weirdly, even though I only ever had a passing interest in the band, Here It Goes Again by Okay Go probably ranks somewhere near the top for me. The DIY approach is evident, but that doesn’t take anything away from it. Elaborate treadmill choreography? Sign me up.
WHAT WOULD WE FIND YOU DOING WHEN YOU'RE NOT MAKING MUSIC?
I watch an absolute tonne of TV. Or should I say, I try to find the time to watch a tonne of TV. I love reading, gaming, and I co-host 2 podcasts, Tell Me Again, and, Talk Nerdy To Me (UK). I record both pods with at least one member of the band, so we see a whole lot of each other.
DO YOU GET NERVOUS PERFORMING LIVE, IF SO HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH THAT?
Generally, I tend to get more excited than nervous. Although there is always a burst of nervousness at some point in the lead up to the show. I think if I were to bypass it completely that I’d find it worrying and confusing. But as soon as we start playing, all of that tends to subside. It’s the best feeling in the world.
HOW DID YOU FORM THE BAND?
I’d written an album that I needed help with to perform live. It took me years to record due to time and money constraints, so I felt really didn’t feel like I was in a rush to assemble a band. In the end, I’m glad it took as long as it did, or the lineup might have been completely different. We play very little from that first album now, as we have a bunch of material that we’ve all written together. But you might just hear a song or two coming back in another form some day soon..
HOW DO YOU WRITE? - DO YOU HAVE A KEY SONGWRITER, OR DO YOU ALL WORK TOGETHER?
It varies from song to song. Generally, I’ll send out a demo that can be in various stages of being finished. Sometimes it’s just an acoustic demo, other times I’ve added as much as I can think of. Hagrid (guitar), also contributes songs in the same way. Regardless of who submits the original material, we all get our hands on it and start making tweaks, adding new parts etc. The difference between the original demo and final studio version is quite often night and day.
WHAT INSPIRES YOU?
It sounds a little contrived, but I’d say almost anything can serve as inspiration. My phone is full of voice notes and memos for lyric/melody ideas that have popped into my head after I’ve seen or heard something that gets my songwriting circuits firing. The more we write, the more proud I get of what we’re able to put together. The pride I feel from that motivates me too, so it turns into a huge cycle of inspiration.
WHAT IS NEXT?
Our focus stays on recording for now. You Don’t Wanna Know is the latest in a long line of material we’re working on. The album is coming together nicely, but we still have work to do on it. As well as that, we’re also going in tour in July. We’re playing some UK cities we’ve never been to, and one or two old favourites.
PLEASE TELL US ANY SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS SO WE CAN SHARE.
IG: @danbibby_aestheticknobs
FB: @danbibbymusic YT: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfgvnfXKz63RPJ-5La3IqoQ