The
band's release of their second album White Magic For Lovers
was somewhat overshadowed by the remarkable success of
the first single to be lifted from it, El President, which
featured the amazing guest vocals of none other than Radiohead's
Thom Yorke.
Now
that people have discovered that the band aren't only
about that track, they're also being turned onto the strains
of the next single Sober, which is already getting some
decent airplay.
Already
organised to talk to Daron Robinson, guitarist & co-vocalist
for the band, who also writes some of the band's material.
At the very last minute & after 2 attempts to set up an
interview, the person I actually spoke to was the band's
drummer Mike Chylinski, who turned out to be a very nice
guy, expressing afterwards, an interest in coming to Australia.
We spoke at length about various aspects of making this
album & touring, as well as the impact the Internet is
having on music in general.
Having
already established that the band have a pretty decent
following in Australia, Mike was surprised to learn that
the second single is also getting quite an amount of airplay.
"That's
great. I honestly can't say I'm surprised, because after
the response we've gotten from radio here, nothing surprises
me at all anymore, though I'm extremely glad to get any
exposure for our music & we're happy that people like
it."
With
the subject of airplay, I asked what sort of airplay the
band have had in their own country, the UK.
"Well,
a lot of radio got onto El President, mainly because of
the connection with Thom Yorke, but Radio 1 probably only
played it maybe 4 or 5 times a week at it's most popular,
when they've played other songs from other bands maybe
20 times a week."
Mike
having mentioned Thom Yorke was an ideal time to find
out what srt of guy he really is.
"Thom's
a really wonderful & easy going sort of guy & I feel very
priveliged to have worked with him. I think he has about
the best voice around out of any band at the moment, really
a stand out. There were a couple of times when he did
become a little difficult to work with, like when things
weren't going quite right, but I really think that's because
he's such a perfectionist. We've toured with Radiohead
before & that's sort of how he came to be involved in
that song. We had to get him to come back & redo the vocal,
because it turned out to be in the wrong key & he didn't
mind at all."
With
touring brought up, Mike also spoke about the band's experiences
in various contries after I mentioned another interview
I'd done where that person had spoken about crowd sizes.
"We've
had a lot of great tours & we're fortunate to be able
to play a lot in London, though we feel a lot more comfortable
& that the crowd's seem to appreciate you more when you're
in a venue that doesn't get a lot of bigger name bands
playing. I'd have to agreee that the smaller the crowd,
the better the response. I love playing in smaller venues,
there's just something a little more intimate about it."
I
also wanted to find out about some of the other countries
the band had played in & whether there were any plans
to play in Australia.
"Every
label in every country wants you there all at the same
time, just when the record is coming out, but it never
works that way. We've played a fair biut of Europe, Germany
has always had a good vibe, while Spain also has. We've
played a couple of times in Madrid & Barcelona, but I'd
love to go out into some of the less played areas, I think
the crowds would be great. We just visited Brazil for
the first time, which was great & we've played the US
& by the sounds of it, there's support in Australia, so
if any promoters want to help out, they should get in
touch with our managers."
Before
letting Mike go, like most of the bands I've spoken to,
I wanted to know what sort of impact the Internet had
had on the band.
"Well,
to be quite honest, we all feel like we're getting a little
left behind, because none of us in the band have a computer.
Our manager got someone to set up a website for us & we've
all had a look at the unofficial sitres, which are great.
I plan to get a computer soon, so maybe I'll get into
it a bit more then, of course, that'll probably be after
we finish up our tour in December, then a little time
off before going into the studion for recording the next
album. Maybe by this time next year you'll be talking
to me about the new album."
Reprint
by permission of hEARd - http://heard.com.au
