Hiya LURCHER, thanks for joining us in the virtual RGM lounge today. Grab a brew and take a seat.
What made you decide that music is a thing for you?
As a collective, music has and always will be hugely influential in shaping who we are. It only made sense to try our hand at adding to the sonic soup that we all feast upon. No point In sitting talking about it when we had enough components to make It
Introduce us to you all and your musical history.
Chris: I’m the failed guitarist clutching at the final bastion of stringed instruments, the bass. I grew up surrounded by various styles of music. Both my parents were luthiers and owned a music shop where i spent my formative years trying to achieve some kind of comprehensible sound. I’ve played in a couple of bands before being joining Lurcher, but none have been as enjoyable and entertaining as playing with these bastards
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Jono: Music was always something I was brought up around whether it was me Mam with her 80s tunes or my sister blasting Kerrang on the TV, but it took a while for me to learn any instruments. Was my uncle who got my first kit after my mam got sick of hearing upside down buckets and pans getting whacked about all over. I knew from a young age music was something that would take me somewhere and I couldn’t be more chuffed it took me to 3 lads knocking up Chinese food in a bar. Spen poached me at a gig with another band n said you start Tuesday, the rest is it.
Alex: Over the past 10 years I’ve had fun playing bass in multiple bands, experiencing different crowds and places. When I started working at The Owl with these lads we all clicked musically and that led us to create a band. It’s the most fun I’ve had making music, just fuckin’ around with these dudes.
Spen: I wasn’t really brought up around music or much art but I remember always liking writing. I think an interest in language really helped me appreciate music from about 15. Songs like ‘The Joker’ by Steve Miller Band and Stuck in the Middle with You, Time Will Pass You Right On By, Tobi Legend, all made me realise just how incredible language can be within a song, abstract or not. The more music I listened to, the more people I met really shaped my current taste and fuelled what I had to say. One day Alex booked a practice room for us and we just went for it. We’d always spoke about it, dunno what we’d be doing if he never booked that Tuesday.
What’s the live music scene like in Hartlepool right now? Anyone we should be looking out for (bar you, of course)?
Hartlepool has a vast but tight nit community of musicians specifically around the Church Street area, all of different genres, all know each other or might have worked with each other. We share a room with 3 other active projects in the town, lads from Plaza, Dawks and Para Alta have all been kind enough to share that space in a time where practice spaces are few n far between. Only positive things to say really. A band to watch at the minute would be Crescent, they’ve got a dead fun sound not from this time, Its a breath of fresh air, makes a change from idiots in leather shouting about how much they hate skinny jeans. We’re playing with them on the 31st for IVW so that’s sound.
I’ve seen a lot of people struggling for support recently online. What’s your view on the industry?
We don’t really focus too much on the online stuff in terms of social media, and half the time that’s just accidentally posting memes on the wrong account. In terms of the hard stuff like distributing and promoting we’d have to thank Ed at Shy Bairn for doing all the leg work. We’re very lucky to work with him. We can’t really comment on the industry we haven’t really dipped our toes yet, I’d say things like this are our first real touch of the ball.
Where do you feel you currently sit within the music industry?
On a lilo with a slush miles away from it
Tell us two truths and a lie about you.
We’ve only played on a stage once
We had a sax player but he got locked up
Chris n Spen only play gigs after 10hr shifts
What was your best experience on stage?
We supported local legends Dawks at the Causeway last October. Played to a totally different crowd and got a mixed response of intrigue and pleasent suprise. It was nice to see what people who don’t usually listen to this racket, thought. Some of them have been sectioned since.
What was your worst experience on stage?
We played a gig with the drumkit equivalent of a garage door before. I remember it literally falling a part mid song. To be fair this could also be our best moment as we feel we handled the interruption well. We sounded shit though ahahaha
Tell us something about each member that you think people would be surprised about.
Us 4 have never played on an actual stage together, we did one gig on a stage at saltburn house and that was with our old drummer, so it doesn’t count.
What are the next steps you plan to take as a band to reach the next level?
Get EP 2 recorded, play more venues, spread the muck. Keep trying new things, new approaches etc, mainly just have fun with it
I hear you have new music. What can you tell us about it?
Our new EP, titled ‘With Love’, is due to be released in the not so distant future. It’s a homage to the place we all love. We worked as hard as we could on it, and it’s a passion project we’re all proud of. Stone Island, our debut single is out on Feb 21st.
What was the recording process like?
The recording process was an experience we all thoroughly enjoyed. With the aid of our sound engineer, Mark ‘Foll’ Folland, we made something we love. From the endless takes of certain parts of songs to flying through another track without issue, it truly was an amazing experience and one we can’t wait to replicate. Foll has been essential to not only our production but our growth as musicians, without Foll we wouldn’t have met Ed (Shy Bairn) and most likely wouldn’t be talking to you right now!
What was the biggest learning curve in writing the new tunes?
We’re all accustomed to each others influence and sound, which makes writing music so natural to us.
Would you change anything now it’s finished?
Of course, there are challenges of expressing what might sound better in certain parts of songs, but we always get round to making the songs sound like we think we should. it captures the psychology and attitude of the project during that time period, we wouldn’t change it for the world. Our paw marks are all over it.
Is there anything else you would like to share with the world?
If you find yourself thinking about music, performing etc. Pick up a guitar, drag a drummer off the street, find another guitarist to play bass, Avoid rhymes and traditional choruses at all costs, thanks for having us!
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