Crystal Stilts Interview

Crystal Stilts are heading to Norwich on Wednesday 3rd August to play the Norwich Arts Centre, so ahead of that we asked JB Townsend (Guitar) a few quick questions.

So for those who aren’t familiar with you guys, give us a quick run through of who you are and where you are from?

We’re the Bingo Balloons and we’re from Nova Scotia’s Polka heartland- Wait that’s another band I’m in- We’re named Crystal Stilts and we’re based in New York.

Where did the band name come from?

From our singers brain I believe. There weren’t any crystal bands around at the time we chose it.

What bands influence your sound?

Woosh, There are quite a few and it’s always changing.

Are there any new bands you guys are enjoying at the moment?

The Rolling Stones, Tanks Amigo.

I’m liking the new album seems to be lighter than the first album’s heavy shoegaze feel, was this a concisous decious when writing?

Oh thank you. Nah i don’t think it was conscious. Upon retro-inspection, I think we’re sort of non-deliberately branching out further in multiple different directions- while still holding the same root base, and general aesthetic formula -although with some added influences and new ways of looking at writing songs. I got that answer from a band interview textbook.

How have the gigs around Europe been going?

They’ve been really good in general. It usually varies depending on the city, the vibe of the venue, the night of the week, time of year etc. –but the last run, although grueling at times, was really great on stage. Nice fans and sweet people. There were some places that we had begun writing off as a bust that turned out to be great this time.

Any “on tour” anecdotes?

In Detroit as we were walking up to a motel on the outskirts of town late at night- i had a giant duffle bag on my back and a guy hanging out in front of the motel looked at me and mocked in a very white dude accent, “I got my ski gear dude!” That was the best thing that anyone’s ever said to me on tour.

Are you looking forward to playing Norwich?

Yeah we’ve never been there. The venue we’re playing is an old church I guess? Sounds interesting.

Finally what are your plans for the rest of the year, more touring or is it time to go back in the studio again?

There may be some minor touring but nothing definite yet. We have an EP coming out at the end of the year. We’ll probably continue writing for awhile before we get back in the studio again.

Hundred Reasons Interview

I’ll start with the question that will be on a lot of peoples lips, what happened after Ideas Above Our Station with what I’ve seen described as your “record label hell”?
I wouldn’t call it ‘hell’ as we never made a big deal of it back when it happened. When we started work on the second record, there were changes within the company which meant that a lot of good people were replaced by a bunch of idiots who were incapable of making good decisions. When we were on tour in Europe with Incubus after the release of the second album, we got word that they wouldn’t be picking up the option on a third. It was actually good news to us as, although we no longer had a label, it was better than being on Sony after the changes.

So that’s out of the way, people know you’re back now and hopefully here to stay, have you played many festivals this summer?
We haven’t played many this year, mainly due to people having to work for a living! We did however, play Sonisphere which was awesome.

I see from your myspace page that I’ll Never Know is going to be on Guitar Hero, how does that make you feel that potentially millions of people will be playing along with the tune soon?
I’m cool with it. Guitar Hero is an amazing game and a great way to get people to check out your music. Our download is free too so you don’t even have to pay for it.

Are any of the band Guitar Hero fans?
Me!

Also what’s the process with Guitar Hero do they pick you or do you have to ask to be put on and join a waiting list?
An opportunity arose, they asked if we’d mind and obviously we were going to say yes! Bands can either be approached by the game or they can send stuff to Guitar Hero.

What bands have you guys been listening to recently that you can recommend?

I got the new Mew record the other day which I’m enjoying very much and I’m also listening to the latest Gossip record quite a bit.

Are you guys looking forward to your UK tour?
Silly question, we always look forward to a tour!

What’s in store for us after the tour is over, is it off to the studio or back on the road?
The plan’s to get back in the studio as we’re writing new material to be recorded at some point in the future. It may take a while but it’s coming!

Frank Turner Interview

Frank Turner comes back to Norwich on the 7th December, supporting the Levellers at the UEA. I managed to ask Frank a few questions about touring, writing, recent successes and the future.

 I last saw you supporting the Holloways here in Norwich, how was that tour?
It was great, those guys are old friends of mine, and given that both they and I tour a lot, we don’t often see that much of each other. So it was a lot of fun to catch up with old friends, and the shows were chaotic as ever. Good times.

Seems you’ve been rather busy travelling all over the place, any stand out places or gigs?
I do get around a bit, haha. Uhm, the recent Scala show in London was a big deal for me because it was the biggest headline show I’ve ever played, so it was a really amazing feeling to come on stage for 950 people. Reading and Leeds were amazing. The Revival Tour on the East Coast was also really great, and it was an honour to tour with Chuck Ragan and Tim Barry.

How does it feel support The Levellers, are you a big fan?
As I write this I am actually backstage at a Levellers show in Amsterdam. They’re fantastic, I’ve been a fan for many many years, and they’re a very nice bunch of chaps too. Couldn’t complain really, and my sister is really jealous.

Have you been writing much on tour, or do you like to keep the two separate?
I can’t really, otherwise I’d never get anything written. I spend the vast majority of my time on the road, so I have to be disciplined to some extent to write while I’m on the move. There’s a lot of new stuff coming together in my head right now, in theory the new album should be killer.

Your new collection “The First Three Years” sounds like a brilliant value set for fans, how does it feel being three years deep into your solo career?
It simultaneously feels like a really long time and no time at all. I’ve certainly put out a lot of material, all told, and played a lot of shows, but then in the grand scheme of things, three years isn’t so long. It’s been really rewarding to put the compilation together though,  it reminded me of a lot of old songs I’d kinda forgotten about.

What have you got in store for us in your fourth year?
A lot more touring, particularly in Europe and the states, and a new album in September, hopefully.

How did it feel when Sara Cox made “Long Live The Queen” her record of the week?
Very surreal. It wasn’t something we (me and the label) were particularly aiming for, but obviously we were very chuffed, and it’s helped things along enormously. I wasn’t in the UK at the time when the news came through, so it seemed doubly odd.

Are you looking forward to more exposure like this, or would you like to keep of the mainstream radar a little longer?
I think people who try and shepherd their careers on that level are bogus in the extreme. What I’m going to do is not think too hard about it get my head down, work hard and do the best shows and songwriting I can. People who disavow “mainstream” usually have way too high an opinion of themselves. What am I going to do, filter my audiences in case I get too popular? It’s silly.

I think I’ll keep it short and not force you to have to keep typing away, so any last words or people you want thank or mention?
There’s many people to thank in my team, but then I’m generally in the habit of thanking them day in day out so they generally know it. I’m really lucky to do the job that I do, and I’m grateful that I’ve had the success I’ve had so far. Let’s see where we go.

Also when you coming back to Norwich?
In the new year actually.