| Ikara colt at Bristol Anson rooms 24.04.02 Paul Resende – vocals and art-deco setlist designer Claire Ingram – guitar and reluctant band slagger Dominic Young – drummer who totally belies the stereotype that they’re thick as shit Jon Ball – bassist, quiet and scruffy And introducing… Tim – the keyboard guy who can only make weird noises! After getting nicely inebriated in a local pub for the previous two and a half hours, and after having some problems finding tour manager Geoff who was supposed to let us into the venue, we find ourselves in Ikara colt’s sparse dressing room. Paul offers us rider drinks. We get down to business, being slightly more professional than the last time we tried this because we now have a Dictaphone AND questions. The band are sitting around drinking gin and beer and smoking fags, as are we. So how’s the tour going? Paul: it’s going very well thank you You getting on with idlewild? Paul: Yep, they’re lovely guys. It’s much bigger venues Claire: We knew them before, we’re kinda friends The Swells/ Beaumont ‘No Name’ scene article in NME, what did you think of it? Paul: I mean, they love making scenes don’t they. Do you disagree with the other bands they put you in with? Paul: I’ve only heard one Hoggboy single and it was awful, really awful, and I’ve only heard one McClusky track. Matchbox are great, but musically we don’t sound anything like them. Ditto the Parkinsons. What about Cooper Temple Clause? Paul: Hawkwind. Eh? Paul: Yeah! Claire: Oh, you’re being horrible Paul: No I’m not, I’m being honest Claire: I’m going to say something positive, after all that negativity. I saw McClusky a couple of weeks ago and they were really good. Was the band a reaction to something? Paul: When we started there was fuck all around Dom: It was a reaction to boredom. That’s probably what it was, we were just bored. The so-far-silent Jon mumbles something… Paul: Go on Jon! Jon, why are you in the band? Jon: Because I’m very lucky Paul: and don’t you ever forget it! Claire: And Tim’s our new keyboard player! Oh yeah, we’ve got a question about the keyboard player, how is that going to effect your live sound? Paul: I mean, before Tim came it was very thin, but now Tim’s on board it’s like MASSIVE Are you going to play any new songs live that you wouldn’t have played before? Paul: No. (laughs) Basically it just makes my life easier. At this point the front man of a well known Scottish indie band sticks his head round the door then runs off. Was that Roddy? Claire: yeah (We get mildly distracted for a moment.) Where did we get up to, have you started doing any new material? Dom: we’ve been working on new material and it’s got different shades and textures... Is it different to what you’re doing now? Dom: um, it’s a little different, it’s evolved. That was then, this is now. We can’t do a second album like the first – that’s the beauty of having an album out is that it’s been done. We can’t just keep giving them the same thing How will it be different? Dom: We’ll have more electronics I think Like, more keyboards? Dom: No, there’ll be more drum machine. They keep much better time! Do you think you will ever turn into a multi-million selling stadium band? Claire: No Jon: No, never Do you think you have a solid fan base now? Claire: Yeah it’s nice to look into the audience and recognize people every time Paul: We just need to win them over, that’s what we need to do There’s a sudden inexplicable ‘WHOOO!’ from someone in the room. Claire: That was Tim. He can’t actually speak, he just makes weird noises! Are you worried you’re becoming a fashionable name-drop band, just part of some current trendy scene? Paul: umm, we’re not mega name-drop but we are a little Claire: I think the NME think that we’re much bigger than we are Like that article… Claire: Oh Steven Wells loves us, yeah! Jon: We’re starting to win them over aren’t we Dom: All we wanted was to get on a level playing field. It’s down to the kids at the minute to decide. We were sincere, that’s all we’ve ever tried to do was be sincere. And do some articulate lyrics with a kickin’ backbeat and some kickin’ guitar playing – so that’s what we’re about. Paul: that’s why we started. If it was just some fashionable scene, would it bother you? Coz you said you weren’t going to hang around… Dom: We won’t let you down. The Manics let us down. Paul: From a great height Dom: But they were great weren’t they? Loads of bands have let us down. Paul: It wasn’t his (Richey Manic’s) feet they found was it? No it wasn’t. They were some crap make Paul: They were Diadora. Claire: King Adora (laughs) Paul: (laughing) Diadora not King Adora. It would be good if it was King Adora’s feet! So what’s with the stickers on the album cover? Paul: We just wanted to make a nice sleeve! It completely backfired in our face Claire: Yeah it backfired and got banned! Paul: We wanted a quality sleeve, not something cheap and flimsy. A bit classy like. Dom: A bit arty. Oh no, we’ve run out of band questions! Claire: So you had two and a half hours in the pub and that’s it?!! Um, no, we have some stupid non-band questions! What do you think of The Vines? Paul: I’ve only heard one track. I was told it was like Nirvana but it wasn’t. It was the one that was free with the NME Oh ‘Country Yard’ sounds nothing like them. ‘Highly Evolved’ sounds like them, and the new single ‘Get Free’ Paul: Are they good then? Trans-dis are split on this one, Rachel loves them, but Jo hates them. We both say ‘yeah’ and ‘no they’re crap’ simultaneously. Have you seen ‘24 Hour Party People’? Paul: No, we haven’t really had time Do you want to? Paul: Yeah, we’re curious Dom: We’ve got a lot of time for Joy Division The great Bob/Jesus debate. Do you think Bob (idlewild) looks like Jesus with his beard? Paul: it’s only coz he’s got blonde hair Claire: Not when you speak to him! Paul: He’s not got a Nazarus accent Jon: I don’t think Jesus would’ve had blonde hair Paul: He was supposed to be black anyway, wasn’t he? Jon: He would’ve definitely had black hair… Paul (to Dom): You know a bit about that don’t you, the misrepresentation of Christ through the religious establishment? Dom: Yeah… (launches into highly intelligent five minute thesis on the misrepresentation of Jesus, which at the time went straight over our drunken heads.) Jon: You can listen back to it and learn more – ‘listen and learn with Dominic Young’!! Dom: It’s all propaganda, that was it. But no, I don’t think Bob looks like Jesus. Jon: But it’s a very good beard! Is Riot Grrl still relevant? Claire: I keep meeting people who are still writing Riot Grrl fanzines and they’re really into it, so yeah. I’ve had people come up afterwards and go ‘I’m gonna learn to play guitar’ – it’s great, you couldn’t really ask for more than that could you? If you’re on this Earth inspiring somebody Dom: Claire is a product of the Riot Grrl generation. We’re all for Riot Grrl, Bikini Kill, I saw them. I saw Huggy Bear – wasn’t at the front, I was told to sit at the back. No boys were allowed at the front! Last question. If you could castrate any band to stop them from breeding? Claire: aww, you can’t say things like that! Come on, some band that’s really terrible… Claire: Gene? Paul: Sorry yeah, Gene! Yeah Gene! Jon: urgh Gene Interview: Jo and Rachel. Text: Rachel. |
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