A Chat With: Aquilo

British duo Aquilo’s debut album Silhouettes has been a long time coming. The pair Tom Higham and Ben Fletcher have been making music together since 2013, honing in on their trademark atmospheric, evocative sound and heartfelt lyrical narratives.  After a handful of EPs and steady stream of singles, as well as a stint of support slots for artists like Oh Wonder and Låpsley throughout the years, Aquilo’s first full length will finally grace our ears in just eight days. Prior to the album’s release on January 27th, we chatted with Tom and Ben about their album's writing and recording process, their influences, and what’s to come in 2017.  

Photo Credit: Morgan Hill Murphy 

ANCHR Magazine: Congratulations on almost having your debut album out into the world.  How are you feeling now that the release date is so soon?

Aquilo: Thank you! We’re just pretty excited to let it go. We’ve been wanting to release an album for the past 3 years so it all feels sort of right. Funnily enough we don’t feel too nervous actually, we probably will do the day before though!

AM: Can you talk a little about the writing and recording process of Silhouettes? Do you have a general process for writing, and where was the album recorded?

Aquilo: We mostly wrote the album and partly produced it back in Silverdale, the village where we grew up. The occasional song was written down here in London but we like to think that home holds the biggest part of the album. The process of writing is pretty simple; if one of us has an idea or a lyric we show the other. We got talking to an Icelandic composer and producer called Ólafur Arnalds. We fell in love with his sound and the way he goes about making music, so we spent some time over in Reykjavik arranging the strings and sonics of it all.

AM: How would you sum up the album in three words?

Aquilo: It’s alright mate

AM: Which songs are you most looking forward to playing live from the new album, and is there any news on tour dates coming soon?

Aquilo: We played a few of the songs off the album on the tour we’ve just done with Låpsley across the states. We haven’t played “Low Light” or “Almost Over” live yet so we’re itching to play it with our band wherever the next tour may be! It looks like we’ll be doing Europe and the UK pretty soon but we can’t confirm any dates. We’re booked to play SXSW in Texas so we’ll see where we go from there.

AM: Speaking of SXSW, that’s a pretty great accomplishment to play there. Are there any other festivals on your bucket list to play as a band?

Aquilo: Yeah, it’s something as kids we’ve always dreamt of going to, not just to play but to watch bands too. We played Glastonbury as like one of our first ever gigs 2/3 years ago on the BBC introducing stage, it’d be amazing if we got to play the John Peel Stage there, would be a dream. We’ve heard that Coachella is meant to be pretty good, same for Lollapalooza. It’d be class to play those.

“We fell in love with his sound and the way he goes about making music, so we spent some time over in Reykjavik arranging the strings and sonics of it all.”

AM: Are there any cities or venues that you’re really hoping to play in 2017?

Aquilo: All the big ones! We just want to see as much of the world as we can. We desperately want to visit Asia and South America and see things we haven’t before.

AM: I loved the video for “You Won't Know Where You Stand.” How involved were you in creating the plot for the video?

Aquilo: We find music videos with a story far more captivating you know, something with a message… We met a man called Eoin Glaister a while back and made a 2 part music video for an EP of ours. When it came round to the album it only felt right to get him on board and work on something a little bigger than the last. He’s done an incredible job so hats off to him.

Aquilo released part II of the Silhouettes Trilogy on January 18th, 2017. 

AM: Who do you consider your musical influences?

Aquilo: Funnily enough we both grew up on rock bands back home. Ben had a real Nirvana and Pearl Jam obsession growing up and Tom was into the likes of Explosions in the Sky and Oceansize.

People like Jeff Buckley, Neil Young, Pink Floyd and Steely Dan have always been pretty important to us too.

AM: What other bands are you listening to at the moment?

Aquilo: We’ve been listening to a lot of The National recently, Sigur Ros, Radiohead, Scott Matthews and Nils Frahm. The recent War on Drugs album is a favourite between the band when we’re on the bus.

You can preorder the new album Silhouettes on iTunes or by heading to the band's webstore.  The pair put on a stunning live show, so if you're heading to SXSW in March, make sure to catch one of their sets.  

A Chat With: Public Access T.V

Talking TV drama, studio-hopping, and festival lineups with New York City’s Public Access T.V.  

New York rockers Public Access T.V mix old-school punk vibes with a youthful and refreshing energy that makes them stand out in the crowd. After playing music with other bands, lead singer John Eatherly branched off on his own to form PATV with bandmates Xan Aird, Max Pebbles, and Peter Sustarsic in 2014.  The post punk four piece released their debut album Never Enough on September 30th, 2016. Since then,the album has been steadily gaining traction, proving that kids still do like rock’n’roll, despite the opening lyrics to the band's track “End of an Era.”  In support of the debut album, Public Access T.V will embark on their first US headline tour this month.  Prior to their show at Schubas Tavern in Chicago, John chatted with us about the recording process for the album, life on the road, and what’s in the works for 2017.  

Official video for "End of an Era"

ANCHR Magazine: So first let’s talk about the debut album you released at the end of September.  How did it feel to get that work out there, and what has the response been?

John Eatherly: Well it feels like a great detachment from a lot of accumulated work over many years of songs and writing.  So if anything it just feels good putting your precious babies out there in the world and seeing what happens. We’re about to go on tour in a week, so we’ll see more reactions.  The record was a crazy experience, finally making it to the finish line of it being mixed and done.  It took a lot to get there, so it feels like I’m not so attached to it anymore because it’s out there already.  Like there’s no more old ideas to pick from as far as writing songs.  It’s like a clean slate.

AM: So you mentioned some of these songs have been around for years, and I know you played with other bands and artists before you formed Public Access T.V, so how long have some of the songs been around for, and have any of them evolved and taken on a new meaning since you wrote them?

JE: Maybe some of the songs like “In Love and Alone” and “Careful” I probably made a demo of when I was like 20, in 2010, and then kind of...I don’t know, I wasn’t really making it for any reason other than just to have fun and for myself. I wasn’t ever trying to introduce it to anyone I was playing with or anything like that, I just kind of kept it to myself. Some of them took on a new feeling because some of those songs that were older we ended up playing live as a band when we recorded the record.  So some of the songs that are older definitely have a different energy and drive behind them, just from being a unit playing it all together.  But as far as the span of time, it’s crazy, cause maybe I had a demo that I made five years ago.  Then some of the songs on the record I was recording last minute, while mixing the record. So some of it’s like really, really, really new and some of it is older.  So it’s really like this accumulation of kind of years of trying to figure it out.  That’s why it feels like such a relief.

AM: For sure. So can you talk a little bit about the actual recording process?  I know you mentioned you recorded some songs when you were already mixing, but did you pretty much do the album all in one go? Did you record in one studio?

JE: It was pretty crazy actually.  Our record credits are like movie credits, it’s really long.  So part of it’s recorded in New York, part of it’s recorded in Jersey, one song was recorded in Nashville.  Then like six songs are recorded at two different studios in London.  The reason it was so all over the place is because we were never, we never had uh, the luxury, I guess, knowing that we had two weeks at a studio and going in with that time to complete it.  It was always like two days here and maybe three days here, and then go and bang out as many songs as we could.  And then I’d like two of them, you know?

AM: Yeah, and that’s kind of cool then because the songs take on a different meaning, you know, you’ll associate it like “oh we recorded this in London,” so it’s got that aspect.

JE: Yeah, the stuff that we recorded in London was tracked as a band. Because we had been playing the songs live for quite a few tours.  So some of those ones, like “In Love and Alone,” that version that’s on the record is just like the first take that we did.  It was just a live take, there was no multi-tracking.

AM: Wow so it was just one take as a live band?

JE: Yeah, so some of it’s like that, and then some of it is like the opposite. Like really tracked and-

AM: broken out?

JE: Yeah!

Public Access T.V is John Eatherly Xan Aird, Max Pebbles, and Peter Sustarsic

AM: So talking more about your tour, is there anything you’re planning as a new aspect to the show now that you’re headlining? 

JE: I don’t know...maybe how we think about the setlist might be a little bit different.  I tend to not want to play any slower songs as an opening band.  So it might be a little more dynamic.  But this tour is gonna be real fun because we’re going on tour with our friends, this band called Splashh, and we’re all sharing a van together. It’s gonna be like 12 people crammed into one van. I’ve never been in a van with that many people before, so it’s gonna be real crazy.

AM: Yeah, definitely document that!

JE: Yeah we have a friend coming to film the ridiculousness of it.  

AM: Oh cool! So what cities and venues are you looking forward to playing?

JE: Certainly Chicago.  I’m originally from Tennessee before I moved to New York in like 2008, so we haven’t really played any shows in Nashville- we played one.  We’re gonna go there, so that will be a cool vibe, and maybe some family going to the show. Then, I’m excited to play Bowery Ballroom in New York, and we’re playing Schubas in Chicago...that’ll be really cool.  The bigger cities I guess.

AM: Have you planned anything outside of the gigs, like touristy things at all?

JE: Not really, I think we’ll just kind of see what we get into.  It’s gonna be so many of us together in a confined space, so I’m sure everyone will be really antsy to run around and do things.  We just kind of roam around, probably like in the neighborhood that the venue’s in, and just kind of see what we can find.

AM: You recently were announced to play Shaky Knees Festival.  Are there any other festivals that are on your bucket list to play?

JE: A big one that I always wanted to play was Bonnaroo.  We did that last summer, and that was like a checklist for me because I’d always have friends as a teenager going to Bonnaroo. So that was like a cool way to go. Coachella? I’ve never been.  Festivals are just like insane. Like, I’m not dying to go to any festivals as a festival-goer, but I would certainly love to go and play them.

AM: For sure! If you could pick any 3-5 bands to headline a festival, dead or alive, who would you want?

JE: David Bowie, Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan, John Lennon...and Public Access!

AM: Sounds like a great festival! Do you have any other goals or resolutions for this year?

JE: Just hopefully staying busy and recording more.  Just trying to stay as busy as we can working on being a band and being friends.

AM: Are there any other bands that you’re really into at the moment?

JE: I’ve been listening a lot to the band Sparks from LA.  I don’t know...I’m always kind of like- I don’t really know what I’m listening to.  I’m in a phase where I’m not really listening to too much of anything, other than like background music.I’m not feeling particularly in tune.

AM: Yeah, I’m sure it’s hard when you’re invested in your own music to get into other stuff.  Last question- not related to your music at all, but since you’re called Public Access T.V, what’s your favorite TV show at the moment?

JE: Well I don’t have a TV or cable, but my favorite TV that I recently have been watching, is a very dramatic show called Nashville.  It’s kind of like a soap opera.  It’s jam packed with all the drama you could ever need in your life.

Public Access TV will be at Schubas on Thursday, January 26th.  Grab your tickets here, and listen to Never Enough here!

A Chat With: Campdogzz

The Chicago band chat with us prior to their TNK Fest performance.

Chicago is home to some of the greatest bands and musicians around at the moment.  One of our favorite Chicago bands, Campdogzz, will be playing at Schubas Tavern tomorrow as part of Tomorrow Never Knows Festival.  Before their performance as part of the annual multi-venue, 5-day fest, we chatted with Jess Price and Mike Russell of Campdogzz about their start as a band, appearing in a Netflix show, their Chicago favorites, and goals for 2017.  

ANCHR Magazine: How did you all meet and start making music together, and what’s the story behind your name?

Jess Price: Mikey was in a band called Suns out of Chicago. For a couple years, I traveled with them, working on a documentary more or less about independent American touring bands (still working on it).  We became friends in that time and eventually I started showing him demos. He grabbed onto it and helped me get them recorded. From there we decided to make a record together. Mikey chose the name. It made sense with our demeanor and lifestyle at the time...couple of dirtbags hanging around the fire. 


AM: Who are some of your musical influences, either in terms of your sound/songwriting or who inspired you to start making music?

Campdogzz: Jason Molina is a huge one. Really we could scrap that whole answer above and just insert his name in there. He is the reason we started this band.  Early influences were gospel, folk, a lot from the church. Later, [we were] heavily inspired by soundscapes in film.
 

Photo by Randy P Martin

AM: How did the opportunity to appear on Netflix’s Easy come up, and how was the experience? 

Campdogzz: After a long tour (our first), we dreaded getting out of the bus, so we decided to go see some parks in SW and travel around for a while with a couple friends. We got an email about the opportunity. A friend had previously shared our record with the person responsible for sourcing the music in Easy.  We flew back for the filming at Sub T in November.  It was great.  The set was relaxed.  It was fun for us to watch them work.  Seemed like a bunch of old friends getting together. Shooting was pretty seamless and fast.  We are very grateful to have been included. 

"The Well" appeared on Season 1, Episode 2 of the Netflix series Easy

AM: What are your favorite Chicago venues?

Campdogzz: Hideout, [Empty] Bottle, Burlington, Whistler, Constellation, Elastic Arts...to name a few. We are fortunate for great venues here, if nothing else.

“We’ve spent a lot of time with these songs and a lot of time with ourselves last year. A lot of personal and collective growth. It will be very fulfilling to actualize them. ”

AM: Who are some of your favorite fellow Chicago bands and musicians at the moment?

Mike Russell: RIBBONHEAD, Bow&Spear, Melkbelly, Tinkerbelles, Negative Scanner, Paper Mice

Jess Price: Wet Mouth, Gia Margaret, Hydrofoil, Meat Wave, Joan of Arc, Spencer Tweedy (I keep trying to adopt him--he won't respond)

AM: What have you been listening to lately, and what album releases are you looking forward to in 2017?

Mike Russell: The Upsetters Super Ape, Arthur Russell Love is Overtaking Me

Jess Price: A lot of the above, Frank Oceans Blonde, Broadcast, Daniel Bachman, Luzmila Carpio, Talk West. 2017 Releases...Joan of Arc's He's Got The Whole This Land is Your Land in His Hands

Campdogzz at Sofar Sounds Chicago 

AM: What are your goals for 2017? Any plans for touring or new music? 

Campdogzz: Our biggest goal is finishing our second record.  We've spent a lot of time with these songs and a lot of time with ourselves last year. A lot of personal and collective growth. It will be very fulfilling to actualize them. We will no doubt be out and about when we have something new to share. As soon as the weather turns, we'll go get our bus and get to work!

Individual tickets for Campdogzz's show with Hoops, Sam Evian, and Big Thief have now sold out, but you can still get your 5 day TNK Fest Pass here.

Stay tuned for our next Chicago band feature on Lucille Furs, coming next week! 

A Chat With: Deaf Havana

English rock band Deaf Havana chat about the new album All These Countless Nights

After a wildly successful 2013 album Old Souls, The UK rock band Deaf Havana are back this month with the album All These Countless Nights. The new album stems from a songwriting stint from lead singer James Veck-Gilodi that happened when the band was close to calling it quits.  Prior to the album's release on January 27th, we chatted with lead guitarist and James’ brother Matt Veck-Gilodi about the writing and recording process of the new album, their influences, and touring.

ANCHR Magazine: How did you all meet and get into making music together?

Matt Veck-Gilodi: Well James and Lee met at High School and then they met Tom and Chris (our ex-guitarist) at college. To be honest it all started because we come from Norfolk in England and there really isn’t a lot to do growing up around there and getting together and playing in a band was a way to have fun, hang out and get drunk with each other.

AM: How did the writing and recording process for All These Countless Nights vary from your past albums? What are some of the biggest thematic and sonic differences you notice between this album and others?

MVG: It was different in that we were allowed a lot of time to gather together demos and refine them into album worthy songs. With our previous records we’d pretty much get the 12 or so demos written that could fill an album and then just rush straight into the studio to record them, without doing any pre-production or changing the songs very much at all. Whereas with this record we worked very closely with our producer Adam Noble (who’s absolutely excellent) and he really honed the songs, helped us rewrite and rethink them and turn them into the best songs they could possibly be. He also got us to record the basis of every song together as a live band, whereas we would’ve previously recorded the drums and then add the bass and then some guitars etc., but this album came together very organically as a result. Well soniclally I’d say it’s a much more expansive record than we’ve had before. It’s not so thick as Old Souls is throughout, it ebbs and flows and is much more diverse - which artistically is very gratifying. Thematically the lyrics are relatively similar to James’ previous work in that they’re very personal and introspective, but on this record there’s a lot more positivity and hope present - even if it’s not obvious at first. 

Album Artwork for All These Countless Nights

“Thematically the lyrics are relatively similar to James’ previous work in that they’re very personal and introspective, but on this record there’s a lot more positivity and hope present - even if it’s not obvious at first.”

AM: What can your fans expect from the live shows this year? Will the sets be mostly new material or a good mix of both old and new?

MVG: They can expect a set full of bangers and a great time - we can’t wait to get back out on the road playing shows! Well with a new record we obviously love playing the new songs as they feel more exciting because they’re fresher, but it’s important to have a real mix between the old and the new I think. I’m personally really excited to tour because now we’ll have a pretty substantial back catalogue to craft a set from so we’ll really think about it and make something very special for our audiences.

AM:  What’s your favorite way to pass time on the road?

MVG: I’d have to say having a few beers, listening to or playing music and then watching The Office. We’re all such good friends we tend to do all of these things together rather than go in our own separate ways.

AM: James has mentioned Bruce Springsteen as a musical influence, but who are some of your other musical influences?

MVG: We have a few to be honest. To give a selection I’d have to say Kings of Leon, Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, Placebo, Oasis, Ryan Adams - we like a lot!

AM: Do you draw songwriting inspiration from any other mediums (i.e films, art, etc..)?

MVG: For sure. I know that James takes a lot of inspiration in his lyrics from the author Charles Bukowski - for his straight up and uncompromising approach to writing literature. It’s never wrapped in metaphor, it’s honest and straightforward, which is something that seems to chime with the way James writes songs.

Video for "Trigger" from the upcoming album 

AM: What other bands and artists are you listening to at the moment?

MVG: We all listen to quite a varied mix but for me personally I can’t stop listening to anything Mark Kozelek does. I’m also hammering the new Nine Inch Nails EP but as well as that the new Strand of Oaks song “Radio Kids” is one of the finest from last year,  and of course the new Ryan Adams stuff sounds incredible. I also absolutely love this band called Pinegrove, give them a listen!

AM: Have you guys got any New Year's resolutions for 2017?

MVG: Just to get out and play as many shows as possible, to as many people as possible. To be a proper touring band again and to have a hell of a lot of fun.

Deaf Havana will tour the UK and Europe from February- April of this year. Check out the dates and grab tickets here.  You can also pre-order the album on iTunes and instantly get the tracks “Trigger,” “St. Paul’s,” “Sing,” and “Cassiopeia.”  You can also grab the physical album here.  

Lastly get ready for the release by watching the video for "Sing."