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What can I say about JOHN except the band has the coolest description on their Facebook page which states: Four arms, four legs, two heads, wood, metal and plastic.
The description alone sums up the awesomeness of this band. My tastes are ALL over the place in terms of the alternative rock umbrella, and JOHN is definitely on the harder side but with that being said - this is what I feel rock needs right now.
JOHN is mysterious and interesting and I kinda wish I lived in London so I could go hang out with them after a show. This might be my first interview without an actual picture of the band. I am posting the artwork from their self titled EP. I want more than just three tracks honestly - it's a great debut EP. Between the three tracks - I have to say they are all really good but the stand out ones for me are "Big Game Tactics and "+". The first track "Homme D'affaires" is straight up in your face. For those that don't speak French, it means man of business.
JOHN was cool enough to answer a few questions even though I don't know their full names or which John plays what. I can just hope one year they make it to SXSW so I can meet the now infamous JOHN. I still keep talking about a summer trip to London one year..I might need to get a little more serious about that the more great bands I keep finding from the UK, especially now that I have an offer to sleep on someone's floor ;).
WMB: So far...I can't find a lot of info on you guys. I am assuming you are a kick ass duo and you are both named JOHN. Is that correct?
JOHN: Indeed, we are two men who share the common ground of being called John, and in this chance-based journey we both happened to meet and tolerate each other's views enough to consider starting a band. It's been a couple of years now and we still enjoy hitting objects in warm rooms together - so we think it's going pretty well.
WMB: Looks like I will be posting the debut album cover art - is there a story behind that? The mysteriousness of JOHN is definitely intriguing me right now.
JOHN: The cover is from a series of works by an artist based upon the head shapes of certain groups of people who have happened to work together - you could assume that the heads on the cover are ours because of the context. The scarves are a systematic choice based upon where the individual was born. It's nothing to do with supporting a sports team, more a geographic pin of where someone started existing. In fact, one of them is actually incorrect because one of our birthplaces was too far off to find a scarf in time for the release! In terms of a 'mysteriousness', the standard practice of a band has just become bit of a schema in recent years and there's only so many images of groups looking sulky in front of dilapidated barns that you can take - I hope you can agree.
WMB: How excited are you guys to play the SouthSea Festival this month? Will this be the biggest show yet for you guys?
JOHN: We were very happy to get asked to play such a well organized, reputable festival such as SouthSea - especially after having only played a few shows at that point. Carl from Flatpack Recordings (who are running the particular stage we are playing) patted me on the back after seeing our second show and gave us the nod - which is probably the best response to a show you could ask for. In this sense, the year has been pretty special with the momentum of opening doors - getting opportunity out of opportunity helps you progress.
WMB: So the UK is producing some awesome duos recently. Royal Blood was my favorite set this past year at SXSW (Not to mention Drenge, DZ Deathrays who also made the trip to Austin.) Do you guys ever think about coming to the SXSW festival one year? Of course selfishly I would love to have you guys come so I can see your live set. Either that or I have to make a trip to London one year.
JOHN: Following on from the last answer, if we got the opportunity to play further a field then I'm sure we would grasp it with our collective hands. Obviously the chance to visit new places on the behalf of playing this music would be a pretty magical thing. Hopefully, someone will read this and make it a reality! But if not, we know plenty of solid but comfortable floors you can borrow if you need to make the trip over the water.
WMB: The debut EP is pretty awesome I must say. Do you have plans for a full length any time soon?
JOHN: Thank you very much for giving it the ear time and the kind words, it's been a very encouraging response since bringing the songs from a small carpet-walled room in Crystal Palace to a public stage at the turn of the year. Although we're in no rush to force out a full length, we tend to write as we go along so I don't anticipate it being too long before we steal another ‘chart hitting’ band's studio to record while they are away on tour (true story). Secondly, if we get to multiply the travels, people and stories then that's good enough for us… let's make it happen.
I'm glad they answered a few questions so I can get a little more info about JOHN. Let's get on with the music. The lovely folks at GoldFlakePaint are streaming the EP right now a week before it's release so check it out. You can order the EP right here from Brain Wave
I will also leave you with the first demo I heard from these guys. "Johnny's got a sleeve"
Also - if you are from the UK and reading this - go see JOHN at the SouthSea Festival on September 20th! There are some great bands on the lineup. As always if you like these guys, support them by buying their music, liking their pages and following on the twittersphere, and of course telling a friend.
The description alone sums up the awesomeness of this band. My tastes are ALL over the place in terms of the alternative rock umbrella, and JOHN is definitely on the harder side but with that being said - this is what I feel rock needs right now.
JOHN is mysterious and interesting and I kinda wish I lived in London so I could go hang out with them after a show. This might be my first interview without an actual picture of the band. I am posting the artwork from their self titled EP. I want more than just three tracks honestly - it's a great debut EP. Between the three tracks - I have to say they are all really good but the stand out ones for me are "Big Game Tactics and "+". The first track "Homme D'affaires" is straight up in your face. For those that don't speak French, it means man of business.
WMB: So far...I can't find a lot of info on you guys. I am assuming you are a kick ass duo and you are both named JOHN. Is that correct?
JOHN: Indeed, we are two men who share the common ground of being called John, and in this chance-based journey we both happened to meet and tolerate each other's views enough to consider starting a band. It's been a couple of years now and we still enjoy hitting objects in warm rooms together - so we think it's going pretty well.
WMB: Looks like I will be posting the debut album cover art - is there a story behind that? The mysteriousness of JOHN is definitely intriguing me right now.
JOHN: The cover is from a series of works by an artist based upon the head shapes of certain groups of people who have happened to work together - you could assume that the heads on the cover are ours because of the context. The scarves are a systematic choice based upon where the individual was born. It's nothing to do with supporting a sports team, more a geographic pin of where someone started existing. In fact, one of them is actually incorrect because one of our birthplaces was too far off to find a scarf in time for the release! In terms of a 'mysteriousness', the standard practice of a band has just become bit of a schema in recent years and there's only so many images of groups looking sulky in front of dilapidated barns that you can take - I hope you can agree.
WMB: How excited are you guys to play the SouthSea Festival this month? Will this be the biggest show yet for you guys?
JOHN: We were very happy to get asked to play such a well organized, reputable festival such as SouthSea - especially after having only played a few shows at that point. Carl from Flatpack Recordings (who are running the particular stage we are playing) patted me on the back after seeing our second show and gave us the nod - which is probably the best response to a show you could ask for. In this sense, the year has been pretty special with the momentum of opening doors - getting opportunity out of opportunity helps you progress.
WMB: So the UK is producing some awesome duos recently. Royal Blood was my favorite set this past year at SXSW (Not to mention Drenge, DZ Deathrays who also made the trip to Austin.) Do you guys ever think about coming to the SXSW festival one year? Of course selfishly I would love to have you guys come so I can see your live set. Either that or I have to make a trip to London one year.
JOHN: Following on from the last answer, if we got the opportunity to play further a field then I'm sure we would grasp it with our collective hands. Obviously the chance to visit new places on the behalf of playing this music would be a pretty magical thing. Hopefully, someone will read this and make it a reality! But if not, we know plenty of solid but comfortable floors you can borrow if you need to make the trip over the water.
WMB: The debut EP is pretty awesome I must say. Do you have plans for a full length any time soon?
JOHN: Thank you very much for giving it the ear time and the kind words, it's been a very encouraging response since bringing the songs from a small carpet-walled room in Crystal Palace to a public stage at the turn of the year. Although we're in no rush to force out a full length, we tend to write as we go along so I don't anticipate it being too long before we steal another ‘chart hitting’ band's studio to record while they are away on tour (true story). Secondly, if we get to multiply the travels, people and stories then that's good enough for us… let's make it happen.
I'm glad they answered a few questions so I can get a little more info about JOHN. Let's get on with the music. The lovely folks at GoldFlakePaint are streaming the EP right now a week before it's release so check it out. You can order the EP right here from Brain Wave
I will also leave you with the first demo I heard from these guys. "Johnny's got a sleeve"
Also - if you are from the UK and reading this - go see JOHN at the SouthSea Festival on September 20th! There are some great bands on the lineup. As always if you like these guys, support them by buying their music, liking their pages and following on the twittersphere, and of course telling a friend.
You can connect with JOHN here:
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