Wytches - Interview

  by Anthony Strutt

published: 3 / 4 / 2014

intro

Anthony Strutt chats to new grunge act the Wytches about their influences and forthcoming debut album

Pennyblackmusic caught up with the Wytches, the latest signings to Heavenly on their debut UK headline tour at a show in Leicester. The Peterborough three piece have now released a number of singles, and at the gig following this interview they held the audience in their hands with most of the crowd singing along to the whole set. We spoke to front man Kristian Bell whom also plays guitar and Daniel Rumsey the bass player. The third member of the band is Gianni Honey, who hits the drums. PB: Why the name the Wytches and why with a 'Y' ? KB: It was the Witches with an 'I' at the start, I just liked it, but there were a lot of bands with that name so I just felt it was funny. I like bands with a standard name, the whatevers. The 'Y' wasn't my idea, but it is so google friendly that we decided to use it. It's cool because it is the traditional spelling like the pagan name. PB: Apart from you guys, the only band I know that have changed their name like this is Chvrches. What is the history of the band? Had you been in other bands before then? DR: I have been in three or four other bands, maybe more. This is the band that I have done the most with. KB: I used to be in hardcore bands. I used to play drums in thrash bands. This is the second band that I have sung in, but this is the first group thatI have played guitar in. PB: How long have you guys been around then? KB: We have been around for three years now. We did two singles and an EP on Hate Records. They basically just do singles and no albums. We did two seven inches, and a three track cassette EP. We released three EPs before anyone had heard of us. One of them ended up on YouTube. In a sense that was strange as the band was only three weeks old at the time. PB: You are now signed to Heavenly.How did that come about? KB: I don't know. PB: Were you part of the East London scene that your labelmates Toy came out of? KB: No,we did do Old Blue Last a lot, and all that Shoreditch area. We also did nights at the Hackney Working Girls Club. But to get back to your question, we have a manager and he does all of that for us. PB: Your latest release was a limited edition cassette single, 'Thunder Lizard Revisited', on Heavenly. Was that your first single with them? KB: Yeah, that's the first single. PB: Was it your choice to do a tape as a freebie? DR: It was an idea. We did one before when we were on Hate Records. PB: The only catch is people have to have tape decks to play them on. DR: There's a free download as well, minus the last track. PBM.Do you feel part of the Heavenly family yet? KB: No, I really like Danny Mitchell and Jeff Barrett who run it. We toured with Charlie Boyer and the Voyeurs, but I don't think we are a psych band like so many of the other acts on it. I think that it fits in. I don't know why. Our music is a bit 60's infused, so I guess that is where that comes from. I just do what I do. I don't think a record label has much to do with the music, unless you are on a major. PB: Well, you create before a label gets involved. KB: It's not the label that's writing the music. It's whatever label you decide to go with that has won you over. PB: How would you describe your sound? I would say it is very grungy in the spirit of pre-fame Nirvana/Dinosaur, Jr. DR: That's pretty fair. PB: The standard Heavenly pressing for a single is on vinyl and is currently three hundred. Are yours going to be the same? DR: We havesn't really spoken about it. PB: The last few Heavenly vinyl LPs have been on coloured vinyl. Would you have a say in that? KB: I would like it to be on clear vinyl because' In Utero' was on clear vinyl. DR: We did talk about orange as well. PBM. This is the last date except one. How's it all being going? KB: It's been good. Last night in Birmingham we, however, got bottled, I don't know if I was paranoid. Once you are on a label you get it more. Normally if you are a support you can't do no wrong. This is our first headline. It's good that some of the shows and tonight's is sold out. Overall it's been going well. PB: Has the album been recorded? Is there a release date? KB: It was going to be May. Now it's August. It is because of something to do with the World Cup, so it's been put back. We were going to release the album this month because we recorded it back in October, but now it's August, and so I said to Heavenly if that's the case I would like the next to be out nine months later. I have written a lot of the second one. It is a bit depressing singing the current set because it's old, and we are evolving. We have e been doing this selection of songs for a long time, so I am thinking of the second album now. PB: Thank you.

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