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Unsigned bands are all around us, some are utter shit. Others are mediocre 'pub-rock' and then there are the ones who have bucket loads of potential, these are the ones with the goods to do something big, the ones who forge out fans with constant gigging of their own tunes, building a fan-base as they go.
One such band are Glanford. This four piece of Joe Nash, Oliver Nolan, Adam Sennitt and Josh Smith have the 'goods' and are definitely pulling in that fan-base, every spare minute these lads can muster is spent practising, writing or gigging, coupled with an endearing stage demeanor, it makes them a young fledgling band to keep at least one of your eyes on.
I grabbed a chance of their free time to shoot the shit with Joe Nash from the band to talk that damned annoying 'Indie Rock' moniker, eclectic influences and where the band are headed. This is how it went down:
AltSounds: So lets not get too formal about this: First off, for folks who haven't heard your sound, how would you describe it, what kind of pigeon-hole would journo's and bloggers force you into?
Joe Nash: When asked for a genre, we try to put ourselves across as ‘Garage Rock’. But this just tends to lead to confused faces, and people still unsure. I guess for more mass appeal at gigs, and a better known term, promoters always have us down as ‘Indie Rock’. A title none of us really want, but to save confusion, one we reluctantly accept.
JN: I think we all got into playing either from friends or family members, or just from the music we listened too. However, Josh had never played an instrument at all until I asked him if he wanted to play drums in a band. Back then I taught him what I knew, then he went on to teach himself. As far as musical heroes are concerned, I could never name them all. Individual influences combined range from the likes of Rat Pack to Pulled apart by Horses, and just about everything in between. For other acts or peers, we’re friends with a good few bands across our local town of Scunthorpe, any normal Saturday at the few venues we have here, will have a mix of Touring and local bands. There’s a lot to name, and I wouldn’t like to miss anybody out!
AS: On to that stock question of 'what's your masterplan?' world domination in the same vein as Bono and Martin? ;-) or understated dominance like 'Arctics?'
JN: It’s funny you should ask that, we’ve just put together a new email for getting gigs, after some sound advice from Rob Tinsley, a promoter In Doncaster who works with unsigned bands. It’s almost like a band CV. We don’t have much of a plan at the moment, we want to get our music out and let people hear it for free! We give away demos for free at gigs and all our songs are free to download from the internet. World domination will have to wait a while; we’re still working on Lincolnshire and Yorkshire. For now, I’m happy knowing that after a show we’ve gained at least one proper fan, someone that will come up for a handshake and ask for a demo.
AS: Do you reckon there's a local scene when it comes to Scunthorpe? When you look to the wider areas like Yorkshire, these places have a nice set up of live venues which seem to be lacking in Scunny..........thoughts??
JN: I could write an essay about this, but I’ll try to keep it short. Scunthorpe has original music, but not so much a scene. A few years back there was definitely a Metal/Heavier Rock Scene, but even this has shrunk down. Bands here span just about every genre, from Metal to Folk and even Dubstep, but there isn’t really a ‘sound’ of Scunthorpe. The majority of bands seem to not be able to wait to get away, and want to play gigs anywhere but here. It gets a lot of bad press, but in my opinion, it’s not as bad as people make out. A few select venues and a few select individuals are keeping original music in Scunthorpe from dying a death. I do think Hull, Doncaster or Grimsby are probably a bit more accommodating for original artists, but if you can gain experience and cut your teeth in a place like Scunthorpe, you’re getting the hard work done early.
AS: Have you any gigs lined up to tell folks about?
JN: We’ve got a few gigs lined up at the minute. We’ve got more gigs coming up, hopefully in Leeds and Lincoln, Its all on our Facebook page on the tour dates app, that’s www.facebook.com/glanfordmusic. We also uploaded the majority of songs from our demo to there, which are free to listen too and download.
Check out more of Glanford on their Facebook page.
One such band are Glanford. This four piece of Joe Nash, Oliver Nolan, Adam Sennitt and Josh Smith have the 'goods' and are definitely pulling in that fan-base, every spare minute these lads can muster is spent practising, writing or gigging, coupled with an endearing stage demeanor, it makes them a young fledgling band to keep at least one of your eyes on.
LISTEN // Glanford - 'Prizefighter'
I grabbed a chance of their free time to shoot the shit with Joe Nash from the band to talk that damned annoying 'Indie Rock' moniker, eclectic influences and where the band are headed. This is how it went down:
AltSounds: So lets not get too formal about this: First off, for folks who haven't heard your sound, how would you describe it, what kind of pigeon-hole would journo's and bloggers force you into?
Joe Nash: When asked for a genre, we try to put ourselves across as ‘Garage Rock’. But this just tends to lead to confused faces, and people still unsure. I guess for more mass appeal at gigs, and a better known term, promoters always have us down as ‘Indie Rock’. A title none of us really want, but to save confusion, one we reluctantly accept.
[Picture above: The Glanford boys blanking out that incessant Indie Rock tag]
AS: Which leads onto your influences; who got you into playing? Heroes of music if you will, also peers of today, who should we be looking out for apart from yourselves?JN: I think we all got into playing either from friends or family members, or just from the music we listened too. However, Josh had never played an instrument at all until I asked him if he wanted to play drums in a band. Back then I taught him what I knew, then he went on to teach himself. As far as musical heroes are concerned, I could never name them all. Individual influences combined range from the likes of Rat Pack to Pulled apart by Horses, and just about everything in between. For other acts or peers, we’re friends with a good few bands across our local town of Scunthorpe, any normal Saturday at the few venues we have here, will have a mix of Touring and local bands. There’s a lot to name, and I wouldn’t like to miss anybody out!
LISTEN // Glanford - 'Tell The World'
AS: On to that stock question of 'what's your masterplan?' world domination in the same vein as Bono and Martin? ;-) or understated dominance like 'Arctics?'
JN: It’s funny you should ask that, we’ve just put together a new email for getting gigs, after some sound advice from Rob Tinsley, a promoter In Doncaster who works with unsigned bands. It’s almost like a band CV. We don’t have much of a plan at the moment, we want to get our music out and let people hear it for free! We give away demos for free at gigs and all our songs are free to download from the internet. World domination will have to wait a while; we’re still working on Lincolnshire and Yorkshire. For now, I’m happy knowing that after a show we’ve gained at least one proper fan, someone that will come up for a handshake and ask for a demo.
AS: Do you reckon there's a local scene when it comes to Scunthorpe? When you look to the wider areas like Yorkshire, these places have a nice set up of live venues which seem to be lacking in Scunny..........thoughts??
JN: I could write an essay about this, but I’ll try to keep it short. Scunthorpe has original music, but not so much a scene. A few years back there was definitely a Metal/Heavier Rock Scene, but even this has shrunk down. Bands here span just about every genre, from Metal to Folk and even Dubstep, but there isn’t really a ‘sound’ of Scunthorpe. The majority of bands seem to not be able to wait to get away, and want to play gigs anywhere but here. It gets a lot of bad press, but in my opinion, it’s not as bad as people make out. A few select venues and a few select individuals are keeping original music in Scunthorpe from dying a death. I do think Hull, Doncaster or Grimsby are probably a bit more accommodating for original artists, but if you can gain experience and cut your teeth in a place like Scunthorpe, you’re getting the hard work done early.
AS: Have you any gigs lined up to tell folks about?
JN: We’ve got a few gigs lined up at the minute. We’ve got more gigs coming up, hopefully in Leeds and Lincoln, Its all on our Facebook page on the tour dates app, that’s www.facebook.com/glanfordmusic. We also uploaded the majority of songs from our demo to there, which are free to listen too and download.
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So we leave it there, words of a wise young man (that's Joe obviously, not me, I'm a stupid old man). A smart head on young shoulders that will stand the band in good stead for the career path they are carving.Check out more of Glanford on their Facebook page.
