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Q&A: The Blinders
The Blinders play at Saint Luke's in Glasgow on Sunday 28th April, with support from The Ninth Wave. Take a look at what they had to say ahead of their gig this weekend...
WHO ARE THE BLINDERS?
Hailing from the coalfields of South Yorkshire, the Doncaster born trio have taken the UK live circuit by storm in 2017. With a blend of proto punk politics and psychedelia laden lyricism the band are a force to be reckoned with. Influences ranging from Leonard Cohen to George Orwell allow the band to summon up a spectrum of sounds that will enthral and entertain any worthy parishioner.
Q&A
Where did the name of the band come from?
It really is as boring and as unimaginative as deriving from the Peaky Blinders TV season. Remove the “Peaky” and there we are.
Describe your sound in 3 words.
Politically charged rock? We’re not very good at this.
You released your debut album Columbia last year, how has the fan reaction been to the release?
It’s been incredibly humbling. We’d played a lot of the songs live so it’s nice to see the fans interact with them in their recorded form. It was also good for us to get an alternate side of ourselves out on tracks like Ballad of Winston Smith or Orbit. Releasing an alum feels like a badge of honour really or a milestone for any band. We’re proud of it and the reaction, as we say, has been fantastic.
Think back to your childhood, what was the first type of music or song that you responded to?
For all of us it’s obviously different. I think Thomas references listening to Paranoid by Black Sabbath and that being the thing that really turned him onto guitar music. For myself it was probably U2, a band that my father got me into at an early age. I think for Matt, and indeed for us collectively, it was Arctic Monkeys. That first album was huge for us, as has all that they’e released since.
Favourite venue you’ve ever performed?
Brudenell Social Club in Leeds tends to be a favourite. We’re heading back there over to play a festival and it’s a fantastic line up. That place really does have it all.
If you could have dinner with anyone in music past or present who would it be, and why?
Personally, it’d have to be Nick Cave. Firstly, what a life he has led, I’d love to pick his brains on those Berlin days but then I doubt there’s a lot to remember. He’s currently doing a Red Hand Files page where he responds to fans questions and the answers he provides are incredibly in depth and thoughtful. They’re actually quite inspiring and go off in all alternate directions. It’s such a difficult question. I imagine being in the presence of such a figure would be pretty stifling but if I have to choose someone then why not.
Is there anything that you can’t go on tour without?
Ha, there’s not really. As long as we’ve got our instruments and ourselves we’re pretty good to go. Getting ourselves together is sometimes a bit harder then you'd think.
DON'T MISS OUT ON THE GIG THIS SUNDAY - CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS
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