I had the wonderful opportunity of interviewing The Crookes, a four-piece band from Sheffield, who released their new album a couple months ago. We talked about what the recording process was like for ‘Hold Fast’ along with what fans can expect on their fall tour with Hey Sholay. Read the interview below to find out more!
Melisa Baykent: Hello! Would you guys mind introducing yourselves and the roles you have in the band
The Crookes: Hello! We are George (vocals & bass), Daniel (guitar & lyrics), Russell (the drums) and Tom (guitar).
MB: How did you all become involved in music?
MB: Your second album, ‘Hold Fast’, was released just a couple of months ago, could you tell us what the recording process was like? And what you hope fans take away from the album?
TC: We tried to have as much fun as possible in the studio, which usually meant generous helpings of whisky and tambourine, and hoped to capture the energy from our live show, which can be a tricky thing to pin down onto a recording. We found we worked best at night, so we tried to make the daytimes work for us too by blacking out the windows and getting drunk early! Hopefully people will be able to hear how much we enjoyed making the album.
MB: Who or what has been your biggest inspiration as a band?
TC: Our individual inspirations are pretty eclectic, but travelling has had a significant effect on us. Being in each other’s company for months at a time has galvanised us and getting lost together in some of the weird and wonderful locations we’ve visited has given Daniel lots of tales to draw upon for the lyrics.
MB: What would be your favorite song to play live and which song means the most to you?
TC: It’s different every gig we do. New songs are always good fun to play, but you never know what’s going to sound the best and get the crowd moving on the night. At the moment, everybody’s enjoying Sal Paradise, which is a slower one, but there’s nothing like a good dancing number. I guess we’d all pick different favourite songs for sentimentality, but Backstreet Lovers is the first song we ever wrote, and we still play it regularly, so you could say that there’s something special about that.
MB: You’re recently going to be hitting the road with Hey Sholay, what can fans expect if they come to a show? Are there any specific dates you are looking forward to?
TC: Hey Sholay are a fantastic live band, so I reckon they’re going to be a very difficult act to follow every night! I won’t try and describe them, it’s best if you find their website and have a listen. For this tour we’ll be playing the songs from Hold Fast that we haven’t yet tried out on an audience, so we’re really excited about that. Our final date in Sheffield will be a special one, it’s the last one on the tour so it’ll be really good to be back and playing to a home crowd.
MB: Do you have any goals as a band, if so what are they?
TC: In the short term, we’re going to tour the socks off our new record, and soon enough we’ll be making the third album. As long as we can keep writing, playing and travelling, we’ll be happy.
MB: What is your favorite part of touring?
TC: The food! Getting to see so many different parts of the world isn’t bad either, and playing night after night is great fun; we enjoy trying to make each gig better than the previous one.
MB: How would you describe your sound?
TC: New Pop.
MB: Lastly, thank you so much for doing this interview and is there anything you’d like to say to your fans?
TC: Hold fast, Bright Young Things, we love you. See you in Autumn!
Twitter: @TheCrookes
Facebook: The Crookes
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