Into classic rock? Gallows Circus will be completely up your alley.
Simple things first – where are you guys from?
Rochester, Kent!
How did you meet?
Well, me (Ian) and Jim met when he was doing the sound for one of my old band’s gigs. I’ve known Steve for quite a few years as he briefly played drums in one of my old bands. And Steve is friends with Richard’s older brother!
How long have you been playing as a band?
We’ve been gigging together now for just over a year. We started jamming about a year before that.
Before you get sick of being asked, where does the band name come from?
It’s a reference to the fact that people used to go and see hangings for entertainment!
What are your influences?
Free, Reef, Led Zeppelin, Audioslave, Silverchair, The Doors, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Pearl Jam, Guns N’ Roses, Black Stone Cherry, life.
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
We are centred around rock and blues, but we also draw from a wide range of influences. We fit in the genre of classic rock but do have our own sound going on. It’s hard to place. I definitely like to have a quirkiness to my lyrics!
Do you have any particular lyrical themes?
A lot of the subjects are different but they are always things that are happening to me at the time or things that are on my mind. A frequent theme would be questioning the world and social norms.
What’s your live show like? How many shows have you played?
Loud with plenty of dynamics. We’re fond of our ups and downs including our guitarist. He leaps around a lot! It’s about 30 shows now.
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show?
A band we were playing with one night had a singer that was whipping the bass player’s arse the whole time whilst performing. It was certainly memorable!
What kit do you use / guitars do you play / etc.?
Our drummer, Steve, has a Pearl kit. Jim plays a Fender Stratocaster most of the time but plays a vintage Gibson SG for songs in different tunings. Rich uses a Fender Precision bass although he recently found a bass dumped in a bin! It actually sounds pretty good and is used for his back-up!
What, if anything, are you plugging/promoting at the moment?
Our next single/video “Faith to Believe” out on the 30th November.
What are your plans for 2018?
Well, the rest of this year we will be calming down the shows so that we can focus more on writing and preparing for 2019 where we hope to release more music and start playing further afield.
If you were second on a three-band bill, which band would you love to be supporting and which band would you choose to open for you? A chance to plug someone you’ve toured with, or a mate’s band we’ve not heard of before!
We would definitely support Rival Sons and have Tarot Rats open up! Both excellent bands!
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