We were fortunate enough to catch up with the superb oxford band The White Lakes, for an interview. They have released their infectious indie-rock single ‘Summer (She Can’t Wait)’ on 18th May 2020. Check out our interview below!
Tell us about yourself?
We are four lads from all over the country, Matt(Singer/Guitarist) and Kyle(Drums) are from just outside oxford, Fin( Guitarist) is from Preston and Logan (Bass) is from just outside Derby! Kyle and Matt formed the band while studying music at college then met Logan and Fin while studying music at Uni!
What is your songwriting process?
Songwriting normally starts in Matt’s bedroom on his laptop, he comes up with all these ideas, and then when we are all together, we take them further. It’s a strange one, every song is written differently, and I wouldn’t say we have a formula for them. It’s more getting into the flow and seeing what our brains can come up with.
Tell us about your latest release?
It was written mostly by Matt before The White Lakes was still in its beta form. We’ve been playing it since the start of our journey, and it’s always got a really good reception when we play it live.
Who are your non-musical influences?
Just my life, to be honest, everything that happens on a day to day basis indirectly crafts the direction to the next song, whether that be a walk, crap weather, a conversation or seeing an ex’s picture on Instagram. All these things indirectly influence my mood, and that helps shape my songwriting direction.
What’s the best gig you have ever played?
There is an ongoing debate within the band on which was our best show. It’s between three shows, Fin and Logan are fans of our Guildford headline show at the Boileroom in January, it was one of the last dates on our first headline tour, and it was an intense show, the energy we got from the crowd was something else! Yet Kyle and I (Matt), think the show we played at the Bullingdon supporting The Night Café was the best show, it was our first ‘Big Show’, and we played really well and even brought in some confetti for the end of the show.
What is your funniest Gig moment?
It has to be on tour at Oxford O2, biggest hometown show to date. It was all going so well, set gets to the crowd-pleasing song ‘Cigarette’, and midway through the song, my (Matt) guitar fully stopped working. Later found out the electronic bits inside had broken. So I put my guitar down and looked over to our tech Lucca, who was filming the crowd at the time. I shouted “Lucca, get me a new guitar”, he thought I was asking him to get a lower angle, so he proceeds to bend down and get some banging angles. So I’m stood on stage singing like a bit of a d*ck not knowing what to do, so I started screaming at him in-between the parts I was singing, “LUCCA GET ME A F*CKING GUITAR” I think he heard that one and after a while finally gave me my guitar. I think the funniest part is watching the video back and hearing me shout that at him. It’s one of those stories that needs that as well.
What do you think are the biggest obstacles for bands/artists today?
I think streaming for sure is one. Obviously, labels are not what they used to be; they don’t take a chance on a band with some good songs who just sold 50 tickets in a local pub anymore, they are looking for finished acts, with class streaming numbers, management, booking agents etc. I also feel that acts get too caught up in staying far too local. So like in Guildford where we live at the moment, there is a saying the ‘Guildford bubble’ its referring to the acts that just play the same Guildford venues constantly, over saturating and become boring. So getting outside of your home area is one.
What advice would you give other bands/artists starting out?
Just write loads and loads of music as a group as after a while you will craft your own sound taking bits from each member and making a killer song. I would also say spend time with each other as much as you can, get drunk, have fun and chase sheep. The more time you spend, the better bond you will get when you get on the road touring, it will let you learn each other’s boundaries, and see if you would actually work on the road!
What are your hopes for the next two years?
Well, a very hard question, obviously like most bands lots of our plans and gigs have had be to rescheduled or cancelled, yet we have plans to get some more music out hopefully by the end of this year if not definitely a fair amount in 2021. LOADS of gigs, and then in two years time hopefully working on our album and playing at all the major festivals! Gotta dream big.
FVMusicBlog May 2020
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