Tom and Steve from the Electric Soft Parade came
into the Live Lounge to play current single "Silent To The Dark II"
and spoke to Jo about service station breakfasts, hygiene on the
tour bus and being a "Bog Standard Indie" band...
How are you this morning?
Good - very good - we've just travelled from some service station or other...
So a good breakfast then?
No, we haven't done that yet.
You should eat - you'll be fainting and everything!
Kieran from Preston
emails "Is it legal to be that good?" You did a gig last night and he
said it was just astoundingly good.
In Manchester? Aw, wicked!
You've been living over the past 12 months of
"The Next Big Thing"... what's that been like, having that mantle?
It never really seems like there's any hype to us, cos we're doing all the work,
and it seems like there's another band who take all the credit...
Really? Like a virtual band?
It's like another set of clones of us who get all the credit
and get all the attention. But it's alright. It's kinda good.
The album, "The Holes In The Wall" has had
some really good reviews - have you got a favourite thing that's been said about
you?
I think people who pick up on what we wanted to get across and people who
understand what we wanted to do with the record.
Which was what?
Just to make a pop album that was enjoyable and a record that you could
appreciate on a load of different levels. When people pick up on that and
understand that, that's the most flattering thing that someone can say.
And the least flattering thing that someone's said
about you?
I think an NME review for one of our singles, which simply read "Bog
Standard Indie".
Those phrases stay with you don't they?
You never forget things like that... you never forget who wrote them either...
And have you met that journalist yet? And did you
challenge him?
Yeah I did. No.
Oh! You should've!
You've been touring about like mad, who's the one
with the worst hygiene habits on the tour bus?
Er, Matt the bassist.
Oh, he's not here... not fair!
Why do you think he's not here? I think we're all as bad as each other. I think
any band is. I think any band who's been on the road for however many years or
months...
It gets pretty squalid?
(Sniggers) Yeah... you don't say! It gets pretty rank.
27/02/02
