Push to Fire: Alternative Music Webzine

An interview with Failsafe
Preston's Failsafe embarked on a headline tour throughout June and July this year. Suzy caught up with lead singer/synth player James to find out how it went and talk about what's in store for the band for the rest of the year...

So you're coming to the end of your headline tour. How's it been?
Tour has been a lot of fun, as usual. We've been really pleased with how the gigs have turned out. We've been looked after well too, which also makes a huge difference. This tour is almost like the album tour that never happened back in November, so to get out on the road for this length of time has been very refreshing. We're also stoked to play to people who are really keen to watch our band an experience the live show. More often than not in support slots the limelight is not on you, so to make a big deal out of our band and to be the main focus of the night has been a challenge we've stepped up to and relished. I wish it could go on and on.

Failsafe

So which has been your favourite venue/crowd on this tour?
Without singling any place out in particular, I'd say that there hasn't really been a disappointing gig so far. Some have been better than others, places like Southampton, Bristol and Scotland in general have always seemed to be good places for us to play, plus we've made a lot of friends in these areas. Nottingham took us by surprise too - we played at the beginning of a club night at Rock City and the atmosphere was amazing! All in all, every place we’ve played on this tour deserves credit. Its been good to see some people making the effort to come out to a gig and get sweaty rather than sitting in front of the internet.
How would you describe your sound to someone who hadn't heard any of your music before?
I'd describe Failsafe as a musical feast! First and foremost, we like to rock and we like to have a good time. We draw ideas and inspiration from a lot of influences, ranging from rock to punk, and lighter more chilled out, ambient sounds. We’re not your conventional, straight up punk band, its almost as if we’ve taken ideas we like and given them our own twist and trademark. We pride ourselves on doing what comes naturally to us in the practice room and steering clear from contrived, pigeon holed musical styles.
I'm actually used to seeing you play alongside ska/pop punk style bands...and often in a support slot (e.g. MC Lars/Aquabats). However your sound is heavier than this, why do you think you've often ended up supporting bands from those genres? Especially when you're due to fill support slots for Glamour of the Kill and A Wilhelm Scream later this year?
The early incarnations of the band were routed in the punk scene, and we befriended many bands in around this circuit such as Howard’s Alias, No Comply and Sonic Boom Six, so we kind of got gigs in and around that scene. I’d say we generally go down a lot better playing with heavier bands like you mentioned as our live performance in particular is very energetic, fiery and powerful, and from our own experience supporting bands like Armour for sleep and Cute is What we Aim For has also been beneficial. We made a lot of friends and contacts playing gigs over the years, people like MC Lars, and when we get offered a gig we see it as an opportunity, no matter who it is with, so we play!
How was it playing Ghostfest with loads of metalcore/heavy bands?
We were pleased to get offered to play Ghostfest. We’re not strictly a metal band as such, so I think a few people were surprised to see a more melodic, punkier band step onto the stage. We had a good time though and seemed to go down relatively well, even if some people were a little perplexed. I could sense that a lot of people that attended that festival were very certain of the bands they wanted to see, and didn’t really care too much for something a bit different or out of their comfort zone. One girl came up to me after the gig and told me it was extremely refreshing to hear something other than metal at the festival, she ended up buying a bunch of stuff, which is awesome.
Which bands in the current UK scene would you recommend we check out?
Not having a tour support for this stretch of gigs has meant we’ve seen tons of bands. Up in Scotland there is a band called ‘Taking Chase,’ who are well worth checking out. ‘The Living Daylights, CrazyArm, From Plan to Progress,’ to name just a few bands getting off their arses and doing something productive. Bands like ‘Fei Comodo, Telegraphs’ and ‘Twin Atlantic’ are well worth a listen too if you get to any festivals this summer. Oh, and check out our mate Greg Holden!

Failsafe

Whilst growing up and getting into music who were you most inspired by?
I started off listening to classic rock when I was small. My mum use to stick a bit of Bon Jovi or Queen on every now and then so I guess I’ve always been into guitar driven rock music. When I started making my own choices though I ended up buying albums by a lot of the Indie, Brit pop sort of bands in the mid '90s when I was in school. I still have all of my Oasis and Blur records, and listened to a lot of Bluetones and Stereophonics (back when they were half decent!) Bands like these hold a lot of good memories for me, as do Blink, Greenday and NOFX. Then I found myself hooked on more raucous punk and rock sounds. I admire great frontmen. I think Freddie Mercury has been a big inspiration from the very start of my life, people like Jake from Capdown and Arnim from The Beatsteaks always manage to get my blood pumping too.
Plans for the summer? Any festivals coming up and any that you are particularly looking forward to (and why)?
We’ve not experienced a lot of festival action in the UK since we started the band. We’re down in Newquay at Boardmasters on the 7th August which should be a great setting for the festival. We get to catch up with the guys in the King Blues too which will be nice. We’re also playing Guilfest but literally nearly weeing ourselves to play Sonisphere on August the 1st too. We can’t wait. I think we collide with Anthrax on the Saturday, which shouldn’t be too much of a problem as we’re a slightly bigger band than them. All jokes aside, we’re really looking forward to the summer.

Failsafe

Late last year you released your second album 'The Truth Is...', how would you say it differs from your first album?
I think we just learnt how to write better songs. Any band will show some kind of progression and difference from album to album, and I think with us, its just been a case of channelling our ideas and influences in better, more creative and cohesive ways. The first album was more of a collection of songs over a good number of years, from a relatively young set of guys. We’re older and wiser now, and understand a lot more about ourselves, our music and what makes us tick. I think in a live capacity we’ve also got to grips with what works and what doesn’t work so well- I guess its all part of growing up as a musician and as a band. ‘The Truth Is…’ definitely feels more like and album to me, we’re all very proud of it.
Any plans for a third album anytime soon?
Yeah! Of course! We’re actually mid way through writing a bunch of songs for a third album. Whenever we’re back from tour we get straight back into the rehearsal room and start jamming ideas. We need to sort out a few timing issues and what not before we start trying to nail a deadline, but things are already in the pipeline and making good progress.
And finally, if you could tour with any band, past or present, who would you choose and why?
It would have to be a band that would be a lot of fun to tour with, I couldn’t be doing with slippers and a hot milk after every gig, although it is a good thing to chill out sometimes. I know collectively we look up to bands that have made it huge like Muse and the Foo Fighters, who still manage to make great music and continue to push themselves. I reckon it would have been interesting to tour with Nirvana. A young Dave Grohl, an edgy Kurt Cobain, there’d be plenty of stories to tell for sure.

Thanks go to James for taking the time to answer our questions and Simon Barbour-Brown and Adam S for helping organise this for us. All photos accompanying the interview were taken by Suzy Witts at Failsafe's York show in July 2009.
Check out Failsafe's music at www.myspace.com/failsafemusic

An interview with Failsafe Preston's Failsafe embarked on a headline tour throughout June and July this year. Suzy caught up with lead singer/synth player James to find out how it went and talk about what's in store for the band for the rest of the year...
So you're coming to the end of your headline tour. How's it been? Tour has been a lot of fun, as usual. We've been really pleased with how the gigs have turned out. We've been looked after well too, which also makes a huge difference. This tour is almost like the album tour that never happened back in November, so to get out on the road for this length of time has been very refreshing. We're also stoked to play to people who are really keen to watch our band an experience the live show. More often than not in support slots the limelight is not on you, so to make a big deal out of our band and to be the main focus of the night has been a challenge we've stepped up to and relished. I wish it could go on and on.
So which has been your favourite venue/crowd on this tour? Without singling any place out in particular, I'd say that there hasn't really been a disappointing gig so far. Some have been better than others, places like Southampton, Bristol and Scotland in general have always seemed to be good places for us to play, plus we've made a lot of friends in these areas. Nottingham took us by surprise too - we played at the beginning of a club night at Rock City and the atmosphere was amazing! All in all, every place we’ve played on this tour deserves credit. Its been good to see some people making the effort to come out to a gig and get sweaty rather than sitting in front of the internet. How would you describe your sound to someone who hadn't heard any of your music before? I'd describe Failsafe as a musical feast! First and foremost, we like to rock and we like to have a good time. We draw ideas and inspiration from a lot of influences, ranging from rock to punk, and lighter more chilled out, ambient sounds. We’re not your conventional, straight up punk band, its almost as if we’ve taken ideas we like and given them our own twist and trademark. We pride ourselves on doing what comes naturally to us in the practice room and steering clear from contrived, pigeon holed musical styles. I'm actually used to seeing you play alongside ska/pop punk style bands...and often in a support slot (e.g. MC Lars/Aquabats). However your sound is heavier than this, why do you think you've often ended up supporting bands from those genres? Especially when you're due to fill support slots for Glamour of the Kill and A Wilhelm Scream later this year? The early incarnations of the band were routed in the punk scene, and we befriended many bands in around this circuit such as Howard’s Alias, No Comply and Sonic Boom Six, so we kind of got gigs in and around that scene. I’d say we generally go down a lot better playing with heavier bands like you mentioned as our live performance in particular is very energetic, fiery and powerful, and from our own experience supporting bands like Armour for sleep and Cute is What we Aim For has also been beneficial. We made a lot of friends and contacts playing gigs over the years, people like MC Lars, and when we get offered a gig we see it as an opportunity, no matter who it is with, so we play! How was it playing Ghostfest with loads of metalcore/heavy bands? We were pleased to get offered to play Ghostfest. We’re not strictly a metal band as such, so I think a few people were surprised to see a more melodic, punkier band step onto the stage. We had a good time though and seemed to go down relatively well, even if some people were a little perplexed. I could sense that a lot of people that attended that festival were very certain of the bands they wanted to see, and didn’t really care too much for something a bit different or out of their comfort zone. One girl came up to me after the gig and told me it was extremely refreshing to hear something other than metal at the festival, she ended up buying a bunch of stuff, which is awesome. Which bands in the current UK scene would you recommend we check out? Not having a tour support for this stretch of gigs has meant we’ve seen tons of bands. Up in Scotland there is a band called ‘Taking Chase,’ who are well worth checking out. ‘The Living Daylights, CrazyArm, From Plan to Progress,’ to name just a few bands getting off their arses and doing something productive. Bands like ‘Fei Comodo, Telegraphs’ and ‘Twin Atlantic’ are well worth a listen too if you get to any festivals this summer. Oh, and check out our mate Greg Holden!
Whilst growing up and getting into music who were you most inspired by? I started off listening to classic rock when I was small. My mum use to stick a bit of Bon Jovi or Queen on every now and then so I guess I’ve always been into guitar driven rock music. When I started making my own choices though I ended up buying albums by a lot of the Indie, Brit pop sort of bands in the mid '90s when I was in school. I still have all of my Oasis and Blur records, and listened to a lot of Bluetones and Stereophonics (back when they were half decent!) Bands like these hold a lot of good memories for me, as do Blink, Greenday and NOFX. Then I found myself hooked on more raucous punk and rock sounds. I admire great frontmen. I think Freddie Mercury has been a big inspiration from the very start of my life, people like Jake from Capdown and Arnim from The Beatsteaks always manage to get my blood pumping too. Plans for the summer? Any festivals coming up and any that you are particularly looking forward to (and why)? We’ve not experienced a lot of festival action in the UK since we started the band. We’re down in Newquay at Boardmasters on the 7th August which should be a great setting for the festival. We get to catch up with the guys in the King Blues too which will be nice. We’re also playing Guilfest but literally nearly weeing ourselves to play Sonisphere on August the 1st too. We can’t wait. I think we collide with Anthrax on the Saturday, which shouldn’t be too much of a problem as we’re a slightly bigger band than them. All jokes aside, we’re really looking forward to the summer.
Late last year you released your second album 'The Truth Is...', how would you say it differs from your first album? I think we just learnt how to write better songs. Any band will show some kind of progression and difference from album to album, and I think with us, its just been a case of channelling our ideas and influences in better, more creative and cohesive ways. The first album was more of a collection of songs over a good number of years, from a relatively young set of guys. We’re older and wiser now, and understand a lot more about ourselves, our music and what makes us tick. I think in a live capacity we’ve also got to grips with what works and what doesn’t work so well- I guess its all part of growing up as a musician and as a band. ‘The Truth Is…’ definitely feels more like and album to me, we’re all very proud of it. Any plans for a third album anytime soon? Yeah! Of course! We’re actually mid way through writing a bunch of songs for a third album. Whenever we’re back from tour we get straight back into the rehearsal room and start jamming ideas. We need to sort out a few timing issues and what not before we start trying to nail a deadline, but things are already in the pipeline and making good progress. And finally, if you could tour with any band, past or present, who would you choose and why? It would have to be a band that would be a lot of fun to tour with, I couldn’t be doing with slippers and a hot milk after every gig, although it is a good thing to chill out sometimes. I know collectively we look up to bands that have made it huge like Muse and the Foo Fighters, who still manage to make great music and continue to push themselves. I reckon it would have been interesting to tour with Nirvana. A young Dave Grohl, an edgy Kurt Cobain, there’d be plenty of stories to tell for sure.
Thanks go to James for taking the time to answer our questions and Simon Barbour-Brown and Adam S for helping organise this for us. All photos accompanying the interview were taken by Suzy Witts at Failsafe's York show in July 2009. Check out Failsafe's music at www.myspace.com/failsafemusic