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So we're here with The McQueens, Song Speaks, first filmed edition. All good.
All good.
So this EP sort of feels like it's a bit of a step forward and also outwards. It's sort
of broadening everything that came on the previous EP. I feel like everything is more
intense and mature. How did you go about writing it? What was your inspiration, where do you
feel it starts?
For writing the actual EP? Well, this is the first time we've written songs for an EP,
the one before was just songs that we had and we'd been just playing at shows months
in advance. And this one was like we want to make a really great EP, let's write some
songs that'll fit together and say we're trying to say.
Most of the songs weren't even written till we were in the studio whereas before we'd
just come in and smash it out in a day whereas this time we went into the studio so many
times. Figured out what works, what doesn't and went from there so it was different.
Yeah, one of them was written in a couple of days.
A weekend.
You had to ditch one of the tracks. What was the writing process for that one like?
Well, we had this song that we all really liked coming into the studio.
We had it already written.
Which one was this?
It was called 'Semi-weighted'.
Well that was the working title anyway.
Yeah, it was a working title. But, we loved it when we went in and then we had it down
and we were trying to mix it and it just wasn't working. So we were like, yeah, we don't like
this anymore.
Yeah it was an instant decision to just be like, no.
Yeah it was pretty unilateral. I think we all...
Cheesy, cheesy 80's music.
We recorded these harmonies that just didn't sound good.
So you liked the song but you just didn't feel like the way you where doing it was doing
it justice?
Yeah, and it didn't fit in with the rest of the EP. It sounded like some 80's TV show
song and it had this guitar lick that was awesome but it just didn't work with anything
else. So basically our producer Jimmy was like, 'Alright well let's write a different
song'. He was like, 'What do you have?' and we were like, 'nothing, we've been with you
for the last 3 months recording stuff'. We hadn't written anything. And he's like 'Write
something this weekend and then come in on Monday and we'll workshop it'. And then so
we did and then on Thursday we recorded everything for it.
In the morning.
In a morning, it was about 3 hours.
It was like doing a day except...
I don't think I'd actually slept the previous night so when we started that song I was not
really conscious. But I was...
Which song was that?
Walk You Home...
So where does the idea, what's the sort of concept or the story behind that one?
Lyrically?
Lyrically.
Lyrically it started from, actually it started from that first thing there's a little bit
at the start that says '*** soda chaser, don't think I can shake her off' and I had
it in my voice memos on my phone and it was from a year ago and it was just these two
chords yeah. And I was like, well let's build it off that. And then all the little words
are based around this idea of really liking someone and being able let it go but there's
issues that you can't like detach yourself from it.
I guess I feel like in terms of the music we, I think we all felt like we wanted to
do something a bit more kind of straight rock but still accessible. When we wrote 'Hannah'
the single we kind of very deliberately made it pop and accessible I think. And we wanted
to do the same thing with this but make it more rock.
Having said that 'Hannah' isn't a particularly light song, the sort of emotions in the song
are quite sort of heavy.
I wouldn't say the writing is poppy. I think, to me, how I feel about it is kinda a really
rough almost jam session with really emotional vocals and stuff but the production on it
is poppy. It's kinda like it sounds like a really emotional rough mix, not mix, take,
that's just been sent to LA and just mastered.
The outro is pretty poppy though.
I know what you mean it's almost like a Killers sort of vibe.
Yeah, with a flashy finish.
Yeah, what do you feel like you've matured into that sort of more intense, darker feeling
lyrically and also musically. But tried to maintain the poppy-ness from before? Or do
you feel like... Was it a conscious decision or does it just happen naturally?
know, we don't do it on purpose, like on 'Fiasco' was sort of dark as well in a way.
And rave-y as well somehow.
It's a fist pumping... I think it just happens naturally.
I feel like it's going to happen to any musician that's our age. You know, we're still, you
change so much in so little time especially musically I feel, so two albums in two years
they're going to be pretty different. No matter what you do or how conscious you try to be.
Yeah, I know what you mean. I'm just wondering what's the next step do you feel musically
for you guys?
I terms of new songs or...
Well in terms of where do you see these songs going, where do you want keep moving? If anywhere...
or are you exhausted having just done this.
I'm pretty ready to go to be honest.
I think we just. I mean, we haven't even shared it yet. The only responses that we've had
is from the single which have all been really positive. But like you're the only one of
the people whose actually heard the EP so I want people to hear and see what they think
and then just share it as much as possible.
Do you feel like the songs belong in a live setting or because you spent a long time in
the studio.
Yeah, we've played most of them live and it seems to work.
We have played at least a few of them live before we recorded them or 'Return to Laughter'
anyway.
And a lot of them were live takes. We tried tracking them all the songs but we just ended
up, it just ends up the best takes are when we do it with a live rhythm guitar, bass and
drums that were all the same take.
'Hannah' we got done pretty quickly.
'Hannah' is basically a live session with lead guitars and vocals dubbed. So it's pretty
much live songs.
I think we just want to release it and then start playing as much as we can live, you
know, just get it out there. That's the funnest part. Playing live.
And releasing it before summer, festivals and stuff was on purpose. We'd love to play
the festivals.
But also, in terms of what's next I definitely feel like we've been fully focussed on this
EP pretty much the entire year and I've only really been in this band for a year so, I
feel like we're going to start working, in fact we already have a few things that have
popped up since it was largely done.
Yeah cool.