Photo By Steve Gullick //
Renowned UK punk trio The Cribs drop in to talk about their new album, what being a rockstar means and the humble bin chicken.
Having released their latest album 24-7 Rockstar Shit towards the end of last year, we knew it would only be a matter of time before the Jarman brothers – A.K.A The Cribs – would be heading down under and bringing their legendary live show with them.
Kicking off this weekend at The Gumball Festival, indie/punk veterans will be blazing around the country for a week so we thought we’d have a chat with bass player/vocalist Gary and drummer Ross about working with the iconic Steve Albini, why they love touring Australia and general rock start shit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnDCAwbo-Yg
You guys are in the States right now, what’s going on over there?
Gary: Just living! I have lived here in Portland since 2006, and Ryan has been in NYC since 2012. We are very far-flung nowadays.
What was it like working with legendary producer Steve Albini for ’24-7 Rock Star Shit’?
G:Recording with Steve…best way to describe it is refreshing. We have always approached things with a ‘less is more’ sensibility, which can lead to people levelling the ‘lo fi’ tag. That stigma becomes frustrating after a while, but during our major label years we were never really comfortable with those long sessions in fancy studios. It just isn’t us frankly. With Steve you can take that immediate and no frills approach and come out with a record that sounds really rich and full, without any of the unnecessary excesses that get foisted upon you in those typical big studio sessions. He’s really an awesome partner to work with for a band like us.
You recorded the LP in 5 days which is crazy, what was the reason behind such an accelerated approach?
G: Honestly, when recording with Steve, 5 days is a luxury. If you know the songs and are well rehearsed then 5 days is actually kinda indulgent. The tracking sessions were pretty much done and dusted within a couple of days – and after that, all that is left is for Steve to mix it. Because of the nature of the medium – literally just 16 tracks on physical tape, there’s none of that laborious, time consuming editing, overdubbing, comp-ing together of takes, etc etc etc… It just is what it is…so it doesn’t really take that long.
Ross: Usually when making an album, it can be long drawn out process and this can suck away some of your creativity. The whole nature of this record was a contrast to all the other Cribs albums, we wanted to take an accelerated approach on every level, including only announcing its release 2 weeks prior.
G: Yeah, seemed like a good idea to carry that philosophy on to the release plan – just surprise releasing it with no press or radio or whatever.
You say the title 24-7 Rock Star Shit refers to the ego’s you see in the music industry but you guys are quite humble yourselves. What the most Rock Star shit you’ve ever done? Any tantrums over riders? Punch-ups on stage? It’s ok, you can tell us.
R: I once saved up all my per diems in South America, then got back to the UK and bought a hot tub. Pretty indulgent.
G: No, we are really low maintenance. There was one time that we were paid a LOT of money to play with Queen on the Isle of Wight – which to be honest we would’ve paid THEM for the privilege. That felt pretty decadent…Flying to the Bahamas to shoot a video on a private beach counts as ‘rock star’ behavior, right? Ry has most of the best rock star stories…
You guys exploded onto the scene as a part of the indie rock revolution of the early 2000’s. What are some of the major changes in the industry since the heydays of indie guitar music? Do you think it’s easier or harder for bands coming up these days?
G: It’s honestly a totally different ball game. We were signed in the summer of 2002. Back then, the music industry was still operating in the classic old skool paradigm that it had since time immemorial really. We experienced all that stuff – the bidding war, going out to dinners etc etc. We always thought it was pretty ridiculous. Once it had all really kicked into high gear in the mid 2000’s it was really bloated and we were waiting for the ship to sink to be honest.
Parts of the industry also was really on the backfoot concerning the impending digital revolution. We could see it happening out in the trenches – people would be coming to shows after connecting with other people online, everyone shared the tracks and knew the rarities wherever we went – totally grassroots stuff. That side of things was cool. But most of the labels were pretending that this wasn’t happening, and that it was just a phase or something. The kids and the bands probably had a better vantage point to see what was actually going on.
R: One major tangible change was the loss of the CD single format and b-sides. Digital also emerged as a gamechanger, as back when we started Napster and Limewire were the main enemies to the music industry. I think in some ways its easier for bands nowadays, as people just circulate links on the internet. We used to have to get a postal address and create a physical copy, then send it out to a venue etc to try and get a gig.
G: I think that as long as the bands have the right attitude, then things should be easier now. We were very hands on and DIY when we started, and it’s really great to see how many new bands have really adapted to the new paradigm – they are for the most part really savvy and DIY out of necessity. That’s awesome – most of them don’t even need labels now. It’s inspiring.
You’ve already sold out a bunch of shows on your upcoming Australian tour, why do you think your brand of indie/punk has been so successful over here?
G: I hope that it’s because we have always been a pretty sincere and honest band, and we just try and bring things to the people as directly as we can. I think people appreciate that.
Did you ever think when you were starting out at kids that your music would reach so far across the world?
R: No not really. We were just three brothers in a small village outside of Wakefield pretending we were the Bee Gees and Queen.
G: If someone had told us that back in 2001 we would’ve been totally blown away and psyched. And we still feel that way today. It’s a massive buzz for us, totally humbling.
What do you look forward to when touring Australia?
G: Meeting people, hanging out. Some beach time! The bats…It’s really one of the coolest places to tour for bands from outside Australia. All my musician friends look forward to Australia the most.
R: That really long fucking flight, and constant jetlag. I also like them wild birds you get in parks with the long beaks. First time we saw one in Sydney we were more impressed with that thing than the Zoo!
Are your parents proud of you? Did they ever doubt you’d become successful musicians/wish you’d opened up a family dental clinic or law firm?
G: They’re our biggest fans! Of course. I like to think that cos we were so influenced by the music we heard around the house growing up that maybe our music is right up their alley…or maybe it’s just familial loyalty… There were probably times in the 90’s when me and Ry were dropping out of college or skiving off or whatever to get wasted and have band practice that concerned them… but we were always so determined and dedicated and I know they respected that. They come rock out at the shows sometimes. It’s awesome. !
There’s still a few tickets available to selected Cribs shows and you know you don’t want to miss it – info here.
