You may remember we
told out about the Futuresound competition with the winners playing at Leeds Festival.
Well Est.1987 headed down to Leeds Cockpit to
catch up with entrants The Glass
Caves to see what
happened as they competed in the Futuresound 2012 competition.
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The Glass Caves on stage in Leeds |
How did you get
involved with the Futuresound competition? Are you enjoying being part of it
and have you done extra preparation for it?
ELLIOTT- A friend’s band played it last year
and we thought next year we’ll have a go. Last year we had only just started
sorting ourselves out as a band so we weren’t really ready last year, but this
year definitely.
MATT- Yeah, I didn’t even think much about
it because we haven’t really done a battle of the bands before.
E- We’ve all just finished uni now, so
we have more time on our hands to rehearse.
M- Yeah, we’ve got two new songs so we
played those tonight and we have a temporary bassist at the moment. Our
original one is in America .
You guys seem really
busy with touring and playing festivals? Are you having a fun summer so far?
M- Alongside uni it’s been busy…
E- We’ve always done enough to keep us
busy all year and it’s been exciting so far but I think there’s more exciting
times. We’re going to record the new songs we played tonight next week, and
will be releasing those hopefully by the end of the summer. We played our first
festival recently; Crooked Ways
with Razorlight and that was good experience. We’ve got a few more festivals
coming up in August; one in Malton and Pocktoberfest
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The Glass Caves EP "Eboracum" |
You’ve been busking in
York as well?
Was that a one off thing or have you been doing it for a while?
CONNOR- We’ve busked a lot. Especially this
week! York is
definitely the place to busk.
M- Don’t tell anyone that though!
It’s our little secret!
E- We started doing it really just for
a but of pocket money and playing covers but we’ve started playing our own
songs and people have been loving those too and buying our CD.
You’ve been compared
to the likes of White Lies and Fleet Foxes; who would you say are your
influences?
E- I don’t really get the Fleet Foxes
comparison really, but a lot of people have said it.
C- No I don’t; it may just be the fact
we do lots of harmonies
E- I mean I like Fleet Foxes but I
don’t hear it within The Glass Caves. We go for our own thing and take a lot of
time deciding what sounds good, and we hope that we’ve got good ears.
C- We never try to be anything. I think
it’s the fact that we’re all influenced by different people. When we’re writing
everyone puts their own little bits into it.
You’re from Yorkshire ; does growing up and living here influence your
sound?
E- A lot of good music comes out of Yorkshire and I’m proud of where I’m from.
C- When we first started the band
living here influenced us a lot more.
TOM- A lot of people say that London is the main place to be, but Leeds
is definitely up there too.
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Lead singer Matt on stage |
You released your
debut EP recently. You recorded it in Peak Studios in Bradford -
how was that experience of recording it there?
E- Yeah it was great, and we’re going back there to record
next week.
C- It was good, but it was hard work.
E- That was the first time we had
properly worked with a producer [Roni Szpakowski] and it’s awkward getting used
to someone outside of the band when we have been playing those songs for such a
long time.
M- My bottom lip starts coming out when
he tells me to change things and I throw a little paddy every time [laughing].
E- We were really happy with how it
turned out though, and the general response is that everyone’s really enjoyed
it and we’re working with the same producer again. We actually played at his
wedding as well!
He must really like you
then?!
E- Apparently when he was mixing the EP
his wife heard and was like “this sounds really good, who are they can they
play at the wedding?” So we did! So we’ve got to know him quite well and have a
good working relationship.
How do you go about
writing your material? Is it a group effort or…?
C- The fact that everyone’s been busy
away at uni we haven’t all been together for every song. I was doing music
technology so knew what I was doing with some software. But it’s like, I’ll
write the basis of it, but then we’ll bring it together and bring our own
little bits and work on it.
M- It seems to work and I think that because
we all have time now everyone will write their own thing and bring it together;
but you need something there to start with.
E- It will be interesting when our
bassist comes back from America
and how he slots in, because he’s very good and got a good music head. So I
think it can only get better from here.
What do you have
planned for the next year?
E- Now we’re all free [from uni] we can
concentrate on writing; I’m not going to rush to get a job, a Volvo and a
mortgage [laughing]. So yeah, just a lot of writing, hopefully a UK tour, a lot more gigs, a lot more new songs
and a lot more Glass
Caves ! I’m excited!
And here’s what
happened when The Glass
Caves took to the stage…
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The Glass Caves at Leeds Cockpit |
Having just graduated from university, the boys are throwing
themselves into their first battle of the bands, and the stakes couldn’t be
higher; a slot on the Leeds and Reading
Festival line up. The packed out Cockpit, majority of which are joining in with
the songs, proves The Glass Caves already have a strong following. Their blend
of harmonious indie rock has already been compared to the likes of Fleet Foxes
and White Lies, but The Glass Caves aren’t a band that can be pigeon holed into
one category. The more mellow and percussive beginnings of “Crystal Black” makes
way for a building finale which soars through the Cockpit. The more melodic
“Ditty Do” is contrasted with “I Knew It” which is ambitious in its pulled back
verses and electric chorus, showing off lead singer Matt’s raw and gritty vocals
tinged with a soulfulness. No detail has been forgotten, from the complex
percussive sounds, the elaborate guitar riffs to the multi-layered impressive
vocal harmonies.
A confident performance by The Glass Caves this evening;
they successfully hold the audiences attention, even with the strong four band
bill. Stand out tracks are “Match” with its laid back drums and intricate
guitar riff introduction leading to smooth and catchy chorus, and undoubtedly
crowd favourite “Eboracum”. The single and title EP track is effortlessly soulful
and the chorus is infectious, and the band’s full and mature sound immediately
captivates the entire venue. Whatever the outcome of the Futuresound
competition it is certain that The Glass Caves are a band to watch out for. You
heard it here first!
Stay tuned to Est.1987
where we will bring you all the latest Futuresound news when the winners are
announced!
For more on The Glass Caves-
http://www.facebook.com/theglasscaves and to get your hands on the E.P "Eboracum" click HERE