It’s always been our belief that a band is only as strong as their fan base, something that rings all too true in the case of Southend-on-Sea’s Youth Club.
Blending quintessential indie-pop vibes with surging tropical beats, this low-key British 4-piece has hit upon a winning formula. Following a rapid rise to fame, thanks in part to big-wigs including BBC 6 Music’s Tom Robinson, Radio 1 and MTV Rocks, these cheeky chaps remain true to both their fans and their roots. Fighting our way through an army of sunglasses-clad followers (looking better suited to a Barbados beach party than a London side-street on a cold winter’s evening), One Stop Record Shop managed to drop in for a quick pre-show Q&A ahead of their recent London show.
Hey guys, thanks for taking the time to chat with us!
All: All good, no worries!
We’ve got to say, your latest tracks “Pressure” / “DTLA” felt a lot dancier than songs from your previous EP. How would you describe the transformation?
Joe: Whenever we write songs, we always experiment and take different approaches to production – it’s not always from the same angle. Sometimes Joe and I start something on the guitar and then Reece might pop some cool drum samples in and some loops. We start songs from there and a lot have progressed gradually as the weeks go by. A lot of different influences get involved, so there ends up being a variety of styles.
Gerrard: I think with pressure as well, we tried to change it up a little bit.
Joe: Yeah, we were really split on which songs we were going to put out. That’s what made it such a good release – we thought we might as well just do a double A-side. It made sense because they’re quite far apart and yet they fit together. It’s kinda jungly with “DTLA”. For “Pressure”, Dan really started the majority of that song, so there was this steel drum kind of vibe.
Danny: “DTLA” was more connected to the previous release, and “Pressure” was…
Gerrrard: …our ugly duckling…
Danny: (laughs) Yeah! But they kind of fit together so it was like, “sweet!”. We wanted it to sound really tropical.
Joe: Yeah, the percussion in it and the drums were really different – almost Friendly Fires-esque.
It’s a great blend for sure and something that seems to work well for live shows. Do you prefer playing live or are you very much a studio-based band?
Joe: I hate those bands where they don’t sound good on record but they don’t sound good live either. Or they don’t sound anything like the record and they sound amazing live. We’ve got a really good happy medium between the two, where certain bits are really tight but other elements let loose.
Gerrard: I feel like we definitely prefer playing live though.
Danny: I think different musicians get different joy out of doing different things. I think the adrenaline you get playing live is amazing – yet the joy you get writing is a very different process. It’s a bit more personal.
You guys have been doing a lot of touring of late, what would you say was the weirdest thing to happen on tour?
Gerrard: Go on, tell ‘em the story joe…
Joe: Really?
Danny: Oh god, can we say that story?!
Joe: It’s just about a pen…
Sounds interesting?
Joe: No, I’ll pick one from this tour – you don’t want to hear a boring pen story…
Oh, but I think we do. It doesn’t sound too boring judging from your reactions?
Joe: Nah, we had a really bad day off on this tour that didn’t go to plan – we had to rebook hotels and ended up being miles away from the town we were meant to be in. Two of us ended up going out and having a crazy night in this small town called Ashby.
Danny: Don’t tell the girlfriends
Gerard: Nah, I didn’t really – stayed in all night *pulls awkward face*.
Joe: They made the most of it and we thought they’d have a pants night but Ashby was amazing – it’s this rural town near Derby.
Danny: And I got picked up by one of our fans…
That’s the benefit of a loyal fan base y’know.
Danny: Yeah, Yeah. I had both of my guitars with me, I’m in the middle of the motorway and I was half way up the country. I put a tweet out, ‘bit of a longshot but I’m stuck…’ and this woman we know – who’s a big fan of the band – replied instantly telling me not to worry, I’m coming to rescue you! It was odd because I’d never met the woman face to face but I’m still grateful. I just sat there thinking, ‘I actually don’t know who’s coming to pick me up right now…’
Gerrard – “New bands have the tools nowadays without spending the money. You can get your music out there…”
You’re lucky she had good intentions. You hear horror stories where it doesn’t always go so smoothly..
Danny: Ha! Yeah. The boys were like, ‘You’re in trouble now!’
Gerrard: We have nice fans so it’s good.
Looking back on things and knowing what you know now, what advice would you give yourselves on progressing in the industry?
Joe: That’s always a good one because there’s loads.
Rees: I think we’d have distributed the money a different way.
Danny: What makes it hard is there’s no right or wrong way of doing things. It’s a cliché but you do live and learn. I think we’re all quite proud of the way we’ve run the band from the start – especially in the early days where it was really independent. One thing we assumed from the start – and still remains true – is the relevance of social media and using that to the best of your advantage, whether you have money or not. Building a solid fan base and connecting with those people is important.
Gerrard: New bands have the tools nowadays without spending the money. You can get your music out there and there are major platforms – from social media and BBC Introducing to the radio aspects of it. Those things are there to help you. Get your music out on Spotify – because at the end of the day, people don’t find music like they used to. Bands like The Beatles can’t just blow up. You don’t have the, ‘Oh, did you hear that band?” “No, I’ll go and see them next week,’ thing. You’ve got to connect and that’s how it builds.
Danny: Another thing we’ve discussed is that whenever we’ve gone to put a release out, we worry that things aren’t ready and things aren’t good enough – it’s far too easy to be your own worst critic. It’s about letting go of that which is hard. Not everything is in your control.
Gerrard: The fans know best. They want the music and they’re the ones buying the tickets and coming to see us. They tell you if they like it. Not every song is going to be their favourite, but if you worry about it you’ll never release the music.
Do you feel you have to compromise ever in order to get music out in a certain time frame?
Joe: I wouldn’t say theres a compromise, we just have to set ourselves a little time limit or a target – it has to be done by then or at the end of this week.
Gerrard: We’ll never let anything out we think is shit because of timing issues. But at the same time, you’ve got to put it out and see what they think.
We like to promote new bands. If there are three bands you could give a little push, who do we need to look out for?
Joe: From the tours that we’ve done? I’d say the boys on today are called FACE. They’re just starting out. They’re doing some great things. Another band called Haus. They‘re on the same management – we had them on the last tour and they’re picking up.
You like one-syllable bands don’t you?
*laugh*
Joe: Oh, and another band called Courts – who have joined our management. They’re local to us and their music is formidable. They‘re wicked and we’ve watched them grow.
Ah, Southend lads?
Danny: Yeah, yeah.
If you could take us on a night out in Southend, where would you take us?
Rees: Erm… I’d take you to Adventure Island.
Gerrard: Good shout!
Rees: It’s a fairground on the Seafront.
Gerrard: Casino. We’d have a little gamble down the Casino.
Danny: I’d take you to a restaurant called Mangetout. They do delicious cocktails and meat. Lots and lots of meat.
Rees: Dan’s on commission.
Joe: The last place we’ll take you is Chinnery’s. To watch Youth Club preform on their home turf with Get Cape, Wear Cape, Fly – obviously.
If you had three items to sum up the band, what would you chose?
Gerrard: Easy. Boombox, palm tree and a set of sunglasses.
Have you read these questions already?
Danny: Oh, and a snapback.
Gerrard: I’d rather go with the sunglasses.
Rees: He’d rather sit under the palm tree with your shades on.
Danny: He’s gonna come on stage with no snapback. Just shades and a Boombox.
You can now go and win some far-flung pub quiz with your encyclopaedic knowledge of Youth Club. Either that or maybe check them out on our ‘Artists To Watch For 2017” list and catch them live on 22nd February at Camden Assembly Rooms, London.
