Nieviem: Skate Punks and the Human Condition.

Courtesy of Nieviem.

Based in Lincoln, skate punks Nieviem (their name comes from the Polish for ‘I don’t know’-Nie Wiem) started in April 2016 when three Polish musicians Bart Stanczyk (guitarist/songwriter), Tomek Tyrlik (drummer) and Kuba Piatkowski (bass guitar) met vocalist/lyric writer Vicky McClelland and starting working together. Within a couple of months they had written five songs and released a four track EP that Autumn. Subsequently Vicky left the band due to ill health in May '17 and her place was taken by Hope Bateman. Hardly pausing to catch their collective breath Nieviem released Live at Equinox Festival 2017 in September and then the excellent seven track EP/album The Hope is There and single ‘Fick’ in November. In February 2018 The Punk Lounge launched its monthly compilations and Nieviem appeared on the inaugural volume with the track ‘Disappointed’. Being really impressed by The Hope is There and wanting to know more about Nieviem I got to ask Bart and Hope a few questions about the band’s past, present and future.  

Nieviem formed in April 2016 and by October you had a 4 track eponymous EP out! Had you been hiding great songs away to unleash on the world or was it the right combination of people and it all just flowed?
Bart: I think it was right combination of people and massive excitement. We started writing straight away in April 2016 and recorded 5 songs three months later in July. By the end of 2016 we had 9 songs ready for 30 mins slot.

Were any of the guys in bands together in Poland before forming Nieviem? Or did you meet up in the UK?
Bart: We all met up in the UK. I used to work with Tomek, we spoke by chance about playing music and we decided to have a go after a while. We both used to play drums but I went for a guitar in the end. This is how it started, I may be wrong but it was sometime in 2010. We used to play plenty of punk covers before Kuba (2014) and Vicky (2016) joined in. Previously I played drums in a crust punk band in Poland in '90s.

Have you been in bands before Nieviem at all, Hope?
Hope: Yes, I’ve been in a couple, but my current projects are the ones that I’ve taken the most seriously and put all of my effort and dedication into. Before Nieviem and Hellter-Skellter [my other band] I was mostly performing covers or just helping other people bring their songs to life with very little of my own creative input.

How would you describe your sound? At times it reminds me a bit of Rise Against.
Bart: Hahaha that's a nice compliment, thank you. I think our music is more simple than Rise Against though. I was growing up in '90s in Poland, so I think you can hear the sound of Polish bands such as Post Regiment, Apatia, 1125 or Dezerter but if I would have to describe it, I would say it's mixture of Polish band Post Regiment and Pennywise the most.
Hope: Since I took much inspiration from them, I’m going to say our style is quite like Bad Religion. I’m not sure I can quite hear the Rise Against sound in our music as you describe, but I might take that thought on board for the next original we make.

Have there been any bands that have really inspired you?
Bart: I've been listening to punk music since I remember, probably I was 10-12 years old when it began. There is plenty of bands I take my inspiration from. I come back to Polish bands from '90s very often, so definitely Post Regiment, Apatia, 1125, Schizma, Alians, Włochaty, Guernica Y Luno, Homomilitia. Also I'm massive fan of skate punk, so my huge inspiration for Nieviem always are Pennywise, Millencolin, BigWig, 88 Fingers Louie, Vision, Mute, Rise Against but also some old school HC bands such as Biohazard, Madball, Downset, Shoutdown, Battery, Intensity and also I listen to some crust, d-beat bands such as Nausea, Disaffect, Resist, Disorder. I really like our local Wolfbeast Destroyer or Grand Collapse but I still listen to Bolshy quite often which is completely different genre of punk. It's hard to say which of these bands are my main inspiration..........I think all of them inspire me mixing in my head constantly giving the sound of Nieviem in the end.
Hope: I personally have a variety of influences ranging from softer mainstream genres up to heavy metal. For Nieviem though, I decided to immerse myself in melodic punk upon becoming a permanent member of this band and through gigging, I couldn’t help but get into other genres of punk from more low key bands. I think in my most recent piece of writing with this band, I felt massively inspired by The Sporadics’ ‘Fight Truth Decay’ album.

Photo by Carl Gac Photography supplied by Nieviem.

Your original lead singer, Vicky McClelland, left after about a year due to ill health (hope she is doing OK). How did Hope join the band, did you know each other before you/she joined?
Bart: Vicky is getting better slowly but it is a long process and she has to wait for the right treatment. We didn't know Hope before she joined Nieviem. I just asked one of my friends in another band if their singer could fill in for a while, but she couldn't and he recommended Hope, which was a great choice.
Hope: I joined the band through a contact of mine at the college I currently attend [Access To Music Lincoln]. Initially, I was just going to be a fill in temporarily to give the original singer a break, but it just so happened that Vicky decided to leave instead, so since I knew a fair amount of the material, the guys decided to keep me. I never really knew Vicky, but we have spoken a couple of times on Facebook after one of the earlier gigs I did with Nieviem. We had some pleasant conversations though.

Has there been an effect lyrically? Is there a change of style in the newer songs on your latest EP The Hope Is There?
Bart: When Vicky left, she reserved the rights to some of the lyrics as those were too personal to her. There is only three songs with original lyrics written by Vicky,  ‘Everybody's Home’, ‘Feathers’ and ‘Thousand People’. ‘Thousand People’ is based on our conversation about social ignorance in real life. We had a long conversation about it and she wrote this lyrics straight after it. The other lyrics on this EP/album are still personal though, I think.
Hope: Currently, my writing is a bit less political than “Everybody’s Home” and my style is to not quite directly refer to my own emotions when writing about certain experiences I’ve had in my life. So whereas Vicky would express her story referring to oneself, I think I beat around the bush a little more and am more hesitant to open up like that. ‘Fick’ is just me having a rant about someone who used to be in my life and whose friendship was extremely toxic to me and
‘Indifferent’ is about being literally that, and whilst it shows that it is about me to a certain extent, I wouldn’t say there’s much to open up about there either. I think I like to save the emotions for ballads.

I was interested in the lyrics to 'Everybody's Home', could you tell us more about the song, was it a response to anything in particular or to media encouraged xenophobia in general?
Bart: It was written a week after Brexit referendum and it was Vicky's/ours answer to result of it. This is what this song is about.
Hope: Although the lyrics weren’t written by myself, I am very interested in the whole idea of post-truth and the views expressed in the song I feel are spot on.

Could you talk us through the tracks on The Hope Is There what sort of subjects do the songs deal with?
Hope:  1. ‘Indifferent’ Indifference. As you grow, you learn that sometimes it’s best not to bother getting worked up about other people’s problems or even your own because it just isn’t worth the stress or your time. Over the past few years, I’ve learned to control my emotions and get my priorities right. I guess I thought I should write a song about my progress really and about the person I am now.

2. ‘Everybody’s Home’ Immigration. Often a taboo subject, particularly around those who are less informed on the subject. Also there’s a fair amount about the post-truth world we live in where no one really appears to know what is going on in our world politically. Basically it’s about belief over the facts to try and put it in a nutshell.
3. ‘Feathers’ Reliance and being drained from some sort of relationship and/or emotion. Of course, I can’t be entirely sure since the lyrics aren’t mine. I remember when I first gave the songs from the first EP a listen as I was preparing to fill in, this one was my favourite.
4. ‘Thousand People’ Disconnection. How the human race have become distanced from reality because of social media and are generally quite afraid to interact physically/verbally because we constantly hide behind this digital wall. This is my interpretation anyway.
5. ‘Fick’ Toxicity. It’s about friendships in which you feel you’re the one putting in all the effort but you come to this realization that the person you’re trying to help is too busy wallowing in their own pity to want to help themselves.
6. ‘Forget Me Not’ Being awesome, or, becoming awesome. I used to drain myself of emotion by putting it all towards people that never appreciated it. ‘Forget Me Not’ is about you putting in that effort, the effort not being appreciated by that person whilst you’re still around, but then they realize what a massive impact you had on them upon walking away from it all and leaving them behind.
7. ‘Disappointed’ I guess this is about being treated poorly by a love interest. We managed to end up on a Valentine’s compilation with this one which may be somewhat amusing.

Photo by Carl Gac Photography supplied by Nieviem.

You also appeared on the Lincolnshire Punk Compilation Vol.1 which came out in 2017-how did that come about? I'm guessing from the release that there must be a thriving Punk scene in Lincoln(shire)!? I think Truth Equals Treason and Mothcob are from that area aren't they?
Bart: This compilation was released by myself actually haha. I just had an idea to put all local bands on CD and promote our local music and punk scene in Lincoln. Definitely Mothcob is very active band, Truth Equals Treason too. There are still a few other bands in Lincoln such as Throatpunch - HC/powerviolence, Suburban Toys - ska/garage punk and a few new ones which will appear on Volume 2. The release date is planned for March/April so keep your eyes and ears peeled. All I can say, It's gonna be one bonus song by a punk band not from Lincolnshire this time.
Hope: Yes, they are! I think some areas in Lincolnshire are more rich in punk compared to Lincoln and it’s up to people to travel about a little and explore to dig up those gems. I wasn’t really around when the idea of the compilation came about, but I would say its aim is to encourage the expansion of the punk scene and draw new fans in.

Hope, a lot of female musicians experience a degree of sexism-how has your experience been in the DIY punk scene?
Hope: I haven’t experienced anything in relation to this subject actually. I have always fronted bands in which the rest of the member are male though. Perhaps it’s because I haven’t quite put myself out there for real yet that sexism hasn’t occurred. Also, I get a lot of encouragement, especially when after our set when gigging for events, I’ll join the mosh pit and really immerse myself in the fun.

What plans do you have for 2018?
Bart: Plans hmmmmm........OK this is first time we say officially we will be looking for a new drummer. Tomek is moving back to Poland sometimes this year. There is no fixed date, but we will need someone to take his place. We will still play our shows, we still write new songs but I think this is the main task for now. As soon as we'll find the right person there are songs to record and few good events to play including Equinox Festival 2018 and obviously writing and playing as much as we can.
Hope:  Creating original material always! Music is my life and in Nieviem, I really do enjoy writing lyrics and creating melodies… Hopefully I’ll be gigging more in both of my bands and putting some new material out there [foremostly an EP with my other band, so eyes and ears peeled for that please!]

What contemporary bands have you been enjoying lately? Have you read any good books you'd like to put us on to?
Bart: I discover some new and old bands constantly. I really like to listen local bands but lately I've been listening a lot to Bolshy from Liverpool. I know it's not skate punk but this band is awesome and Molly has amazing voice too. Between this I was listening to my usual bands I mentioned about previously. I don't really have much time for reading but I read Heavier Than Heaven, the biography of Kurt Cobain's at the moment. It's quite an old book but The 27 Club musician were always interesting to me.
Also I would like to say thank you very much to all  the kind people we've met, thank you for your support and help. It means a lot to us and it keeps us going. Thanks to all of you who have read this interview till the end and found it interesting! See you at the gigs!

Eagle Spits/Punk 4 The Homeless.

P4TH Poster Feb 2018.

Eagle Spits is probably not his birth name but it does seem to suit a character who 40 years after his initial involvement in punk is still going strong- still angry, hopeful, humorous, militating for change. Seeing The Stranglers on TOTP performing ‘No More Heroes’ at 14 was Eagle’s introduction to punk but he’s never settled for a punk culture of fast music and studded leather jackets, he hung round with The Clash at a gig in Peterborough, got ‘Feeding of the 5000’ by Crass discovered anarchism, became acquainted with the ‘Agitator from Nazareth’, and decided that changing the world was a much better option than giving up on it. And for Eagle that involves punk, in 2014 he commented ‘...’Yes’ I am a punk if punk is an attitude but ‘No’ if it’s someone who just consumes generic, unchallenging crap.. I’m still naive enough to want to change the world and despite its problems believe the punk scene can be a major part of that’ (1).

Eagle quotes one of his heroes Joe Strummer as saying “I thought we were a fucking punk band. I thought that meant we could play what we wanted!’ (1) Eagle has followed the same path artistically- a book of poetry Slap Bang In The Middle of a Contradiction, The Poor Geezers, Spitune, Eaglespitshexx have given expression to spoken word, industrial noise, collaborative cacophonies.

But all Eagle’s hyperactivity and output is with a purpose, with an aim; He wants to wake people up, he wants his art to be an alarm call! In the Old Testament there were prophets who railed against the injustice and inequality of their time. Often ignored and misunderstood these figures challenged the powerful, spoke up for the weak, and were occasionally confrontational- Eagle does his best with the first two and is probably better than most at the last!

But he hasn’t just made lots of noise he also runs ‘Punk 4 The Homeless’ putting on gigs each month, raising money to take kids off the streets of Central America and into the safety of orphanages away from the hands and feet of local cops.

Punk 4 The Homeless has been running since January 2010 mostly through a monthly Punk (Benefit) Gig in Nottingham. The monies raised are channeled through Compass Children’s Charity which started as Casa Alianza UK in February 1999 to raise funds for programmes in Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.

Casa Alianza was founded in response to the senseless death of one child – 13-year-old Nahamán Carmona López – a street child kicked to death in Guatemala City by four police officers who found him sniffing glue on the streets to combat his wracking hunger pains (2). This incident lies behind the P4TH slogan, ‘Stopping Cops Killing Kids Is Punk Rock’. Last year P4TH put out a call for solidarity gigs which resulted in Norwich, London, Stoke and Bradford hosting P4TH events. This January was the 8th birthday of P4TH and to mark the occasion they released the first volume of Punk 4 the Homeless Compilations featuring bands who have played gigs from the early days, with further volumes planned.

With all this going on and P4TH continuing it’s good work I asked Eagle to explain a bit more about the experience of running P4TH.

Why did you decide to set up P4TH-was there a specific reason and time when you decided to go for it or did the idea gradually evolve?

I know this might sound a bit odd to some people but I had a real feeling that this was what God wanted me to do in September 2009. Our first gig was in January 2010. I had done gigs for homeless causes several times in the preceding years. I have been promoting gigs since the mid 1980's. I was briefly in a homeless hostel myself in 2009 and also helped out at a night shelter and soup kitchen run by a Methodist Church in Boston. Several years earlier my step son had volunteered to work with street kids in Guatemala, which led to me having a relationship with Compass Children's Charity ( formerly Casa Alianza UK). When I decided to set up Punk 4 The Homeless I messaged several homeless charities to see if they wanted any money. It was only Compass who replied. Possibly because I already had a relationship with them, but also possibly because the others didn't want to work with some dirty smelly punk rockers! We have been working closely with Compass Children's Charity ever since but also support a homelessness initiative in Ashton Under lyne , support local homeless projects, did a gig to support survivors of the Tsunami and supported groups in Indonesia. Through this we have also developed a close relationship with the Indonesian Punk community.

Has the work being done in Central America by Compass Children’s Charity changed over time?

The work of Compass Children's Charity is continually changing and evolving in response to need. It mainly centres around street work, engaging with children. Getting children off the streets into orphanages, getting them into education and giving them a future. There are also specialist projects such as a scheme teaching girls to weld in Mexico to avoid going into prostitution, which is often the only alternative. Compass also provide legal support when children are abused and are involved in stopping trafficking. Their teams also do pretty well in the Street Children's World Cup.

What was it like in the early days of P4TH, explaining the idea, organising gigs-was there a good response to the idea of a regular benefit gig?

Starting P4TH was hard work initially, because, in the good old Peter and The Test Tubes tradition, I was banned from the pubs and had to use the hall in a big old Methodist Church as a venue.  People had to drink outside because there wasn’t a bar. We had strong support from a small amount of people, and as often is the case in the Punk community, people were exceptionally generous. A couple more promoters in different cities came on board. Zine writers were keen to promote what we were doing. A local Radio Station got us on board to do a P4TH radio show. It was hard work to get established. I was working around 17 hours a day promoting what we were doing. But, I was on a mission and was slowly chipping away. We have made progress over the years. In the early gigs we made a maximum of about £30 per gig, but when taken into perspective it costs 12p to feed a child in Guatemala City, so we had a huge impact. It was the suggestion of the bands that we didn’t pay expenses, otherwise we would have gone under pretty quickly. We still pay no expenses, however, right from the start we encouraged people to put on gigs to raise money for street children. Our name has been used at several gigs, including one in America in 2017

You seem to have a ‘home’ in The Sumac Centre, Nottingham, do most of the bands who play come from the immediate area?

We have been at The Sumac Centre for 3 years now. Bands come from all over, including outside of the UK to play for us. Our P4TH man in London, Alex Lyng, is expanding our gigs in London. We have a couple of gigs booked already this year. Most years we do collaborations up and down the country with different promoters. This year we are running a P4TH fringe festival in conjunction with Nottingham Green Festival on Sunday 16th September 2018 .

What advice would you give to anyone thinking of putting on a gig? Is there an order of priorities, e.g. venue first, that you’ve found works?

Always find a venue first. Expect things to go wrong; bands to pull out etc. Trust no one else to do anything, ask advice, only drink towards the end of a gig and keep a sense of humour.

You’ve just put out a P4TH Compilation, can you tell us a bit more about the thinking behind that?

In 2010 Stoneage Records bought out a download compilation of Indonesian and western bands to promote our cause. This is still up for free download. Then we came on board with Independent Creative Movement to bring out a massive download for the survivors of the Japanese Tsunami. A couple of years ago we did our own massive download compilation. Since then several people have asked for a hard copy of the download compilation. P4TH Volume 1 is the result and is available through Band Camp and at gigs. We plan to bring out a 3 monthly compilation and are in the initial stages of thinking of setting up a record label.

If somebody wanted to get involved what would be the best way to help?

We always need help. If anyone lives near to Nottingham we need physical help at our monthly gig/stall . Anyone can put gigs on for us and just need to get in touch. As there are 100,000,000 street children in the World there will always be a need ;( Keep it real and Do Not Support Charities that pay exorbitant wages to CEO's.) If anyone wants to get involved drop us a line on FB .

Looking back over 8 years what are the things that stand out for you?

We have made so many friends throughout. We have a massive Punk Rock family. When me and Rachel met and married in 2012 we donated money to street children instead of getting a new toaster! The street children in Nicaragua painted a painting for us. Each gig is unique and a good night out .

What is 2018 looking like, any new ideas/involvements in the pipeline?

Well in addition to the things I’ve already mentioned there is P4TH Fringe Festival,in conjunction with Nottingham Green Festival, Sunday September 16th, The Arboretum, Nottingham. More compilation albums and some surprises no doubt.

You must have your ear to the ground-what bands should we be checking out?

Too big a question to answer. Check out our compilation albums. Anyone who performs in the underground is awesome. Nobody ever made a monument to a critic!

Photo by Rachel Eagling.

Thanks for the interview. Much love

P4TH Team

(1)http://musicculturevision.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/eagle-spits-in-response-to-questions.html

(2) http://compasschildrenscharity.org.uk/about-us/

Track Not Found: Your New Favourite Band?

Photo by Chrissie Johns.

It’s not often I get excited messages from E&D telling me to check out a band so when it happens it’s worth taking seriously! The band in question was Track Not Found and the advice to check them out was sound, as you’d expect! Track Not Found, who are based in Guernsey, have only been going since 2016 but in late 2017 released an EP The Only Way Is Lost, which is three tracks of intense, masterful rock that is dramatic and visceral, without ever being overblown, and draws on a wide range of musical resources without ever sounding derivative. The EP starts gently enough with the intro to ‘Code Red’ before the song metamorphosizes into a full on metal tinged rocker with a vocal that borders on harrowing at times! There is a nice change of texture for both ‘Saint Tears’ (which includes a really nice guitar break) and ‘Ecstasy’ giving the impression that a Track Not Found album would be a very good thing indeed! Great debut EP! In fact so impressive an interview seemed like a good idea and I contacted Emma Thomas (drums and vocals), Grace Taylor (guitar and vocals) and Maisie Bisson (bass and vocals) to find out a bit more about Track Not Found.      

Can you tell us a bit about Track Not Found, you've been going since early 2016, I think. How did you get together? Had any of you been in previous bands?
We found each other at an under 18s live music event (sound.gg) in February 2016. Emma was playing with her old band The Bone Idols (who don't exist anymore, after Emma quit to join <track not found>) and we quickly bonded over a shared music taste. A couple of months later we started rehearsing in Emma's living room with the drum kit and amps in the corner.
We're all school kids in years 11 and 12 and we're definitely the 'kool kids' (aha not really, at school no one really talks about the band). Being young we used to struggle getting adult gigs but we're slowly trying to bridge the gap between adults and teens in music.

and then within two years you put out the ridiculously good 3 track EP The Only Way Is Lost! It's had really positive responses, including from an E&D Editor who put me on to you! How did your sound come about, did you have an idea of what you wanted to do from the start or did it gradually emerge?
Thanks we're glad you enjoy it! We never made a conscious decision on what genre we were going to be, the original plan was just to play songs that we liked and were fun to play. In fact the first cover we were going to learn was 'Sunshine of Your Love' by Cream, although the first that actually stuck was 'Little Monster' by Royal Blood. We have now dropped all covers apart from 'Bath Salts' by Highly Suspect but are considering relearning 'Little Monster' for the memories. Writing originals really helped us develop our style more and get our sound to a place that we are happy with, so our music really has been formed gradually and changes slightly with every gig we do.

How would you describe your sound-people seem to be struggling to put a label on you!?
To be honest, we also struggle to put a name to it... It's a bit of everything really; grungy, screamo, rock, blues, and some other stuff.

Who would you admit to as influences? Bizarrely the intro to 'Code Red' reminded me of early Genesis!!
We have been asked about this so many times and each time the list of influences just gets longer, mainly we just draw influence from our favourite bands. The list goes a bit like this; Jack White, Placebo, Muse, Royal Blood, Dresden Dolls, Ghost, Highly Suspect, Nirvana, David Bowie, Bat For Lashes, Stitched up Heart and a great band from Guernsey called Static Alice. Surprisingly people often compare us to bands that we haven't listen to much, so we may have been influenced by some other bands subconsciously.

Who would you not admit to being influenced by!
Hmmm, we'd probably not be that quick to say that we take influence from My Chemical Romance (we are all true emos at heart), Die Antwoord and 'Toxic' by Brittany Spears. We are the first to say that our music tastes are all over the place but what's the point in restricting yourself when there is so much great music out there. If you wanna have a look at more of our influences that we aren't as open about take a look at our playlist on spotify - (https://open.spotify.com/user/finding_the_tracks/playlist/28uBGVkanJA2w6dbMdRfGb)

I noticed that you've already played about 20 gigs in just 18 months- has that been mostly on Guernsey or further afield as well? What is the music scene like in Guernsey?
So far we've only ever played in Guernsey with our first gig off island in Jersey on the 17th of February. But this hasn't stopped us from loving the gigs we've done. The Guernsey music scene is so great, everyone knows everyone and it is such a friendly supportive environment. We have found some of our tightest friends through the music scene and have met so many amazing people at gigs. Despite most gigs being strictly over 18 there is a monthly under 18s live music night put on by Sound Guernsey that has given us great gigs and opportunities. However, our best memories are from the festivals and the summers that we've spent together. Chaos festival last year was a massive turning point for the band when we felt really passionate about music and the scene. The one downside about being a part of the scene over here is how hard it is to play gigs in the UK and get your name out there, it's a real shame because there are so many great bands that are stuck on our little rock. Other than that, we love being part of the community over here and have always felt supported and at home.

How does a song come about in Track Not Found? Is it very collaborative or is there one main songwriter? Does it start with music or lyrics?
All of the above really, usually Grace writes something on her acoustic guitar and shows it to the band, we start working on it and from there it becomes a finished song. Usually it starts with a riff but sometimes with lyrics, but then again some songs have just come from messing about and band practice (these tend to be heavier and slightly looser). We all have an important part in shaping how our songs sound and we really enjoy the song writing process.

and what sort of things do you draw on in songwriting and performance? Books, films, personal experience?
Our stage style acts as a big part of our performance - visually we're inspired by tank girl and riot grrrl styles, as well as inspiration taken from Instagram, people like Casper Blaise, we buy a lot of our clothes from charity shops. Musically we mainly draw on pieces of art and personal experience as well as some messages that we want to express to our audience.

Could you talk us through 'Code Red', 'Ecstasy' and 'Saint Tears'- what sort of subject matter are you exploring in the different tracks?
For this question it's probably best to hand over to Grace as all three songs on the EP started off with Grace and her acoustic guitar. So in Grace's words;
'Saint Tears' is told in third person like a story or concept that I thought of. Basically it's just because we wanted a really 'nice' song, the main message in it is 'I don't care what anyone thinks'.
'Code Red' is all emotions, I was 'in a dark place' when I wrote this one and it means a lot to the band.
'Ecstasy' was written in 2016, the breakdown was kinda dubstep inspired. The subject matter of Ecstasy isn't much, just edgy lyrics, I can't really remember what I was thinking when I wrote it.

How can people get to hear and get hold of your EP?
You can listen to the EP on Spotify, Bandcamp, Soundcloud, Youtube, Amazon and ITunes soon or you can buy a physical copy on our websitewww.tracknotfound.com and we'll send it through the post. :)

What bands and books have you been enjoying lately, any favourite writers?    
We are always listening to different bands but to list a couple that are at the top of our playlists at the moment: Mother Mother, Kate Bush, Meds by Placebo and the new music that Jack White is putting out. We are also listening to a fair bit of popular 70s rock and disco (especially the legendary Bee Gees) to help us get through the winter. Book wise Maisie reads the most, at the moment she is working her way through the Scott Pilgrim graphic novels and won't shut up about them!

What are your plans for 2018? Any more releases planned, and perhaps most importantly when can we all get  to see you live!?
We are very excited for 2018 and have big plans for later this year, including a full length album, many more (perhaps more experimental) songs, developing our stage presence and look more, and plenty of gigs. Probably the most exciting plan for this year is our two and a bit weeks that we will spend in summer touring England! So far we have a couple of dates confirmed including one night at The Finsbury in London. For more information about where you can see us have a look at our website, Facebook and Twitter where we'll update you on where and when we have gigs.



Bibliography.
Hadad, K. (2018) Track Not Found-'The Only Way Is Lost (Grunge/Riot Grrrl/Punk/ Metal)' at Record Crates United.
https://recordcratesunited.com/2018/01/24/track-not-found-the-only-way-is-lost-grunge-riot-grrl-punk-metal/

Kemakil: Thrash Metal with a 'raw punk edge'!

Photo courtesy of Kemakil.

Suffolk based thrash metallers Kemakil have been going in a form that is recognisable today since 2007 when Rob Durrant and Chris Stockdale recorded material that later became the demo Gondolas Of The Styx. Fast forward to 2018 and Kemakil, via various personnel changes, has settled into Rob (guitar and vocals), Aaron Boast (drums), Sue Clark (vocals) and Tim Franklin (bass). In those 11 years the band has released an eponymous album and three EPs, the last being The Leaving in 2016. How do I know any of this? Because while co-organising a Punk 4 The Homeless benefit gig in Norwich a friend came into contact with Aaron, conversations ensued and then Kemakil offered to play the gig for us! I have to admit my initial response was "Err, I...hmm is this going to work?" But after checking out the videos to 'Liquidators' and 'Brain Rot' we realised we had just been offered something really quite special and quickly grabbed them before there was any chance of them changing their minds! Good decision! They put in a stunning set of pounding, driven, riff based politically tinged thrash that the crowd loved and that fitted in very nicely alongside the metal punk of Radioactive Rats and Meinhof. After the gig I chatted with Rob about the possibility of an interview and here it is!
Could you give us a quick history of Kemakil? On your Facebook page it seems to imply that the origins of the band lie in the dim and distant past!! But that there is a sense of continuity since 2007?
Rob:I started the band way back in 1988 with the intention of it sounding like the Thrash Metal bands of the San Franciscan 'Bay Area' scene like Exodus, Testament and Vio-lence. We played a number of local gigs in Suffolk before breaking up in 1990. In 2007, the emergence of myspace spurred me on to get Kemakil going again. I made some recordings at home and my brother-in-law Chris put in some solos. We put these tracks onto myspace and found Aaron, our great drummer! In 2008 we played our first gig in London and have played many shows since. We have an album and three EPs to our name and after a couple of line up changes I decided to concentrate on the guitar and hand over vocals duties to Sue.
Has the line up stayed pretty constant since then?
Since 2015 we’ve been Sue Clark (vocals), Rob Durrant (guitar, vocals), Tim Franklin (bass), Aaron Boast (drums). We are as solid as a rock and all get on very well.
Have any of you played together in other bands before, do any of you play in other bands as well as Kemakil?
Sue, Tim and Aaron have all played together in a band called Fallen Humanity. Aaron is currently playing in four bands! (He is a drummer and they are like gold dust! Haha)
How would you describe Kemakil's sound?
Old school Thrash Metal mixed with a strong element of D-Beat and Voivod.
I think Sue joined in 2015 as vocalist, does having a new voice and delivery of lyrics have a knock on effect on other aspects of the music?
I think Sue gives us a really raw punk edge. We have all played in Hardcore bands and those roots are coming back to the fore, she makes us sound very 'in your face'!
Sue, how is Thrash and female musicians, have you experienced much sexism or is it better than most other areas of society?
Sue: I have found the genre and scene genuinely less sexist than other aspects of life. Although the majority of bands are male, there doesn’t seem to be much issue accepting female musicians. It’s all about the music,not what’s in ya pants! I’ve heard the occasional comment of “I can’t believe a girl can sound like that” but mainly from an older generation!
I was last familiar with any sort of Metal in the late 70s when it's iconography was preoccupied with sexist imagery and demons! Has it moved on or was Thrash never like that?
I think Metal still has it's fair share of demons and dragons but I think the sexist imagery has all but disappeared. Thrash Metal had a satanic vibe to it but also had politics too. A lot of the politics veered to the left as there is a strong punk influence. Bands like Sacred Reich sung about Reagan's antics in the 80's with a particular classic of theirs being the track 'Surf Nicaragua'.
How does a song come about in Kemakil, is it a very collaborative process or is there one main songwriter?
I come up with the ideas and the band just slot them into place with me. They are great to work with. We always try to make a song sound like it's topic. 'Iram Of The 'Ad' sounds very Middle Eastern, 'The Shard' (a song about the London landmark being a rocket) is very 'spacey' and 'Plutonium Suitcase' is an explosive D-Beat track.
I think you had an EP out in 2011, Blood Removal Machines, then a self titled album in 2013, The Shard EP in 2014 and The Leaving in 2016 what sort of things do you engage with?
Social comment, sci-fi and sometimes anything that just springs to mind. We have a song called 'Poor Mr Myosin' that is about a myosin protein carrying endorphins on it's it's back. We thought, 'Poor Mr Myosin, what a lot of work just to make us smile'!
We like a good mix of topics and don't like to be preachy. There's some serious stuff, some sarcasm and a sense of humour too.
I was fascinated by your set list in Norwich and the obvious (Left) political element to the band- how does a Metal crowd respond to that?
Not always much of a response to politics. The Metal audience is so diverse it sometimes doesn't respond at all haha. We were very at home with the Norwich gig at Gringos in early February. We felt at home.
Are political bands unusual in Thrash Metal or am I showing my ignorance?
In the new wave of Thrash Metal, it seems bands aren't too political and are singing about the usual nuclear/chemical warfare kind of thing. Bands from South America are more political and to the left I think.
In Norwich you were playing in a predominantly punk gig, how was that? Do you find there is enough genre overlap to make that sort of crossover fairly easy?
I think if an audience can see that what you are doing is honest and genuine it can cross musical boundaries. Challenging the Conservatives is important however it's played.
What bands, artists, writers have you been influenced by in your thinking and music?
We all cover quite a range of tastes in this band. Aaron digs Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Pantera, Sue loves Type O Negative and Devin Townsend, Tim likes his Death Metal and as for me, there's the Thrash and my great love of Rory Gallagher and Nina Hagen.
Who are you enjoying musically at the moment?
Nina Hagen!
What has Kemakil got planned for 2018?
We are up in Manchester in March and are hoping to record another album. We'll hopefully get the chance to get out there and show our disgust at the government and the love for what we do.