PlanetMosh Keeping it Metal
WITTERQUICK release their blistering new single, Hiding Place, which is the first in a line of singles to be lifted from the band’s eagerly awaited new EP, out this Summer. The video for Hiding Place has just been revealed via Kerrang!.com and the single lands everywhere on Monday 27th March. We sat down to speak with the guys about their background:
What is the full band line-up; who plays what?
Will Alfor
d – Vocals / piano, Ollie Chanter – Bass Guitar, Ben Chanter – Guitar, Andy Lewis – Drums, Sean Davey – Guitar
How and when did the band form?
Ben, Will and I were all newly out of bands around the same time in Exeter. I’d been writing some new songs with Ben and we got to the point that we wanted to get someone in to sing, like really sing. Will had the best voice around so I invited him to jam with us. It turned out that he was looking to form something new too, so we started writing as a group and before long we had our first songs. We formed the band at Christmas 2014. It’s been a rollercoaster since then.
When did the band really start gelling and solidifying?
As people we gelled pretty much instantly actually. We all had similar interests, we were all passionate about what we wanted to do, and we had the same sense of humour. It was an immediate thing. As a BAND it was on tour with Nothing But Thieves. It was our first tour as a group, 14 sold out dates all over the UK with both bands living in a tour bus. At the start of the tour we were pretty green, by the end we were confident in what we did. Playing 500-1500 venues every night will do that to you, and we had great people to learn from. We threw ourselves in the deep end for sure.
What are your musical Influences?
The main thing that influences us for writing is just life in general. Add a life experience to a jam and a good vibe, and you’ve got a recipe fit for a king. That’s the important thing for us, just see what happens and be honest.
There are always too many bands to list, but to name a few; Biffy Clyro, Brand New, Pink Floyd, Guns N’ Roses, Naked and Famous, Radiohead, Idlewild, Muse.
How far back does your history with each other (the band members) extend? are you friends from school or any family relations?
Ollie and Ben are brothers, and met Will a few years before the band started. We were in different bands who often played together at the Exeter Cavern. That’s how we met Andy and Sean too. If you’re in a band in the South West, you’re going to run into each other at the Cavern.
Where have you played or toured? Please name all countries/regions and recognised bands that you have played with.
We have played up and down the UK, most notably on Nothing but Thieves’ ‘Ban All the Music’ Tour. We’ve played as far North as Glasgow, and as far south as Brighton and Exeter. Birmingham, Norwich, Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle, and Cardiff are all favourites of ours, as well as London of course, which we get back to a lot, whether it’s for one-off shows, on tour, or for festivals like Camden Rocks etc.
We played the main stage at Penn fest in 2016, alongside Ash, Reef, Dizzy Rascal, and Toploader. We have also shared stages with Black Foxxes, Pretty Vicous, Diamond Days, Muncie Girls, and Airways. We had to drop out of a show with Young Guns to do the Nothing But Thieves tour which was a shame. We’re about to tour with Altered Sky.
If a deaf person were to ask you to describe the sound of your music, how would you describe it?
I’d probably get a blank piece of paper, and splash a load of warm and moody colour onto it. There would also be angular sections to represent the rhythm section, but the colours would represent the intensity and vibe of the song. Perhaps like a colourful timeline in a music editing software crossed with a piece of art. Then point at the tv playing an episode of The Visionaries.
Do you have a tour on the horizon?
We are on tour around the UK between the 26th – 30th of March with Altered Sky and Autumn Ruin, playing in Norwich, Exeter, Coventry, Manchester and Glasgow.
Where can we find your social media sites?
We are ‘witterquickband’ everywhere online; Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
