A Chat with Jaymotts (20.07.21)
Coming together to “inject fun and colour into people’s lives”, Jonathan Hall (vocals, guitar, trumpets and keys) and Chris Le Mottee (bass) formed the boundary-breaking duo Jaymotts. Building on their previous EP and singles, the UK-based pair recently released their smile-inducing funk-rock album Jamboree. We speak with Chris Le Mottee about their new album, new bands, being a musician and much more.
OSR: How did Jaymotts come together?
Le Mottee: It was a gift from the pandemic! Jonathan and I were on a video call with friends a couple of months into the first lockdown – around April 2020. We were keen to try something musical to keep ourselves entertained. I recorded some funky basslines to drum loops and sent them over. A few days later Jonathan had put guitars on it and it sounded great – so that was the start of it! The name came a couple of months later – it’s a loose play on our names.
OSR: What is the backstory to Jamboree?
Le Mottee: After the Stars of Cheese EP, and then a couple of singles, we were torn about what to do next. The modern way seems to more and more singles, but we’re quite old-school and wanted the satisfaction of an album. The songs were written as a continuation of the EP and singles, we just didn’t stop writing, it was a very prolific period. As the songs came together we could clearly tell that the name and artwork needed to be celebratory and fun. Jamboree seemed to fit that perfectly.
OSR: What do you hope people take from Jamboree?
Le Mottee: We hope that people smile whilst listening to Jamboree. It’s fun, frivolous and full-on funk!
OSR: Which is your favourite and least favourite songs from the album?
Le Mottee: That’s a really hard question. My personal favourite is ‘Wet Tiger’ – it has a bit of everything and the bassline is very enjoyable to play. Closely followed by ‘Calm Yourself Terry’, that is one we were particularly proud of as a song that has a great narrative and very interesting musicality. I can’t pick a least favourite, I’m honestly thrilled with all 15 tracks. The album is so long because we couldn’t find anything to cut!
OSR: If you could change one thing about the album, what would it be?
Le Mottee: Only that we hadn’t got CDs made, no one buys them!
OSR: What inspires you to make music?
Le Mottee: We have both been born and bred on music. It would have been inconceivable for us to not have picked up instruments in our early teens. Music is simply a part of our make-up, so I think that’s what inspires us to make music.
OSR: What is the most exciting part of being a musician?
Le Mottee: With tongue-in-cheek, it has to be the poverty, scrapping around to get on playlists, spending a small fortune on Facebook Ads to get a dozen more likes. It’s living the dream!
OSR: If you weren’t making music, what career would you have chosen?
Le Mottee: ? I know for a fact I’d be a Compliance Manager because that’s what I do to pay the mortgage.
OSR: Can you recommend any new bands for our readers?
Le Mottee: Yes, a couple spring to mind. Mr No Face are good friends of ours. Their brand of indie-rock music is great and Jen, the singer, has an amazing voice, very powerful and also unique. Another one to mention is Mulholland Jive. It’s piano-driven funky stuff – really, really good.
OSR: Are there any future plans for Jaymotts?
Le Mottee: Yes, lots! We want to get to playing live; we’re looking for a second guitarist if you know of any? Other than that, we have lots more songs to bring to the world so perhaps we’ll do another album.
Thanks to Chris Le Mottee for speaking with us. For more from Jaymotts check out their Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Spotify.
