A Chat with The Banshees (01.04.20)
No, they’re not the Beatles, but they are a pretty fantastic band from Liverpool! We took some time to chat to indie-rockers The Banshees about their latest singles, being a Liverpudlian band, and which artists they are listening to. Well, it’s vocalist Vinny Pereira and lead guitarist Paul Anthony Holligan, but you’ll get the idea.
OSR: As a band from Liverpool do you find it hard to cut through the misconception that every band from the area is a Beatles cover artist?
VP: Liverpool is a strange one. Absolutely, you can tour the country and even Europe and the minute they hear your accent and see the guitar it’s not long before someone mentions the Beatles.
We don’t think that is a negative thing, your talking about arguably the most influential band in the world ever. In this city, regardless of the Beatles influence, to separate yourself, you have to be above the bar before you even start!
OSR: As individual musicians, you have supported some incredible artists. Have those experiences influenced the way you approach writing, recording and touring as The Banshees?
PAH: It has made me work harder as an individual player, a player collectively in a band and obviously as a songwriter. When you are sharing the stage with industry greats and professionals, you see the level that is required and you might not be at that level. You take it all home and you work and you come back on the same stage. As some time ticks on you are holding your own and that’s where it starts for myself. Just to sit opposite Noel Gallagher as he was warming up to play a show and see what he does from six feet away, the simplicity was just an education to a 20-year-old me.
OSR: How indicative is the new single of what fans can expect from the upcoming mini-album Tell Me Everything?
PAH: This mini-album is going to be MASSIVE in sound. The tracks are really wide; they have a complete and dynamic feel about them. It sounds very interesting and uplifting.
OSR: Was there a specific experience that inspired you to write ‘It’s Alright’?
VP: It’s a funny one and to be honest, it all still feels a bit strange. Seems like a lifetime, but yet only five minutes ago we were sitting in my house and Paul said, “I’ve got these chord changes I’ve been messing with and this little idea”. That was enough for me and by the end of the evening, the song was complete!
PAH: I remember sending the demo version of it the day after to a mate of mine and he called me straight back and said, “that is a tune!!”. I thought, well, it’s only recorded on a MacBook and with a couple of battered guitars, so it must be a great song!
OSR: Do you have any plans for a possibly virtual tour once the mini-album is released?
VP: Yes, we have been a part of a few things online already during this very strange time surrounding Covid-19.
OSR: Who are some of the other artists you are listening to at the moment?
PAH: Actually, me and Vinny are big fans of The Strokes so we’ve always got them on the boil. Their new single is just fantastic. To be honest, Vinny got me on to Julian Casablanca’s’ band The Voidz a few months back and they are absolutely amazing. The kid is a genius in my opinion. The Banshees sound is ever-evolving, we are so musically different individually that I don’t think The Banshees would just generate one sound for its entire existence. What I’m hearing in The Voidz is something I’d like to bring home to The Banshees in regards to feeling and vibe.
VP: I feel the same way about being inspired by bands and incorporating that into our own sound, it just adds flavour! I’m mostly old school when it comes to music, so we are talking a bit of Sam Cooke, The Kinks, Bob Marley, Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd…the list goes on!
Thanks to Vinny and Paul for the chat! To engage with them and the rest of The Banshees, check them out on Facebook and Twitter.
