Ollie: Ultimate Worrier was your debut and the recent gig at Tooting Tram & Social was only your third, but everyone I’ve spoken to about the EP and your live set has had nothing but good things to say. How have you found the shows you’ve played so far?
George: Wow, that’s really nice to hear, man! The response to the EP has been amazing and the shows we’ve played so far have been incredible. The first one at Power Lunches was really great because so many friends came down. I was really thankful we got to play with Free Throw on our second show! It was all a bit of a last minute thing, but the response was great! Free Throw are the nicest dudes. I think the Tooting show was were I felt most comfortable, like we’re getting a bit tighter and more comfortable playing in front of people.
Ollie: It must’ve been great to support Free Throw, are there any other bands you dream of one day sharing a bill with? For my band I think mewithoutYou would be the ultimate dream, someone a little more attainable would be like Johnny Foreigner or Alison Weiss though.
George: Dude, there are so many. My dream would be to play with one of Evan Weiss’ projects, Into It. Over It, T/T/T or Pet Symmetry. Annabel, Better Off, You Blew It! A Great Big Pile of Leaves… There are so many. I’ve been really lucky to support some amazing artists in my time, but Free Throw is pretty high up there for me personally. I’ve always wanted to play with Alexisonfire too…
Ollie: What kind of musical backgrounds do you all come from, and are there any particular ways in which your past experiences and backgrounds have informed the way you approach writing and playing in Sad Blood?
George: Like most people I guess we were in various bands at school and college. We all kinda met in Southampton really. We’re all self taught and just kinda go with what feels right I guess. Dan (Goldberg)’s been in various bands over the years, he played bass in Towers and a hardcore band called Piranha with me. He played drums in a band called Narwhal and he wanted to dust off the sticks for this project. Krys (Bascombe) played bass in Our Time Down Here for a bit and he also plays in Winterhours. I was in a couple of bands in Southampton, Rest at Nothing and Beat Takeshi, and I used to play solo quite a bit. I mostly write the songs and then we get together and jam them. I think being in a loads of bands over the years means we’re a lot more open to each others ideas now. We basically just go with what feels right and what we like playing.
Ollie: I’ve heard that you guys had other names in mind before choosing the one you have now. How did you settle on Sad Blood? Personally I love it, it’s just the right amount of emo.
George: Ha! Thanks man. It’s really grown on me. Well we were gonna be called Sulk Hogan which I personally think is the greatest name for a band ever, but after Hulk Hogan said some pretty unsavoury things we thought it best to put that name on the back burner. We were called Marlowe for a bit after Phillip Marlowe from the Raymond Chandler detective novels (I was big into Bored To Death at the time). Then we were called Catnap for a bit, but there was another band called that. But we settled on Sad Blood because it’s a Taylor Swift pun basically.
Ollie: People sometimes complain about how today’s scene is regressing or becoming Americanised post-emo revival, but I really think that British emo/indie/punk is in a pretty good place right now. Are there any particular people or bands you feel are worth keeping tabs on?
George: Oh man, the UK scene is incredible right now. I love Doe, Playlounge, Creeper, Hindsights, Ghost Cub, itoldyouiwouldeatyou, Nai Harvest, Muskets, Shit Present, Exit Earth, Birdskulls, Wallflower, the list goes on and on. There are so many awesome bands around at the moment. I’m really exited to be involved in what’s happening here right now!
Ollie: Your EP would be a great starting point for any band and the response I’ve seen has matched that, so I’m pretty excited to see what you guys put out next. What plans do Sad Blood have for the near future?
George: Well we’ve got some time in the studio booked for March next year where we plan to record an EP and an album. We’re working with Neil Kennedy, who produced Ultimate Worrior, again and we’re really excited to get back in the studio. We’re hoping to squeeze in a couple more songs for some splits we have planned. We’ve got a bunch of songs ready to go and we’re working on more.
Filed under: EP review, New music, Preview Tagged: alternative music, alternative rock, Bad Blood, emo, emo interview, emo music, emo rock, Evan Weiss, George Phillips, independent music, interview, Into It. Over It, itoldyouiwouldeatyou, music, new music, Ollie Greville, Sad Blood
