Spokes are an exciting new band who I first came across when I reviewed their album 'People Like People Like You' for Is this music? I chatted to them about their plans for 2009......Hailing from Manchester, Spokes offer up sweeping, instrumental soundscapes that leave you with a warm glow inside. They may be little-known at the moment but if there’s any justice 2009 should be a good year for the five piece, who are responsible for the rather magnificent ‘People Like People Like You’ , an elegiac album of orchestral indie beauty.
As I speak to the band they are ensconced in their rehearsal space, preparing material for their new album. Their first , ‘People Like People Like You’ was released on their own label ‘Everyone’ last year and since then their fanbase has grown from strength to strength, attracting the interest of Ninja Tune Records in the process. The label, which is home to the Cinematic Orchestra and Mr Scruff, signed the band at the beginning of this year and now plans to re-release ‘People Like People Like You’ in March before an album of brand new material in the Autumn.
It’s hard to pin-down Spoke’s influences by listening to them, so what do they get inspired by? “I was brought up on Tubular Bells, man” says guitarist Owain, to guffaws from the rest of the band. It seems that Owain is keener to talk about the musical tastes of the band’s other guitarist, Liam, who’s not present at the interview. “He loves Papa Roach and all that” he says, to more laughter. Despite Owain’s insistence that “he’s a bit of an emo kid” it turns out Liam prefers electronic music rather than dodgy nu-metal. The band are also fans of Radiohead and Sigur Ros, as well their cohorts on the Manchester scene, which include post-rockers Arficeden and Charlie’s Hero .
They describe their writing process as a collaborative effort, with each member having input. “Maybe someone will have a four-bar idea, and then the rest of us join in and we go from there” says Owain. He says that for the new album the band have had more time to work through their ideas than before. “People Like People Like You started off as a demo we made to get gigs and stuff, so we just used the songs we already had” he says. “Now we’ve got a good few months to write the songs, so we’ve got the luxury of scrapping ideas and trying out different things.” So how are the new songs shaping up? “It still sounds big, upbeat and melodic” says violinist Ruth. “There are quieter moments as well as loud, euphoric bits.” She adds that more vocals will feature than last time, but they’ll be “like another instrument”.
Having completed two jaunts round the UK, Spokes have found the touring lifestyle to their liking. “I’m quite a shy person really but its easy to meet loads of people when you tour. You get talking to other bands and get inspired by each other” says Owain. “ There ‘s a band from Leeds called Worried About Satan who we’ve become friends with and we’ve ended-up touring with them. It’s good craic, definitely better than working!”
Spokes are embarking on a third tour in March and are close to confirming venues for the 20th in Edinburgh and the 21st in Glasgow. Life on the road doesn’t always go smoothly, however. “Everytime we come up to Glasgow, Johnny’s bass breaks” says Ruth, “we call it the ‘Glasgow Curse’”. The band hopes to defy the curse when they return, however. “Glasgow’s a great place to gig” she says. “We’ve played the Captain’s Rest and the 13th Note and they’re both great little venues.”
As for the rest of the year, Spokes plan to tour extensively round the UK when they release their new album in the autumn. “Hopefully we can get to some festivals as well, and it would be great to do some dates around Europe” says Owain. “It sort of feels like a dream talking about what we might be doing a few months from now, but we’ll see what happens.”
Check out Spokes on their myspace
