Today's
guest is lead singer of one of the UK's best upcoming Sludge/Stoner
Metal Bands – LIMB. They've released two albums (Self Titled Debut
and last year's Terminal) both to critical acclaim from fans and
critics alike.
I
wanted to catch up with this dude for a seriously long time as he's
also a hugely talented comedian as well. So it's my pleasure to be
chatting to Rob Hoey.
Hi Rob. How are
things with you today. Thanks for doing this interview.
Hi! Thanks for having
me. I like what you've done with the place.
So why did you
choose the name LIMB for your band. Any specific meaning.
We went through a few
names. For comedy sake we were going to call ourselves 'Queem' and
dress like Queen. Then we thought of 'Connect4' but of course these
were utter nonsense. We genuinely toyed with 'Broken Thrones' for a
tiny while but we had friends in Throne so that was quickly thrown
out. Speaking of Throne, check out Julia's newest project 'Casual
Nun' they are bloomin' excellent!! So Limb, not really! We just liked
it. This long answer didn't have a great pay off but I do like to
think of the name as meaning we're not part of the main tree or even
a branch, we're attached but flapping about in the wind on the
outskirts.
How did the band get
together. Did you all know each other before forming the band.
Sam, Pat & Jodie
knew each other so started jamming and put an ad out for a singer...
I bet they couldn't believe their luck when I walked in. I bet they
thought I was some sort of chubby Adonis.
How would you
describe your music.
Glam + Doom = Gloom.
It's a tricky one that isn't it
Your new album –
Terminal – was released last year. It's received some great
reviews. Did that surprise you the responses the album has received
and LIMB's music in general.
When we were listening
back to the initial mixes of Terminal in the studio we were all
really pleased to have put a record together we knew we would be
proud of regardless of the feedback. Any kind words said about it are
always met with total pleasure (such as your good selves) and
surprise. It's more surprising to me when you get reviews (good or
bad) that are totally factually incorrect and lazy. Why would you
bother doing something if you're not interested in nailing the
basics? Anyhoo. Yes, we're really pleased that reviewers and
listeners are enjoying it! Complete bonus.
Was Terminal a hard
album to write and record for as it contains a different sound
compared to your debut S/T album.
The writing process was
actually pretty similar in terms of the process to the first album.
The label gave us a deadline and we hammered it out until we had
something (mostly) solid. The sound is definitely different to our
first album because we changed drummers and they are very different
players. Jodie was more a hard hitting trve kvlt doom smasher (check
out her new band Gloomweaver) and Tom is a straight up badass rock
drummer. I think what we were listening to together as a band changed
too, we went from listening to lots of Weedeater and Goatsnake (and
still do) to listening to The Sweet, Slade, Funkadelic, The
Bar-Kays... Anything with sequins. The glam stomp stuck in a little
and thus came the groove.
I was surprised you
released an album so soon after your S/T album. About 18 months in
total. Is that how quick LIMB always work. Get something out as
quickly as you can.
Ha! Well that's just
kind of circumstance. Jodie left just around the time we released our
first album so we got Tom on board and up to speed and then only
really managed to get one short promo tour with Black Moth in before
it was obvious our sound had evolved. The label were keen to get that
sound on record so we disappeared straight back into the studio to
get our sound locked down. The rest as they say is Terminal (don't
they?)
Looking back would
you change anything about debut album.
No, not at all! It's
all a learning curve and I still have a lot of love for that album.
It also sums up completely where we were at that point. If you're
going back and editing your diary entries, stop keeping a diary! We
were just a little different at that point but the soul remains the
same.
How hard is it being
a band in today's world. What are the most difficult aspects in being
in a band.
I think it’s all
subjective isn’t it? I’m sure many will tell you that today it’s
really hard in the biz and all that but I don’t see it, I don’t
think it’s got any easier or harder to drive the length of the
country for beer money! But that’s ok, we’re not doing it to be
Justin Bieber are we. It’s not owning the roller-coaster that makes
you happy, it’s the thrill of the ride!
What is the
song-writing dynamic in the band. Is it a group collective or down to
one individual.
It tends to start with
Sam and Pat bringing riffs to the room and then we play around ideas
all throwing in thoughts. It’s actually fairly organic. Lyrics
wise, I’ll do a majority of the words and then bring them to Sam
who is a lover of words and an actual doctor of English for thoughts
and grammatical scrutiny! Sam Cooper B.A M.A PhD!
What's your verdict
on the UK Sludge/Doom/Stoner Metal Scene. It seems bands from the UK
Underground that I've interviewed recently have mixed feelings. Some
say its' thriving and others saying the opposite. What's your own
personal views on this. And if it is in decline how can we improve
it.
Well, this is a biggie
isn’t it. I’m not sure it’s in decline in any way but in the
same way that ‘Grunge’ became a huge umbrella in the nineties
that’s what we have with ‘doom’. Sadly, I personally feel like
that weakens things slightly. Even though I don’t think it should
matter so much about defining what kind of genre you slip in to, it
seems to become trendy to say you’re part of something you perceive
to be ‘in’ and
that leads to Creed, Puddle Of Mudd & Hoobastank calling themselves Post Grunge or whatever… I really hope that doesn’t become the case but there is definitely some poppy ‘doom’ starting to happen.
When I was younger Sludge and Doom were pretty different beasts, Sludge with it’s scooped guitar tones and compressed drum sounds (Crowbar, Fudge Tunnel, 3d House Of Beef & Acid Bath) and doom was slow and sprawling with blended JCM 800 stacks cranked to breaking and flappy drum sounds blasting out 2bpm 34 minute songs. Maybe I’m just a bit older now! Maybe it’s just all relative to where the genre is at in your time that sticks with you? Who knows.
I’m pretty sure Sabbath fans who were 16 when their first album came out would say the same about what I think. I don’t think it needs to be TRVE KVLT this and purest form that but there are definitely bands trying to fly the doom flag when it seems a little tenuous. How can you save it? God knows! I’m not in a position to really call us a doom band or a sludge band (although we have elements). I suppose this just happens with any wave of music, it peaks and troughs and just keeps flowing. As long as people are listening then it will keep being made I guess, that can only be a good thing.
that leads to Creed, Puddle Of Mudd & Hoobastank calling themselves Post Grunge or whatever… I really hope that doesn’t become the case but there is definitely some poppy ‘doom’ starting to happen.
When I was younger Sludge and Doom were pretty different beasts, Sludge with it’s scooped guitar tones and compressed drum sounds (Crowbar, Fudge Tunnel, 3d House Of Beef & Acid Bath) and doom was slow and sprawling with blended JCM 800 stacks cranked to breaking and flappy drum sounds blasting out 2bpm 34 minute songs. Maybe I’m just a bit older now! Maybe it’s just all relative to where the genre is at in your time that sticks with you? Who knows.
I’m pretty sure Sabbath fans who were 16 when their first album came out would say the same about what I think. I don’t think it needs to be TRVE KVLT this and purest form that but there are definitely bands trying to fly the doom flag when it seems a little tenuous. How can you save it? God knows! I’m not in a position to really call us a doom band or a sludge band (although we have elements). I suppose this just happens with any wave of music, it peaks and troughs and just keeps flowing. As long as people are listening then it will keep being made I guess, that can only be a good thing.
What most people
don't know about you is that you’re a stand-up comedian as well.
And you've performed on TV, Edinburgh Fringe Festival and other
comedy festivals with your bizarre and insane creations. How did you
get involved with comedy.
Yeah, I’ve been
performing for a long long time. The first time I was in Edinburgh
was in 1999 or thereabouts! I do a fair amount of stand up, I have
dates coming up at Glasgow Comedy Festival next across March 2016.
Last year was fairly slow for my comedy as we were deep into album
territory. Between the sketches, stand up and general online nonsense
I’m always up to something. I got into comedy through going to
drama school in my 20’s but I never really loved the theatre side
of things. Instead it lead me down the path of utter nonsense and
that’s what I’ve been doing ever since! My first job was in 1998
when I was on CITV’s ‘Chatterhappy Ponies’ so er… yeah.
Do you still perform
comedy gigs. What inspires you when you're performing your shows and
stand up routines.
Yeah! As I say, I have
some shows coming up shortly and the agent I’m working with will be
looking to book me a tour at some point across this year. I play out
my comedy like the music we make, it’s pretty uncompromising in the
sense that I just want to make something which will challenge you. It
might be utter nonsense but I always try to get a sense of ‘why
would this guy be doing this?’ as a rule.
How hard is it
combining your stand-up comedy along with LIMB. It must be a very
hard balancing act at times.
Only really in terms of
finding time to do both. In terms of how they go side by side
creatively they’re pretty easy to keep separate although my band
mates may dispute that. It’s good to have an outlet for the anger
and one for the nonsense, I’m really lucky in that sense.
Before you go, do
you have anything to say to your fans.
I’m not sure I / Limb
have ‘fans’ just friends and friends we haven’t met yet! Keep
listening to all the music out there (without exception) so we have
loads to talk about when we see you at the bar!!
Well Rob, thanks for
doing this. All the best with your awesome work.
Same to you! This has been a pleasure.
Same to you! This has been a pleasure.
Words by Steve
Howe and Rob Hoey
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