By: Josh Kitchen / June 3, 2024
Photo by @florintei
alright (okay) are an alternative band from Liverpool, and have been touring around the Liverpool circuit for over two years now and play live shows that will blow you away. I spoke with Alex from the band about their heavy new single, "Boyz Noize," their evolution in sound, what inspires them, and making music in the shadow of that other Liverpool band.
Tell me about alright (okay).
Will and I met in 2018 at a social event at University. We got on pretty well from the get go, bonding over a similar taste in music. We started to jam, put out an advert for a bassist and then soon met Jonah. James joined a little later on and was definitely the missing piece to the band. We all went uni at the time, with James being the only one originally from Liverpool. I (Alex) am from Chester, Will is from Nantwich and Jonah is from Kent.
Even though we had been a band for over 2 years at this point, we never stepped foot on a stage until 2021 because of the pandemic. I guess this kind of made us feel like we missed out on some precious years on the stage so we always more than make up for it during our live shows, throwing ourselves around as much as we can!
Who are some of your musical influences?
There’s a lot of influence on our sound. Pixies has always been a big one, for sure. But what rock band isn’t influenced by them? Over the last year our sound has gotten heavier, pulling inspiration from the likes of Shame, Modest Mouse, Sonic Youth and even LCD Soundsystem.
Talk to me about being a band from Liverpool. How much does the British invasion and The Beatles loom over how the band thinks about making music and success?
Being in Liverpool you can’t really escape The Beatles. There’s a definite sound of the city inspired by them, but that doesn’t massively affect how we make music. We pull influences from a lot of places and make what it is we want to make. If people like it, then great! But they don’t have to, y’know? The Liverpool scene is great at the moment though. It feels like there are more stellar bands than even appearing on the circuit, so being in a city like Liverpool where the music scene is thriving definitely helps us push ourselves. That’s not to say we don’t love The Beatles though, how can you not? Revolver? Abbey Road? Rubber Soul? I mean, c’mon!
You just released your new single, "Boyz Noize." Talk to me about that.
The song was one of the first ones we wrote when we decided to almost overhaul our sound. We were playing a lot of the same stuff at every show and around the start of 2023 we grew tired of it, to be honest. We’d always be adding new tracks but the core of the set would be the same. That’s why we decided to almost start over, and "Boyz Noize" was one of the first tracks to come from that. It’s a tune Will brought forward and it’s one where we all let down our guard almost when making it, just having fun with it. We tested it at a couple of live shows with it going down pretty great. It was always clear to us it would be the first single from the first batch of songs.
How do you write music? Is it a collaborative effort, or is their a primary songwriter?
In the early days it was very much just me writing out whatever tunes come to my head, bringing it to the band, working out extra parts and - boom - we were done. As we started to grow as a band we’ve started to write together a lot more. I’ll still bring an idea forwards but more often than not that’s all it is - an idea. From there, we’ll chop at it until it’s something we like the sound of. It’s helped us work out our own sound a lot more. Will has is also writing more for the band too. "Boyz Noize" is one of Will’s and it’s pretty great if you ask me!
When can we expect new music? Is an album on the way?
There’s definitely new music on the way, not an album though but probably an EP. We’re still working out exactly what the EP is going to be but we’ve got a whole load of tracks to pick from and new ideas constantly being put into the mix. We won’t keep you waiting for music for too long though, there might be another single on the way very soon.
What's a song you wish you wrote?
For me, it’s got to be "All My Friends" by LCD Soundsystem. Very few songs are timeless the way that song is. There’s such a bittersweet feeling to that track that gets better with age. The lyrics are pretty simple but there’s a real beauty in that. The picture James Murphy paints is so vivid but clear at the same time. One of my favourites for sure!
What inspires you?
That’s a tough one! Inspiration comes from everywhere. It could be seeing something in the street or even heating a track that I really wish I had written myself and trying to replicate the same feeling. Since we changed our sound, my writing process has been completely altered. It’s exciting to be out of that formulaic approach to writing but at the same time it can be difficult to find that initial spark. Inspiration comes and goes, that’s why I believe that when it strikes you need to take 100% advantage of it and get that initial idea down. It could only be a 20 minute burst but if you ignore it than that idea is gone forever.
My favorite thing about live music is the way it brings people together. What are some of your favorite shows you've attended!?
It’s hard to pin it down to just a few. We recently played a show with Alien Chicks and they tore the roof off of the place. Absolutely feral energy from them, they’re always so good live. I recently saw Model/Actriz live too and they were unbelievable. The energy was just insane.
Big Thief is another band that stands out. The musicianship between the four of them is outstanding. They had me and Jonah in awe for close to two hours when we saw them last year.
Finally, got any other band recommendations? I love a friendly shout out.
Recommendation wise, Dead Animals is one of our favourites in Liverpool. It’s a heavy and clubby industrial sound with piercing production and bold vocals. Ruby has been a long time supporter of the band and the fact that her music is great makes it all the better. Also got to shoutout The Marigolds. It’s a mix of punk and funk that is so fun to hear live. Their new stuff is pretty fantastic too.
Follow alright (okay) here! https://alrightokay.co.uk/
All photos by @florintei
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