A few weeks ago, I got the amazing opportunity to interview Jamie Staples, Wunderhorse’s drummer, just before the release of their 2nd album Midas. The following is a conversation we had concerning the new album, the band’s growth, and the unpredictability of live music.

 

First of all, congratulations on the album: what is your favourite track?

Well, me personally I’d have to say July, that’s like the little kid in me playing the drums and that, you know what I mean? But I know as far as the boys go there are various different ones – I think Arizona was the first one to come to fruition and that’s probably the closest one to Jacob (Slater).

 

And what was the reason behind calling the album Midas?

Well, like lots of these things it was initially just quite a strong word that felt good, then obviously there is the Midas Touch which I suppose is the most obvious story to jump to. But there’s also a slight story to that with the music competition, you know?

 

I was just going to ask – the themes of the song ‘Midas’ – is it to do with your experiences with the music industry?

Well I suppose yes, you could definitely say ‘Midas’ comes from that, but I think that it was written in a way that you could kind of attribute that song to anyone in power who is willing to take advantage of you or other people.

 

Having listened to the album over the weekend, one of the new songs ‘Aeroplane’ has a five minute instrumental at the end of it – was there any creative decision behind that or was it more ‘we are just going to flex musically’?

Yeah, well I suppose for us I think it wasn’t so much a flex as it was a kind of anti-guitar solo if you like, it was a lot of noise. I think basically, a lot of the record was written in the studio with all of us there, and that was one of those songs that came about initially – as you can probably tell – as a bit of an anomaly. We all moved closer together, it was quite acoustic, we did it live in the room, and it just so happened that the way we played that song when we got into that outro was it just carried on for five minutes. Then we got back into the control room and the discussion was about, “Well, this is a nice song but it isn’t exactly fitting with the record right now, how can we add something a bit gnarly, a bit uncomfortable to this?”. I think that’s when we let Harry (Fowler) just go and do his thing: we did three takes of a guitar solo, picked the middle take, and didn’t alter it.

 

The record was a real stamp in time; we were there at the birth of those songs

 

So leading on from that, I know Wunderhorse started as a kind of solo project for Jacob; do you feel with Midas it was a much more collaborative album or was it a lot of individual writing, bringing it back into the studio, and working on it together?

Yeah, no, it was a lot more collaborative; I think that we still would have to credit Jacob as the prime songwriter for this record though – I mean a lot of the bones of the songs came from him. I think the difference this time was that the record was a real stamp in time; we were there at the birth of those songs, and our stamp as players in the rest of the band was a lot more present on this record – we were there for discussions, sort of how to build them structurally – so the input was a lot greater from everyone and it’s definitely made some good stepping stones for the future.

 

Were there any tracks you personally had a hand in crafting beyond the drums?

Well, I’d say yes, I suppose it’s a little hard to recall absolutely everything, but it was all up for discussion amongst the four of us and our producer Craig (Silvey). So yeah, I would say at different given moments we would talk about each other’s pasts and how that influenced us for sure.

 

Historically, all four of you have cited lots of influence from 90’s grunge bands such as Nirvana and rock and roll legends Led Zeppelin; what has changed? Have you drawn any new influences for this album?

Well I think for this record, obviously given the studio we were in (Pachyderm Studios, Minnesota) there was a lot of history with Nirvana recording there, PJ Harvey, and I think Pixies? And also Pixies being a band we had just come off tour with, I think what you are doing with your life definitely bleeds into what you produce; I mean definitely when it’s produced in a four week period like that, it’s kind of whatever has been most on your mind. But then at the same time, most mornings in the studio there was a limited record selection like the Rolling Stones and the Beatles; we would all put a record on every morning for quite an intensive listening party if you like. You know, you don’t do that often enough sometimes, just sit down and listen to a record and just be like “How have they built this world?”; I think we were really conscious of building a world for the album sonically, thematically – so yeah, that stuff has helped.

 

I think we were really conscious of building a world for the album sonically

 

I know on your last headline tour you played at the Hare and Hound in Kings Heath, a very decorated independent venue in Birmingham; do you feel differently touring in much bigger venues, festivals and massive stadiums? For example when you supported Declan McKenna, Fontaines DC, and Pixies; how does it compare?

I mean definitely playing some of the bigger stages, it has been crazy for sure. Any time we get the opportunity to do that – definitely looking at the tour coming up, but also with some of the support tours we have done – it feels right, it feels like this is what we should be doing, we are meant to get bigger and bigger. And then with festivals, they are really fun because you are just kind of unsure, you really have no gage – you know what size stage you are playing so you are stuck hoping people are going to show up. The day before yesterday we did a show at Leeds Festival where we were supposed to be in the Radio One tent and it caved in, so a 5,000 cap tent they had to just shut down. They stuck us on the BBC Introducing tent which was great – I mean we still wanted to do the gig, and it was just such a pleasure to see how many people showed up for that, it was a real shock. But also playing those smaller venues is something we would love to come back and do in time – you can really see the whites in people’s eyes.

 

Is there anything you miss about smaller gigs specifically?

Well, to be honest with you I am still doing some of them really – I live in London and I’m involved in some other projects and it’s something I miss when I’m not doing them. I suppose you could say there is a sense of community there that you aren’t going to get in a big venue, you are more likely to have friends show up – well not necessarily more likely, but you know what I mean; there’s always something nice about that.

 

You are just about to release your second album, but what is the future plan for Wunderhorse? Are you just doing the tour for now and then seeing what happens, or is there a year or two down the line where you already have plans?

I can definitely say the most concrete things are obviously the tour in October, and in November we are supporting Fontaines DC across Europe. One thing we know for sure is we are getting to work next year, it’s going to be busy. I can’t say with any certainty right now what that’s going to look like, but I know we’re going to the States again, and I’m sure we’re going to do our rounds in the UK and Europe. As far as musically, we’re already beginning to work on our next record, but you’ll have to wait and see how that takes shape. 

 

As a university newspaper, we have lots of young people looking to get more into live music – either performing, seeing, or getting more serious about their musical careers – what was your experience like performing music before Wunderhorse?

Well for me, I have been cutting my teeth in the London music scene if you like. I mean even when I knew Jacob years ago and he was in a band called Dead Pretties and I was playing in some other bands, we were living together at the time, playing gigs on the same bills. Lots of bands from that time, people I’m still friends with are now on to doing bigger and better things. It was largely the pub and club scene in London; personally I’ve been in other bands, I’ve been in another band called Teeth Machine for years, and I’ve also been a session player. I was experiencing some fairly sizable tours as well, you kind of make your money that way. But I think when Wunderhorse started to hit the ground, other things in our lives started dropping off to focus on this. I mean the other two boys Pete (Woodin) and Harry had been in bands together for years, and Jacob has been on his mission too. 

 

It feels right, it feels like this is what we should be doing

 

To finish on a cliché – knowing what you know now, having been part of the music industry in a small way in the past and a big way with Wunderhorse, what would be your best piece of advice for someone thinking about getting into live music? Something you wish you would have known?

To answer your cliché with a cliché: you’ve got to love it, you really do. There is a very good chance you are not going to make any money out of it for years, unless I suppose you’re really business minded or you have a lucky break. I don’t want this to sound bad, but there are going to be people along the way who just want a slice of what you’re doing, and they’re not always going to be easy to spot – I think that’s something that anyone in any creative industry will learn for sure. Stay true to what you’re doing, keep in mind why you’re doing this; there are going to be many external things that come into play when other people start getting involved – your socials, all these things – that are going to start to make it all feel a little confusing, at least for us anyway. It has got to be about writing good songs and working really hard.

 

Wunderhorse are playing at the O2 Institute on Friday 4th October 2024

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