Music > Interviews

Yuck

26/04/16

Yuck, who have perhaps one of the best band names ever, right, have been much compared to Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jnr,  with a hint of shoegaze added to the mix. Their  second album, Stranger Things, has just been released and this band are on the starting block ready to visit NAC to blow your ruddy socks off. I spoke to lead vocalist and guitar guy Max about how things have been going on their American tour and about recording their album in his olds’ living room.

You’re currently on tour in the States. How’s it going? Good crowds?

We just did our last show a couple of days ago. It’s been the longest tour we've ever done; it’s been pretty hard, but also extremely gratifying. The crowds for the most part have been great, and there have been a lot of new fans which is nice.

How are the new songs feeling now you’re playing them live?

It's really exciting playing the new songs live, they seem to be getting a really good reaction. 

Your latest album Stranger Things came out in February, and it was recorded and produced by yourselves in Max’s parents house. How was the process this time around?

It was a lot more fun and relaxing than what I'm normally used to. At this point we're a lot more experienced at recording than we were when we did the first album, so it was just a case of taking everything we've learned in the past and moving forward.

How did you come to pick Hold Me Closer as the first single from the new album?

It was one of the first songs that we wrote for the album, and it always struck me as the one I wanted people to hear first.

Would you say that Stranger Things heralds a new future and sound for Yuck?

It’s difficult to say really, we like to make every album a little bit different.

How would you say your music has developed since 2011?

I think we've become better musicians and songwriters, and our tastes have definitely become broader since 2011. It’s difficult to say how that's affected things exactly.

How do you tend to put your tracks together initially? Is there someone in particular who writes the lyrics?

We usually write the instrumental first and then write lyrics to that, but there are a couple of tracks on the album where I've written an instrumental and Mariko has written vocals, or Ed has written music and vocals.

Which bands in particular did you listen to when you were growing up?

I listened to The Beatles a lot.

How have the relationships within the band altered since Daniel left 3 years ago, and what new sounds has new bassist Ed brought to the table?

Ed is a great songwriter and musician in his own right, so the dynamic of the band definitely changed when he got involved.

What was it like recording Glow & Behold, your second album, without Dan?

It was a really fun album to record. We were recording a really old church in upstate New York, there were beautiful views and it was really good to be completely cut off from the world.

Are you looking forward to playing Norwich in May? You’re playing one of our finest venues, Norwich Arts Centre, a converted church!

We've played Norwich Arts Centre a few times before, it’s my favourite venue in the UK so I specifically asked to come back there for this tour.

Have you been to Norwich before? Do you have any particular ties or memories of the city?

Norwich is a great place. I love Norwich Arts Centre, they really take care of you there! 

Yuck play Norwich Arts Centre on 12th May. Tickets available from norwichartscentre.co.uk.