Music > Interviews

HANK

04/08/18

Norwich’s HANK are fast becoming favourites with our Pavlis so it is time to meet Ash (vox/guitar), Jord (guitar), Tom (bass) and Ben (drums).

How did you get together?

Tom: Six or seven years ago, my band Dumbfoundus played a gig with Ash and Jord’s band Solko. After that we would see each other at gigs or parties. We’d been talking about doing a heavier band for a while and finally got to jam a couple of years ago! 

Ben: I met Ash when he booked my band Loco Motif.

Ash, how does playing in HANK fit in with your commitments to the Milkman Sounds label?

Ash: It’s easy! No, it’s not easy but as long I keep myself organised it’s no trouble. The label came out of self-releasing our music. Off that, I’ve had bands approach me with regards to releasing their music, which is really cool! I’ve had to learn loads about the business side, which was slightly daunting and confusing but I’m excited to give it a crack. Keep an eye out for releases from HANK, Georgia King, Solko and more local gems.

And the Flatlands festival? 

Ash: Me and Georgia King book the Flatlands line-up and do all the promo. Our handymen friends then pull it all together while Georgia and me run around like loonies on the weekend of the festival. Georgia does a lot of the decor as well.

Who are your influences? I’m getting all sorts, from Battles, Mars Volta, GY!BE and King Crimson to Parliament/Funkadelic.

Jord: Ben will be delighted with Parliament! Me and Ash love Hendrix and Radiohead. Tom is really inspired by grunge like Silverchair and Soundgarden, such as Pantera, Lamb of God and more melodic stuff like Tool. I wouldn’t say specific bands influence the sound significantly, we just wanted to do something heavy and grubby with weird timings.

It’s your first Norwich headliner at the Waterfront on 26th August. Anything special planned? You’ve said that some of your favourite acts will be joining you.

Ash: We’ve got a set together that we’re really happy with, including some new tracks that we haven’t played before. In support, we’ve got Georgia King playing her debut Norwich gig with her new band. I’m on bass with Alex Elliot (Horo Quintet, Joe Quinn and the New Lunarians) on drums. Our first gig together was at Flatlands and it went down really well. Also on the bill will be Marla, whose sound has taken new directions recently, which is really cool.

Since this interview was published, the Waterfront show has been postponed due to essential maintenance work at the venue. HANK’s next Norwich show will be for Odd Box Promotions at the Arts Centre on 13th October with Georgia King’s band Galli.

Any more shows lined-up?

Ash: We’ve got shows in Liverpool and Manchester in September, which should be fun.

How has the Slopes EP been doing and what comes next?

Jord: The response has been good, really encouraging! We weren’t sure if people would be into this mess and it seems they are! We’ve been writing loads since Slopes and are planning to get back in the studio for another record - potentially our debut album - soon.