 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mr Zippy are:
Mads - Vocals
Jon - Guitar
Andy - Guitar
Frank - Bass
Pete - Drums
What's
goin on with Zippy at the moment ?
Mads We're just concentrating
on getting some new songs out, who knows what's going on else
where. We're planning on getting them out some way, whether it's
through a record companyI don't think so, or by our selvesI think
so. We're just really into the music and what we're writing.
How's Andy (Their new guitarist) fitting
In?
Andy It's a style I've wanted
to play for a while so it's really good. Together, we've written
14 new songs and they've all got my input in and I'm really happy
with it.
Pete It was important for us as well to get Andy's
input and Frank's as well. A lot of the stuff we were playing
was from before Frank had a chance to put his input in.
Frank This is all five peoples work.
Mads It's a step forward for us. We've never wanted
to be big time. The big time's nice if you can get it. We're quite
grounded. We play purely for our own interest. Its our hobby,
we just want to have a bit of fun and play a few bigger shows
then earn a bit of money or whatever than that's fine. At the
end of the day we're just doing it for ourselves. It's about us
the music and playing some shows.
How did you end up on Golf Records?
Mads Star Wars and porn wasn't
it?
Pete Yep, Star Wars and porn. We just kept bribing
them with Star Wars lego and porn mags.
Frank You should have said it was because we were so bloody
good they couldn't refuse us. But that was before my time.
Jon Well, they did say no and then a few other labels were
interested in picking us up and then they said yes.
Mads Well we knew somebody from the Plastic Head
team of sorts, Lisa I can't remember how we met her. I think Greg
knew her; she said if you wanna get in then send this to this
person so we did that. Then we shopped around and got offered
something else from another label. Greg sent a cheeky email back
saying we've been offered this, and we got a reply and they came
back. Then we realized it was a three album deal and that was
really good. Unfortunately they don't really back people up.
Do you think that Golf overlook their
British bands?
John Yes definitely. Without
wanting to sound really critical. They concentrate on the licensing
stuff they get from America. If you ask any of the British bands
who are or have been on their label and think they would say that
they don't get the backing they would like from a record label
when you sign to them.
Mads In fairness though, they've done us no harm.
They've done us proud in the sense that they've pushed our name
forward. We're thankful for that but that being a small band that
can't be out there 24/7 the reality is that we've got to work
and earn money to put a roof over your head even if your staying
with your parents.
Frank Even the bigger bands on the label like 4ft
Fingers, Tiny Elvis's and that, they've really made, they're only
known in the underground punk scene. If you asked anybody in the
high street who they are they wouldn't have a clue.
How do you think P-Rock helped up bands
profiles whilst it was still going?
Mads- It was brilliant. It was for
the right sort of people, but unfortunately the financial backing
wasn't there and it went under. Now you've got Scuzz which is
alternative but hasn't really raised the profile of many UK bands.
Frank It was good seeing the British bands in with
the big American bands. You might see a pennywise video and then
have British band and then a Rancid video. People then think that
these people are as good as those.
Jon It gave the British bands a fair crack at the
whip. Like Mike Davis is doing at the moment with The Lock Up
he plays a lot of British music. Whereas before that with maybe
the exception of Steve Lamacq and John Peel it was never really
played. It it's enabled British bands to get their music out there.
It enables them to go and play shows 200 miles away or whatever
and get a bit of a following.
You did a show in Bristol at the Croft
for War Child and Amnesty and other charities, do you often do
charity shows?
Mads - There's never any harm doing
a charity show. It depends what it's for and you have to make
sure people are getting the money at the end of the day. Like
a local charity show for us is fine. But a lot of people from
all over the country will ask you to play a charity show and do
it for nothing. Which is fine but you have to realize there are
expenses to be paid.
Andy I think it's good when so many people come together
for something like the tsunami relief. They actually have too
much money now, which is brilliant. That's an absolute testament
to everybody involved.
Mads- It's putting your talent towards raising some money.
Not everybody is skilled, not everyone can actually go out there
and shift rubble or whatever. It's just a way to do your bit.
It definitely says a lot for working
class people showing solidarity like that. We're constantly told
that people are selfish and they only care about themselves.
John people who have less
normally give more
Yeah, the US government only gave the
equivalent to one and half days spending in Iraq, their spending
more on creating suffering as opposed to relieving it. It shows
where their priorities lie.
John Ah Mr. William Gates.
He gave 750 million to aids charities in Africa. But I think it's
just a big tax write off. I mean Bill Gates shits more than that
doesn't he to be quite honest!? Of course it's going to the right
place, but he's doing it just to better himself. When you get
people like that going, 'here I am at a big press conference,
its William Gates giving 750 million dollars!' It's all a bit,
'look at me, look at me!'
Mads Yeah and there's not even a new windows out
yet!
Frank They haven't even worked out the bugs on the
last one yet.
They put bugs in them on purpose! Anyway,
how easy is it for bands from the south west to get their music
out there?
John - Well I suppose where we are
we're quite accessible because of where we live. We live on the
M5 corridor so for us going North, South, East or West is pretty
easy.
Mads But for bands like No Comply in Plymouth it's
pretty hard.
John I suppose we're quite lucky living in the Northern
part of the South West, but if you come from Devon, Cornwall,
Bournemouth or wherever it can be quite difficult to get out there.
Pete At least where we are we have a huge radius
where we can start small and work your way out. To get a certain
fan base sorted. That's what we did to begin with.
How did you start out as a band?
John - Well it was in 1962, we were
originally called The Children of Flowers. No we were 16, it was
1993, and we'd just finished our G.C.S.E's and we thought it would
be a laugh to start a band and we did. We just played gigs in
schools and youth clubs, then we went to Bristol and played punk
venues like the Ropewalk and The Croft and places like that. We
just carried on doing that, and just ended up playing further
and further afield. Then you'd end up playing Glasgow or Scunthorpe
or somewhere like that. We just went anywhere it would take us.
Did you try hard to promote yourselves?
John well it's easier to promote yourselves when
you're playing locally. We can take responsibility for flyering.
We come from the old school before the internet.
Mads We used to take names and addresses and mail
people stuff.
Pete Now we sound really old!
Do you guys skateboard? I'm always quite
interested in the relationship between punk and hardcore and skateboarding,
back in the day skateboarding was punk.
Mads -. Well for us, skateboarding is just like the music
you play. You do it because you enjoy it, for yourself and no
one else. No fashion or none of that bollocks. Then there comes
the showing off part and all of that. But that's where we all
come from, Thrasher wasn't it?
Frank Yeah and skate vids. You'd hear one song from
a band on a skate vid then go to a record store and buy all the
albums.
John And they used to do punk compilations for like
2.50 from Burning Heart or wherever. And there would be one every
month with eight or nine bands. Now compilations cost so much
more.
I prefer buying stuff from British labels
like Household Name and Dead and Gone they tend to be much cheaper.
Frank The good thing about
Household Name is it's run by Lil. If you actually sit and chat
with Lil you know where he's coming from. For him it started as
his hobby and he's passionate about it. You talk to someone at
Golf Records it's a business. He's got a little record shop in
Camden
Last question, how has Greg's departure
affected the band?
Mads I wouldn't says it's
affected us at all he met a young lady and he felt it was time
to move on. She does live in another country so
Pete Band practice would be hard!
Mads - It was pretty much for that reason, we split quite
happily. It was a learning curve for us in the sense that it brought
the rest of us together. We had to find a new guitarist, not in
a personal sense but we needed to bring someone in to fatten up
the guitars. Then we found Andy and he's a good guy. He stands
for everything we stood for. You know we interviewed guys in full
leather, they just wanted to be in a band on a record label and
that's not what we stand for. We needed someone local to us who's
gonna hang out with us.
Was it Greg who was into all the Black
Metal?
No that was Daryl our old bass player;
he's in a band called Amputated now, and their doing all right.
They're into Gore metal with all the blood and stuff.
Haha like Gwar!
|
|
|
Midnight Mango Presents on Tickets: Drinks Promotions: Midnight Mango: |
  |
Whitmore (Moon Ska Records) Uncle Brian (Golf Records) Mr Zippy (Golf Records) |
 |
click here for Midnight Mango's front page |
|