{"id":5440,"date":"2019-05-25T05:00:04","date_gmt":"2019-05-25T05:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/?p=5440"},"modified":"2019-05-19T12:41:52","modified_gmt":"2019-05-19T12:41:52","slug":"brain-ape-interview-camden-rocks-ones-to-watch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/?p=5440","title":{"rendered":"Brain Ape Interview – Camden Rocks ones to Watch"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The band has been around since 2012. Tell us who you are and how you came together.<\/strong>
\nSol: Hi, my name\u2019s Sol. We\u2019re a London band, and I joined the group in 2012 –
\nMinky: You started the band, you nut.
\nSol: Nah, you had a name for the band before I joined. You called it Bandwagon. I joined that
\nband.
\nMinky: Different band. Shit name.
\nSol: Well anyway, I\u2019ve been the bass player ever since. Through all of its ups and downs.
\nMinky: You\u2019re fifty percent of the DNA of this band.
\nJamie: Well anyway, I\u2019m Jamie and I joined Brain Ape on drums in 2018 and then we played our
\nfirst show together in Paris.
\nMinky: And I\u2019m Minky. I\u2019m responsible for this mess, and I\u2019ve been in the band for far too long.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

You’ve released a couple of albums. How has the sound changed if at all and what are the<\/strong>
\nplans for album number three?<\/strong>
\nSol: Album number three might or might not be coming. We don\u2019t know yet.
\nMinky: Album three cannot be confirmed.
\nSol: Or denied.
\nMinky: Or confirmed.
\nJamie: I hope we have a third album.
\nSol: Same, but it cannot be confirmed nor denied at this point in time. But as for our previous
\nalbums, our sound has grown with us as we\u2019ve grown up and become more confident and better
\nin our abilities.
\nMinky: We did one album, loved the sound, then played it for so many years, got bored. Did
\nanother album, loved the sound, have played it for so many years, now bored. So we\u2019ll see.
\nSol: If we do a third album, we\u2019ll take it into a new and unique direction. Our sound evolves with
\nus, and incorporates all of the different influences that we take with us.
\nMinky: But we\u2019ll never forget the \u2018Mudhoney sound\u2019. They\u2019ll always be legends.
\nSol: Personally, I like Nirvana.
\nMinky: I hate you.
\nSol: Can\u2019t deny it.
\nMinky: I prefer the Melvins. You know we\u2019ve had a lot of people recently compare us to the
\nMelvins? I am A-OK with that comparison. If I could grow a \u2018fro like King Buzzo –
\nSol: Except the Melvins didn\u2019t really go anywhere –
\nMinky: Ouch, yes they did man.
\nSol: Whereas their baby brother, Nirvana, went far farther.
\nMinky: You\u2019re a cynic. And that\u2019s coming from me.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

You recently released a DVD which is a bold idea. What\u2019s the idea behind the DVD so early<\/strong>
\non?<\/strong>
\nSol: We had the opportunity and we took it.
\nMinky: It showed itself, we smacked it in the face and took it hostage, and now we\u2019re selling it for
\na minimal price at our merchandise stands.
\nSol: It was for the fans who can\u2019t see us live, mainly. We wanted to show off how far we\u2019ve come
\nand show people what we could do, even if they\u2019re not in the same room as us. It\u2019s a chance for
\nthem so see us play our tunes.
\nMinky: Do you know how many messages I\u2019ve had on social media of people telling me how glad
\nthey are that we released a DVD, because finally they got to see what we do and they weren\u2019t
\ndisappointed?
\nSol: That\u2019s why we do what we do.
\nMinky: It\u2019s been very humbling, somehow. And that\u2019s the best feedback you can get. They had
\nexpectations, and they weren\u2019t disappointed? What could top that?
\nSol: Exactly.
\nMinky: \u2019You changed my life\u2019?
\nSol: Why not?
\nMinky: With a DVD? Can a DVD really change your life?
\nSol: Yep.
\nJamie: Yeah, it can do.
\nMinky: Well was it the Decisive Video of a Decade?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What bands and songwriters have influenced Brain Ape?\"\"<\/a><\/strong>
\nSol: Bowie, Queens of the Stone Age, Pixies –
\nMinky: It gets really boring naming the same people over and over again, but there\u2019s no denying
\nwho they are. Although, I disagree with the Pixies. I\u2019d lean more towards Flipper.
\nSol: Yeah, Flipper\u2019s a good one.
\nMinky: Scratch Acid?
\nSol: We took a lot from them in the early days, but one of our most influential artists has actually
\nbeen a band called Coffee. I live by Coffee. Every day. Eight times a day, even.
\nMinky: Eight times? Mate, you\u2019re going to fucking kill yourself.
\nSol: I need my daily Coffee.
\nMinky: Veruca Salt?
\nSol: Veruca Salt are awesome. Love their harmonies.
\nMinky: And their tone is great, especially on that EP they did with Steven Albini.
\nSol: Mantra?
\n\"\"<\/a>Minky: Fu Manchu.
\nJamie: They\u2019re playing Download, actually.
\nSol: Really?
\nMinky: I know, I saw them on the poster and instantly considered buying a ticket to the festival.
\nSol: Alice in Chains? Avenged Sevenfold?
\nMinky: I think we\u2019ve said Alice in Chains in previous interviews.
\nSol: Blood Red Shoes?
\nMinky: I don\u2019t know them.
\nJamie: Blood Red Shoes are good.
\nSol: Royal Blood?
\nMinky: Nah, fuck them.
\nSol: I love Royal Blood.
\nMinky: Yeah, I know you do. I don\u2019t.
\nSol: I saw them back in the day, in a room with about twenty other people before they got
\nfamous.
\nMinky: You love that story.
\nSol: Yeah, I do.
\nJamie: I saw them the first time they played Reading. I walked past the tent and just had to check
\nthem out.
\nSol: Soundgarden are good.
\nJamie: I like them.
\nSol: Pearl Jam.
\nMinky: Nice guy.
\nSol: The big four are just solid.
\nMinky: AnnenMayKantereit? They\u2019ve influenced the band a lot.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

You appeared on our radar with the booking for Camden Rocks. Are there plans to play<\/strong>
\nother UK wide shows? Why should people come see you at the festival? It’s a great festival<\/strong>
\nand a cool concept with it being such a unique place to be able to do such a festival. Are there<\/strong>
\nany bands playing you’ll like to catch?<\/strong>
\nSol: False Heads. Go see them.
\nMinky: To be fair, I\u2019ll probably be at their show. But that\u2019s no surprise to anyone, I don\u2019t think.
\nSol: We are actually playing a festival called Alice\u2019s Wicked Tea Party the day before Camden
\nRocks.
\nMinky: Correct. We\u2019re going to have a wild time. We\u2019ll still probably be hungover the next day.
\nAnd for Camden Rocks we\u2019re playing at the Fiddler\u2019s Elbow at 1:30 in the afternoon, so we\u2019re
\nkicking things off nice and sweaty for the rest of the festival. But we\u2019ll be hanging around for the
\nrest of the event. Why not? It\u2019s a good excuse to drink beer and see some good bands.
\nSol: This year\u2019s Camden Rocks will be a bit special for us anyway, because it\u2019s the first year that
\nwe\u2019re on the bill.
\nMinky: I\u2019ve just come back from The Alternative Escape down in Brighton –
\nJamie: I\u2019d like to play that festival.
\nMinky: – and there are a lot of events like that popping up in towns and cities at the moment. The
\nHanwell Hootie has just happened too, and I would have liked to have gone to that but obviously
\nI was in Brighton.
\nJamie: The Hootie\u2019s a good one.
\nMinky: There are plenty of day-festivals now, and I think it\u2019s pretty good for punters. It\u2019s quite a
\ncheap experience for a whole day or two.
\nJamie: Camden Rocks is good because it\u2019s a local London festival.
\nMinky: Camden\u2019s a special place on earth, really.
\nSol: And as a band, we\u2019re really looking forward to it. We\u2019ve played other festivals in our history,
\nbut Camden Rocks will be a very nice addition to our trophy case.
\nMinky: We actually keep a trophy cabinet.
\nSol: We reflect upon it every now and again.
\nMinky: We keep all of our platinum records in there, and we\u2019ve also managed to keep a couple of
\nbits and pieces of memorabilia that we\u2019ve collected over the years.
\nSol: We keep loads of posters in there, too. Anything with our name on it, really.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Finally, What next for Brain Ape?<\/strong>
\nMinky: Sell out, make loads of money, move to L.A., forget about London, forget all of the people
\nwe\u2019ve met here, all of the people who\u2019ve helped out. We can just completely leave them behind.
\nUse as many people as possible.
\nSol: We have a new single coming out with its own music video, and it\u2019s going to be the last
\n\u2018hurrah\u2019 of Auslander. That record has been a really good album for us, and this single will
\nbookend this chapter nicely.
\nJamie: A good old firework display for the end.
\nSol: And from there, where do we go? We\u2019ve had an undercurrent of people asking, nay,
\ndemanding a new album –
\nMinky: But we\u2019re not ready for a new album. I\u2019m sorry. It\u2019s going to come out in the next four
\nyears.
\nSol: Four years? I can neither confirm nor deny that the number given by Minky is true.
\nMinky: Actually, you know what? It\u2019s coming out in four days\u2019 time.
\nSol: While Minky throws alternative facts at the wind, come down to Alice\u2019s Wicked Tea Party and
\nCamden Rocks and watch us do our thing. We\u2019ll have plenty of merch there, too. People keep
\nasking for more of that.
\nJamie: Just send us a message, and I\u2019m sure we can work something out.
\nSol: And if you want us to play anywhere in the world, just get in touch.
\nMinky: If you\u2019re in the EU, you\u2019d better hurry up and ask us to come play before Theresa May
\nfucks everything up for everybody.<\/p>\n

Facebook<\/a><\/p>\n

photo courtesy of –\u00a0Nuri Moseinco Photography & Jack Young<\/p>\n

Title Pic –\u00a0Nuri Moseinco Photography<\/p>\n