Post by blade on May 30, 2014 13:04:08 GMT
From:
www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/whats-on/music-nightlife-news/howling-bells-talk-david-sue-7176654
Text:
Howling Bells roar back to mark their decade
May 27, 2014 15:55
By David Sue
A period off has helped Howling Bells to rediscover their fire, Juanita Stein tells David Sue.
Juanita Stein, the front-woman of Australia-formed, London-based indie-rockers Howling Bells, is trying to pinpoint the precise reason why her band has endured so successfully over their 10 year period.
After a lengthy pause, she settles for one simple explanation: their nationalities. “It must be down to our Australian nature,” she says, half joking. “Being in a band is not for the faint-hearted: living in each other’s pockets for such a long time can be a really trying experience. It destroys relationships.
“It’s lucky we’re Australian: I think our laid-back nature has helped us to avoid those big, explosive confrontations that so many bands have.”
Stein and her fellow Howling Bells bandmates – her brother and guitarist Joel, bassist Gary Daines and drummer Glenn Moule – have been thinking a lot about their Australian roots recently. It is, after all, almost exactly a decade since three-quarters of the band (bassist Daines is British born) uprooted from their native Sydney to London to kick-start their music careers.
If that relocation looks pleasingly justified in the present day – Howling Bells having chalked up four albums of critically acclaimed indie-rock – the band are keen to acknowledge how, back in 2004, they had little more to go on besides pure gut instinct.
“You could call it a leap of faith,” Stein considers. “I can still clearly remember that band meeting, the one where we decided we should just drop everything and move to London. We really wanted things to change and a new country seemed just the thing. It was important to have the right environment, ...some place to suit the mood of the band, somewhere gritty.”
‘Gritty’ seems a pretty decent description of the band’s recorded oeuvre so far, too, from their 2006 self-titled debut album right up to their latest fourth effort, Heartstrings, released on Monday.
It’s a release that should come as mighty relief to the band’s fanbase which, over the last three years, had feared for Howling Bells’ long-term future. Stein stepped out of the limelight to become a mum, then re-emerged last year in her new role as a guitarist for Albert Albert - the London indie outfit featuring former Kaiser Chief drummer Nick Hodgson.
A Howling Bells split was never a serious possibility, but Stein admits that the band, for the sake of their personal relationships, needed that extended hiatus. “There was a sense of resetting the machine,” she explains. “There’s that old saying, ‘Never go into business with your best friends’, but being in a band is a bit like that, probably worse! It’s more intense because you spend so much time in each other’s company. It was good for me to take a step away... it’s important to get some perspective so you can redefine yourself.”
For Howling Bells, that redefining period effectively meant going back to basics: new album Heartstrings, easily a career best, is also their most visceral and fluff-free release to date, surging through 10 tracks in a blistering 32 minutes. That trademark Aussie insouciance clearly doesn’t permeate every aspect of their characters.
“We’re definitely not laid-back when it comes to making music,” Stein insists. “When we first started out, there were a lot of similar guitar bands around; kids obsessed with The Libertines and just flirting with the idea of making music.
“For us though, it was this total life-changing thing. We’d moved across the world to do it. It was – and still is – this major commitment.”
www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/whats-on/music-nightlife-news/howling-bells-talk-david-sue-7176654
Text:
Howling Bells roar back to mark their decade
May 27, 2014 15:55
By David Sue
A period off has helped Howling Bells to rediscover their fire, Juanita Stein tells David Sue.
Juanita Stein, the front-woman of Australia-formed, London-based indie-rockers Howling Bells, is trying to pinpoint the precise reason why her band has endured so successfully over their 10 year period.
After a lengthy pause, she settles for one simple explanation: their nationalities. “It must be down to our Australian nature,” she says, half joking. “Being in a band is not for the faint-hearted: living in each other’s pockets for such a long time can be a really trying experience. It destroys relationships.
“It’s lucky we’re Australian: I think our laid-back nature has helped us to avoid those big, explosive confrontations that so many bands have.”
Stein and her fellow Howling Bells bandmates – her brother and guitarist Joel, bassist Gary Daines and drummer Glenn Moule – have been thinking a lot about their Australian roots recently. It is, after all, almost exactly a decade since three-quarters of the band (bassist Daines is British born) uprooted from their native Sydney to London to kick-start their music careers.
If that relocation looks pleasingly justified in the present day – Howling Bells having chalked up four albums of critically acclaimed indie-rock – the band are keen to acknowledge how, back in 2004, they had little more to go on besides pure gut instinct.
“You could call it a leap of faith,” Stein considers. “I can still clearly remember that band meeting, the one where we decided we should just drop everything and move to London. We really wanted things to change and a new country seemed just the thing. It was important to have the right environment, ...some place to suit the mood of the band, somewhere gritty.”
‘Gritty’ seems a pretty decent description of the band’s recorded oeuvre so far, too, from their 2006 self-titled debut album right up to their latest fourth effort, Heartstrings, released on Monday.
It’s a release that should come as mighty relief to the band’s fanbase which, over the last three years, had feared for Howling Bells’ long-term future. Stein stepped out of the limelight to become a mum, then re-emerged last year in her new role as a guitarist for Albert Albert - the London indie outfit featuring former Kaiser Chief drummer Nick Hodgson.
A Howling Bells split was never a serious possibility, but Stein admits that the band, for the sake of their personal relationships, needed that extended hiatus. “There was a sense of resetting the machine,” she explains. “There’s that old saying, ‘Never go into business with your best friends’, but being in a band is a bit like that, probably worse! It’s more intense because you spend so much time in each other’s company. It was good for me to take a step away... it’s important to get some perspective so you can redefine yourself.”
For Howling Bells, that redefining period effectively meant going back to basics: new album Heartstrings, easily a career best, is also their most visceral and fluff-free release to date, surging through 10 tracks in a blistering 32 minutes. That trademark Aussie insouciance clearly doesn’t permeate every aspect of their characters.
“We’re definitely not laid-back when it comes to making music,” Stein insists. “When we first started out, there were a lot of similar guitar bands around; kids obsessed with The Libertines and just flirting with the idea of making music.
“For us though, it was this total life-changing thing. We’d moved across the world to do it. It was – and still is – this major commitment.”