You’re supporting Frank Turner on his huge UK arena tour – how’s it going?
We’ve done four dates of this arena tour so far, and we’ve got another three left. We’re playing The O2 tomorrow, and it’s been amazing. I’ve been looking forward to it a lot anyway, but we were never really sure how many people were actually going to turn up to see me play the opening slot on the night. I could almost have turned up, played to a thousand people and still been a little bit disappointed! People have been coming down nice and early and enjoying the show, which is great. I think the whole show has quite a family and friends vibe to it – people get that, they know that, and the venues have been pretty much full as soon as the doors have opened on some nights. The shows have really been working, just because it’s so far away from anything you’d ever expect to see or hear in an arena. All my worries have disappeared!
Were you nervous before the first arena show?
Not really! Wembley Arena went so well when we played there back in 2011, so after that we were all just a little bit like ‘hey, let’s go for it!’. I didn’t put any more thought into the Wembley show than I would for any other show, so I guess I just knew I could do it. I play gigs pretty much every night, so the only thing that’s different for me about the arena show is that there are more people there. It’s more a case of there just being more excitement, rather than more nerves!
What’s your favourite song to play live?
It changes from day to day. I’ve only got twenty-five minutes to play on this arena tour, so I’ve only been playing one new song – it’s called The Chicken Song and I really like it, so right now I guess that I’m going to go with that one.
What’s the best thing about playing live?
I love everything about it. The singing, the travelling, the meeting people… Hey, I even love doing the posters! It’s all kind of one package, and there’s nothing not to like.
Who have been the best crowd of the tour so far?
That’s a hard one! Cardiff was the first gig of the tour – that was a huge room, and I felt like it kind of set the standard for the rest of the tour. Of course, then we went to Nottingham the following night, and that room was twice as big… Manchester just got even bigger, and it’s tempting to just say ‘the bigger the better!’. I’m going to say Nottingham, just because we had a great after-show party, but the whole thing’s just been amazing.
Does it feel the same for you to play these cavernous arenas as it does for you to play small venues?
Yeah, it definitely does. Again, it’s just a little bit more exciting. I’ve been doing this for a long time, so by now I kind of know what I’m doing. It’s just a gig, and those are always great fun.
You’ve just released your new single…
The album was out in December, and I think we kind of just said ‘oh, we’re putting out a single’ just in the hope that people would play it on the radio. I mean, what even is a single anymore? We made a video for it, but the song was already out so it just makes me feel like the whole ‘releasing a single’ thing is a little bit pointless. Still, by all means go and download the single!
How much of the next album have you written?
A fair bit! There are four new tunes that I’ve written that’ll make it on there, but I’ve got until September so there’s no pressure. It’s just a constant cycle. It always works well in that year cycle. I’ve booked the studio, so now we’ve just got to wait!
Which song do you wish you’d written?
Hmm… Definitely a Christmas song! Probably the Wizzard one, I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day.
Who’s your ultimate musical icon?
A guy called Todd Snider. He’s an American country singer, and he’s still recording and releasing stuff now. I’ve just finished his book, which just blew my mind with regards to how he views being a travelling songwriter. I first found him when I first got Spotify, and I found one track I absolutely loved. There’s nothing like finding someone you love so much, then realising they’d already released seven albums worth of material… You can just go back to the start and go through everything. I then found a track from his live album, and he was talking for about twenty minutes in-between songs. It wasn’t too different to what I was doing, so it was just mindblowing for me. Check him out!
What’s the weirdest thing that’s ever happened to you whilst touring?
Hmm, that’s hard… Nothing springs to mind, but something odd must have happened on this tour at least… It’s been good fun, this tour. I’ve been travelling around in a Ford Fiesta, so the crew picked up my car and moved it away the other day. That was interesting.
Describe yourself in three words?
Drunk folk singer.