STILL

Answers by Fraser Briggs (FB) and Jack Green (JG)

Q1. For readers who might not be familiar with you, would you please provide some background on yourself—where you’re from, when you formed, etc.?

FB: Still started around 2017 off the back of a previous project that wasn’t really going anywhere. Jack and I decided to jump ship and form something more suited to material we were interested in exploring. We’re based in Hull, [UK] however Adam [Williams], our bassist, lives in Norwich.

JG: He’s got one hell of a commute. Before we broke and started Still, Fraser and I had identified a similarity in our approach to writing and desire to push for something different. We had a big crossover in music that we both liked and discovered a shorthand together which was spontaneous and organic. 

Q2. How would you describe your sound? Who are some of your primary influences?

JG: Our influences have never been exclusively musical, a lot of our influence comes from other media that handle emotion and narrative in non-traditional ways. For me, George Orwell was a big influence in the beginning and the ominous vibe of avant garde cinema from the 60’s/70’s.

FB:  I think I’ve always been a bit of a magpie. I’m always on the lookout for aspects of art that are novel and not just limited to music. There have been bands we use as reference points (especially in the early days) like Oathbreaker or Deluge, and I’d be lying if Plebeian Grandstand didn’t get name checked a lot. We try to avoid writing music reminiscent of what’s popular or commonplace; the goal is never to emulate. If something starts to take on the identity of a reference we redirect. We’re trying to make authentic art. 

Q3. What is it in the water in Hull that produces so many nasty, savage bands?

FB: It’s possibly because of its isolation from other major cities in the UK. It becomes a bit of a feedback loop, if you're exploring negativity you’re going to get negativity back. 

JG: The idea of an underground music scene being exclusively in one location would inevitably mean a very small group, the world is so small with social media small pockets of alternative society are connecting and forming something grander than proximity could ever provide. I’d argue the scenes we operate in aren’t just local but national. We’re a group of artists spread around a country that is falling apart on every level. We’re affected by this and maybe it shows? 

Q4. Who are some bands on the scene we should be paying special attention to?

FB: Locally, Runt. They’re great. Looking further afield, Trudger should be on your radar. Host Body and Mouths are both doing exciting stuff too.

JG: Acceptance and Fatalist both have great energy.  

Q5. You recently released the full-length A Theft (readers can see my review of the record here). I understand there was a personal tragedy that changed the trajectory of the record—where was it headed and where did it ultimately go? What sorts of themes do you explore on the record?

FB:  A Theft was always meant to be an intense body of work. Shifting the focus perhaps made it heavier in a way that is only possible thematically or contextually. For me the album is the early stages of grief. It has helped me work through a lot of things that happened before, during and after my Dad passed.

JG: Previously it was just a collection of songs that were a deliberate attempt to avoid a ‘concept’,  we had found from past experience that operating within tight confines quickly becomes unwieldy. However, under the stark light of grief the refocus was organic and led us to a poignant body of work.

Q6. What has the reception to A Theft been?

FB: It’s been unreal. I don't think we were prepared for how many people have connected with it. For me, making it was enough as a cathartic exorcism. Sharing something that feels so deeply personal and to have it resonate with so many others has been a truly rewarding experience.

Q7. Did you/will you be touring in support of the record? Are there any other future plans for the band currently on the horizon?

JG: We did a run of dates in November shortly after the album came out and we have some more shows booked for the end of February [with Acceptance—see flyer below] to continue supporting the record. 

FB: We’ll be looking at playing much more than we have in previous years. Getting to play this body of work as much as possible feels like one of the only positives from such negative beginnings.

Album order link: https://wearestillaband.bandcamp.com/album/a-theft