A revealing insight into Scoundrels with Ned Wyndham
What is the band up to today? Is it a 24/7 existence being in a band or is there downtime too?
Today I am working in an antique shop doing some work to earn some cash, living the rock and roll dream amidst mahogany tables and brass lamps. Oh and there's even a narwhale tusk here for sale. Mentally the band is always in my head 24/7 without a shadow of doubt, we're always thinking of tunes, coming up with new ideas and when we can we'll get into the studio and rehearse. We've all got one goal really, to make the band work. From a personal viewpoint I'm terrible at unwinding, if I go on a break all I can ever think of is what I should be doing to further the band, perhaps I should take tranquilisers with me on my next sojourn.
Where do you think the band is currently sitting on the path to fame and fortune?
We were once told that the path of a band can be compared to the rungs of a ladder, the first rung being the toughest to get on and one that 99.9% of bands never get on. There are hundreds of rungs. After we first got signed we were told that we had made the first rung, then when we got our second deal and released our album we were told we'd made the second rung. We've made a good solid start but we're still light years away from our goal. One of the things our labels were intent on, was establishing a career for us, building the foundations slowly yet solidly. We don't want to be a band with a short lifespan, we want to maintain an ever growing fanbase and have the chance to release album after album.
The blues is your ‘bread and butter’ who were you listening to that may you want to be in a band?
All of us have been in bands since we were mere scamps of lads, since we'd learned to tie shoelaces. I think we've all had different introductions to music; mine was long journeys in the car with my parents who always had great taste. I remember how they'd always buy these 50's and 60's compilation tapes from petrol stations, tunes by greats like Eddie Cochrane, Fats Domino and Del Shannon. I think my parents always instilled that love of music within me and I remember as a little kid I used to imagine being Chuck Berry playing "Tulane" in front of loads of people.
Which is your preference and why.. Studio, Concert Hall or a Festival Stage?
Depends really on the crowd, but we haven't had much experience of playing on huge festival stages so I guess I wouldn't really know yet. I would say though that we're really well versed in playing packed, sweaty clubs, we know that scenario so well and really thrive off that pressure cooker style atmosphere. The sweatier the better.
Has hometown London had any influence on your music?
Definitely. Many people see us as a band that is influenced by the sounds and grooves of South Louisiana and that is true to an extent. But we're also heavily influenced by music from our own country, we're all (in the main) from the UK and have distinctly British ways of thought and humour etc. One of our collective heroes is Peter Green, and his Fleetwood Mac have been hugely inspirational to us, as have the Rolling Stones and a vast array of British bands over the decades. We're all initially from other parts of the country so we all have our own colloquial takes on things. I'm from Lewes, George is from Salisbury, Josh is from Cranleigh and Billy is a Chiswick resident.
Anyone or any band you would most like to collaborate or record with?
There are loads of great bands out there at the moment but I'd love to collaborate with our good friends from Lafayette, Louisiana, "Givers". They are a great band live, full of infectious energy and with some great, melodic tunes. They're destined for big things, so watch this space. I think we'd also all love to work with Dr. Dre, he's a true legend and we've covered one of his tunes, "Xxplosive" from his "2001" album. His tunes are so full of big riffs and beats, I reckon we'd all clink heads really well.
How have you seen you audience change since you started out to where you are today?
In terms of our London shows our fanbase has grown massively. I remember vividly playing gigs to just the soundman, or if we were lucky the bar staff too. Nowadays I can't remember the last time we didn't have a sold out show in London, there's a real excitement that surrounds our gigs but we have to constantly make sure we're improving and adding a new facet to each and every performance. I love the fact too that around the country we're constantly seeing new faces at each and every gig, that's really exciting to know that you're reaching new people each and every time.
You have your first album out and are working on songs for number 2 but what advice would you give to the new bands starting out today?
Perseverance is the greatest asset anyone in this game can have. Make sure you get your tunes together and an idea for how you want to present yourself. Try to be unique and interesting and rehearse like mad. It's never been tougher to make a living out of music but paradoxically the live scene is burgeoning, and it's never been easier thanks to social networking to get your music out to a large audience. The main thing though I'd say, without trying to sound like a life coach, if you want to be a musician, then don't stop trying till you've become one.
What are your ambitions as a band for the next 18 months?
Our next 18 months should be an amazing period in our lives as musicians. We're hopefully heading out to Europe to support of our debut album then heading back out to the states to do a live session on CBS Radio, play CMJ Festival in New York and do a mini East Coast tour, then potentially we'll stay out there for a while to record the second album. Then on returning, November and December will be touring non-stop round the UK and Europe. We aim to head back to the states early next year, do South By Southwest and release our second album round April/May. Then I guess it's touring, then come the summer we'll be doing the festival circuit. We literally can't wait to see what the future holds, I'd really hope that the second album does really well worldwide, we're all really excited with the tunes we've got for it.
Have you welcomed social networking with open arms and how much is it a part of promoting you musically?
I don't think any of us is naturally inclined towards social networking but I certainly have grown to quite enjoy it. It's nice to know that you can record something and have it in people's homes within seconds of putting it up on our websites. It's also enabled us to reach a much wider audience, it still amazes me when we get messages from people from the far flung corners of the earth that love our music. We got a great message from a girl from Manaus, Brazil today asking us when we were coming to South America...hopefully soon!
Is anyone in the band fashion conscious before they step onto the stage?
None of us are that fashion conscious although we all do enjoy sprucing up before shows. We used to wear one-piece ski suits which were brilliant but sadly shrank in the wash thus rendering them mildly revealing to audiences (and we weren't sure whether they wanted to see that). George has just acquired a native American headdress which is great, I think as time has progressed we've gotten more into wearing stage clothes. It helps you to shift into the mindset of doing a gig, like going into battle, although I'm not sure a ski suit would've worked too well at the Battle Of Bannockburn.
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