Manchester Dance-Eletro-Pop group, Swiss Lips, are planning to release an album in the Summer, and with their utterly unique sound and their musical energy, I've no doubt it will be a massive success.
Having supported Bastille on a number of shows during their tour in October last year, Swiss Lips' fanbase just keeps growing, and who could question it, with such comfortable, lively stage presence to offer. Lead vocalist, Sam Hammond, spoke to me about the background of Swiss Lips, and also what's next on the cards for this upcoming group.
Hey guys! How are you all doing today?
Good! Hiding from the bastard snow! Writing and making stuff.
You guys are definitely rising in the industry, and at live shows ye certainly put on a performance. But how did ye come together as a band in the first place? Have ye known each other for a long time or how did it happen?
Thanks. We have known each other for years, through different bands, Manchester is pretty small in truth , so if you need a drummer or a guitarist it's not hard to find one, you just have to steal them off another band.
Who would have influenced your sound when you first started writing? Has it changed much since then?
When we started we were listening to a lot of French House music and wanted to emulate that but with strong pop songs. I guess that still stands to a point but we have millions of influences and some of the newer tracks are from a totally different place.
Your sound is quite unique, but who would you compare yourselves to?
It's difficult to compare yourself to someone . We wanna combine the balls of Def Leppard , the souls of Justice and the melodies of The Beach Boys.
Who would have been each of your favourite musicians growing up? Did you grow up in a musical background, or is it just something you've grown to love in your later years?
I'm [Sam] the only one answering this , but I know we all grew up loving Michael Jackson and Nirvana. We all have some kind of musical background I think. My dad is a musician , and my Nana was.
Do you guys have a method to your writing? Does one of you write the lyrics and the rest of you just jam a melody afterwards or is everything a collective effort?
A few of us write basic ideas on pianos / guitars , then we develop them/ruin them together. Lyrics usually come last once the melodies are sorted.
So you supported Bastille in october last year at a few of their shows. How was that? I mean, I remember seeing you at the Dublin show and the crowd were loving your performance; were you expecting such a reaction?
Bastille were a great band to tour with, ace guys with great fans. It was our first proper tour so was a lot of fun and the crowds were awesome. We knew it would be good as Bastille were starting to take off, it was like being in the eye of the storm.
How does it feel to see your fanbase growing and people tweeting your lyrics? Is that aspect important to you guys?
It's pretty amazing, beyond everything we expected. I find lyrics really tough , and spend forever on them, so when someone tells us they like them it makes it all worthwhile .
I actually have some fan questions for ye today; my email sort of exploded once I said I was interviewing ye!
How did you come up with the name 'Swiss Lips'? (Julie Peapod)
It popped into my head like a gift from the name gods, it felt good to say. It doesn't mean vagina, urban dictionary is nonsense, one week it said Swiss Lips meant dirty bum crack. We'll take either.
Is the Union going to be a UK project or will it just be a London thing? (Margaux Lemoine)
Hopefully a UK project , we had the best time doing it .. Putting on awesome free parties costs loads of money though , trying to avoid getting sponsors on board... We're working on it!
What can you tell me about your instruments? Are you subject to brand loyalty or will you play whatever is available? What made you choose the instruments you have now- was it cost or was it style/model/brand/colour preference? (Nick Cade)
Hey Nick. We're not sponsored by anyone. Luke has just had a custom guitar built. We use a lot of Roland equipment, Juno's, spdx's and a lot of Fender amps / guitars. Nic's drum kit is a big shiny white one , I can't remember the brand ! Mapex maybe...
Obviously cost comes into it but we just try to buy the best we can to perform our songs well live.
Would you rather go on a date with a sheep or have a hungry penguin run off with your Toe?! (Rebecca Allion & Paige McFadden)
All I've ever wanted is to be part of a penguin's poop.
Why do you have such a big love for cats? On instagram and at the end of your video diaries. (Andrew Robert Riley)
Cats rule the world, you know that.
What made you change your sound from a typical indie band while you were the 10 Bears, to become Swiss Lips with a sound that's so different compared to other bands? (Lyle Morrison)
I was the only songwriter in that band really , and when people left it became a bit old , and tired. When this band came together everything felt new. Sometimes you just want to wear a new coat.
Every artist or band has a name for their fans as a whole, what are your fans called? If you don't have a name for them, what shall they be called?! (Kathy Malcolm)
We don't have a name for fans, we're not quite there yet...they can name themselves for now.
How did you get so popular?! (Kianna & Aaliyah- Age 6!)
The internet . And we sold our souls to Bobby Brown.
If you could collaborate with other artists (alive or dead) on an album of mash-ups, who would you choose? (Lauren Jenkinson)
Michael Jackson , Brian Wilson, Frank Ocean, Kanye West, Justice, Prince, Fleetwood Mac.
How important is it to you that people understand your lyrics? Do you like hearing fans' interpretations? (Jessica Aherne)
Its great to hear when people get it, but it's also great to hear when they don't and they create their own meanings. As long as its making someone feel something then were happy.
Well! Clearly you've built up a massive fanbase, so what's next for you guys? Any recording or tours planned? What's your ultimate goal for the rest of this year?
Our album is out this summer. It's be nice if everybody loved it. We're gonna be touring and at the festivals. Party time!
Ok, thanks so much for that interview; I wish ye all the best!
Thanks for doing this, great idea!
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