Threads Interview
Bradford based Heavy Rock & Rollers Threads feature an impressive line up of ex Khang, Health Hazard & ManFat members and although have yet to record and only really been active for a few months are already causing a major wave in the Underground. I hooked up with their vocalist Bry to get the low down on what’s currently happening with this new kid on the block.
Hi Bry, hope life is treating you well, firstly we might as well kick start this interview with a brief run down of your current members, what they play and previous bands they’ve been involved with?
Bry (me) Vocals ex Khang and a short period in Tortoise Waltz. Rob Holden, Guitars ex ManFat, Baby Harp Seal, Lee Malvo and others. Cath O’Connor, bass ex CO’C sound, Baba Yaga, Snail Racing, Month of Birthdays. Dave Sneddon (Sned) Drums ex Boxed In, Health Hazard, Generic, Sawn Off etc etc…
As yet I’ve not actually heard anything by Threads so in your own words how would you describe your music and in what way does it differ from your previous band Khang?
It’s Heavy Rock and Roll, pretty up tempo stuff, with glorious riffage. We just want to be a good live band that has excitement coming from the stage and the songs. When Khang started to become mainly Doom, I felt it had got way too slow and was alienating a lot of people who were into Khang from the start. It had moved away from being Full on Grinding Rock, to being Super Heavy Doom. I enjoy Heavy Doom to listen to, but it’s not really what I want to sing. I’m a Rock and Roll singer and THREADS reflects that. We just go for the Rock and Roll with no messing.
And what are your main influences both musically and lyrically?
Musically PurpleVsFlagVsSabbathVsZeppelin are good influences for the band. As a singer I love classic rock vocalists, Gillan, Coverdale, Hughes, Dio, Rodgers, Byron, Lawton etc… Those cats can hold and tune and give it some real Rock and Roll. Robs guitar playing is amazing, he’s influenced by so many different styles and incorporates them all. Rock, hardcore, folk, blues etc…. He can just go off into his own world and jam along to anything and anyone, he is the first guitar player that I’ve played with that can bring out that Bolin, Blackmore, Johnson, Hendrix, Page amalgamation and just blow his cookies in any direction he wants.
It’s also good to hear that the legend that is Sned is back once again on the drum stool so can you tell us how he and the rest of the band came to be involved in Threads?
I rang Rob about starting a new band that was proper 70’s heavy rocking, he agreed. So we did, I talked to Sned about other drummers coz he was in Boxed In and I just thought he wouldn’t have the time to do another band. But he was well keen, so all was good. Next I rang Cath about playing the bass, she wanted to get rocking again, so we got together and it all worked fine, Heavy Rock and Roll was born again!
Your also based pretty much all over the place (well sort of – Bradford, Leeds, Lancaster & Rotherham), do you find this a problem getting everyone together for rehearsals, gigs etc?
Rob has just moved to Bradford from Lancaster so getting together will be much easier from now on.
Speaking of gigs, have you had many chances to play, does your set consist of all your own material and so far how do you feel these have gone?
We’ve played 7 gigs so far, It’s all all our own material, we have seven songs at the moment and we’ve had a very good response to the band. It’s cool that people are digging the songs.
And what about up & coming gigs, I know your penned in to play with your old partners in crime Lazarus Blackstar at the end of the year, plus a few dates in the Leeds area, along with a few dates in Ireland in early 2006. Can you tell us, is it important for you as a band to play live & how did these shows come about, in particular the Irish dates?
After recording the album in January, we shall be arranging as many gigs as we can. The Irish dates were set up by Sned and Gary (Oak guitarist), we’ve all known each other over the years so it should be great rocking out with our Irish brothers and sisters.
As yet, you don’t have any releases, demo or otherwise available for our audio consumption, so can you tell us if you have any plans to go into the studio in the near future and if you do, what kind of format will it be released as?
We are recording an album with Bri Doom (Lazarus Blackstar) at the 1in12 Club Studios in early January. Bri is getting shit hot in the studio, we can’t wait. So hopefully it’ll be out early next year. Beautiful Steve will be releasing it on his Violent Change label. Which is fucking great of him to do it!
Your yet another band who’s taken advantage of Myspace by adding your own page, have you found this a help getting the word spread about Threads?
Rocking out live spreads the real word, Myspace is a very distorted reality, I suppose it can be helpful to get your name out there, but for spreading the riff, you can’t beat the word on the street.
And although highly additive what are your opinions on the crazy world that is Myspace and would you recommend other bands follow suit?
Its an odd thing for sure, but its a lot lazier than other eras, you just have to sit, stare at a screen and there it is the Myspace world all fucked up!
Other than the Irish dates in early 2006, what other plans do you have for the future?
Getting the album done and then getting more gigs under our belt. Hopefully over the summer we can get ourselves to Europe. My ultimate aim is to rock Japan one day, anyone with contacts for gigs over there would be appreciated ha ha! You got to try haven’t you!!
OK Bry, thanks for taking time to answer these questions and please use this space for any Final Words/Thoughts…
Cheers Lee, thanks for taking an interest in THREADS. The Riff will save us all. Bry Outlaw.
Check out the latest goings on with Threads at: www.myspace.com/threads333
Interviewed by: Lee Edwards
Photographs courtesy of Ricky Adams