Avalanche Party Interview

With the Northern music scene constantly thrusting exciting, new music in our faces, Avalanche Party seem to be their new concoction. The five-piece and their tour manager sat down with us above The Joiners to talk their upcoming Europe tour, musical inspirations and their take on Cabbage making the headlines for their recent stage performances.

Coming from up north, home to some pretty wild bands such as yourself, The Blinders and Cabbage (bands known for their full-on live reputation), how does it differ coming down South and playing Europe?

Joe: Europe’s great. Europe’s got a different kinda punter. If they like you, they’ll show it. Whereas up North is where we are used too because we are a Northern band. We’re used to playing gigs there but can’t really tell the difference really.
Jordan: Yeah, it’s hard to speak when we haven’t actually played Southampton before.
Joe: One gig really up North got really mental!

Where about was that?

Joe: Glasgow. They were ripping the ceiling down. But then again, we played a gig in London that was probably as wild as Glasgow.

It’s funny. A lot of bands mention how Glasgow is a wild place to play.

Joe: Well we played at half one in the morning so you can imagine they were all pretty tanked up.

As far as tour partying goes, if your tour manager wasn’t sat right next to me, what stories could you tell me about what you guys get up too?

Jarred: Ask him!!
Jimmy (T.M): Aye!
Joe: He was the one keeping us all up!
Jimmy: Woah!
Joe: We played a gig in Manchester and came back to Jimmy’s in Doncaster. Last night was a good time in Doncaster, but that was all down to our tour manager. We just wanted to go to bed but he wouldn’t let us.

What tour stories do you have? How mental does it all get?

Jordan: Not mental at all. Nothing ever interesting ever happens on tour.
Glen: Most of it is just travelling.
Jordan: When you go on tour like, especially when it’s back to back you just spend all the time in the back of a van travelling to the gig, then sound checking, yeah…

Well it sounds like you guys have a mental time!

Joe: (laughs) we do!

You have started to build a reputation for you live performances, do you feel the performance is just as important as the music itself?

Jarred: Yeah definitely! It’s through watching other bands. You go to a gig and you want something to watch. Yeah, that’s always been in our minds.

(Jake from support band, Speaking of Witches interrupts for a couple minutes whilst he looks for a beer)

When writing your songs, what major inspirations do you draw upon?

Jordan: Musical influences probably people like Iggy Pop and Nick Cave. Bands around these days probably Fat White Family. Amazing Snakeheads definitely.

Have you heard the new Moonlandingz album? It’s brilliant, isn’t it?

Jordan: Yeah!
Joe: We went to see them in Newcastle actually on their last tour.
Jordan: Yeah, it was good. He wrapped himself in cling film didn’t he?

How do you think Fat White Family get away with getting their dicks out on stage and being completely naked, yet Cabbage get in trouble for grinding and thrusting at a gig?

Joe: I guess it’s different as that crowd were there to see Kasabian really.
Jimmy: Lee, their lead singer, said it’s a load of rubbish! Someone is spreading rumours. It’s all just hearsay. Might be right, might not.
Joe: I guess none of us were there so we don’t know what happened. But we like Cabbage. Hopefully they didn’t.

Photograph - Rory Sansom