- Tue, 2006-07-04 17:11
By the time their last single Repeated Offender was released, a groundswell of fans carried The Rifles to No. 1 in the indie charts. The mainstream countdown saw the single in the top twenties. Now, new single, She’s Got Standards, out July 3rd, heralds the band’s debut album and is another example of why The Rifles have been rubbing shoulders at the top of the charts.
The latest single struts with all the melodic nouse of the Best of British guitar bands but wrapped up in the tune comes songwriter Joel Stoker’s trademark, far from saccarhine, eyes-open, tart commentary.
With the debut album No Love Lost due for release on July 10th and festival appearances lined up for throughout the summer including; T In The Park, Oxegen, V Festival and Fuji Rocks – The Rifles are well worth catching. I Like Music caught up with lead singer and songwriter Joel to chat about songwriting, recording with Ian Brodie and London.
“I Like Music because… I don’t have to do a proper job while I’m doing it.” Joel, The Rifles
ILM: Your brilliant new single, She’s Got Standards is out on Monday. We think it’s another great Rifles song. Can you give us your own personal description of it?
Joel: It’s a bit tongue in cheek really, just generalising really, not from personal experience, but it’s just about the girls that hang about bands at gigs. It’s just a joke really.
ILM: Your new album No Love Lost is out July 17. How’s recording it been and which track did you have the most fun recording in the studio?
JoelL: It was really drawn out for us, because schedules and that for Ian Brodie who produced it. We were doing a bit of touring and just getting the actual studio time booked was really difficult and it was around Christmas time some of it. So it seemed like it took forever to do it. It probably didn’t take that long to record it, but it was kind of in bits. So it was kind of hard, it didn’t really feel like we were making an album. If we’d gone away just to do that it would have felt a bit different I think. So it was hard at some points to sort of get your head around it. But it was really good, and really good to work with Ian, because you just learn loads off of someone like that. We have learned a lot from Ian. What I liked about him is, he spends so much time on getting the sounds right, and he’ll think nothing of spending two hours on getting the snare sound, and if there’s nothing good on the telly that could be a bit boring.
ILM: A bit of a perfectionist?
Joel: Yeah, but in a good way, not to beyond a joke level. But as soon as you’ve got it right, he just has to press record and you play. He just gets the best live sound he can possibly get and if he doesn’t like the sound of it he won’t record it. So I think it’s good because it makes you raise your game because you don’t want to mess it up.
ILM: You’re doing some in-store gigs from next week, do you enjoy meeting the fans and mini in store gigs?
Joel: Yeah definitely; its fun. It’s all still really new to us really, so I find it a bit odd, a bit embarrassing, like, it’s only us. But it’s really cool to meet all these people who like hearing what we’re doing.
ILM: It was the Oasis Knebworth experience that inspired you to form the band, and this year you guys are playing V. So that must feel rather good?
Joel: Well me and Luke were both at that gig and we didn’t know each other at the time. It wasn’t just Knebworth it was just Oasis the whole thing when it blew up and that. All my friends weren’t into bands or anything and it even got all of them listening to bands again, and I think it just made loads of general people who ain’t necessarily the type to go out and buy records do that again.
ILM: It kind of awoke everybody to bands, I remember.
Joel: Yeah definitely, I think it did. As soon as they came out, there were loads of bands coming out of the woodwork, which I think is good. The Knebworth thing, it wasn’t just that gig, but that was like the pinnacle of that, because that was such a huge audience to play in front of. Me and my mate were watching it from the back though. But now we’re playing V and played Reading and Leeds last year, and to play at these places now and playing alongside these sorts of people is brilliant.
ILM: And what do you like about festivals?
Joel: To be honest, I’ve never been one for festivals and that, I prefer them the smaller the better to go and watch definitely. I find at the minute, because you don’t play them very frequently the festivals, it’s a completely different thing to playing in a club. You feel a little bit detached from the crowd.
ILM: Yeah, you don’t connect as much as you would at a more intimate gig.
Joel: Nah, so I prefer the other gigs. But it’s the whole day and the weekend with festivals, and if it’s a hot day, it’s just good anyway.
ILM: And that whole experience sharing the stage with loads of people you wouldn’t usually get to share a stage with must be good?
Joel: That’s what I do like about festivals, you do get to see all these bands, and they’re just there so you have to go and watch them. And you can pick up loads of stuff from watching some of these people, because they’re obviously up there for a reason, because they’re good. So you can just take something from that.
ILM: What’s your favourite Rifles track to play live?
Joel: At the minute, Local Boy always seems to go down really well. We normally play that towards the end. It just seems like everyone seems to really singalong with that one and have a jump about, so we really look forward to playing that. But we’ve got a couple of acoustic ones that are on the album that we’re just working out for the set, because we’ve never really played anything downbeat in the set before. So I’m looking forward to see how that works and goes down. When we first started doing half hour sets, we just wanted all upbeat, but now because we play a bit longer at our own gigs, it’ll be nice to through a couple of those slower ones in. And it gives everyone a rest as well.
ILM: Your strong songs have made your popularity grow. Can you describe the Rifles process of making such well crafted music please?
Joel: It works a few different ways. Some of it works from just an acoustic guitar in the bedroom, and then going into the practise room, and some of it works from just jamming in the practice room then putting lyrics and melody on top. So its not really a set way or formula to do it. You hear something and it gives you a bit of a buzz, a bit of inspiration to do it. But you can’t really switch it on or off which is annoying. Sometimes you think I just want to right a song but you feel like you’re never going do it again and that’s frustrating.
ILM: Are you continuously searching for the Holy Grail that is the perfect song?
Joel: Yeah, but I reckon’ if you get that though, you won’t even know it. I think you’ll always look at other bands' songs and think that’s better. I hope so anyway, because I think if you did that, how are you going to better that? We’ll just keep trying.
ILM: You write a lot about the City. What’s the best and worst thing about London?
Joel: It’s a bit of a double edged sword I think. Because, the good thing about it is because it is so busy and there’s always something going on and that. But at the minute, the bad thing about it is all the traffic. So you can’t really have all this busyness without the traffic. But it is a nightmare driving. You could fly to Germany in less time than it takes me to get to Camden.
ILM: Are you able to stop and smell the roses and enjoy the journey and appreciate your success so far?
Joel: It always feels like you’re just getting started all the time, we’re certainly not ready to sit down and take a rest, because the album’s just coming out so now isn’t a good time to chill out. But, yeah, I was chatting earlier with Luke, you get so wrapped up in it, you kind of forget about the things you’re getting up to and what you’re doing. So for people who aren’t in the band it must seem like… my friends are like, "you’ve done this and that, it’s blinding!" But you don’t really think about it when you’re doing it, but you do look back. I’ve started writing down the things we’ve been doing this past year, I’d have been well happy a year ago with what we’ve done.
ILM: Any tips or advice for budding artists and producers starting out?
Joel: I don’t think its good to pay too much attention to anyone other than the people who are doing the music. If you start trying to write for someone else you won’t end up doing what you want to do. If you write a song to appease someone else, it’s not going to work. The thing about songs is, they’re personal, songs; other people will get that. I’m sure other people will have experienced that sort of thing, so they’ll get it anyway.
ILM: So you’ve just got to be true to yourself?
Joel: Yeah, definitely I think.
ILM: Can you describe your favourite place on earth?
Joel: I don’t know really, at home. Everyone tells you exactly what’s what at home.
ILM: What music are you liking right now?
Joel: I’m not really in to any bands at this minute, but recently over the past month, I’ve been listening to my mum’s old Motown records, and I get them out every now and then and have a listen. I think it’s because it’s been nice and sunny, I’ve been digging the records out and listening to all that sort of stuff. Up and coming bands, Milburn toured with us a while ago, they’re a great bunch of fellas and friends of ours now. And I think they’re really good. I can’t wait to listen to their album. I went up to see them in the studio for a day when they were recording it, so I heard a little bit of it.
The Rifles glorious new album No Love Lost is released July 10th. New single, She’s Got Standards released July 3rd.
