Crack

Relentlessly creative and original, Warpaint are a band whose approach and sound has disarmed and endeared UK audiences in equal measure over the past year. At times sparse and atmospheric, at times immediate and joyous, sometimes in the space of a single song, they draw comparisons to the dreamy-psych-pop of Vivian Girls or Cocteau Twins and the angularity of The Slits and Gang of Four.

The release of their debut full-length, The Fool, in 2010 saw the British press, from underground to mainstream, falling over themselves to praise a band so fiercely unique and unfashionable, and the four-piece have since found themselves on an almost constant touring cycle. This exhaustive schedule has seen them cover the length and breadth of Europe, including a stunning show at Bristol’s o2 Academy last month.

Warpaint live are the product of a history of experimentation and jams. It is an hypnotic and engrossing experience, but equally displays the genuine enthusiasm and energy of four friends doing what they love. It’s a show which will continue to make a path across the UK throughout the summer, as well as hitting festival season.

What makes The Fool such a strong record is the crafting of Warpaint’s meandering and challenging sound into genuine ‘songs’, and whilst these rarely clock in under the five-minute mark, each piece is focused and memorable. It seems in this sense that they have found a perfect home in Rough Trade – a label with a remarkable record of encouraging experimentation whilst forging a back-catalogue of popular classics.

Credit for providing the band with this drive and direction must go partly to drummer Stella Mogzawa. The Australian was recruited following a period of limbo after the departure of original drummer, now Hollywood starlet, Shannyn Sossamon. Her powerful but inventive approach is a valuable asset, forming a watertight rhythm section with Jenny Lee Lindberg, and cutting through Theresa Wayman’s jagged, unorthodox guitar and Emily Kokal’s ethereal vocals, as well as being a vibrant onstage presence.

Crack met Stella to discuss her band’s history, adjustment to recent success and their disparate range of influences.




Although most people in the UK have only been familiar with Warpaint since your 2009 EP, Exquisite Corpse, and subsequent debut album, you’ve actually been around since 2004. There’s certainly a depth to your sound that suggests it was honed over a number of years. Can you tell us a little bit about what was going on between 2004 and 2009?

Well, I only joined the band in 2009 so I can’t give you a perfect subjective account but I’ll do my best. In those few years the band was not only growing together as a creative unit, they were growing together as musicians who were exploring their strengths and idiosyncrasies. There was never really an M.O to begin with, other than finding their voice as a band, no desire to be revivalist. So, that takes time – realising what feels right and what doesn’t. Also, a ton of line-up changes and reconfigurations.

When you released your debut album, it received a glowing review in NME and you were included in the BBC Sound of 2011 poll. Were you slightly wary of this attention after staying under the radar of the mainstream music press, or did you feel it was vindication for the hard work you had put in over the years?

To be honest, neither. I think once something is released into the public sphere, you can’t waste precious energy commiserating over the reaction it gets. It’s outside of our control how people and the press respond to our music. Sure, there’s always the concern that an album will be over- exposed or ridiculed. I think the only remedy to that is being prolific and working hard. The more you’re affected by those external elements
the more self-conscious you become.

You’re signed to Rough Trade in the UK. It’s a pretty legendary UK label, did it mean anything to you guys growing up?

Absolutely! I love The Smiths and Scritti Politti. Rough Trade is a label with so much history and integrity, it’s difficult to think of anyone who balances their influence and good taste so well. We’ve all been fans of the philosophy of that label so it’s a real treat to be a part of it.

What were you guys into growing up, both in terms of music and outside of music?

I think each of us grew up with a hunger to create, in whatever medium was available to us. I found myself surrounded by music from a young age, so instruments like synthesizers and drum machines always turned me on and continue to doso. Film was another big one for me, especially real auteurs like David Lynch, Kieslowski, Bunuel and Fellini.

When the album came out, the main reference points people seemed to use to describe you in the UK were The Slits and The xx. Obviously the comparison with The Slits largely comes from being an all-girl band, and you seem to share an intensity and almost minimal approach to music with The xx. You don’t necessarily sound a great deal like either of these bands though. What were your major influences on the album and what are your opinions on both of these bands?

We didn’t have a specific pool of influences when it came to writing the album; obviously the music that inspires us is under our skin whether we like it or not. I guess the approach of being honest is number one. That sounds very self-righteous, but it’s true. We love both of these bands, they’re both really significant historically because they broke through the hum of mediocrity – The Slits for being tough and visceral and The xx for stripping it down when everything else around them was in contrast to their sound.

I heard you mention bands like Massive Attack and The Cocteau Twins in an interview. It wasn’t something I’d picked up on but made perfect sense in retrospect. Do you have any other unlikely influences, which might have passed people by?

I love good pop music, ABBA and Michael Jackson. Jen is a huge Hall and Oates fan. I think you can hear a little hint of Private Eyes in everything that she plays.

From Crack’s own experiences of LA, it’s a city which gives you much more space to breathe than, say, New York or London. One of the major characteristics of your album is that the songs are given space to breathe and mutate into something else. Did LA have a profound influence on your music and you as individuals?

I mean, any city that you live in, that you’re surrounded by, is going to have an influence over you whether you’re conscious of it or not. I don’t think we write a great deal about our surroundings though, mostly the feelings that are conjured up by them. So, yes and no...an interviewer’s favourite response.

You’ve been on the road pretty much non-stop for the past year or so? Have you been enjoying it?

Yep! Of course. We’re so lucky to be doing this as a job. It’s not all candyfloss but the good always outweighs the bad.

Do you think you’ve changed as a band through constant touring? What are the best and worst things about touring?

Undoubtedly. You cannot create the experience of playing live anywhere else, the way that you interact with an audience and with each other in front of that audience. It’s a perfectly unique sensation. We’ve benefitted immeasurably from it, I think the next album will be much more of a live affair. Best thing about touring? Playing music every night and honing our live show. The worst? Not really having time to adapt or recover. You have to be an armadillo to get through it sometimes.

What have your previous experiences of the UK been like?

Always lovely. We get such a warm response over there, especially in London. Sometimes it’s overwhelming for us because we feel undeserving. We’re so lucky to be summoned over there so often, I love it. I can’t wait to go back to Scotland and Ireland this time around, I feel like I didn’t get a true sense of it last time. I want haggis.

You’ve received a lot of attention in the UK but how have things been working out for you in The States? What are the major differences in the way people receive your music in both countries?

I think the response is greater, at least in quantity than anywhere else in the world. Of course, I can’t generalise, there are some cities like Houston where we get a very warm and overwhelming response. There’s no rhyme or reason to it sometimes, it’s not lik UK audiences are one way and Americans another. It varies from city to city. I can definitely say that people in the UK and Europe are less conscious of their reaction to the music; they dance like motherlickers.

People are pretty excited about Warpaint coming back to the UK and you’ve got some big festival shows lined up including Glastonbury. Do you enjoy doing the big gigs or do you feel your music is more suited to an intimate setting.

We enjoy both, we’re not opposed to the larger setting. I think it gives our set a different meaning; everything’s a little more sprawling and big whereas you have to simulate that sometimes in a smaller setting. We love both, different beasts.

You’re playing your first ever gig in Wales, in Cardiff on 23rd June. Are you excited about coming and what do you know about the country?

I know that I am excited. I also know that one of my favourite artists of all time, John Cale, is Welsh. I am hoping to see him lurking around like a vagrant on a main street somewhere.

What’s the most bizarre fact you can tell us about Warpaint?

We’re actually all men!

The whole album is quite an arresting listen, but undertow in particular stops me in my tracks every time I hear it. Was it a bit of a moment when you wrote that one?

I can’t remember us pointing out a particular track that sounded like a single when we were writing/in pre-production of the album. It wasn’t any more exciting than any of the other tracks at the time. It’s so nice to hear that though!

I’m sure you’re sick of hearing music journalists bang on about the band being female, but, I imagine it could be a daunting prospect for bands made up of guys playing with you. Have you any odd experiences with other bands?

Not odd. I don’t feel any interactions we’ve had with other bands have felt like male vs. female. We’ve had a pretty generic experience I imagine.

What’s next for Warpaint? Have you been writing on the road or planning ahead for the next album?

We are definitely in the process of writing new material. We don’t want to rest on our laurels. It’ll be important for us to find a way to write on the road and making time for the process when we’re home. Super excited about that.



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Tune: Elephants

http://www.warpaintwarpaint.com

Words: Sean Griffiths

Photo: Mia Kirby

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