Every time I create a playlist, there's always a stand out track. It's always a track that I love or a track which grabs a lot of your attention. This time it came curtsey of MISS and their latest track 'Can I Spend Christmas With You?'
I caught up with the band prior to the track's release to talk about inspirations, their plans for 2017 and what led them to self-produce all of their music.
SBLM - For the people who are hearing you for the first time, who are you?
Marty: We’re an act from Brighton called MISS. I’m Marty I sing, play guitar and keys.
Wilson: I’m Wilson and I play bass.
Ben: I’m Ben. I drum, do synths and sampling.
SBLM - How would you describe your musical style and who do you think sounds similar to yourselves?
Ben: Hmm... the million dollar question. Some sort of intersection between alternative, rock, neo soul. I don’t know whether others would agree though and that’s the best thing about it.
Wilson: I guess it’s hard to pin MISS down to a specific genre, although there’s definitely a ‘sound’ to us. We listen to an eclectic mix of music and I think that comes through when we play.
SBLM - What separates you as a band from the rest, for me, is your music being entirely self-produced which a lot of people don't really think about when their listening to music. Was the decision to self-produce intentional?
Ben: We had no choice at the beginning, back when me and Marty were just jamming together for fun. We wanted to produce some music and the only option was to do it ourselves, very simply indeed. It was very basic at the beginning, we recorded drums 1 drum at a time as we only had one microphone. I think having started off this way, it then seemed natural to want to self-produce to a greater extent going into the future.
SBLM - Self-producing sounds like it entails a lot of extra work, which other bands avoid doing through having a producer. Does self-producing your own music create more challenges for you as a band?
Ben: It’s amazing how much work goes into self-producing and releasing material. Apart from mastering, which is a dark art, we do everything ourselves with no outside input, so the hours really stack up. You have to be thinking of a million things at once. That said, its fantastic to be in complete control of our output and it’s forced us to learn valuable new skills along the way.
Marty: Also, I feel it offers a higher degree of satisfaction. We’re intent on making music that doesn’t sound like anybody else, simply because there’s no excitement in doing something that’s already been done. The control that comes with being self-produced makes that a lot more accomplishable. So far there haven’t been two people who’ve compared us with the same artist and reviewers/bloggers seem to struggle with assigning us to a genre - we take that as a massive compliment.
SBLM - I am pretty bad at trying to compare one band's music to another at the best of times so to avoid my attempting to compare your sound, who would you say are your biggest influences in music and why?
Marty: Anyone who takes their talent and does something with it that moves music forward, be that Bowie, Hendrix, Miles Davis, Bach, N.W.A, Bob Dylan.
Ben: Miles Davis. For appreciating the space between the notes.
Wilson: I personally love Mark Knopfler. Not just as a guitarist, but as a songwriter and arranger. His voice and guitar are like two peas in a pod.
SBLM - Something else I can't define, my influences in music. I can never whittle it down to less than five artists. Something I always like asking is what was the first album you bought?
Wilson: I have a feeling it was a Slipknot album...
Ben: Dido - ‘Life For Rent’
Marty: It was Hot Shot by Shaggy and I’m proud of it.
SBLM - So those are your first albums, what were your first gigs?
Marty: My Chemical Romance at Wembley. I went through a slapdash emotional phase as a teen. If I remember correctly a friend straightened my hair before the gig and written ‘You know what they do to guys like us in prison’ on my shirt. That’s the title of an MCR song by the way. I also was wearing a pair of bright orange hi-tops. I think I’ve said enough.
Wilson: I went to Sonisphere Festival when I was 13. I saw so many bands that have inspired me since. Not bad for a first gig!
Ben: The Chilli Peppers at Earl’s Court. Lucky Me!
SBLM - On the topic of gigs, what has been the best show you’ve played as a band and why is it different from the rest?
Wilson: We had a single launch party at Hope & Ruin in Brighton which was so much fun. We had a great crowd and everyone was having a good time including us!
Marty: Yeah I’d be tempted to agree with that. There was one at Green Door Store in Brighton that was up there too. I just find it easier and more comfortable performing when the room’s full and everyone’s vibing.
SBLM - If you were given the choice of any festival, where would you like to headline and who would you want to headline alongside?
Marty: Glastonbury - no brainer. Besides Kendrick Lamar and The Rolling Stones.
Wilson: Truck Fest alongside Biffy Clyro would be cracking!
SBLM - What are your plans for 2017 in terms of new music, tours and releases?
We released an original Christmas song on December 4th, which we recorded during sessions for our debut album. In terms of touring, we’re currently organising tour dates to coincide with single releases and ultimately the album release which will be in mid-2017.
SBLM - The debut album will be something else for sure. Another thing I like asking musicians is if there was one thing you could change in the music industry, what would it be?
Ben: I’d make streaming services pay the artist more than they do. It's disgusting how much the artist is disregarded by companies like Spotify, considering their eye-watering profits.
Marty: That’s a really good question. Yeah, I second Ben’s answer. Some of the other streaming companies are much better. The sad thing is that because they’re the market leaders by such a huge percentage, small growing bands like ourselves can’t really afford to be principled and not put our music on their because it cuts off so many listeners.
Wilson: This is wishful thinking, but I would like to see more integrity in music. Obviously, the music industry is an industry and at the end of the day companies need to make a profit, but due to a lot of music is now so formulaic and overproduced just so that it can be sold as an easily digestible product. That’s not music, that’s baby food.
Marty: That’s something that rattles my cage, when people come out with shit like “music’s a business, isn’t it?” It’s not. The music business is a business, but music isn’t a business it’s an art and it’s been around a hell of a lot longer than the music industry has. It’s such a primal medium of expression as well - to write it off like that’s just dumb.
SBLM - Of course I'm completely agreeing with everything said. As someone who is close to the music industry without being directly part of it, the problems surrounding streaming sites are huge. Not everyone can affoard for their music to be on sites like Spotfiy, where the biggest audiences are. How are smaller bands supposed to reach a larger audience if they can't afford for their music to reach larger platforms. Even my favourite music site, Soundcloud, introduced a paid for streaming service (only introduced to stop the site shutting down) which I have saw have a huge impact on some musicians. The space for new music is dissapearing and with it the support for smaller, upcoming bands. Rant partially over. Moving on, who is your favourite artist at the moment?
Marty: Anderson Paak. Fuck me that guy’s talented.
SBLM - Finally, what is your favourite track and album right now?
Chelsea Hotel No. 2 by Leonard Cohen. Or maybe Treaty by Leonard Cohen. Favourite album, Skeleton Tree by Nick Cave. It’s tragic that it exists due to a lot of the inspiration for it being his son’s death. But it’s equal parts harrowing and beautiful. It’s an exceptional artefact of grief.
MISS' debut album is due next year (2017) but if you can't wait that long their debut EP 'Do You Feel Eletric?' and latest track 'Can I Spend Christmas With You?' are avaible now.
Can I Spend Christmas With You?