Manchester band The Slow Show are playing at Strom this Friday. A dear friend of mine introduced me to the band around Christmas time, swooning over vocalist Rob Goodwin’s baritone voice. It’s the kind of deep, worldly voice that transports you to an American campfire and makes you want to sip bourbon and toast marshmallows. I caught up with singer Rob and guitarist Joel Byrne to find out more about their first album, White Water, released in March.
You got off to a pretty spectacular start – playing with Elbow for Jo Wiley’s radio show at Manchester Cathedral, before touring Europe – and all before you’d released your debut album. How did you react to the sudden recognition?
Those opportunities were incredible but it’s all felt very organic. I think the touring in Europe at such an early stage was great for us, we really found our feet and developed our voice as a band. Nothing’s felt rushed just nicely progressive. Any platform to play our music to people always feels a privileged one and any recognition of people enjoying what we do is always very humbling.
Tell us about your debut album…
I hope people feel it’s a very honest album. It comes from a very emotive place both lyrically and instrumentally but i also hope there’s a sense of hope and up lift to the album. That’s certainly how it’s intended.
Your songs are very moving; where do you draw your lyrical inspiration from?
The lyrics are inspired by life, emotions, feelings we hope everyone can relate to. Love, loss, lust…life and all the brilliant grey area in between.
You’ve said yourselves, you’re not Manchester’s most typical band. But has the city’s musical history inspired you at all?
We’re all extremely proud to call Manchester our home. We love its northern charm and the people that live here. I think it’s a brilliantly unique and diverse city but I’m not sure its musical history has inspired us…more encouraged us. Bands from Manchester are so important to so many people all over the world. That’s immensely encouraging to a new band like ourselves and we’re very proud to call it home where ever we go.
You’ve been touring Europe this spring, what’s the best bit about being on the road?
The opportunity…The opportunity to play our music to a different audience every evening in a different city is a complete privilege, one I can’t ever imagine tiring of!
Have you been to Munich before? What did you like about the city?
We played in a car mechanics garage in Munich last year!!! It was bizarrely wonderful, the crowd were very kind and the city was lovely. We spent all our money that night on expensive rounds of gin and tonic, that was the only down side I can remember about Munich!
The Slow Show are playing at Strom on Friday, May 29 from 9:30pm. Tickets cost 17 € and can be bought in advance online.
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