A Q&A with Prayers Electric
Prayers Electric: Loud, fuzz-drenched alternative rock…
What’s the title of your latest release, and what does it mean to you?
Jem: Going Round Again. The title track is one of the earliest songs I wrote, before I moved to Manchester. It’s about trying to find another way through when the last one hasn’t worked. You make all these adjustments to fit in, then eventually think, “Hang on, do I even want to fit in here?” So you break out of that, start afresh and have another go at surviving the hellscape. It felt right for our second EP as well. Here we are, going round again. The record’s a scrapbook of us figuring out what this band can do, and I like that you can hear us finding our sound.
What was the hardest part about putting this release together, and why?
Farris: The logistics of the entire project whilst we both work full-time in busy jobs. Jem pretty much ploughed forward with everything, whilst I just turned up to hit drums and look pretty for the EP cover.
Jem: Those drums are doing a lot of the work! But yeah, just getting the whole thing finished was the hard part. You get the recording done, then there’s the mix, then all the business of actually getting it released. It’s quite a lot to fit around having a normal life.
Who produced the release – what did they bring to it? If you produced it yourselves what do you enjoy most about producing your own material?
Jem: I produced and mixed it, and Harvey Morgan at Crash Test Productions mastered it. The drums were recorded at Simian Studio; everything else was at home in Old Trafford. The freedom is the best bit. You can follow a daft idea and see where it goes. We tried out a lot of new distortion, even some tape machines, different ways of recording and worked with whatever we could get out of the home setup.
What do you want the listener to take away from listening to your music?
Farris: A connection to themselves and to the world around them.
Jem: Yeah, man. That’s a good way of putting it. I’m trying to get something out when I write: a feeling, something that happened, something that hurt, or just something that made me laugh. Hopefully somebody hears it and recognises a bit of themselves.
How does a track normally come together? Can you tell us something about the process?
Farris: Jem will usually come up with the initial idea for chords, melody and lyrics, and then I’ll add rhythm, contribute to structure and then harmonies. It’s usually the most time-effective way of songwriting, but we absolutely do love to jam together and then create songs from those jams.
Jem: I’ll quite often bring something in with gaps. Here’s a verse, here’s a chorus, and there are four bars in the middle where I don’t know what happens yet. Then we’ll play those four bars until something catches, and build from there.
What bands/artists have influenced you the most since you started this project, and why?
Jem: I keep coming back to The Beatles. I was listening to them earlier this year, just after finishing the EP, and that fed into a new song called ‘I Wonder Why’. Then there’s what’s happening around us. YAANG and Dead Stilettos are pretty rad. I love what Adult DVD do with song structures, and I’ve definitely nicked a bit of that approach. And Cool Sorcery, from Brazil, seem to be having such a good time. That makes me want to make things. They need to come back to the UK.
Farris: I’ve been listening to Queens of the Stone Age a lot more, and this has definitely trickled into what we do through our energy and vibe by unleashing our inner Josh Homme.
What countries would you like to tour? Are there any standout venues you’d like to play in?
Jem: How long have you got? I’d like to see more of the UK first: Glasgow, Edinburgh, Bristol, London, Cardiff. The Barrowland Ballroom and King Tut’s in Glasgow would be brilliant, and the O2 Ritz in Manchester is on the list. Then I’d love to get over to Ireland and mainland Europe. Dublin, Belfast, Berlin, Hamburg, Paris. Germany seems to have a good scene, and there are so many festivals we’d love to get to. America too, although I think the budget might have something to say about that.
Farris: I would love to tour around Europe and experience such a melting pot of cultures when it comes to live music. I would also love to play Japan or Korea, as people I know who have played there have had an absolute blast.
If you could pick one track for our readers to listen to in order to get a taste of your music, what would you pick, and why?
Farris: I think ‘Eyeballs’ is probably the best all-round track to get a taste of what we are like, as it is fun, energetic and catchy. The video is great too, despite my questionable acting skills.
Jem: The questionable acting is part of the charm! But yeah, ‘Eyeballs’. Watch the video and you’ll get a pretty good idea of what you’re dealing with. If that does something for you, try the rest of the EP.
What ambitions do you have for the band/your career?
Farris: To make music that we love and for people to enjoy that music. Anything beyond that is a bonus.
Jem: Perhaps a UK tour, and some big-name festivals would be lovely!
Finally, as you leave the stage, what are your parting words?
Jem: Thank you for coming along, honestly. Listen to Going Round Again, watch ‘Eyeballs’, come to a show and bring someone who might like it. And tell us where you are. We want to get further around the North and North West, so if you’re in Liverpool or Leeds and want to see us, make some noise. It helps us work out where to head next.
Farris: Listen, dance, smile, shout, feel and be part of the moment. We’ll see you on the road.
Find out more about Prayers Electric at prayerselectric.co.uk
