A Q&A with Slomo Casino
Rising indie soul-pop duo from Stockport…
What’s the title of your latest release, and what does it mean to you?
Our debut single is ‘Marshmallow’, which is out now. The title is a bit tongue in cheek, and in some ways sums up what we’re all about. We want to make great music that we love, but at the same time not take ourselves too seriously and have fun with it.
What was the hardest part about putting this release together, and why?
This whole release was DIY between the two of us. Having each been used to playing in bands of 4-5 over the years with managers, labels, agents and producers all having their say and responsibility, we’ve realised that it takes a hell of a lot of hours to put everything together without them! But it’s all part of the fun…
Who produced the release – what did they bring to it?
Although we self-produced our first EP which comes out in November, our wonderful mix/mastering engineer ‘aarigod’ is a magician and also put so much into the songs at the back end. However, before that, I think the freedom and control to realise our own vision with the songs without any external interference was really refreshing.
What do you want the listener to take away from listening to your music?
We want the listener to feel good, jump up and seize the day after hearing our new single, with an ear worm that plagues them for the rest of the week.
How does a track normally come together? Can you tell us something about the process?
When we wrote a lot of the ideas for our debut EP we were living in different parts of the country (also during the pandemic), which meant the most efficient way of writing was to send each other screechy voice memos of ideas after a few drinks. Somehow, we were able to understand what each other was going for, and we then developed them in Jonny’s home studio in Stockport before taking the drum parts to blueprint studios.
What band/artists have influenced you the most since you started this project, and why?
Lots of timeless classics from the likes of Otis Redding, Freddie King, ELO, Bee Gees. Ya can’t beat ‘em.
What countries would you like to tour? Are there any standout venues you’d like to play in?
Japan would be the dream. It’d be amazing to do the Beatles rooftop concert thing that they did in Savile Row, just on the top of some random building playing to passers-by. However, it would probably be a bit depressing when no one stops for us and just walk on by… Or even worse, throws things…
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?
Our debut single ‘Marshmallow’ pretty much sums up what we’re all about; you’ll get hooks left, right and centre with feel good vibes.
What ambitions do you have for the band/your career?
(Jonny) For me, the ultimate tunnel vision ambition is for us to record and release our first album and then take it on the road. If people like it, amazing, but either way we’ll have a lot of fun along the way. Once that’s achieved, we can allow ourselves to think a bit bigger!
Finally, as you leave the stage, what are your parting words?
Don’t eat yellow snow.
For more info visit: slomocasino.com
