Tastes Like Animals have quickly become one of my favourite local bands. They came from the ashes of live favourites Elvis For Jay and with the help of producer Andrew Spence of Project 9 they established themselves as one of the most original bands around, and they make a lot of noise for a three piece!
They recently released their debut single Bare Naked Truth, a two and a half minute song that lets the listener know exactly what this band are about: big, blues inspired riffs and a healthy dose of cowbell! You can listen to it below.
I caught up with vocalist and guitarist Phil to talk about TLA, gear and who else the band are into.
Ste – Cheers for this Phil, where does the band name come from?
Phil - It came from a conversation I was having with my girlfriend Kat in ASDA believe it or not. She was buying veggie burgers and I asked if they’d be ok for her and she replied “They’ll be fine, they still taste like animals.” There was a moment as we looked at each other and knew it was an awesome band name!
Ste – How long has TLA been together for?
Phil - TLA has been together roughly 18 months. Me and John (drums) met in our previous band called Elvis For Jay and we met Matty (bass) through my girlfriend’s roller derby team!
Ste – Tell me a little bit about your debut single Bare Naked Truth.
Phil - Bare Naked Truth was the first full song the band played together. It was the first song that we said "That’s how we want to sound!" It was recorded at Project 9 Studios in Winnington by Andrew Spence who also produced it with us. It was recorded over a 6 month period, a few hours here on guitars, a few hours here on bass etc. We think that approach helped shape the song and production in the best it could possibly be. We gave ourselves no time limit.We’re really happy with the outcome and love that now everyone and anyone can hear our hard work on this debut track.
Ste – What do you have coming up this year? Any new releases or upcoming gigs?
Phil - We’re looking to release our second single around mid to late February. We have some top secret plans for that one too!
We’re playing Into The Void III on 22nd March at The Studio in Widnes and the Cabin in Liverpool on the 29th March.
Ste – Give us a brief overview of the equipment you play.
Phil - I play a Tokai Telecaster and a Westfield Telecaster through a VOX AC15. I use stomp boxes. Most of the time I’m using a BOSS DS-1 (Keeley Mod) for the distortion you hear on our songs but I run a MXR Micro Amp for boost and also a BOSS SD-1 (5 star stack mod) for boost/overdrive. I have these and a few others running through a BOSS line selector.
Matty plays a Status (Series 2) 5 string bass through a Yamaha BBT 500 head into a Marshall Cab. He runs a BOSS ME-50 multi effects board with a few extras like BOSS NS-2 and an EHX Bass Balls.
John’s kit is a Tama Swingstar with Paiste Alpha Rock cymbals. He is renowned for breaking sticks and has gone clean through metal, carbon etc. and but for some reason Vic Firths seem to be lasting him the longest! And they’re made of wood!
Ste – What's been your best gig so far?
Phil - So hard to choose! We’d probably have to go with our gig at Friars Court in Warrington. Best crowd, best sound guys, great venue and we played the best we’ve ever played! All round great night.
Ste – What other bands are you excited about at the minute?
Phil - A good hand full actually. Secateurs and Bluebottle Veins are incredible bands! And people we’re proud to call friends. There are also bands we’ve only seen once or twice like I Fight Lions, Jack Knife and The Fallows who are at the top of their game right now. Really exciting times on the local bands scene, lots of talent!
Ste – Anything else you want to mention?
Phil - Just want to mention that we wouldn’t be where we are now if it wasn’t for the kind people at Project 9 Studios, they’ve provided us with not only a warm, dry and friendly rehearsal space (free tea and coffee) but have been incredible with us when recording and when we’ve called in to one of the intimate acoustic shows they put on.
I suggest keeping a close eye on this band, go and see them if you get the chance and buy their music and merch! Check out the links below for more info and downloads.
Bandcamp (downloads & merch)
Project 9 Studio
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