The Glasgow PodcART

Edinburgh band Broken Records have been thrust into peoples lives very quickly, their exquisite combination of folk/rock sonnets are to be admired and relished.

They play this years eclectic Hinterland Festival in Glasgow. We chatted to one of the first members to form the band Jamie Sutherland about his influences, Edinburgh and performing at Hinterland.

Photograph By Ryan Dunn

Where are Broken Records based?
We are based in Edinburgh full time, we have members from St. Andrews and our cellist is from Berlin. We all met randomly through friends but we call Edinburgh home.

You formed in 2006, do you feel that things have gone fairly quickly for you and when is the album released?
It’s a weird one, it does seem to have progressed quickly but when you are actually doing and living it, it is painstakingly slow. The album is being released June 1^st and is called ‘Until The Earth Begins To Part’, which is also the title track. We liked the phrase and felt it was a good fit for the album. The album was recorded during January at Monnow Valley Studios in Wales, and was produced by Ian Caple.

Who would you cite as your influences?
There are so many of us that there are so many musical differences and they collide. There is a lot of Post Rock such as Mogwai, Godspeed. My number one influence are Nirvana, but there is also Bruce Springsteen. We do incorporate as many forms and also love loads of Pop tunes. In addition, bands such as Shellac and Sebadoh have been major influences.

Edinburgh seems to be emerging as one of the hottest musical networks, how do you feel about this?
The scene here is that everyone are all good friends, I think Edinburgh can only be judged when it goes further. It is so easy to pat everyone on the back but you can only measure these things on a national scale. It is wonderful to shout out about though, it’s a great city.

You have done a fair amount of gigging and supports, what has been your favourite gig?
There have been a couple of stand out gigs. The last one, which was at the Bedlam Theatre in Edinburgh, was great because it sold out very quickly. We therefore knew that the people going really wanted to see us; it was a very intimate show. The best gig musically was at The Wickerman Festival. It felt like we couldn’t do anything wrong, which was great because the first T-Break festival appearance was so daunting. Before we went on stage we just didn’t know what to expect.

Slow Parade in my opinion is one of the most grand things one is likely to hear musically, what was the idea behind this and how do you write collectively?
The records revolve around original sketches. I used to so Open Mic nights and always came home with ideas. We always layer everything up and eventually learn to play as a 7 piece. We discover where the hooks are etc.; we don’t want to sound pompous and convoluted. When an idea is put down after about 5 or 6 minutes of playing together things just seem to sound and feel natural. When you are playing live you feel things mature and become fully formed.

Lyrically, I wanted that Tom Waits feel. I wanted something very romantic, like a 1930’s baroque feel and something that was old fashioned.

If Hinterland let you choose a bill to be on whether the bands are still around or not what would it be?
I think Nirvana definitely, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, The National, and Bob Dylan to start the evening off!

What is so appealing about Hinterland?
I think music has changed recently, this festival is taking a gamble and is giving many bands a great chance. We are also excited to play Glasgow we always love playing there and it is different to playing Edinburgh.

What should Hinterland and Glasgow expect from Broken Records?
Essentially, a good time. We want to try to make people smile and entertain them. It was once said that a great Rock ‘n’ Roll show should have both the ridiculous and the sublime.

BROKEN RECORDS MYSPACE

BROKEN RECORDS WEBSITE

WWW.HINTERLANDFESTIVAL.COM

By Halina Rifai