Interview: Minnaars

Midlands five-piece Minnaars play at the NME Weekender at Camber Sands this weekend. Skiddle caught up with vocalist Neil Humphrey to discuss touring diets, math-rock, and what it's like being a band from The Midlands.

In 2009 Bryan Ferry said it’s tough being in a band, and that ‘with every album you have to reinvent the wheel’. He wasn’t wrong. Neil Humphrey knows only too well the perils of sounding similar and being labeled an imitation because of it. And unfortunately the instant access offered by the internet has inadvertently decreased listeners’ patience while simultaneously increasing their expectations.

After encountering countless comparisons to fellow UK compatriots Foals (who at the start of their career supported Humphrey's former band) Humphrey has turned his efforts to current band Minnaars. After the disbanding of his former band Tired Irie, 2008 saw Humphrey battle a seemingly never-ending period of members coming and going until finally Minnaars was a solid collective. ‘I went through some real idiots before I found some idiots I could endure, or who could endure me,’ says the lyricist, vocalist and multi-instrumentalist.

The math-rock, electro 5-piece are based in the midlands; a place that is quite often over-looked where music is concerned. But the tighter clothes and trendy haircuts sported by their London fellows are of very little importance to the band who’d rather sit in a ‘freezing broken van’ than behind a boring office desk, states Humphrey.

Minnaars has been described as Math Rock mixed with electro. What is Math Rock?

Humphrey : Well, I personally wouldn't call us 'math'. Our earlier stuff tended to be much more complex and had a wider range of time signatures; we purposefully tried to shift and change dramatically within songs to probably 'show off' a bit. The newer stuff has complex rhythms also, but it's hidden well behind a thumping bass drum. (Laughs) But yea I suppose 'math rock' is rock music that is 'complicated'... Music that is hard to tap your foot to.

You’ve said it took you a while to find the right people to form a band. Is it like looking for housemates but perhaps band members getting along and getting what the other is about is more integral when forming a band? At least you can hide in your room when you don’t like your housemate/s.

Humphrey: Yeah, totally... Having the right people to share your creative vision with and that have similar ambitions and drive is really hard... When you're starting out as a band there are so many things that can get in the way (not even mentioning musical preferences) like jobs, money, girlfriends/ boyfriends, social commitments, blah blah... Finding people that you can tolerate AND create with is so hard. I went through some real idiots before I found some idiots I could endure, or who could endure me…

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What’s in like being in a band from the Midlands, UK?

Humphrey: Nobody really cares about the midlands... Like, I know some of the best bands on the planet have come from the midlands, but there isn't the attention here that you get with say London, Manchester or Liverpool... The all-seeing industry 'eye of Sauron' rarely casts its glance this way... But, I suppose if you're good enough, people will soon find you no matter where you come from... It might just take a bit longer if you're from Oakham as opposed to Shoreditch...(Laughs).

Would being based in somewhere like London have changed who the band is? Or is the location irrelevant?

Humphrey: I dunno really... A lot of the lyrics I write are about certain elements of Leicester that I hate and about certain people I have encountered within the city... But I suppose these characters and situations exist everywhere. There's whores and violence everywhere you look... I imagine if we had come from London we'd probably be a bit more 'cool'... Like our hair might be a tiny bit better and our clothes might fit properly... We'd probably never be able to afford to have a pint or owt either... London certainly is a vampire.

You’ve got quite an extensive tour throughout Germany in January 2011. Do you have a lot of fans there?

Humphrey: We've been to Europe a couple of times now and the crowds just get better and better. Mainland Europeans seem to LOVE anything dancey and direct. Germany seemed to pick up on us quite quickly, which was really great... I dunno how many 'fans' we have... But our shows are always incredible... We love it there and can't wait to go back in January.

How is it having to perform every day for a month? Do you love it or hate it? Or is a bit of both?

Humphrey: Personally I'm not a fan of touring. I like the gig playing bit... But the sitting in a van for hours loses its appeal REAL fast ... You only perform for about 45 minutes and the rest of the day is all about sitting around, so it can get really tiring and monotonous. We don't have any money currently either so everything is always broken and we're always really hungry and bored. But I suppose there is an upside... Like... I would prefer to be touring round Europe or the UK in a freezing broken van, poor, lonely and insane than the usual sitting in a cramped office doing the same shit for eight hours a day... Life eh?

What do you reckon your staple diet will be on tour?

Humphrey: (Laughs) Last time we went to Europe it was exactly what you'd expect, beer and junk food... You are on the motorway all day and night, so you eat (overpriced) crap at service stations whilst travelling... Then roll into wherever you're playing and the promoters always gets you pizza and beer... Sometimes you'll get an exception, like when we were in Lyon in France the food there was incredible... The promoter had really outdone himself... But i'd say 8/10... Pizza and beer... Which is good for like 4-5 days maybe, but then you're craving some vegetables, fruit juice and a hug from your Gran.

Do you put a lot of importance on on-stage attire?

Humphrey: We just tend to wear black... Like, not the same thing... Just a general 'black' attire... Seems fitting with our emo tortured teenage girl souls... (Laughs)

You’re playing the NME Weekender. Do you have a preference between festivals and smaller venues?

 Humphrey: It all depends, I mean, I’d rather headline Reading festival than headline our local pub but if we had some shitty opening slot on some shitty festival, I'd rather play a decent club show... All depends on the weather also... Oh how very British.

You started working on your EP "Ideal & Error" back in September. Was it a collection of songs you had gathered over a period of time or did you sit down and start writing and recording them from September?

Humphrey: We've had these songs for a little while now. We've just been taken on by a serious management company and had a few meetings in London to decide on the best course of action for the next twelve months. It was decided that an EP release would benefit us and gets the ball rolling for the intended bigger picture. They put us in the studio a few weeks back and we have started demoing new songs and we're currently writing at a rate of knots. The EP that's about to come out was made up of songs that were intended to be a decent introduction to Minnaars for all the people that haven't heard us. We still haven't released anything in the UK, so this EP is a brilliant starting place for anyone interested.

Interview by: Jasmine Phull

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