SHOO SHOO HONEY: We have a chat with Lyle from The Shires!

 

Part 1 - The 'INTERVIEW'

 

1 - Had you been involved with any other bands prior to The Shires?

 

"We’ve all had previous band experience. Calum, the drummer, and I had a few jam sessions and had some ambition of starting a band but with lack of focus and drive from other members nothing really materialised, with Calum playing in ‘Black Tales’ this soon became his main focus. Our two guitarists Connor and James also with band attempts but with lack of drive this never materialised to anything either. In this band, The Shires, it really feels like there is something there. The dynamics of the band are great and we all gelled really well once we started playing in the same room together."

 

2 - How did The Shires begin?

 

"I met Connor through my girlfriend’s friend. After talking one night about music, sharing similar music tastes and getting to know that he played guitar, I wanted to know if he wanted a jam. I then pitched some of my lyrics to him and we started making music. We then asked James to join the band shortly after. We made a few songs, just the three of us, then we drafted in Calum and Steinson for the rhythm section."

 

3 - Where did the name The Shires come from?

 

"I came up with the name way before the band actually started and it stuck with me. The name came from just where we stay. Ayrshire > Shire > The Shires."

 

4 - How would you descibe the sound of The Shires?

 

"We didn’t really sit down and talk about what we wanted to sound like. I think we all just draw from our influences. I’d say The Libertines is one of our main influences but also Scottish rock bands like Travis and The View but I think The Shires do it our own way and don’t blatantly copy anyone’s sound - it’s just us!"

 

5 - You've made some of your songs available online already. The latest of these is 'Shoo Shoo Honey' - an absolute tune. What is the song itself about?

 

"We have only made the acoustic demos available to listen to, just to give people a taste of what we're about, the full band demos are sounding great and we might make some of these available on the internet soon! ‘Shoo Shoo Honey’ is a girl you’ve heard a lot of rumours about and trying to piece together if they are actually true or not." 

 

6 - Who would be your dream collaboration?

 

"I’d probably wish to collaborate with Pete Doherty. I love his lyrics - the way they flow through his songs. The imagery in his songs is great, the way he ties in his life experiences and problems."

 

7 - Any new songs in the pipeline?

 

"Hundreds! At rehearsal we always find a half hour or so to work on something new, I would normally pitch the lyrics while humming a melody that’s in my head and the rest of the band work their magic and come up with the rest."

 

8 - When can fans be expecting a new single, EP or album?

 

"We’re always writing and demo recording but we hope to get into a studio to do some professional recording and production done throughout the year. It will most probably be Winter/Spring before people can have something. We will keep uploading demos and what we’re working on though so people aren't left dry.

 

9 - Any live dates coming up?

 

"13th of September at The Market Inn supporting Blackberry Jack’s reunion gig, 25th of September at Pivo Pivo, 25th of October at Maggie Mays. These are just a few of our gigs, we’ve got lost of dates in-between these, check our Facebook and Twitter!"

 

10 - Who would be in your dream super group?

 

"For this question we're just going to choose who’d replace us on our own roles; Lyle – Alex Turner, Connor – Richey Edwards, James – Johnny Marr, Steinsson – John Hassel and Calum – Keith Moon."

 

Part 2 - The 'QUICKFIRE ROUND'

 

1 - Favourite Beatle?

Lyle – "McCartney."

Connor – "Harrison."

James – "Lennon."

Steinsson – "Harrison."

Calum – "Lennon."
 

2 - Favourite band?

 
Lyle – "Arctic Monkeys."

Connor – "Joy Division."

James – "Arctic Monkeys."

Steinsson – "The Courteeners."

Calum – "Blink 182."
 

3 - Favourite new band?

Lyle – "Kassidy."

Connor – "The Cast of Cheers."

James – "Palma Violets."

Steinsson – "Palma Violets."

Calum – "Newton Falconer."
 

4 - Favourite song?

Lyle – "The Rifles – Toe Rag."

Connor – "Inspiral Carpets – This is How It Feels."

James – "The Smiths – This Charming Man."

Steinsson – "The Smiths – Big Mouth Strikes Again."

Calum – "Blink 182 - Ghosts on The Dance Floor."
 

5 - Favourite album?

Lyle – "Arctic Monkeys – Whatever People Say I’m Not."

Connor – "The Stone Roses - Self-Titled."

James – "Joy Division – Unknown Pleasures."

Steinsson – "Pink Floyd – Darkside of The Moon."

Calum – "Blink 182 - Neighbourhoods."
 

6 - Vinyl, CD or download?

Lyle – "CD."

Connor – "Download."

James – "CD."

Steinsson – "Vinyl."

Calum – "CD."
 

7 - Style icon?

Lyle – "Pete Doherty."

Connor – "Pete Doherty."

James – "Alex Turner."

Steinsson – "Paul Weller."

Calum – "Travis Barker."
 

8 - Favourite clothing brand?

Lyle – "Pretty Green."

Connor – "Fred Perry."

James – "Fred Perry."

Steinsson – "Fred Perry."

Calum – "DC."
 

9 - Favourite film?

Lyle – "Schindler's List."

Connor – "24 Hour Party People."

James – "Batman The Dark Night Rises."

Steinsson – "Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back."

Calum – "Zack and Miri Make a Porno."
 

10 - Favourite TV show?

Lyle – "Mrs Browns Boys."

Connor – "How I Met Your Mother."

James - "Father Ted."

Steinsson – "How I Met Your Mother."

Calum – "Scrubs."
 

11 - Who would play you in a film of your life?

Lyle – "Craig Roberts."

Connor – "Owen Wilson."

James – "Robert Carlyle."

Steinsson – "James Macavoy."

Calum – "Seth Rogan."
 

12 - Favourite food?

Lyle - "Mossblown Chinese."

Connor – "Steak Pie."

James – "Chicken keiv."

Steinsson – "Bacon."

Calum – "Pasta."
 

13 - Football team?

Lyle – "Hibernian."

Connor – "Ayr."

James – "Ayr."

Steinsson – "Rangers."

Calum – "Celtic."

Hope you enjoyed this feature on The Shires! Check out our previous feature on Enemies Of The State!

 

Download The Shires' acoustic demos here - https://googledrive.com/host/0B0tqWx3CXrNfc0RLM1BQSWZDTHM/

 

You can also like our Facebook page to keep up to date with all future interviews at the following link - https://www.facebook.com/aldorabritainrecords

 

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