Formed in 2015 Blank Parody, a bunch of noisy lads from Birmingham, began with a year of songwriting and recording. After a year of gigging up and down the country they have supported the likes of Vukovi, Seprona, Tigercub and Electric Six! and played slots at festivals such as London’s Camden Rocks, Sheffield’s Tramlines and Birmingham’s ValeFest. Following the recent release of their highly well received debut EP A Tension, which featured tracks such as Dark Pretenders and Marching Through The Smoke, the band now present their biggest offering from the record yet, Underachiever before playing a string of dates across the country. Released yesterday, check out Underachiever below!
We managed to catch up with the band before they released their new single as they talk about the music video and more!
So you’ll be releasing Underachiever on 2nd February, how pumped are you for this release?
Joby: This is easily our most exciting release to date! We’ve been sitting on this track for a while, it’s a real anthem and we knew as we were recording it that we’d hit upon something really special. The video delves into some really interesting visual and narrative territory. We’ve always had a flair for really theatrical and intricate videos but this one really takes it to another level.
Tell us something about the video nobody knows?
Joby: The video is all extremely public, so when filming we gained a lot of attention. We had people shouting stuff like ‘rock and roll lads!’ out of car windows as they went past the scenes being filmed on the Pagoda Island, we had crowds of people forming near the canals as we were filming the scenes on top of the Flapper getting their lighter’s out. Some of this attention wasn’t so positive. To get the performance shots in the streets of Selly Oak we literally had to send James Chisholm, one of the directors, to direct traffic. The result was a take getting ruined by an angry driver who’d just had enough flooring it straight into us and us all having to scramble out of the way. It made a fabulous out take, I’m sure one day it will be unearthed.
How much does the venue The Flapper mean to you guys?
Liam: It is actually the first venue this band ever played a show in, way before the current line up was formed. That gig for me was a turning point, it was a busy student night and the tunnel like atmosphere of the live room was just electric. We must have played it about twenty times since, supporting bands like Tigercub and Weirds. We put on a headline show there last year which we packed out. It’s just always been such a warm place to be, the staff are all awesome, the music in the bar is always wicked. The whole layout with the canal views and the music memorabillia covering the walls makes it feel like a second home for bands like us and who are still continuing to grow. We all really hope the decision to remove it get’s overturned as the closure of the venue will certainly leave a gaping hole in the independent live music community, not just in Birmingham, but in the country.
You played The Flapper on 31st January, was this be a special gig for you and did you play the new song live?
Liam: The other night with Dead! was one of the best gig’s we’ve ever done. That audience was unbelievable, the place was packed to the rafters, not just for the headline band but for all of the support’s. There were moshpits, crowd surfing. It was just like a hub of energy, it was nuts! We played ‘Underachiever’ and people were singing along by the second chorus, and during the solo Joby threw out all of these playing cards we’ve made to promote the release like confetti and the crowd were scrambling to catch them, basically just going mad for it. We ended up at a party on someone’s barge after. You know it’s been a good gig when you end up on a barge party.
Do you think it is important for students in your area to keep the music scene alive?
Liam: We do a lot of student shows and I can tell you now, those kids know how to have a mad one at a gig. They’re always super pro-active in societies in promoting upcoming bands like us, particularly at uni’s near our home town. Three members of our band went to or are still at University of Birmingham, so we thought we’d put the Uni’s clocktower ‘Old Joe’ in the background of some of the performance shots as a little homage to the local student music community. Bands like The Cure and Kasabian kickstarted their careers by doing strings of student dates so it seems to be a pretty tried and tested way for upcoming bands to have a good crack at getting their name out there!
How do you think local venues could help make the scene stronger?
Liam: I’m noticing a fair few local venues putting on club nights that also feature bands performing. To me that’s a fantastic idea because unfortunately people are more willing to spend money going to a club than going to see a local band, so combining them only seeks to gain more exposure. I think a lot of it comes down to promotion and making people in the local music communities aware and excited to see the acts that are being put on. The best independent venues we’ve played at such as The Flapper and the Sunflower Lounge (Birmingham), but also further afield at venues like West Street Live (Sheffield) and the Crowndale (London) are all extremely pro-active about getting people in the door and making the bands on the bill appear as captivating as possible.
Will there be an EP/Album released this year?
Joby: We honestly can’t comment on that, but what we can say is that we’ve recently been in the studio with the incredible Gavin Monaghan whose previous credits include the Sherlock’s and the Editors. He has completely made us rethink what we’re doing sonically and taken us out of our comfort zone. He’s pushed us into making something that sounds a lot more raw and primitive. It’s rough around the edges but also extremely tight and texturally dense. The way that he summarised it is that we needed to capture ‘two highly trained assassin’s on drums and bass fronted by two psychopath’s on guitar and vocal’. It’s really edgy and powerful and we will definitely be releasing soon enough.