Liverpool art-rock trio SPQR are today pleased to reveal that they have founded their own label, Nuthin Gud Records.
Commenting on the news, the band say: “It feels nice to be doing things ‘ourselves’. We put that in quotations ‘cos it’s never just one person really is it, it’s loads! The idea of self-releasing is something we’ve always aspired to do, having grown up following loads of DIY bands doing just that. It’s kind of that concept of spending as little of someone else’s money as possible, too.”
The first cut to be released on the newly-minted imprint is the band’s latest single ‘Nuthin Gud’, which is out now on all good digital service providers, accompanied by a dramatically unsettling and cinematic new video which premiered on VEVO.
Commenting on the single—self-produced by front man Peter Harrison and mixed by Alex Quinn (The Blinders, She Drew The Gun), working with the band for the first time—Harrison says: “‘Nuthin Gud’ is about having a distance from yourself. Grappling with your egos; trying to decipher not just which are healthy and which aren’t, but which are true to your ‘core’. It’s a bit of an anthem, which I’m not super into the idea of, but…you can’t help what comes out, so here it is.”
The atmospheric and haunting video for the single is a tangible step up for the band in their creative ambition, partly courtesy of director Liam Powell, who says of the shoot: “We wanted to emulate a cult narrative without it becoming too plot-driven. We used some beautiful anamorphic lenses to add a unique perspective which I think is especially noticeable in the forest scenes. The video feels uncomfortable to watch because it was uncomfortable to make—seeing Pete warn dog walkers that we had loose pig meat on the ground only added to the surreal experience of the shoot.”
The news comes following two sold out headline residency shows at the Kazimier Stockroom in Liverpool, with the band set to support METZ and Childcare over the coming weeks, before looking ahead to a clutch of 2020 headline dates and Hit The North Festival, with further festival appearances TBA.
Known for their visceral and experimental new brand of art-rock, during their short tenure to date SPQR have already appeared at the BBC 6music Fringe Festival, Future Yard, Off The Record, Liverpool Sound City, Dot To Dot, and Bluedot Festival. Alongside their festival appearances the band have also supported Mini Mansions, Demob Happy, and toured the UK extensively, releasing two EPs, with a personal inclusion from Everything Everything on their curated Airplane Mode compilation with BBC radio DJ, Andy Backhouse.
2017’s self-produced The House That Doubt Built was mixed by Tom Longworth (Catholic Action, Calva Louise), a collection of songs which saw the band receive praise for their uniquely developed sound. 2019’s follow up, Low Sun Long Shadows, was produced and mixed by Margo Broom (Fat White Family, Goat Girl) in London’s Hermitage Works Studios, and released on Modern Sky UK. Kicking off an important year of growth for the band, the record finally propelled rumbles of their growing notoriety beyond their hometown of Liverpool, where the current vibrant creative pool includes a crop of similarly-fast-rising contemporaries including Eyesore & The Jinx, Pizza Girl, Beija Flo, Queen Zee and many more.
As a result, the band featured in Spotify playlists such as All New Indie, The Punk List, and Hot New Bands amongst a host of others, with a raft of praise from The Metro, The Quietus, The Line of Best Fit, DIY Magazine, Discovered Magazine, with previous singles ‘Our Mother’s Sons’ and ‘Josephine’ picking up key radio play from BBC Radio One’s Rock Show, Kerrang! Radio, Amazing Radio and more.
Now with their sights set firmly on making a lasting impression in 2020, SPQR are perfectly placed to unveil their most ambitious and accomplished work yet.
‘Nuthin Gud’ is out now on Nuthin Gud Records
SPQR live dates:
30.11.19 – Liverpool – Phase One (w/ Metz)
10.12.19 – Liverpool – Sound Basement (w/ Childcare)
12.12.19 – Leicester – The Cookie (w/ Childcare)
27.02.20 – London – The Grace
28.02.20 – Manchester – Gullivers
03.05.20 – Newcastle – Hit The North Festival