When did you first realise that COVID-19 was going to have an effect on your band?
We can’t remember the exact date, but it seemed to be around the end of March 2020 when everything ground to a halt here. The pandemic had reached the UK and started to spread scarily quickly. Within a short time, the English government ordered all non-essential shops to close, and also pubs, bars, entertainment venues and restaurants etc. Within days the world seemed to stop for us and the UK was thrown into a crisis. When the government announced the first lockdown, all band members were forbidden to go out to work and we all discussed how we could spend our time in lockdown for music purposes (without meeting each other).
Initially, what was that whole situation like, and how did your band overcome/react to it?
The pandemic itself was (and still is) a really scary concept. Never, in our lifetime, have we experienced anything like it. England had become a locked down nation virtually overnight, similar to the scenes of desertion in the film 28 Days Later. The only people to be seen were those spending hours queueing to get into supermarkets. As for the band, once we knew when lockdown was beginning, we had a video chat about it. Hybrid Spirits have been really lucky in this respect, as we rarely meet face to face. All of our music is done electronically and individually, with all of us working in our recording areas at home. Each piece of music is passed on to each member for them to add to, before a song is finished. Lockdown actually gave us more time to write and record more music as we had more free time than usual. Not only did we manage to get our latest EP “Mirage” finalised and mixed, we wrote and recorded a charity song called “Rain or Shine” which was literally recorded during, and about, lockdown. We wanted to reflect feelings of hope and solidarity to people everywhere. Many people in the UK had started fundraising for various Covid-19 causes, and we decided to raise money for the International Committee of the Red Cross for their emergency Covid-19 appeal. You can see their appeal at : https://www.icrc.org/en/donate/covid-19-emergency-appeal
It’s not too late to buy a copy of the charity single (£1.50 or more) to support the cause at our Bandcamp page : www.hybridspirits.bandcamp.com and we send our heartfelt thanks to everybody who does, thank you!
How has your creative process changed as a band over the last couple of months?
For us, it hasn’t really changed, as we record the music individually and remotely anyway. We don’t need to be in the same location to write and record our music. It seems to be business as usual here, and we are very lucky in that respect. Our hearts have gone out to other musicians who can’t get into the studio to record, or to play live. Now lockdown has eased somewhat, and we are back at work, the last couple of months have left us less time to record again!
What bands/artists have you been listening to over the last couple of months?
Our music is on quite a few Spotify Playlists now, so we’ve tended to play those a lot in order to support and get to know other artists. The networking and camaraderie between unsigned bands has been amazing, especially through the pandemic, and we send our heartfelt thanks to everybody for their support. Some of these bands and people include Shane Larmand, BaYaT, Eden’s End, The Cranberry Merchants, Pauley Lane Band, Cruel Horizon, The Delerium Trees, Lee Christian, Phoenix And The Silver Voodoos, The Fair Attempts, The Apostrophe Wrecks, Rath Campbell….and dozens more. The list goes on! It’s also been great to have time to discover new bands as we’ve had more free time (until recently!).
So, what do you think you’ve learnt the most from being a band through COVID-19?
That we’re always there for each other if someone’s having a bad day as a couple of us struggled with lockdown and not being able to socialise or see loved ones. We’ve also learnt that the way that we work suits us well, especially during a pandemic.
What kind of effect do you think that it’s had on the music industry all together, and how excited are you to see it return to normal?
We’d love to think that the entertainment industry will recover, and really hope that it does as soon as possible! Will things ever be the same again, we wonder? We have heard of local music venues (and theatres etc) struggling, forced to close forever due to lack of income. Artists aren’t able to play live or record in the studio. Revenue from tours, gigs and merchandise sales (as well as music purchases) have plummeted. Will there ever be a time when people can go to a gig as normal again? Will people have to be socially distanced in the future and how can that be managed? There seem to be more questions and issues than solutions. However, other indie musicians who we know are now allowed to play small, socially-distanced venues again, so maybe life and gigs as we know it will return to normal one day. We certainly hope so!
What tips/advice would you like to give to other bands who are also going through this?
Talk to each other and support your bandmates. If you’ve got recording equipment at home, try working on it remotely like we do. Keep writing lyrics and tunes, even if you can’t get out to the studio or play gigs. Don’t be afraid to use social media to reach out to other bands for support as well. Hang on in there, it won’t be forever (hopefully!).
Twitter: @SpiritsHybrid
Instagram @Hybridspiritsband
Facebook: www.facebook.com/hybridspirits
Website: www.HybridSpirits.co.uk
Original Music on YouTube : https://youtu.be/IwRFIVk2ZmY
Cover Versions on Youtube : https://youtu.be/qq0q1h-KMrg
You can find our music at : https://hybridspirits.bandcamp.com/
Also on YouTube, Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, Google Play, Tidal, Deezer and Pandora amongst other streaming sites. Just search for us and our song “Fear” and you’ll find us!