Tuesday 28 February 2012

We're Only Here For The Banter - Wolves Of Winter


I'll be honest, I don't know too much about Wolves Of Winter.  Having heard their single 'The Art Of Temptation' which was out last year, I got in touch, and the band were kind enough to answer some questions.  With a new EP on the way, if it's half as good as their last single, I'm rubbing my hands with glee!

It's the question everyone hates, but could you tell us a little bit about your music and your influences?

Our musical influences are quite varied really. In terms of the Wolves Of Winter stuff I (Steve S) tend to be influenced by stuff I hear from all over the place. As the main producer in the band I am always listening to production in tracks. I tend to like a lot of music I hear on films and TV shows to a certain degree and this is where the Wolves Of Winter sound comes from I reckon. In terms of bands the likes of Glasgow's own Cinephile and Mogwai influence the way I hear the Wolves Of Winter tracks getting put together. I know that Steve C draws on influences from all over for his songwriting, from the Beatles to Mogwai, Dylan to Roddy Woomble! But not just music, I think Steve C definitely draws on a lot of Scottish literature and poetry for his songs.

What's your song writing process like?

Usually Steve C will play me a song or I will remember one he wrote years ago ('The Art Of Temptation' was written 10 years ago!) and I will get him to demo it and leave the chords with me. I'll then go about producing an entire track for it in the studio, sometimes in a day sometimes over the course of a few weeks. Alternatively I will create a full track with plenty of space for a vocal, just based around a few musical ideas, and send it to Steve C who will demo a vocal over the top on an iPad or something after which we will get him into the studio to put down a full vocal and then we will rebuild the track from there. Either way the final stage is to take it to Cinephile producer Kenny Inglis to get his production on it while we do the final mix down. It tends to be a way of working that suits us.

What could we expect to see from a live show?

Nothing! We currently are only a studio based project at the minute.

If it were all to end tomorrow, what would you say has been your greatest achievement?

Getting one song put out there! No we were actually really pleased when we got picked to feature in the A&R zone on BBC Radio 1 by Yvonne McLellan 4 days after quietly sneaking our track out on Bandcamp.

What have you got planned for 2012?

Well, we have a new single coming out (which was meant to be January but will now be late February or March as I can never seem to be satisfied with my final efforts!) and then over the spring/summer we will be writing and recording an EP or mini album due for release in autumn.

At Scottish Fiction we focus on new Scottish music, how do you as a band view the Scottish music 'scene'?

I think the Scottish music scene is a tricky one just now. I work professionally as a recording/mixing engineer at a Glasgow studio and therefore are constantly speaking to Scottish bands. I think there are some fantastic artists out there just now making brilliant music that are not getting the attention they deserve because they don't fit into the "scene" that's popular at the moment. Having said that there are some seriously good bands making a name for themselves just now too. All in all though I think that the Scottish music scene would be so much better or would better live up to its reputation if more bands concentrated on the quality of the product they put out rather than the quantity. Just my opinion though.

What other Scottish artists would you recommend to the Scottish Fiction readers?

Cinephile, Eugene Twist, The Moth And The Mirror, Sparrow And The Workshop, David Bova, Discopolis, Mogwai, Admiral Fallow, The Wellgreen, Dean Owens, Andrea Marini, and loads that I forget just now!

Thanks for speaking with us, would you care to share a joke with us?

What did the green grape say to the purple grape?

Breathe idiot, breathe!

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