29 April 2024
Every Monday I will be bringing you an interview with an independent band, duo or music artist. This week, I caught up with London/Brighton band Tether to find out more…
Who is in the band and how did you meet?
Tether is made up of Justin Jackson (Vocals), Rob Parnell (Guitar/Vocals), Kieran Harper (Guitar), Jack Haddon (Bass) and James Gallagher (Drums).
Kieran and Justin were previously in a band called Hunter Kill Hunter. Justin is also a promoter.
Who were your musical influences when you were growing up and who are your influences now?
We are united by our love of 2000s post-hardcore music, including Everytime I die, Norma Jean, The Bled, Letlive, Glassjaw, Alexisonfire etc.
Nowadays, our main influences are still these bands with the addition of newer bands such as Pressure Cracks, Better Lovers.
How would you describe your sound?
The motive behind Tether is to create heavy music you can dance to. We have a big focus on rhythm sections that are inspired by dance music but with a hardcore/post-hardcore twist.
We aim to write catchy hooks and chaotic riffs that amplify our live performance style, which is full of energy and designed to get the crowd and us moving in as many different ways as possible. There are certainly poppy elements of our new songs on this EP (chorus of where the sun meets the sea for example) but we transpose this with structures that throw you off and make you really pay attention to the music.
In terms of vocal performance parts that flit between performers (Justin and Rob) are a key focus, unlocking a chaotic energy that compliments the musical arrangement.
What is your latest release called and what was the influence behind it?
Straight With Me is the first single off our debut EP Mirror Work. The song exemplifies the “heavy music you can dance to philosophy” with four to the floor dance music inspired grooves.
The lyrics to this song reflect and sum up all the frustrations that band members have with being in a band in the modern era of the music industry, and also the personal struggles you inevitably have with one another.
Justin: I say this all the time, ‘being in a band is like being in a marriage.’ You’re coupled up sometimes realising that you now have found incompatibilities, but then sometimes you’re too far in to quit. The frustration of being in a long term situation you love, with people you love, where you sometimes don’t see eye to eye. Trying to keep your mouth shut, to appease others, but hold back and bite your tongue to avoid a build of tension.
‘We can’t read the same book expecting a different ending’ – understanding that you’re on a similar path to someone that has different visions of the outcome, and the frustration involved with that. But we all have to bend sometimes in order to make things perfect. Which usually can only be seen in hindsight. The line ‘Walk, Straight With Me, instead of going round in circles’ is about rationalising and understanding a situation, in order to move forward and achieve your united goal, otherwise no one moves forward.
What’s your local music scene like?
The London and Brighton scenes that we are most connected to are probably among the most diverse in the country. We’re often seen at local shows together or as individuals as lots of our friends bands and other bands that we’ve found online and love.
Despite being in bigger cities that don’t just have one or two venues dedicated to heavier music, there’s a really strong sense of community within these cities and we’ve made tons of friends with other bands and fans of other bands by attending these shows. Playing live and being around live music is really one of the key things that drives us to do what we do.
What do you have planned for the next 12 months?
We’ll be releasing two more singles off of Mirror Work before it is released on June 21st. We have a release show for the EP on June 27th at the Black Heart with our friends Chaos Reigns and Your Misery supporting.
After that we’re looking to tour more towards the end of the year as the first half of 2024 has really been about getting everything ready for the debut release.
Is there anyone you’d love to collaborate with?
We’ve been flirting with the idea of having some more hip hop inspired vocals on our tracks recently. Working with someone from High Focus records would be awesome and a nice tie in to the fact that we seem be slowly migrating from London to Brighton.
In terms of the heavier side of things, the first band we ever toured with, MSRY, had a track with Liam Cormier from Cancer Bats. We also supported them back in July of last year at Islington Academy so that would be a nice full circle. We’re all big fans of the band and Justin and Liam are good friends, so would be a fun one to work on together.
Any funny stories surrounding your live performances?
Our first show back after Covid was in Ipswich with Groom Lake and Graphic Nature. Suffice to say we were all very excited to be playing music again after an eighteen month break that felt more like ten years. After the show we still had so much energy but our van driver had to leave to get back to London in 45 minutes.
We ended up with all three bands in a local pub, took over their karaoke and had the whole place singing Rollin’ by Limp Bizkit while getting in as many pints as our bladders could manage in the short window.
In the van on the way back James lost track of reality and sitting in the front while the rest of us were in the back convinced himself that we were being kidnapped. Apparently he was plotting his escape, but luckily it didn’t come to that.
What is the one thing that you want readers to know about you?
Listen to our tracks closely enough, and you’ll find out all you need to know 🙂 The lyrics to this EP are personal to every member of the band in their own way.
Upcoming live dates and performances
Thursday 27th June – Mirror Work EP Release Show, at the Black Heart, London with Your Misery and Chaos Reigns supporting
You can find out more about Tether via Apple Music, Facebook, Instagram, Linktree, Spotify or YouTube.
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