SWITCHES
WORDS: AMY WAGNER
LIVE PHOTOS: CLAIRE SHEPROW
PRESS PHOTO: AUTUMN de WILDE

'Sup sat down with the raucous pop-rock quartet known as Switches as they sat, bottled up, in their dressing room at Terminal 5. It was still a couple of hours before showtime but the U.K. firebrands, Matt Bishop (lead vocals/guitar), Thom Kirkpatrick (bass, backing vocals), Ollie Thomas (guitar/backing vocals) and Steve Godfrey (drums) were already holding at a feverish #3 on the "Blast Off" scale. Stage ready with perfectly spiked indie rock hair and retro wear (silk-screened Bowie tee on Bishop), the rowdy foursome were quick to kid and goad each other into testosterone-laced chaos.

In between talk of their electric debut LP Lay Down the Law (Interscope), their time on the road with The Bravery, and how first meetings came to equal hiding behind bushes, Bishop, the leader of the pack, was quick to break into song (everything from the Beach Boys to Blondie) and it only took a couple of seconds for his bandmates to jump in and put on a harmony. Read through to the end for a guide to making your own Switches playlist!

'Sup: Do you think you were born to be musicians or is it something you can learn?
Matt: I think you can learn it. You can learn to do anything but if you're not good at it, you're not good at - you know what I mean? You can't force yourself to be a great guitarist or a great songwriter. I can't force myself to be a great singer. It just doesn't happen. I'm more of a songwriter but it seems I just like to sing my own songs.

Which band or singer was your first obsession?
Steve: Bon Jovi and Guns 'N' Roses. They're the boys!

When you were growing up, what band or artist was the face of American music for you?
Matt: I didn't listen to American music until I was about 14 or 15 so for me, the face of American music was probably Nirvana.

Thom: The Beach Boys.

Matt: Yeah, they weren't around as a band when we were growing up but their music was and it was always like "That's American music!" You know, (singing in his best California accent) "I git around round round round . . ." I loved the Beach Boys.

Matt, when you were putting the band together, you didn't picked people on the basis of their playing but more on their response to an email you put out looking for like-minded guys to gig around with?
Matt: It wasn't really based on their responses. It was more like whoever replied, if they wanted to meet me . . . okay. It wasn't like a big group meeting or anything. It was one by one.

Ollie: Mano . . . mano.

Matt: Yeah, that kind of thing. I would kind of sneak out from behind the bushes and jump out.

Thom: Jump out?!

Matt: Well, it wasn't quite like that. I just sort of came around to see who was waiting. Let me tell you something, my grandfather said he went on a date once and like, he saw the girl and he ran away and didn't meet her.

Thom: Your grandfather did?

Matt: Yeah. So, I guess that's how I learned to do meetings. Anyway, some of the people who showed up were so strange - mutant almost.

I've heard stories about you practically writing songs when you were in the cradle. How many songs do you think you've written?

Matt: Between us all? Thousands probably. Personally, I've written about . . .

Ollie: You've written about a thousand or probably 999.

Mattie: I've literally got stacks of tapes at home.

Do you ever pull out lyrics you wrote when you were really young? Dust them off?
Matt: Not really. Well, sometimes . . . there's a track called "Testify" which I've been playing around with since I was 17. A lot of songs go back to when I was nine or ten.

How about your songwriting influences? Were you listening to a lot of ELO when you wrote "Drama Queen"?
Matt: I think we were listening to ZZ Top.

Thom: Sharp Dressed Man.

Would you be up for growing their beards?
Thom: Would we? Hmmm . . .

Ollie: I can't grow a beard.

Matt: We're waiting for puberty just like Michael J. Fox but seriously, I think it's just the vocal harmony that reminds people of ELO.

Tell us about recording at Sunset Sound in Los Angeles. What was it like the first time you walked into such a legendary place?
Matt: It was awesome!

Ollie: I literally did shit myself.

Did you feel any leftover vibes from the artists who worked there before?
Matt: Prince! He had himself a bed in the studio. He could just say, "Good night, guys! I'm off" and go sleep.

Ollie: I'd have happily slept in that studio.

How has your time on the road with The Bravery been?
Thom: We all went out for dinner in Atlanta, Georgia to a Ribhouse place. We all piled into the other support band Your Vegas' van which was only made to hold about six people and we had three full bands in it.

Ollie: I've got video of it actually on my phone - of us getting out of it.

Do any of you have a name for your guitar?
Ollie: I used to have a name for my old guitar - Athene.

Matt: Why did you call it Athene?

Ollie: Maria named it for me.

Matt (singing): "Maria you've got to see her!" Oh, yeah . . . I had an old one I used to use a lot called Old Yeller.

When it comes to your music who is the one person on the planet whose advice you take above all others?
Matt: Trust yourself.

Thom: I'd take advice from Bowie.

Which musician or band do you think has had a perfect career?
Steve: Is there anyone who's had a perfect career?

Matt: Damon Albarn from Blur has had a good career. He made great albums with Blur. He had Gorillaz and then he's done The Good, The Bad & The Queen. He's always making good music. He's never made a bad album. Bowie was like that until about the 80s when he lost it completely.

Steve: There's still time for Albarn to.

Matt: Oh, Albarn's gonna fuck up one day, don't worry.

Give us one word that describes how you feeling when you're playing on stage?
Matt: Scared. Drunk. Weird.

Thom: Hot.

Ollie: Sexual!

As a parting gift to your many fans, let’s make a playlist - the soundtrack of the Switches. It goes like this . . .

First song you remember learning all the words to when you were a kid?

Matt: "S.O.S." by Abba. I'm quite embarrassed about that.

Ollie: "Peaches" by The Stranglers.

First single you ever bought?

Ollie: Did we buy singles?

Matt: I did. I bought loads. I bought Jive Bunny.

Thom: This song by Silver Sun called "Julia".

Your favorite song of all time?

Ollie: The Beatles - "A Day in the Life"

Matt: "Good Vibrations" by the B.[each] Boys.

Last song you listened to that wasn't one of your own?

Thom: Your Vegas "In My Head".

Matt: "Superfriend" by Rivers Cuomo.

A Song that reminds you of home?

Matt: Anything by Blur reminds me of home.

Song that sums you up as a band?

Matt: Anything by 10ccs.