Music

What's been happening since we last spoke?

The last time we spoke was just after we played the Market Square opening. In terms of our music, Stop Eject is a different band. There are still elements of how we sounded back then but we haven’t played those songs in probably over a year. 

I think they were the first six or seven songs we ever wrote or even played together and though we were happy with them at the time; it’s strange to think that was one of our first gigs. 

It was a positive thing for us I’d say though, we got almost instant exposure albeit locally if nothing else. 

I mean I’d guess that most bands based in Nottingham would have welcomed the opportunity to play that day and looking back at it, I’m almost relieved it happened to us at such an early stage due to the way the band has developed. 

When we started out a lot of people compared us to sounding like a mix of The Strokes and Joy Division, and to be fair a poor one.  Listening to the songs we write now, I don’t think we sound like anyone. 

We all have shared influences such as lot of post punk bands from the early Eighties, but individually I don’t think we try to emulate any particular band because we do have really eclectic tastes, that goes towards us sounding unique. 

So if we played to Saturday shoppers now, I’m not sure how a mainstream audience would react. Since then Matthew left the band, we released our first EP, played all over the country and have been working hard as a band.”

Any chance of getting signed?

I’m proud of the fact we’re trying to do something a little different or even challenging because it’d be pointless to just regurgitate what’s already been done. 

If Stop Eject was just about copying other bands none of us would be doing this, and I think we have a good starting point being almost slightly weird sounding, I think one DJ called us frightening…  But at the same time it can be a hindrance as our music isn’t always accessible but we try to provoke a reaction, people always like what we do or hate it. 

I think as a band or an artist the worst thing you can be is invisible or just bland.  We can’t market ourselves as being part of a scene or say “like x? Try y!” I like to think of it as we’re not on a bandwagon; it’d be so much easier if we were. 

We released ‘Cargo Cult Science’ independently and we’re releasing a single in November in a similar way.  We’re hesitant to get into bed with a label unless we feel they could add something to what we already have and sadly the right one hasn’t come calling yet. 

It’s difficult sometimes in Nottingham when are so few record labels around which is a shame because I think there are some really promising bands around here right now.  We played with Nephu Huzzband and Catch Collective last month who I thought were both excellent.

What happened with the line-up change?

Matthew left the band back in October last year, old news really.  Anyone who saw us live with Matthew will know that’s he’s a fantastic musician but because of the method we write, it was sometimes hard for him to contribute I think.

Cargo Cult Science EP cover

He has another band called People which was more his creative output I suppose.  He also moved to London which didn’t help.  We experimented with swapping instruments and even using synthesizers and drum machines after he left but the dynamic with the four of us works best so we just stuck with it and spent hours and hours and hours rehearsing, writing and trying new things. 

It took about three months or so before we were ready to play live again, but when we did we had so many new songs and ideas it was a major step forwards for us.  It really allowed Topher to step up and be more creative; his guitar playing really helps give us our sound.  Plus The Smiths and Joy Division managed with just one guitarist…

Tell us about Cargo Cult Science…

After Matthew had gone we had an entirely different sound so we really wanted to release something so we recorded an EP.  We made a very limited pressing which sold out fairly quickly just at gigs and online, which surprised us, so we embraced everything against my vinyl principles and released it digitally. 

The title comes from a concept in anthropology about how tribes of the southwest Pacific would build runways but with no accurate technology because they thought planes would land.  I like the dark irony to that, in the same way we joked if we made a CD it wouldn’t sell, Stop Eject science you might call it.

We like to have interesting titles and meanings to our songs because I think it’s another area where many bands don’t really make the effort, you’ll never hear a Stop Eject love song. 

There’s one song on the EP, ‘Gustav Mahler Lives in Toronto’ about how there’s a graffiti artist in Canada tagging the name of a dead Austrian composer around Toronto and nobody knows who’s doing it or why, worst case scenario it’s free advertising for us. 

We were really pleased how ‘Cargo Cult Science’ was received.  It got played on radio stations in the UK, Germany and America and got good reviews which lead to us playing in London regularly in good venues with some great bands like Elle Milano and The Pity Party.  We‘ve just been writing new material over summer for a single release in November.

What would help you right at this minute?

I don’t think Stop Eject needs anything.  We’re happy making music right now and hopefully will continue to do so.  We’re really looking forward to getting our next single out and getting more airplay. 

It’ll be good to get back out and play more gigs especially in Nottingham after a quiet summer working hard in the practice studio, then next year we’re hoping record an album.

The Beat

You can catch bands like the one above on The Beat. The Beat is BBC Radio Nottingham's official Introducing show. You can listen to The Beat every Saturday night from 6.00pm until 10.00pm (103.8, 95.5fm, 1584am and DAB digital radio). If you miss it you can listen again on the BBC's iplayer.