Scottish “riff-rock” duo Huxtable have a new EP out on September 29th. The release of Change Shape Future will be accompanied by a launch show in Glasgow (King Tut’s on launch day) and a UK tour. The EP is chock full of catchy, fuzzy numbers and you can check out the video for “Don’t Do Anything Fancy” after we find out a bit more about the band themselves…
Simple things first – where are you guys from?
Jordan: We are from a town called Kilmarnock, about 20 miles south-west of Glasgow.
How did you meet?
Broono: We actually met in the local music scene over a decade ago and became really good friends. We met each other again about five years ago at a show Jordan was playing with an old band, and things kind of went from there.
How long have you been playing as a band?
J: I think it’s been about four years…
Before you get sick of being asked… where does the band name come from?
B: The band name comes from the comedy The Cosby Show. The family’s second name was Huxtable.
What are your influences?
J: Biffy Clyro have been a huge influence on us. Being from the same area, we were quite lucky to be able to follow them pretty much from when they were a local band. So as musicians we’ve kind of been on the whole journey with them, you know? Aside from that we are quite eclectic in our tastes – rock, metal, punk, pop, classical. I’d like to think you can find reference to most things we listen to in our music!
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
J: We used to describe it as “Riff-Rock”… To be honest, with the new record- I’m not entirely sure how we would describe it. It’s still riffy rock music, but it seems to be a little more hook driven this time round.
B: You should come and see us live! We do a really cool thing with two drum kits. I’d say that’s pretty unique considering there is only the two of us!
Do you have any particular lyrical themes?
J: That’s a really good question… for some reason sinning, morality and God seem to feature quite heavily. Neither of us believe in God, but it seems to be where my head goes when writing.
What’s your live show like? How many shows have you played?
J: Our live shows are quite fervent! We absolutely put our all into each and every show. It’s not unusual for me to throw up after a show (disgusting, I know). In total we have probably done close to about 200 shows. I dunno if that is accurate – we don’t really keep count!
B: It can be pretty intense, a lot going on for your eyes. We like to put on a pretty high octane show… yeah, I think it’s roughly 200 shows.
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show?
J: Not our show but do you know those little cartons of UHT milk you get from hotels? I threw one of those at Wes Scantlin from Puddle of Mudd during “Blurry” when they were ing Korn at the SECC in Glasgow (I think that’s when it was). It burst open right on his Gibson Les Paul. He got mad and stopped the song to go on a rant. I was probably about 15 at the time. Guy makes a habit of doing such things now-a-days it seems… Not that wild I guess.
What kit do you use / guitars do you play / etc.?
J: Up until this record I was playing Gretsch guitars. For this record I used a Telecaster and a couple of Strats. I reckon I’ll be using Stratocasters on the next run of shows. I actually just picked up a really cool/weird Fender Super Strat that was made in 1986… Can’t really find out much more about it other than they were in production for about a year and a half. I’ve never seen another one of these, which is pretty cool!
B: I play a four piece Mapex birch kit.
What, if anything, are you plugging/promoting at the moment?
Our new record Change Shape Future which is out on September 29th from all the usual places!
What are your plans for the rest of 2017?
We are off on tour in October with our good friends Twin Heart!
If you were second on a three-band bill, which band would you love to be ing and which band would you choose to open for you? A chance to plug someone you’ve toured with, or a mate’s band we’ve not heard of before!
J: That’s a tough one! I’m going to say Muse are the headliners and our pals Twin Heart can open… So if anyone thinks that sounds like a good show, you can come and see two thirds of it in September and October on our tour!
From previous Band of the Day Three Kings High: What’s the best online resource for getting your music out there in your experience, and how do you use it?
B: The best online source for us is probably Twitter. There’s a lot going on but there are so many networking opportunities through Twitter.
From another BotD, We Are The Catalyst: What is your writing process like when writing new songs?
J: We kind of changed it up for the new record but it’ll go something like this: record us messing about on our phones, sift through it to see if there is anything we can work with, I’ll then piece together something that kind of works, demo it and send it to Broono. Then we kick it back and forth until we have something that we are happy with.
And from The Blend: What do you put on your toast?
J: Avocado and poached egg! It’s the best. If you take anything away from reading this is should be that. Make the avocado into a guacamole. Salt, pepper, red onion, coriander, the juice of half a lime per avocado. Also no need to put salt or vinegar in the water for poaching the eggs. That doesn’t work. Someone tell Action Bronson to get me on “Fuck, that’s Delicious”.
Huxtable: facebook | twitter | youtube | bigcartel
