A year ago, on a summer day, while checking my e-mails, I have been followed on Twitter by a band that I have never heard of before named The BlackWhite. I went on their SoundCloud profile out of curiosity and I have been pleasantly surprised by the unique sound they have. I have taken the opportunity of their new Single relase "All Of Your Voices" and interviewed them, finding more about them, both as individuals and as a band. The BlackWhite consists of: Josh Bray - Vocals, Guy Prall - Guitar, Harry Deacon - Bass, Ed Broad - Drums and Ash Krajewski - Keys
1. Hello, guys! Welcome to Let's Rock Romania, how are you?
Ash: We're good thanks! On a high from 2 decent gigs in London over the weekend.
2. You have recently released your new single "ËœAll of Your Voices', what did it bring new to the BlackWhite experience and how did the public react to it?
All of Your Voices is the first song The BlackWhite have released as a five-piece. We recorded it ourselves, and I engineered and mixed it.
The reaction to "All Of Your Voices" has been pretty great really. After being blogged about by some very popular music blogs on the internet, the track has had almost 30,000 plays on SoundCloud!
Everyone's seemed to love the video for it on YouTube too so it's been excellent to see the reaction to the song.
The reaction to "All Of Your Voices" has been pretty great really. After being blogged about by some very popular music blogs on the internet, the track has had almost 30,000 plays on SoundCloud!
Everyone's seemed to love the video for it on YouTube too so it's been excellent to see the reaction to the song.
3. You probably get this a lot, but how would you describe your music style to someone who has never heard your band before?
That's a fairly tough question to answer in truth, which is probably a good thing! Best not to sound like anyone else really but each of us have different influences and bands that we listen to and somehow putting all that comes together to form something that feels quite unique, to us at least. If you had to put a label on it I guess someone might call it "Alternative Indie Rock" maybe.
4. How do you feel you have evolved throughout the time you have been together as The BlackWhite?
Josh: We have become more confident as writers. Once we did away with the need to write for anyone other than ourselves we freed ourselves artistically to write the kind of music we always thought ourselves capable. We feel vindicated in our single "All of Your Voices" as it was both artistically fulfilling whilst also gaining a wider recognition and enjoyment from the general public.
5. What made you decide on the name? How did it came along?
Josh: "ËœBlackWhite' is a term from George Orwell's dystopian oeuvre 1984. It is an example of "Ëœnewspeak' and "Ëœdoublethink' whereby an individual is able to, as the example goes, be presented with something black, whilst being told that it is white and immediately exercise "Ëœdoublethink' and forget that it was ever otherwise. It is a metaphor for indoctrination and thought control, processes, which we see very much in existence in the world we live in.
6. What is the writing process you go through when you come up with a new song?
Josh: We have traditionally made it as torturous as possible by over thinking every aspect of the song. We reached a gradual realisation that this was not the way to proceed if the well-being of the band were to prevail! We have since decided to give all song ideas the chance to flourish rather than being overly restrictive in our personal brief. We now enjoy the simple act of creation and song development and no longer care if we feel that the result may be polarising or difficult for any potential audience. As such some of our songs may be challenging but hopefully in an extremely melodic and enjoyable way.
7. If you could make a dream festival, what bands would you ask to come play?
Harry: firstly, I would be touring the country looking for new bands to book. There are so many good artists around, and not enough of them are able to reach the wider audience that playing at festival can achieve. Here are some of my festival favourites though; Bassekou Kouyate, Taj Mahal, Ry Cooder, White Denim, Los Lobos, Mystery Jets. Plus a good dose of Reggae, Ska, Rockabilly and Soul.
8. Speaking of bands you like and admire, which bands have inspired you the most and what bands would you like to collaborate with?
Harry: Bands and artists that have inspired us are Brian Wilson, Foo Fighters, Soundgarden, Ray Davies, Mew, Jimi Hendrix, Bombay Bicycle Club amongst many others. Collaborating with any of these would be great (obviously collaborating with one in particular might be harder to achieve than the others).
9. You seem to come from very different music backgrounds, how did you meet and come together as a band?
Harry: Josh was performing as a solo artist, he was looking for a guitarist and he met Guy at a gig. Guy knew Ed from college and suggested him as a drummer. With various bass players, these three were the bare bones of The Josh Bray Band. I joined for a tour, and shortly after returning home we began writing as a group and The BlackWhite began. Feeling that we needed to add depth to the sound, we remembered a good friend who had worked on Josh's album as an engineer, Ash. As well as being a talented engineer, Ash has played synth for years, so he was the perfect addition.
10. Do you have any pre-gig rituals or just things you do as a band on a regular basis?
Guy: We don't really do rituals. We do have our things we do on a regular basis though. We all enjoy watching UFC (Ultimate Fighting) together. Josh does a lot of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu so he kind of made us aware of it. The other guys like computer games.
11. What was the worst experience you had ever since you came together as The BlackWhite?
Guy: We have done some gigs I would probably choose to forget but none of them were that agonising. My bandmates call me Guy 'PCN (Penalty charge notice)' Prall. I seem to pick them up way too often. Driving the wrong way down a one way street seems to be a specialty of mine. I also like parking on double yellows. All helps to contribute to my annual deficit towards London Transport. As you can imagine I hate them.
Sometimes finishing a song is not a great experience and can be tortuous. To get it to the point where everyone is happy can be painful, and often is. Definitely worth it in the end though!
Sometimes finishing a song is not a great experience and can be tortuous. To get it to the point where everyone is happy can be painful, and often is. Definitely worth it in the end though!
12. On a more positive note, what was the best experience you had?
Guy: Too many to choose from! I really enjoyed making the videos. All of your Voices at Pulse Films was a fun day. As it is relatively early in our career and we haven't yet been afforded the opportunities to play the big stages, we have to really appreciate and value the creative processes of the band. I actually get so satisfied and happy when we come up with an idea that excites us. The feeling I get when we get together in the morning with no ideas and leave with a great song is why I do this.
13. Is there anything you would give up music for?
Ed: I've been making music since i was 12 and have never made any money from it, therefore it must be a habitual need! I am unable to stop, it's like a positive mental illness. Finishing songs and performing them is a joy which cannot be described to those who haven't done it..... so NO!
14. If you hadn't become musicians, what would you have done?
Ed: probably some kind of blue-collar job. I used to do electrical work with my dad, or decorating, building etc. Josh was 'supposed' to be a human-rights lawyer, but it is best for everyone involved that he turned his clumsy hands to music! Guy Ash and Harry would most likely have been a dance troupe.
15. Lastly, how would you like the world to remember you?
Ed: I'd like to be remembered as that drummer from that band who had that one-hit wonder back in 2014 which defined the sound of the decade for future generations. We would become the subject of much speculation from Z-list celebrities on shows entitled "I love the tens" or "where are they now?" I would make occasional cameo appearances on TV game shows, become overweight and grow reclusive and bitter.
I would like to thank the guys from The BlackWhite for the opportunity to interview them and wish them good luck in their career, looking forward hearing new songs from them.
Photos: The BlackWhite
Interview taken by Cristina Constantinescu.
