Hi and thank you for sparing time to chat with us.
Could you first introduce yourself, the band and tell us how it all came to be?
AB – Hi I’m Anina Barrett and I play drums for So Long, Space Girl! We also have Paul Coppock on the bass, AJ Willis is our singer songwriter and guitarist, and Rob Mauro is our lead guitarist. The shell of the band was formed after years of failed bands and unreliable musicians, Paul and I put out an advert for a singer to join our acoustic project. AJ responded and we had a few practices. He showed us some of his own material and it was just TOO good to just let it pass, so we elbowed the acoustic project for the time being to focus on the works of AJ.
How would you define not only your sound but the creative character of the band?
AB – I like to think we have a certain energy to our sound in general, that’s not to say we don’t ever write slower paced songs, we have a few but they always have an energy to them, a build-up, there are a lot of songs out there that don’t change much between verse and chorus and just meander through, we like to make sure that each part of each song is distinct and memorable. If we’re talking about style, I would put it around punk/pop punk/ alt rock.
You touched on it earlier, so how, would you say, have previous experiences in bands etc. been embraced in what you do now?
AB – Paul and I have been in bands of various styles from heavy metal right up to acoustic as mentioned above, and often we have drawn on that experience to bring to So long space girl. Rob on the other hand is very much into his prog, so we have a hell of a lot of variation to work from, we think it is important to be able to pick from a large base of ideas.
Is there a particular process to the band’s song writing?
AB – With AJ being the main songwriter he usually forms the rough outline of a song or a structure, from there we play through and start changing things around adding parts, taking parts away, song writing is very much an organic process for us, I don’t think many people can just wake up one day with a complete song which is perfect in every aspect, it takes work and crafting, and the best way is to literally take it to the practice room and thrash it out until everyone is happy with it.
Would you tell us about your latest release?
AB – “Your Heroes Are All Dead” is very much an album coming from our zone as a band, after releasing “Stranded” we wanted something that has a little more weight behind it sound wise, so for “Your Heroes Are All Dead” we wrote songs that were a little heavier as it better represents our common ground as a band.
What are the major inspirations to its heart and themes?
AB – A very big theme of this album is looking from the inside at what we’re doing to ourselves and the world around us through greed and selfishness, and how things just keep degrading over time. However, by the end of the album it goes on a very positive slant to look at how good everything could be with a little effort and unity.
I am always intrigued as to how artists choose track order on albums and EP’s and whether in hindsight, they would change that. What has been the deciding factor for you or do songs organically sort the track line-up?
AB – AJ is very specific when it comes to running order; the songs have to flow naturally together thematically and sonically. I’ve heard bands that have all their fast songs bunched up into one half and all the slower ones on the other end, there has to be a flow to keep the album interesting, even little things like for example a song that ends in an A chord and the next song starting in an A chord, it becomes almost like a continuation whilst also being a separation.
What do you find the most enjoyable part of being in a band and similarly the most cathartic?
AB – I think the most enjoyable and reward thing about being in a band is when you can hear a song coming together, you just know when it’s sounding right and it’s a great feeling when you can say “That’s it! That’s our new song!”
The most cathartic is when you’re having a really crappy day, it can be the most stressful awful day in the whole week, then you go to band practice in the evening and suddenly you’ve forgotten why you’re stressed out, you’re there with your friends doing something you love and it sets the day to rights and you go home and sleeping doesn’t feel like it will be so difficult as you thought
For anyone contemplating checking you out live, can you give some teasers as to what they can expect?
AB – An energetic show, we love to interact with our crowd, a show isn’t just to blast your music too loud, but also for everyone to have a good time while being deafened… Oh, that and me dropping my drumsticks like a total klutz (Laughs)!
Do you have live dates coming up?
AB – As of writing this we don’t have any planned gigs, since COVID most of the venues in our local area have gone out of business, which has made planning shows incredibly awkward. When we do have gigs we’ll be promoting them via our Instagram and Facebook, so I would say just keep eyes upon them.
What else can we expect in the near future?
AB – Mostly gigs and the usual summer festivals; recording wise probably nothing for a year or so. We have put out two albums in the past three years which is a nice pace.
What are the major inspirations to you sound wise and as a musician?
AB – Personally I have a wide range of inspirations; I love the music from my childhood in the 90s like Lush, Suede, Terrorvision, and Carter USM. Right through to more recent artists such as Amy Winehouse, Metric, Green Day, and My Chemical Romance. I also have a love for 70s and 80s artists such as T.Rex, The Sweet, Sex Pistols, and Duran Duran.
And finally what song or release would you say was the spark to your passion for music?
AB – Oh this is a hard question! So many have had that power on me, but if I had to nail it down to one song it would have to be ‘Basket Case’ by Green Day. It just has all the perfect elements for me.
https://www.solongspacegirl.com/ https://www.facebook.com/solongspacegirl/ https://twitter.com/SoLongSpaceGirl https://solongspacegirl.bandcamp.com/ https://www.instagram.com/so_long_space_girl
Pete RingMaster
Copyright RingMaster Review 22/02/2023
Categories: Interview, Interviews, Music
The RingMaster Review 
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