SIGNED IN CRIMSON
Interview
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'Fist pumping, soul clenching, adrenaline rushing, female-fronted rock.'
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I stumbled upon Signed In Crimson through the magical place called the Internet. I liked what I've heard & immediately decided to contact the band and, hopefully, interview them. The luck was on my side as they were happy to answer some questions I sent them.
UK's very own female-fronted heavy rockers - Micki (vocals), Kyle (guitar), Ant (bass) & Tim (drums) answers questions about their band, influences and future plans!
HOW DID YOU START THE BAND?
Ant: The three of us, Micki, Kyle and myself had played together before, it wasn't working out with our previous project but we strongly believed and still do, that the three of us had a tight bond and special chemistry that shouldn't be broken. We knew pretty much straight away we wanted to form a new band and were lucky enough that we found Tim (drums) pretty quickly.
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THE NAME SIGNED IN CRIMSON?
Ant: Once four of us got together, we wanted a name that meant something special. We came up with Crimson and liked it a lot. Everyone was throwing ideas in and we realized Signed In Crimson sounded cool because it reflected our bond, crimson implying a sort of 'blood bond'. Then we realized the abbreviation of Signed In Crimson is SIC with made us decide it was definitely a keeper.
WHAT MADE YOU START PLAYING MUSIC?
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| Kyle, Tim, Micki & Ant |
Micki: I started singing form a vey young age. It was something I loved to do, and growing up, going to church, I always had music around me. My grandma told my parents, when I was about 10 years old, that I was really good when singing Abba in her car! Haha! But it was only a year later when me and my sister did the infamous Bugsy Malone duet (Talluluah) that my parents really thought, wow, there's something here! The duet was infamous in her house as I took Jodie Foster's part, and my sister took the trumpet, actions and all!
Singers I look up to vary, I love women with powerhouse voices like Whitney [Huston] & Christina Aguilera, but the first singer I truly connected to in a unique way was Delta Goodrem, who adds such elegance and vulnerability to her vocals. There are many singers I love & another stand out for me is Lacey Sturm. Her voice is angelic, but not just that, she has been a mega role model in my life because of her integrity, honesty & faith.
Kyle: I was 11 when I got a guitar instead of the drum kit I asked for at Christmas. I didn't know how to tune it, so I hated it at first, as it always sounded terrible! At the time, I really loved Nirvana and before the days of YouTube, I had this videotape, so I sat down one night & studied where Kurt's fingers were going! I'd pause it & then put my finger at the right place and then turn the tuning peg until I got it sounding in tune. I was so ecstatic & I remember showing my mum and her letting out a bit of a unenthusiastic wow… It was a terrible start but a start none the less!
The musicians I tend to be behind are the ones that approach their instrument in a way that expresses their own perspective & personality - we need more of them in music at the minute!
Tim: I started playing the drums when I was about 12 years old. My dad and his dad & his dad all played the drums, and so did my older brother, so I was exposed to drums at an early age! At first, I decided that I wanted to be a guitarist, but quickly realized that it wasn't for me. I then had a go at the drum & after a little while, something just clicked and I thought "Oh, I can do this!" and the rest is history.
I love drummers like Dave Weckl, The Rev [Avenged Sevenfold], Danny Carey [Tool] & Thomas Lang.
Ant: I didn't start playing an instrument until quite late - around 18-19 years old, when I was at University and a flatmate showed me a few chords. I moved onto bass to join a band (everyone seemed to be looking for a bassist) and I seemed to take to it. I've also been experimenting on cello for the last couple of years and I'm awestruck by the talent of classical musicians turned metalheads like Tina Guo.
WHO INFLUENCED YOUR MUSIC STYLE?
Micki: I love Flyleaf, Incubus & Rage Against the Machine. I've been inspired by pop music too, like strong diva female singers with powerful voices.
Tim: Tool, Avenged Sevenfold, Killswitch Engage… There's a lot of metal in there. Metal appeals to me because I like to make things crazy and out of the ordinary.
Kyle: Smashing Pumpkins, Pearl Jam and a lot of classic singers too, like Neil Young, Prince, that sort of thing.
Ant: I like Incubus as well; I think that;s the one band we all have in common. I like a lot of classic rock - that's not really what we do, but bands like Guns N' Roses and stuff like that. One other bands is Tantrum to Blind, another female fronted band from Sweden. The singer was in the audience watching us play once; it made me even more anxious than I already was - seeing the singer of my favorite band watching us play. It was nerve-wrecking.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE 'I CAN SEE YOU NOW'?
Kyle: The EP is the most exciting musical project I've been involved with. It's energetic, real & you can hear how we have injected all of our own idiosyncrasies into it. When the writing process began, we decided to set ourselves a target of writing and recording one song per month, so in the space of five months we had our EP. The five track were the first five tracks we wrote.
We ended up with varied, strong material that we all loved. The response has been great and it's testament to the material that all five tracks get mentioned, when we ask people their favorites.
The EP was self-produced by the band, so a lot of our time went into production, we had to find our way with some things in the studio, but I think, we did a great job.
WHAT IS YOUR WRITING/RECORDING PROCESS?
Micki: We've actually started to mix things up the way we write recently, just to keep up on our toes a little bit. The usual way we go about it as Kyle brings a strong guitar idea first, and then the rest of the band build on that, adding the bass and the drums. The bands then give the track to me & I add my vocals and melody over the top.
However, our song 'Not Who I Am' was actually written with the vocals first - melody and words - and then the bands wrote over the top. We've also started doing that with a new song, but Ant wrote the bass line before the guitar & you can hear the evidence in the track - the bass has a strong voice in that one! We all have opines and strong ideas, so we usually sit together with the song and tweak it till it's something we're all super proud of.
WAS IT HARD TO TO GET YOUR BAND 'OUT THERE' - BOOKING GIGS, BUILDING UP THE FAN BASE?
Kyle: We've made some great loyal fans all over the world, which we are really grateful for & if it wouldn't have been for how we market ourselves, I don't think we'd have met some of them! You can't beat playing live for the excitement and the thrill & are always looking for great opportunities - the recent UK tour was great for the profile of the band.
I'd say we have had to figure out and refine what methods of promotion work best for us. Social media and the Internet has been very helpful, we have some amazing video content such as 'Imposter', 'Glow' and 'Still Breathing' keep bringing in new fans. I think, for an unsigned band, we do a great job of promoting ourselves and we will always be very open minded… We've got couple more ways of promoting the band, but they are staying secret!
WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE FUTURE?
Ant: Since releasing our EP, we have been working hard on the tracks that will make up our debut album. We're pretty much there - we've got ten really strong songs & might even have another one or two on there. We're planning to release the album early in 2014.
DO YOU HAVE ANY MEMORABLE STORIES FROM THE GIGS?
Ant: I remember playing a gig at crappy venue with hardly anyone there. In the side of the stage was a punchball arcade machine. As replayed our last song and built up to the final chorus, I turned around and smacked the punchball full on, then came back in right on time for the chorus. It made a bad gig memorable!
IN ONE SENTENCE, DESCRIBE YOUR BAND FOR THOSE, WHO HAVEN'T HEARD YOU YET.
Ant: Listen once, follow forever.
Micki: Fist pumping, soul clenching, adrenaline rushing, female-fronted rock.
Tim: Quirky rock with zing of metal.
Kyle: Rock music to provoke a medley of emotions, each piece crafted form the heart.
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