Sacred Heart had a bit of a start stop beginning, can you tell us a bit about the
band’s history?
It was the mid-90’s when co-founder and original drummer Mark Beeby and I
really started jamming due to our mutual disappointment at the lack of straightahead hard rock that was out there. We didn’t
take it all that seriously but as a few ideas started to take shape we thought we’d try and get a band together. We
put some feelers out and Mark Stephenson joined us on guitar. Paul Hamilton then filled the vacant bassist position and we
recorded a few demos - though we never really had any intention of taking it anywhere serious. We remain friends to this day
but we went our separate ways in 1999, which was a shame in hindsight as we could have started all this a lot sooner.
To put it into perspective, during those 1995 - 1999 sessions, the songs ‘The
Last Goodbye’, ‘What It Takes’, ‘Forever’, ‘Promise’, ‘Carry On’, ‘TV
Movie’ and ‘Music Man’ were all written and they went on to feature on the our albums ‘Lay It On The
Line’, ‘Shake’ and the current release ‘Darkness Falls’ so that shows how productive those early
sessions were.
So how did the current line up come together?
Mark and I decided we’d get together
and bash out some tunes, old and new, in the Summer of 2003, we really enjoyed it and again decided to look for a full band
so we could actually get out there and gig. The current line up of myself on vocals and guitar, Mark on guitar, drummer Dave
Thurlby and Darren Jhuboo on bass is gelling nicely, and is both fun and powerful. They’re a great bunch to be in a
band with.
Since the band formed, there have been quite a few members that have come and gone,
do you think you have now found the right line up to take the band forward?
Personally, I have never enjoyed being in
this band as much as I am now. Mark has never been so motivated, though his playing has always been sublime. Dave is so enthusiastic
and hard working, and Darren has added an extra dimension with his musical approach. It’s all very fun and never a chore
and we’re all definitely reading from the same page! It’s been very difficult for former members to commit to
the band, simply because of day jobs, time available and of course cost, this is one expensive hobby. Everyone that’s
been in the band has added something special and it’s always sad to see a friend go, but you have to get looking for
that replacement and hope it goes well…..
You must be really pleased with how your new album
‘Darkness Falls’ has turned out.
Very much so! The response from those who have heard it has
been phenomenal, which makes it all worthwhile. My approach as a songwriter has changed a great deal, and it has as a collective.
We leave out the crap that doesn’t need to be there and concentrate on what works best for the individual track. I love
our album ‘Shake’ as much as I do ‘Darkness Falls’, but if I could go back and re-arrange those tracks
on ‘Shake’ the album would be 100 times better for it. The songs we play from ‘Shake’ live have had
the Darkness Falls treatment, sometimes a change of key, and many bits cut out, but I am very proud of the songs on the new
album, and how it sounds. Producer and engineer Alex Burke did a magnificent job. Now comes the hard part which is getting
it heard by the masses!
It’s a bit of departure in style for the band. While the basis
for most of the songs is still built on strong riffs, this time there is a good mix of aggressive rockers and more reserved,
poignant tracks and while the influence is still in evidence the more obvious eighties metal aspect has largely taken a back
seat this time. I have to say that my review did mention the word “modern”, which for some people is an immediate
turn off, however I think the change in direction has paid off big time, what was the thinking in the change of approach?
Your review meant
a lot to us, simply because you “got” where we were coming from, and going to! And yeah, you’re right -
there have been some atrocious reviews from “metal” websites who thought we were a Dio clone, though, that is
where we got the band name, and-or they thought we’d be a blazer & Journey t-shirt wearing, big haired bunch, which
we most certainly ain’t. The truthful answer to your question is, we grew up. We started letting what we listen to now
influence us. Not because we sold out or wanted to be current, it’s simply what we’re into these days. I love
my old influences, they will always mean the world to me, but these days please give me Nickelback, Hinder or Disturbed rather
than Dokken, Def Leppard or Ratt! That’s meant with absolutely no disrespect, our old style is just not me right now.
If those that live in the past won’t give something new a chance, even though it’s littered with old school rock
influences, then they are missing out.
So if I was to ask you to sum up your sound now,
how would you describe it and what two or three songs would illustrate your vision best?
Goodness, that’s a tough one…..
Melodic, honest and heartfelt is how I genuinely believe I write. I don’t want to create a new sound or break barriers,
I just come up with songs people want to sing along with. I like our pop rock, such as ‘Top Of The Class’, which
makes you want to tap your feet, has big a chorus and tells a story. ‘On My Way’ is honest, from the heart and
has a lovely feel. Not heavy, but still rock and I still wanna rock out, so ‘Down’ too. Also you can never go
wrong with a decent ballad. So that’s what we’re doing and so much more too. Rock music covers so many spectrums,
so why should we be just one aspect?
So with such a broad spectrum in your sound, who would you cite as
your main influences? To me there was everything from modern rock, or in places punk, to on the other end of the scale, Dokken
or even Cutting Crew.
I learned to play guitar from Dokken tab-books so riff wise they will always be
an influence. At the moment Nickelback and Hinder probably top the list, but I think there will always be elements of Europe,
Warrant, Winger and Bonfire in there, but I don’t want to sound like anyone else, I’m just happy that all these
fine bands, along with many others, have helped make us what we are.
What I found equally interesting
was that you recorded new versions of four of your songs from your debut demo ‘Lay It On The Line’ and also included
the original versions as bonus tracks. I really enjoyed being able to contrast the difference between the versions. What made
you want to re-record them and why include the demos as well?
We recorded ten tracks for ‘Lay It
On The Line’ instead of the usual four that a demo would have, simply to show people there was more to us than a few
decent tracks. On the strength of those songs we were offered half a dozen record deals, however all the labels said they
wanted a new album, as we’d been selling ‘Lay’ at gigs and the songs were already “out there”.
At the time we were so proud of those songs that we wanted a bit of time to let people hear them, plus we didn’t have
the time or money to record a new set of tracks. The reason we re-recorded them is firstly, as it’s plain to hear, our
influences have changed and so has the way we play the songs, which we believe is for the better. Secondly, the downside of
recording ten tracks on a limited budget meant that the original recording was rushed, both in terms of performance and production.
The versions on Darkness Falls are the vision fulfilled. Also it is nice to show where we came from and everyone likes a bonus
track or four!
I was also very struck by the lyrics on ‘Darkness Falls’. The hard
hitting theme for track ‘No One Knows (War)’ was inspired by a documentary on Afghanistan; however my favourite
lyric is ‘TV Movie’. The contrast of the upbeat riff and bitter tale of modern life in the spotlight works extremely
well. The lyrics seem hugely important to the band. Do you see yourself as a storyteller setting your tales to music?
Honestly, no. Though
I think lyrics are more important now than I used to. I genuinely believed lyrics and words were just something for a singer
to sing! It’s not that I try to write something in particular or look for inspiration in everyday life, I think that
as a songwriter and a person I’ve evolved and am more aware. It comes naturally now. Though saying that, I did write
‘TV Movie’ 11 years ago, so I guess it’s just more recently that stories and so on have slipped in more
often.
So you’re not one of those lyric writers who gets inspiration from little
incidents in everyday situations and is endlessly writing on napkins and the like?
Absolutely not! I have better things to
do than be that far up my own backside! I just sit down with a guitar, and if something takes me and fits, away I go. Obviously,
a heavier and more aggressive riff tends to help you lean towards a harder lyric, take ‘Down’ as an example of
an tough riff inspiring a more aggressive lyric.
I know you’ve been playing some shows to promote
the album, how have they been going? Is it mainly headline shows you are playing, or are you looking to hook up on a tour
with a more established act?
We played the Cambridge Rock festival and with Bonfire recently and we have some
headline and support shows coming up in Worcester, Weston Super Mare and Camberley. Sadly, we had to turn down Z this year,
as it coincided with a booking. We’re still waiting that elusive Firefest call. We’re not fussy, if there’s
a crowd, we’ll play with anyone! We played the same venue a few times and supported a few big names, and played with
some tribute acts. We played to a larger crowd supporting Guns 2 Roses than we did supporting current Gun and ex Little Angels
singer Toby Jepson. Give us a stage, some new folk to win over, and hopefully one or two in a Sacred Heart shirts and we’ll
put a show on!
How easy are you finding it to get a lesser known band out on the live circuit
these days?
Very difficult for anyone, established or otherwise. Unless you’re a big name, opportunities
are few and far between. And we all have mortgages and every day bills to pay, so we have to be careful what gigs we take,
as some may interfere with paying those bills. Also, the same bands do seem to get the tours, promoters have their favourites.
We don’t take it personally anymore, we’ve just accepted that sometimes it doesn’t matter what you offer,
or how hard you work. It’s difficult out there. So every opportunity we get we grab with eight hands, have fun and give
our all, but we would love to do more.
You have been featured in Fireworks before, however how difficult
do you find it getting coverage for your music? I noticed the likes of Planet Rock digital radio station giving a fair amount
of air time to other up and coming bands like The Jokers and Voodoo Six. Is there any way for you to get your music out to
a wider audience?
It’s not too difficult, our problem is and you’ve said it in your review,
we have “singles”. Getting on small stations isn’t difficult, doing what Nickelback have done and get heard
by non-rock fans too, now that’s what makes a band “big”. Again, with no disrespect, we’re nowhere
near as dated as some of the bands we get compared with, however, we will appeal to their fans, too. It’s hard, frustrating
and at times soul-destroying. But the responses and the fun involved outweigh the negatives. So we’ll keep on, keeping
on! Also, the rock stations don’t necessarily want to play the more commercial and poppy tracks. You can’t win!
Has your change of direction
helped or hindered the situation?
Hindered! Most definitely! Basically it’s easy to get
on the rock stations, but not easy getting on TV channels like Scuzz, Kerrang and the more commercial radio stations. However
give an established band ‘Top Of The Class’, ‘On My Way’, ‘No-one Knows (War)’, or ‘Forever’
and they’ve got hits on their hands.
With there being such a healthy and prolific European
and especially Scandinavian scene at the moment, is being a UK outfit making it harder to get a wider audience?
You just can’t
compete with labels, and the established melodic rock scenes mentality. ‘Darkness Falls’ was recently reviewed
in another rock magazine and had a better score than every Frontiers release in that issue, but no-one will give a crap, because
they all buy the established names. Just like ninety nine out of a hundred bands Frontiers sign is because the artist has
an established fan base, it’s promote them for a couple of months, then move on..... Shame, because this way of doing
it doesn’t create any more fans for the bands or scene! We, like most, have no chance unless we get a decent support
slot. It would be nice if it was with one of those Scandi-bands that are having a good time!
So with such a strong album
released, what’s next for the band and how do you see yourselves moving on from where you are?
Honestly, we really
don’t know. All we do know is that there are another 2 albums worth of material written, plus the re-recording of a
few more tracks from ‘Lay’. I may do a solo album too – just for fun. However the biggest desire is to get
out and do more shows, so fingers crossed on the live front. For me personally, I’d have to say I’m enjoying myself,
I’m in a band of great musicians and fantastic friends, I’m sure we’ll jam and create until it seems pointless.
Finally, do you have any
message for your fans?
Firstly, a big thank you to Fireworks for your continued support and a great rock
mag. All the links are at www. sacredheartband.com and you can interact and keep in touch with the band through Facebook and
all the usual suspects. To our extremely patient and loyal fans, thank you for always being there and the effort you make
on our behalf. Without you, this simply wouldn’t be possible. Hope to see you out there on the road!
