Interview
Stereo MCs
Rob Birch, Nick Hallam
18 August 2008 (released)
30 August 2008
On the day the Stereo MCs played an exclusive, one-off album launch gig at the Hoxton Bar & Kitchen for their new album Double Bubble, Music News caught up with Rob Birch and Nick Hallam sitting on the grass in Hoxton square on a pleasant summers evening to shoot the breeze.
Vocalist Rob Birch
DJ/producer Nick Hallam
What’s been happening over the last few years?
Nick Hallam: We started our own label, got a new manager, toured the world with 'Paradise’, made the new album and been djing all over the world.
How long did it take to make?
Nick Hallam: Two years overall, but that’s tinkering around with tracks until we got them just how we wanted to sound. We really wanting to make something more uplifting and dance focused this time.
What are you into?
Nick Hallam: Everything from new electro, old records, rap to funk to reggae?
How does the songwriting partnership work?
Rob Birch: The dynamics are that we don’t have any defined roles. Everybody’s got their own ideas and we put them all in a pot and take from that.
What are your favourite tracks on the new album?
Rob Birch: When you make an album you love it all. They are like little people you bring into being. I wouldn’t say they are favourites but tracks that will stand out there and work hard are 'Black Gold’, 'Gringo,’ 'Here and Now’ and 'Get On It’.
What do you think of the direction the music industry has taken?
Nick Hallam: Good! It’s all blurred. It’s undefined how musicians can make money from it, but what it’s done to the music business is good, as it needed a good kick up the arse. These big record companies have had a stranglehold on the business since Elvis. Having been involved in it for 15 years there’s a lot of waste. It’s not difficult to sign a hundred bands and make one of them successful if you’ve got 3 billion pounds in the bank. It’s more exciting for people to be out there making there own music putting it on myspace etc under their own steam.
Financially how has it affected you?
Nick Hallam: We have our own studio, we pay musicians who come and play there but we funnelled our money into the project from years ago. We don’t build swimming pools,
Why not?
Nick Hallam: We’re just not those kinds of people. We’re lucky we haven’t got that pressure but I don’t think anybody has really as all you need now is a laptop and an idea.
Live what can we expect?
Rob Birch: We give 100% and want to get the crowd moving and into what we are doing. We love playing live, if you don’t you miss half the resolution of playing music. You write a song and then you want to give it to people in the flesh.
Have you been touring consistently over your career?
Nick Hallam: After Connected we didn’t do a gig for about 6 years, we were just burnt out and didn’t have a record to promote.
Where do you like playing most?
There’s not really one specific place, everywhere we go we’re better received than we are here.
Rob Birch: That’s not true, what about Croyden?
Nick Hallam: That’s true I forgot about that, I just mean that in general we haven’t done that many British shows in the last few years.
What other acts do you rate?
Rob Birch: Duke Dumont, Switch, Dizzee Rascal. The Santogold lp is great and Digitalism.
Where did the album title 'Double Bubble’ come from?
Nick Hallam: We just liked the idea of having a fairly meaningless album title which can mean many things and get a different vibe going.
Where did the inspiration for the album come from lyrically?
Rob Birch: All our albums are a camera on our lives. We're not really conscious of it, we jam and when it sounds good and relevant that’s it. If we sit down and say let’s write a song about the state of this today it doesn’t work. It has to be something inside that you’re not really conscious of it somehow just pops out as inspiration. Music should be about inspiration and if you try to construct it mathematically it don’t always work out right.
What’s on a Stereo MCs ryder?
Nick Hallam: Not a lot. Fresh fruit, 10 bottles of whiskey, 10 bottles of brandy (laughs). No 2 beers, 1 can of Guinness. We’re pretty frugal really.
Rob Birch: If you go out and cane it every night you’re not going to be playing live for long. Most people just come and nick our ryder anyway as we don’t drink it. There’s so much waster there.
Is this something that you learnt along the way?
Rob Birch: No I knew from the very beginning that alcohol and rhyming don’t go together, it just doesn’t work.
Nick Hallam: You can’t put yourself through that shit every day and still do what you’re doing.
Does the creativity suffer?
Nick Hallam: No you just feel like shit (laughs).
Rob Birch: Our party’s on the stage.
Have you got anything to say to our readership?
Nick Hallam: Have a nice day (Laughs).
Double Bubble is out now. To read the Hoxton Bar & Kitchen live review click here.
Vocalist Rob Birch
What’s been happening over the last few years?
Nick Hallam: We started our own label, got a new manager, toured the world with 'Paradise’, made the new album and been djing all over the world.
How long did it take to make?
Nick Hallam: Two years overall, but that’s tinkering around with tracks until we got them just how we wanted to sound. We really wanting to make something more uplifting and dance focused this time.
What are you into?
Nick Hallam: Everything from new electro, old records, rap to funk to reggae?
How does the songwriting partnership work?
Rob Birch: The dynamics are that we don’t have any defined roles. Everybody’s got their own ideas and we put them all in a pot and take from that.
What are your favourite tracks on the new album?
Rob Birch: When you make an album you love it all. They are like little people you bring into being. I wouldn’t say they are favourites but tracks that will stand out there and work hard are 'Black Gold’, 'Gringo,’ 'Here and Now’ and 'Get On It’.
What do you think of the direction the music industry has taken?
Nick Hallam: Good! It’s all blurred. It’s undefined how musicians can make money from it, but what it’s done to the music business is good, as it needed a good kick up the arse. These big record companies have had a stranglehold on the business since Elvis. Having been involved in it for 15 years there’s a lot of waste. It’s not difficult to sign a hundred bands and make one of them successful if you’ve got 3 billion pounds in the bank. It’s more exciting for people to be out there making there own music putting it on myspace etc under their own steam.
Financially how has it affected you?
Nick Hallam: We have our own studio, we pay musicians who come and play there but we funnelled our money into the project from years ago. We don’t build swimming pools,
Why not?
Nick Hallam: We’re just not those kinds of people. We’re lucky we haven’t got that pressure but I don’t think anybody has really as all you need now is a laptop and an idea.
Live what can we expect?
Rob Birch: We give 100% and want to get the crowd moving and into what we are doing. We love playing live, if you don’t you miss half the resolution of playing music. You write a song and then you want to give it to people in the flesh.
Have you been touring consistently over your career?
Nick Hallam: After Connected we didn’t do a gig for about 6 years, we were just burnt out and didn’t have a record to promote.
Where do you like playing most?
There’s not really one specific place, everywhere we go we’re better received than we are here.
Rob Birch: That’s not true, what about Croyden?
Nick Hallam: That’s true I forgot about that, I just mean that in general we haven’t done that many British shows in the last few years.
What other acts do you rate?
Rob Birch: Duke Dumont, Switch, Dizzee Rascal. The Santogold lp is great and Digitalism.
Where did the album title 'Double Bubble’ come from?
Nick Hallam: We just liked the idea of having a fairly meaningless album title which can mean many things and get a different vibe going.
Where did the inspiration for the album come from lyrically?
Rob Birch: All our albums are a camera on our lives. We're not really conscious of it, we jam and when it sounds good and relevant that’s it. If we sit down and say let’s write a song about the state of this today it doesn’t work. It has to be something inside that you’re not really conscious of it somehow just pops out as inspiration. Music should be about inspiration and if you try to construct it mathematically it don’t always work out right.
What’s on a Stereo MCs ryder?
Nick Hallam: Not a lot. Fresh fruit, 10 bottles of whiskey, 10 bottles of brandy (laughs). No 2 beers, 1 can of Guinness. We’re pretty frugal really.
Rob Birch: If you go out and cane it every night you’re not going to be playing live for long. Most people just come and nick our ryder anyway as we don’t drink it. There’s so much waster there.
Is this something that you learnt along the way?
Rob Birch: No I knew from the very beginning that alcohol and rhyming don’t go together, it just doesn’t work.
Nick Hallam: You can’t put yourself through that shit every day and still do what you’re doing.
Does the creativity suffer?
Nick Hallam: No you just feel like shit (laughs).
Rob Birch: Our party’s on the stage.
Have you got anything to say to our readership?
Nick Hallam: Have a nice day (Laughs).
Double Bubble is out now. To read the Hoxton Bar & Kitchen live review click here.
