Bat and Ball is like a dream: undeniably hypnotic, mysterious, and enchanting... and upon a first listen of the band's first single when it was released a mere month ago, I was completely floored. For such a young band, "We Prefer It In The Dark" is everything you want out of a song: set to a mindfully engaging beat, layered with a perfectly syncopated melody, and soulfully stirring vocals. A recipe for perfection and that sounds like a lullaby of a love song, the song has been a keeper on pretty much all of my playlists ever since!
If it's one thing I'm convinced of, it's that this quintet is pretty much set to be the next big thing. And I'm completely in love.
British born and bred, the brother-sister fronted band (Abi and Chris Sinclair) have poured their hearts into their debut EP for a few months, which is set to be released on October 14th!! I of course couldn't help but jump on the opportunity to ask them a few questions about life, art, and their process and inspiration!
How did you start writing music?
ABI
When I was small, I used to sing
constantly--making up my own little tunes and lyrics all the time! They were
pretty bad! So when I started to learn the guitar, I remember I would just sing and try to put
some chords underneath it. Writing songs quickly became something I truly loved doing.
MF
Where
are you from? How has this impacted your music?
CHRIS
Abi and I are from Plymouth [England] but we
moved to London for University. As a musician, London has a lot to offer-- however, it is just as overwhelming as it is stimulating!
I think we still sincerely both draw a lot of
inspiration from our youth in Plymouth: Being surrounded by sea and
moorland... the sound of seagulls crying... the warships in the Dockyard blowing
their foghorns... These things just stuck with us and I would say, definitely influence our music today.
Moving to London brought us closer
together musically-- and of course, we met the rest of the band there!
MF
What do you recall to be your earliest memory with a musical instrument?
ABI
Our Great Grandma was a
piano teacher... I think Chris and I got some lessons from her when we were very
young! I got scolded a lot for banging the keys, which I of course thought was much more fun. I
still can’t really play the piano now, but I love trying.
MF
Can you talk a little about your songwriting process? Do you write the lyrics before or after you write the music?
ABI
Our writing process is
not something that is set and fixed-- it's always different! Sometimes we write together and other times, apart. But for the most part, the chords and melody usually come first... and then we to try fit the lyrics to the melody. On many occasions,
Chris will write a verse, then will show it to me-- and I write the next one.
We try to interpret and follow on from what is already there! But we never
fully explain our songs to each other.
MF
Can you talk a little about everyone involved with your band,
its development, etc? How did you all meet? How many band members do you have?
CHRIS
There are three additional members of the band: Harri,
Jamie and Ed. All of us met at Goldsmiths University, where we studied music together! Prior to meeting those three, Bat and Ball was really just an experiment. We had recorded
one song-- just the two of us-- which was cool, but we really wanted to push our music forward! Bringing in the rest of the band was a natural development. We always wanted to
be a live band and the others brought what we were doing to life.
MF
What sorts of things do you draw inspiration from in your work?
ABI
I take inspiration from my own
everyday experiences, characters in books, my favorite artists, people
watching, and my cat.
MF
What about any specific artists you admire?
ABI
I have been obsessed with Ryan Adams
for years; I swear I have everything he’s done, including the heavy metal
stage! I love Patti Smith for her music, spoken word and poetry. PJ Harvey is
also a huge favourite of mine- she refuses to define herself. She taught
herself piano for an album and it’s all amazing.
CHRIS
At the Drive In.
MF
How did the song "We Prefer It In The Dark" come to
be? What was the driving inspiration behind it?
ABI
"We Prefer It In The Dark" was one of the of the first songs that Chris
and I wrote and recorded together-- and this was before meeting Jamie, Harri and Ed. It started
as a simple song on the piano. We both wanted to make a song that was driven by the melody,
but also step out creatively with a driving, fragmented beat. We recorded it during a daylong
studio session in Plymouth PMC studios. It was like research really, but it was
something that defined our sound.
MF
Why
the name "Bat and Ball?"
CHRIS
That's a funny question--- We can’t really say! But it makes a
lot of sense to us. We like alliteration. People still ask ‘who is Bat and who
is Ball?’
MF
What
was the driving inspiration behind the forthcoming EP We Prefer it in the Dark?
CHRIS
It’s about fear. It is unconfessional
but secretly sometimes confessional.
MF
What are your future plans with the band? Touring? An Album?
ABI
We have our debut EP We
Prefer it in the Dark being released next month on the 14th October
and our launch gig at Madam Jojo’s on the 15th October. From there
it’s more shows, more places and more songs.
