Photo: Pyramids
'Take the next left'. Not the usual response we expect to hear when conducting a telephone interview with a hotly tipped band. Richard Hutchison, lead singer of Hampshire-based rock band Pyramids and his trusty sat nav are battling their way through London traffic, trying desperately to get to the venue where his band will play their first official gig at Hoxton's Underbelly (1 March, 2013).
Pyramids chose to embark on their first live show at a perfect time and seem as though they will fit perfectly into the current guitar band revival. Bringing a brand of rock that should settle nicely into the mainstream environment, whilst maintaining that rough edge that good rock 'n' roll bands need.
As if getting stuck 'on the middle of London Bridge' isn't stressful enough, playing your first ever gig must be a nerve-jangling experience, but Hutchison feels it's been a long time coming...
Speaking to Gigwise, via a hands-free carphone of course, he says: "For us it's what these last six months, if not a year, have been leading up to. This is just the start I guess so it's really exciting to put everything we've been doing on a plate and see what people have to say about it. Hopefully people enjoy it as much as we do."
"Myself, David (Cuznar, guitar) and Imran (Mair, Drums) were in bands together for nearly six years. We disbanded as people went to university, but even through college we knew we wanted this year to just be in a band and make music."
Later that night, the Hoxton Underbelly crowd was hit with Pyramids' anthemic sound that carries a remarkable swagger for a band just cutting their teeth. This confidence is most notable in standout track 'Come Away With Me' from their debut EP, Always Something.
Watch Pyramids video for 'Come Away With Me' below:
Whilst there are a few guitar bands to rave about at the moment and Pyramids are at their earliest stages in terms of performing live, this rock foursome deserve to be put in the same bracket as Bastille, The 1975 and Peace.
Hutchison explains how he feels about the resurgence of quality alternative music: "We are big fans of Bastille and The 1975.
"It's amazing to see how well they are doing. It's a big enough risk as it is to be in a band and no matter how good you are it doesn't always mean success.
"Sadly, it's quite the opposite with pop music as you can get away with not being that talented and have success. It does seem to be balancing itself out."
Pyramids
With a name like Pyramids, you'd expect big tracks, a huge stage presence and maybe even a reference to Egypt, but Hutchison believes the band can certainly deliver on two of those three expectations.
He adds: "I haven't [been to Egypt] but for us, choosing a name was one of the really tough things because we kind of knew what our sound was, we knew had become friends by this point so it was difficult to try and label everything you are working on.
"It just seemed to fit. We make big tracks and I think Pyramids is a word with big connotations and we liked the look of it."
By the end of our chat, vocalist Hutchinson is no closer to his destination, but we get the feeling Pyramids are close to achieving some of their early goals as a band. When asked what he would like to achieve this year, Hutchison revealed his refreshingly modest expectations.
He says: "To play Koko. It's one of those venues which we have always wanted to play. For me it came down to several years back when I was quite young and we went to see Bombay Bicycle Club play there and from there that feeling has grown.
"I'm not sure it's possible this year, but that is something we are aiming for."
Pyramids debut three track EP Always Something is available now.
