Another Day, Another City: The Rakes

Running in late, thanks to the inefficiency of the London underground, Gigwise meet Rakes front-man Alan and bassist Jamie before the bands triumphant Shepard’s Bush Empire gig.The Rakes are back in London after a strenuous string of international dates which have seen Alan, Jamie, Matthew and Lasse on the road up and down England, Scotland, the continent, back to England for a sold-out tour in January and February, then off to America for the South By South West , back to Europe, then back over the Atlantic for the Coachella Festival in California…then Wales! They must be knackered!

“We cant remember it all really!” laughs Alan and Jamie. “You only appreciate it all when you calm down and look back…It’s probably only what Franz Ferdinand do in a day though! We put 100% into the shows, so we make it harder for ourselves in a way…I like to sweat you see, it’s like going to the gym for free, well in fact its like doing loads of exercise then getting paid for it and capped at the end” explains Alan, who along with Jamie, has a tendency to go off into a world of his own analogies when answering questions.

They still seem to enjoy the touring, Alan shows us loads of pictures accumulated from their round-the-world experience, “We’re still enjoying it…but it’s not easy to keep the energy up all the time…but I’m not moaning, I’m still loving it…we’re overjoyed.” This is true; they do still seem happy and delighted to hear that Paul Weller and Noel Gallagher are on the guest list for the nights show making it an all-star affair. But they are used to this now;

Alan: “We did a corporate gig the other day…it was for T-Mobile…in a kebab shop decorated like cave”
Jamie: “It was a Turkish restaurant actually…it had a waterfall at the back as well”
Alan: “We were on stage by eight and it was all very bemusing." We enquire why they did it to which Alan Replies: "It paid an eighth of my mortgage!” At least they’re honest. And money wasn't the only thing they took from the experince: “We got a demo tape from a bloke who worked there called Ali…I haven’t listened to it yet though…I haven’t got a cassette player,” Alan laughs
 

With all their glode hopping exploits we then enquire as  to how the Europeans and American crowds have taken to the four tall and skinny Rakes’ music;
Alan: “I’d say three quarters of the French like us…we’re legends over there…we’re bigger than the Rolling Stones!”
The Americans seem to dig the London band too; after all, they have invited them over twice in five months,
Alan: “In California, it seemed to be full of English ex-pats, there was a lot there,” while “South By South West was like Camden in the middle of Texas.”
Jamie: “It’s not as good as everyone cracks it up to be…it’s like an Englishman’s holiday” he adds, remarking on the heavy British contingent at the festival.
Alan: “In Coachella…there were these little trailer park villages with white picket fence gardens outside…The Zutons were our next-door neighbours!”

The band are lined up for more festivals this summer, playing at the Isle of Wight as well as Reading and Leeds. However, it is the second album we’re concerned with at Gigwise.
Alan: “We’ve got plans for a second album, big time”
Jamie: “We’ve done three new songs so far.” 
W ask them how they managed to fit this in with their heavy touring schedule;
Alan: “We do rehearsing while we’re all over…when ever we have a few days spare, here and there,”
Jamie: “yeah, we have a team of writers you see.”
Ah, so that’s how they get it done!

Alan: “It’s not going to be a concept album…the first was a collection of singles…we did a demo with 22 Grand Job, Violent and Strasbourg, then made the album,” “But this’ll be different because we’re actually trying to make an album,” “we’re trying to move away from the general albums out now…have you heard The Streets new album? It’s so one dimensional and we want to move away from that…we want to go deep but keep it simple…we want the high and the low.”

On photos of the band, you always see Alan reading books, and although he was polite enough not to be stuck into one while we're interviewing him, he does pour several books from his bag, eagerly showing them to us. We ask him whether the books he reads influence his song-writing,
“They do…there are certain techniques that can be used…like, in Ulysses by James Joyce, there’s a tour de force of lyrical styles…the words are written to a breathing pattern…it’s very stop-start…you can transfer this across to the music. Books can provide the subject matter for songs as well…you can research songs in a way.”

Maybe the new album will feature the subject of terrorism or American imperialism because these are the themes of the majority of books Alan is reading, or maybe researching, at the moment. You heard it here first! One thing that definitely will not be on the album is any ‘grindie’ remixes, like that of 22 Grand Job;
Jamie: “We liked it, it was good”
Alan: “Yeah, there was a lot of swearing though!”
They particularly seem prude about the use of the ‘C’ word
Alan: “We didn’t like that did we”
Jamie: “No!”

Remixers of the future beware, you've been warned!