The Shop Window
The Shop Window are a four-strong IndiePop/Jangly guitar band, fronted by partners in musical crime; Carl Mann and Simon 'Syd' Oxlee. Completing the line up in the formidable rhythm section are Martin Corder (Bass) and Phil Elphee (Drums)
The band released a number of acclaimed singles during 2020/2021 and followed those up with their Debut album in June 2021. The debut album caused quite a stir and became a firm favourite amongst certain indie circles, already tipped to do well in the end of year polls of those in the know.
The band are eager beavers to begin gigging again and are joined by old friend ‘Paul Reeves’ on guitar for the live line up.
Lay of the Land
Heute veröffentlichen The Shop Window ihre Single "Lay of the Land" und da haben sie alles mit rein gepackt, sprich auf ihrem Weg mitgenommen, was an die End 80er und early 90s erinnert. Natürlich darf auch ihr Fabel für die 60er dabei nicht zu kurz kommen. Nahezu "Shop Window-esque" der Refrain, ein hymnenhafter psychedelic Hurrikan welcher ordentlich "umrührt" und einem das Gefühl "fliegen zu können" gibt.
Die musikalische Inszenierung "finest Jangle Pop". “It’s about experiencing dark times along the way, getting lost down a few rabbit holes, meeting the wrong people and getting oneself back into a better place. Eventually figuring out what this is all about, Love!”, sagt Carl selbst.
Ja, es geht um diese dunklen Zeiten, die wohl jeder erlebt, um diese Kaninchenlöcher in die wir fallen oder uns manchmal eben verirren, um aber dabei herauszufinden worum es schlussendlich geht. "Lay of the Land" by The Shop Window a journey thru' Wonderland or ... and in the end the love remains.
Q&A
The Shop Window is/are...?
Carl Mann - Vocals & Guitars
Syd Oxlee - Vocals & Keyboards
Martin Corder - Bass
Phil Elphee - DrumsThe Shop Window formed in 2019, although we have all known each other for a long time and have been in previous bands together. Carl and Syd were in their first band Westpier together back in the 90s with Indolent records, a subsidiary of BMG.
After years apart and different bands along the way, they found themselves back together addressing unfinished business with The Shop Window. Old friends Martin and Phil completed the line up.
The band name The Shop Window was taken from the first line of lyrics from the debut single Mannequin Lies, and lends itself to our own personal ‘shop windows’. People tend to only show others what they want them to see. Generally speaking, we are great at hiding depression and anxiety from others... You’ll only ever see what people want you to see of them.
Who inspired you to make music in general ...and especially to the song "Lay of the Land" ?
Carl - The classic indie bands of the late 80s early 90s inspired me to want to make music, bands like The Smiths, The Cure, House of Love, RIDE, Teenage Fanclub, The Stone Roses, R.E.M., Blur.
I don’t think anyone in particular inspired Lay Of The Land, the guitar riff came first and the rest of the song quickly followed.
Early on it started to sound a bit 60s psych so I just went with that vibe. I guess subconsciously, bands like The Creation and The Small Faces were probably quite an influence on it.
Syd - Yeah, I massively discovered The The and The Cure in particular during the mid-late 80s and had always loved XTC. Carl and I bonded particularly over Blur when we met in the early 90s. As for Lay of the Land - that one's all down to Carl!
What is your creative process like?
Carl - Once I have a rough song idea I like to start a home demo straight away. This really helps to develop the song and get it to a place that I think is working. Once there, I send it to the rest of the band to see what they think. Syd will then start work on harmony ideas, Martin will start playing with bass lines.
I normally programme a drum pattern on the demos, which Phil adapts and makes his own. On a couple of occasions new songs have come from Syd finding a vocal melody while driving around the Dorset countryside. I'll figure out some music around it and we develop from there. We’ll always tweak and change a bit when we start rehearsing them until we find what we’re looking for.
Syd - Yep, I think Carl summed that up perfectly! I'll also send Carl lyric sheets that I've written to throw into the overall mix.
Carl - Ha! As soon as I mention to Syd that I am working on some new music, I’ll be bombarded with thirty sheets of lyrics the next day. I enjoy writing melodies more than lyrics, Syd loves lyrics!
When do you decide that a song is ready for a release?
Carl - Once we are happy with a big batch of home demos, we try to record as many of them as we can in the studio. Our next album was recorded over 8 consecutive days. I like to treat all of the songs as if they’re potential singles.
Once the songs are finished in the studio and we’re 100% happy with the mixes we try to digest and live with them for a while before choosing the singles. We normally let a few trusted friends hear new recordings to see what their top picks are.
Do you remember your first ever self written song?
Carl - No, it was probably an instrumental with about 30 guitar tracks on it….
Syd - I remember composing some simple plinky plonky thing on a keyboard when I was 15!
What was the first ever Pop/Rock/... song you listened to?
Carl - I think the first ever pop/rock songs I fell in love with were probably by The Hollies or the Everly Brothers, my Mum used to play these a lot when I was a kid. I still love both but particularly Bus Stop and Look Through Any Window by The Hollies. They’re perfect pop songs!
Syd - I vividly remember hearing Senses Working Overtime by XTC in the back of my mum's car in the early 80s. I think the awareness of great melody was awakened at that point! It's always stuck with me as an amazing tune. That and Love Action by the Human League which is just an amazing piece of pop.
How do you feel the Internet (especially Social Media platforms) has impacted the music business?
Carl - It’s good and bad! It’s made it easier for artists to take control and promote/release their own music. It’s made it possible to engage with fans directly and find your audience.
The downside is that anyone and everyone can release music now. There isn't really any quality control and the amount of songs released per week is frightening. It’s harder for people to find the music that might be right for them as there is just so much new music out there each week.
New music is now just a quick fix for people and doesn’t really have such longevity, people will listen to a new release for a week or two, and then they’re looking for the next quick fix. The value of music as an art form has really suffered from this and has become quite throwaway, which is really sad.
Syd - It really seems to be a double edged sword. I can see how it can be amazingly beneficial to many bands, but I find it a bit of a minefield myself. It seems like you always knew where you were with music back in the 80s and 90s, whereas now things seem to be more diluted and fractured in some ways. Oh god, maybe I'm just getting old!!! Lol.
What is the most useful talent you have?
Carl - I can make the best roast potatoes in the world - True!
Syd- I can whistle and hum at the same time! Not sure how useful that is though. I'm demanding roast potatoes next time I come and stay at yours Carl!
What do you prefer, a live gig or a studio session?
Carl - Although I love a live gig, my favourite thing of all is being in the studio and hearing the songs come to life. Recording is just the biggest buzz ever for me. A recording lasts forever, it decorates the time you’re currently living a bit like a photograph.
Syd - I love playing live as I really enjoy the adrenaline of it and I guess I'm a bit of a show off at heart! I like being in front of an audience. But, there's a real buzz being in a studio as Carl described.
What’s next for you?
Carl - The release of Lay Of The Land will be followed by two more singles in 2022, then the album will drop hopefully around the middle of the year. During this time we’ll keep doing gigs to raise our profile and build on our following.
Most importantly we’ll keep enjoying the journey we are on making music.
Live Dates
13th November - The Flower Pot, Maidstone, Kent
26th November - 02 Islington Academy 2 London - (Supporting Thousand Yard Stare)
13th December - The Forum - Tunbridge Wells
19th March - 33 Oldham St, Manchester - with Arcade State & Jay Tennant
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