Herds
... are a five piece post-punk-prog-psych band from Nottingham and have risen from the ashes of Alt-rock band 'The Amber Herd' to hone the sound of yesteryear into a forthright thing of the future. All members of the band have been moving in similar musical circles in Nottingham, Chesterfield and Sheffield for sometime, finally converging to produce one cohesive musical experience. Influenced by the early Pink Floyd with layers of Pixies, Granddaddy and the Byrds they tell reverb washed epic stories, with extreme passion and a eye for drama.
Who are "Herds" and how did you get into music?
We have been born from the ashes of our previous band The Amber Herd. Through no fault of our own, folk started to assume we had something to do with the now infamous actress of a similar name- even though our band were named long before anyone had heard of her. So, with a line- up change and some song writing and rehearsal sessions we are now Herds and launch with this single. We have all been into different styles of music forever and have all played in countless other bands over the years. Our friendship goes hand in hand with our love of music and the opportunity to make music together really is something we're grateful for.
"Station of the cross" sounds great and creates a timeless atmosphere, what's the story behind the song?
The lyrics are a reflection upon yearning, searching and mortality, with a healthy bit of additional nihilism at the end just to send people home happy! We think that the upbeat summery nature of the music contrasts well with this.
It's the first single from your upcoming album, what can we expect from?
The album will be out later this year and will allow us to stretch out beyond the normal constraints of a pop single. It's about half recorded and is sounding fab. Trippy music for the heart and for the head.
How would you describe your creative process?
No set rules to the process, but either from a lyrical idea that might pop out of nowhere or a chord progression that tumbles out of the guitar. We then work everything up in collaboration in the rehearsal studio and road- test for good measure. The entire lyric of one of the songs on the album actually came out of a dream Neil had so don't ask us what that one's about!
Lyrics or music, what makes a song special, or is it always a 50/50 thing?
It's the combination of both that makes the band what it is. I don't think we can be easily pigeonholed- which is both a blessing and a curse and I think our relative uniqueness is due to the mixture of music and words.
Being an Indie artist in Nottingham is ...?
We love the city and have played at most, if not all, of the indie venues with lots of different promoters and loads of other bands. The shame is, however, that we have seen many great venues close due to greedy landlords and / or idiot neighbours complaining. Saying that though, new venues are popping up, although maybe overall there are less opportunities in the city for new bands starting out. It's not all doom though, There is a vibrant scene that isn’t willing to stop growing and at the end of January there are 50 local bands playing the ‘Beat The Streets’ multi-venue charity festival for Shelter so there must still be something in the water here.
Are there any gigs planned in the near future?
As well as launching the single at our Beat the Streets gig at Rough Trade records, we're headlining a show at the magnificent Liquid Light brewery in Sneinton, Nottingham on 25th Feb. As its name suggests, expect a visual treat worthy of the Alexandra Palace in 1967 and plenty of fine beers and vegan food. We are sorting out future dates including a few festivals as we speak and then in November play a festival in Great Yarmouth with Tangerine Dream and Gong
...and, what are your plans for 2023?
All the above gigs, hopefully many more! ...plus finishing off and releasing the album as a main priority.
