After the release of their debut album in 2018, Doncaster born band The Blinders are about to head out on some of their biggest headline shows to date. They discussed touring plans, changing musical influences and more.
With bigger venues, comes expectations of a bigger set – The Blinders aren’t naïve to this, telling LDOI “Given the larger venues, the upcoming tour will essentially be an attempt to prove we can develop a set which goes a little bit further than a collection of songs. We’ve thought about it a great deal and are looking forward to what kind of reception it receives.”
Leading on from touring, the band discussed their favourite song to play live, “We normally end the set with a section that features about ten minutes of music. It’s called Et Tu/Brutus/Berlin Wall. It becomes very easy to lose ourselves at the point.”
Influenced by the current social environment, many bands are starting to take a stand via politically fuelled lyrics. ‘I Can’t Breathe Blues’ features lyrics surrounding police brutality, whilst ‘Free The Slave’ looks at the restrictions groups in society face: ‘Free the blossoming flower soon to be a woman // Obstructed by the stereotypes of history // That do not belong to you or to me’.
“We wrote the lyrics because we believed in them. I think bands should do just that and write what you believe in, and many do without being political,” the band state. “If you feel so strongly about something that inspires you then go and write about it; you’ll be amazed at what comes out of your pen.”
The Blinders may have only been around since late 2014, but with the release of an album and an EP, along with multiple singles, fans have plenty of music to choose from. But if the band had to tell someone to listen to just ONE song from their discography, which would they pick? “That’s a good question. Perhaps ‘I Can’t Breathe Blues’, I feel that covers all bases in some way.”
Everybody has at least one artist who they wish they could’ve seen back in the day – the band stated they’d “maybe go and see the death of Ziggy Stardust at the Hammersmith Apollo in London 1973. Or perhaps Dylan’s famous Lesser Free Trade Hall show in Manchester 1966. Two untouchable performers, why would you not?”
The band also discussed their current listening habits “Oh you know, everyone really. David Byrne’s American Utopia and Arctic Monkeys’ Tranquillity Base Hotel and Casino captured our imagination the most probably.” Meanwhile, the group’s more recent inspirations have come from the likes of Avalanche Party, CABBAGE, Idles and Fontaines D.C.
Stating how their musical influences change regularly, The Blinders told us: “Every six months or so you feel yourself becoming a different person and I think that has a lot to do with the music you listen to, the books you read and the people you meet.”
The future may be hard to predict, but The Blinders have already amassed a large group of fans – and that growth certainly looks set to continue: “We take things as they come and by the time you’ve reached the impressive height that you dreamed about when you were a kid, you’re too busy focusing on the next ‘thing’ to even notice how well things are going.”
You can catch The Blinders on their live dates here:
Birmingham Institute // 26th April
Manchester O2 Ritz // 27th April
Glasgow St Luke // 28th April
London Scala // 30th April
https://www.ticketmaster.co.uk/The-Blinders-tickets/artist/5221257
Listen to their latest single here:
https://theblinders.lnk.to/RIAC
LDOI 