The Hot Damn! say – pop punk is officially back huns! Hailed as the ‘colourful chaos’ of rock, the all-female British four piece share their brand new single ‘Live Laugh Love’, out everywhere now.
‘Live Laugh Love‘ is described by the band as “a giant dose of good time, cheesy rock“. A sugar-infused power pop anthem GUARANTEED to make you smile – it was recorded in Doncaster and mixed in Australia – and is accompanied by a sickly sweet video shot at a caravan park on the Costa del Morecambe (Lancashire).
Speaking of the track, Gill says, “Back to normal from riding the epidemic train, and discovering the joy of “reliving” your life felt like a very fitting message for our new single. Making plans and making the most of things in general, and not giving a crap is more important than ever.
It’s a parody of those kitsch yet cringeworthy motivational signs you would find in cheap and cheerful homeware shops, which were very popular in the late naughties. Considering the irony…..we wanted to bring back the essence of the message with a humorous twist.”
Tell us about your latest release Live Laugh Love and how it came about
LLL is a blindingly optimistic cheesy pop rock anthem, like a slap of stilton to the face. It’s a cheeky parody of those kitsch motivational signs you see in peoples kitchens and came to us in a flash of inspiration one night in rehearsals. It was a recycled song that we decided to push the boundaries of scepticism… after the crappy time we’ve all had. We wanted LLL to be taken into peoples bosom and embraced rather than despised, in a very tongue in cheek fashion of course. Winky face.
What should a song or piece of art communicate in your opinion?
Absolutely anything it wants to. That’s the ultimate beauty of it. Everything is subjective. There are no right or wrong answers.
Who were your top 3 artists last year?
I am a massive fan of Amyl and The Sniffers, The Nova twins and Thumpasaurus. Cool, catchy and not afraid to be different.
What do you do when you’re feeling uninspired?
Everything and also nothing. I am a big believer in working through the mush as I call it. It happens too often but you cant lose momentum. Someone once told me “hammering without a hammer is about being absorbed with the process, rather than being obsessed with the outcome”. I still try and live by this rule and more often than not its the process that gets you through it. On the other hand you need to give yourself time to just be bored. To do absolutely nothing and let your inquisitive nature lead the way.
What are your 2022 projects and goals?
Right now we are still in the early stages of demoing songs for our debut album which will be out next year. My only goal right now is to get them finished!
Favorite movie or TV show?
I’ve just finished watching Dahmer on Netflix. Some gory gritty stuff right up my street! If you haven’t seen it (and have a strong stomach) I would highly recommend.
What is something you would want to change in the music and entertainment industry?
I guess when streaming became the main source of music that’s when a lot of bands started to suffer financially. Cds are going to be irrelevant soon and for a touring band thats half of your income. I guess there needs to be a fairer way for bands to recoup for their art and product through streaming.
Can you outline your creative process?
It involves a lot of post-its, a lot of voice memos and notebooks. I usually do a (very crap) demo of a song which i’ve been humming into my phone and then put it into a dropbox folder called “wet pancakes” which the girls listen to and give me feedback on we usually take the best of the bunch and try and flesh them out together in the studio. The lyrics usually come last and are a joint effort as I’m rubbish at lyrics. Our guitarist Laurie will then do an overall (audible) demo which we can take into the studio.
Who inspires your style and aesthetics?
Possibly the Spice Girls? If you squint a lot. I have yet to find a band out there that looks like us – that is apart from showaddywaddy. We never really had a visual mogul, we kind of just looked for the brightest most ridiculous outfits we could find to make a statement. That statement being “we are bloody good fun”
What is the achievement or moment in your career you are the most proud of and why?
In a previous band I was in at the time, I got a letter from a fan who said that he had listened to my last album non stop for months. He said it got him through some incredibly dark times in his life and he was incredibly grateful to me for making it. I guess just knowing that I got someone through to the otherside with my music is an incredibly proud thing.
What do you think an artist should sing about nowadays?
Positivity, the eradication of hate, good times? God knows, but it wouldn’t hurt?
Do you have any regrets?
Only that I didn’t stick with my piano classes. My fingers have never forgiven me.
What is some piece of advice you would give to yourself right now?
Don’t sweat the small stuff, life is far too short.
