Page 13 - Black Velvet Magazine Issue 105

BV105 pg 10-15 SKAM.qxp_BV105 pg13 30/12/2021 19:12 Page 4

BlackVelvetMagazine.Com - 13
indeed, and again, something you may not find tight-knit group; it's me, my brother and my best these poor decisions which were being made.
in the earlier work of the band. mate. We joke sometimes that me and Matt They might be the ones running the country, but
"'Circles' was born out of the feeling of lock- have played over 1,000 gigs. I can play with no actually the people who are running the country
down,” Steve says. "That's where we were at the sound, with good sound, and I just think you do were the ones going out to work every day and
time. It was like groundhog day, repeating the need to have a little arrogance in the confidence keeping it going and keeping the country fed and
same thing over and over again and all the of yourself and I do believe that if you stick watered, the kids taught, people looked after in
worry that went with it. My poor mum, at the SKAM in front of a crowd who have never seen hospitals."
time, had chemo cancelled because of the lock- us before we can win them over, and that is what And this is a subject which Steve knows
down, so she was suffering a little bit. It's tricky, I believe. It's just a matter of having those op- about all too well and can offer an educated
because when I sit and write lyrics like that I al- portunities to get in front of those people." opinion on as both he and his brother are teach-
ways try and write from the heart and what I am ers in their day-
thinking about at the time. I wouldn't say I was ircles' to-day life.
sat here feeling down in the dumps and de- 'Calso t is hard sometimes seeing Steve's wife also
pressed about it all, but when I get focussed on sees Steve sing, “Iother bands who you once works in a
a topic and really think about it these things ‘Got to hold my school, while
come out. head up high to considered your peers, moving Matt's wife is a
"To be fair, lockdown, for me, was pretty reach the sky’. We nurse. So, when
nice, for me and my wife and the kids. I got to ask Steve whether onto bigger and better things than the pandemic
spend a lot of time with the family, but I realised he thinks this is an what we are doing and sometimes hit, as well as
there were people around me who were strug- important attitude entertaining fans
gling, friends and family who were on their own, and mentality to it makes me question whether we with their SKAM
and people like my mum who were in a bad sit- have when it Mondays
uation, and I just tapped into those emotions of comes to facing are even good enough. But I don't shows, they
what I felt people were feeling at the time." some of the issues dwell on that for too long, because were certainly
The lyrics ‘Don't pretend you understand, which the song is doing their bit in
that my hope is gone’ is especially topical given about. I know that we kick ass!" - Steve Hill their working
the potential impact that COVID-19, lockdown, "If you sit and lives.
and everything associated with it could have had pick apart a lot of "Absolutely,"
for their plans with the two EPs. We ask Steve if the SKAM songs and lyrics, you may find a little he tells us when we comment on the part they
there ever was a time when he did feel that his bit of despair at the start but towards the end, or all played when COVID turned everyone's lives
hope had been taken away by the events of the in the chorus, there is usually a glimmer of hope on their heads. "We were all in work, classed as
world. in there somewhere, even if it's just one line that key workers, although I did feel a little like an im-
"The short answer is yes,” he replies. “We says it will be alright or you'll get through it in the poster sometimes compared to people who
had to have a bit of a crisis meeting because we end, something along those lines. Because that were going into hospitals and facing the pan-
had it all planned out and in the end we didn't is what I believe in. In my day job, I'm a teacher demic when all I was doing was going into
change very much, but facing the idea of releas- and I see loads of kids who are struggling, not school and supervising some kids. But I appre-
ing this big bombastic plan, having two EPs, two just in lockdown, with their home situations or ciate I was doing my bit to help make sure peo-
tours to go with each one, really get out there their lives and that line in the song is always my ple could go to work, and we were looking after
and promote it, and then we were faced with the message. You've got to pick your head up, be children whose parents were key workers and
idea of releasing it without being able to play any proud of what you can do and what you can all that business.
shows, and that was a very daunting prospect. achieve and try to not let shit get you down. "It was a weird time. It's not until I stop and
And we did consider postponing it a year, maybe "SKAM can be a weird beast sometimes think about it that I realise how much it influ-
even two years, and then we kind of figured we when I write a track because there are usually enced what we were writing at the time. But I do
would just go for it because we were itching to two parts to it. We write the music and we al- just tend to write about what's going on around
get the songs out, everything was in place such ways try to write catchy, kick-ass, classic rock me at the time and try not to delve too much into
as videos and all the other bollocks which goes and even the songs which have a sentimental the past or think too much ahead because I think
on behind the scenes in terms of tracking num- undertone to them, I don't think the music often that is the best way. Because if you are experi-
bers for the chart, but I was really worried it matches the content of the lyrics. It's just not encing it yourself you can be real with what you
could be a negative for us and we wouldn't how we do things. are writing."
achieve what we had set out to do." "But at the same time, I really do hope that
Again, looking at the opening words of the someone somewhere might be feeling those ade Out’ includes the potent lyric, ‘Fat
song, which point towards the issue of the fear thoughts and might stick a SKAM song on and ‘Fcats and filthy rats, don't spit your lies
of missing out, or FOMO as the cool kids may it may resonate with them a little bit and help at me’. We ask whether this is a good reflection
say, Steve quickly admits it is something he suf- make them smile." of his opinion of those in power.
fers with personally, but not perhaps in the way "Definitely! Absolutely, mate," replies Steve.
you may expect. "I suffer with FOMO with the ade Out' is another banger from the lat- "Having just spoke about what we do for a living,
band all the time. I talk about it quite candidly 'Fest EP, but a song made all the more you could probably make some safe assump-
that I feel sometimes that SKAM gets left on the noticeable by its video, which sees the three tions couldn't you, about what we think?
shelf. We put a lot into what we do and I feel we bandmates portray politicians at a political party "I don't think there is one thing in particular
are right up there in terms of the quality of what conference mocking and making general fun of that bothers me. It's lots of things. I was raised
we are outputting, but I do feel sometimes we the audience, which contains many well-known in a working class home. My dad was a post-
are ignored. That's not necessarily how I feel all Conservative MPs. But, of course, this subject man, my mum worked as a receptionist for the
the time, generally I'm quite happy with the is far from a funny one for many and the actions water board and as I've gotten older, you be-
band, but it is hard sometimes seeing other of those in power have been felt by those down come a little more worldly and your eyes are
bands who you once considered your peers, the pecking order more than ever in recent opened to things you didn't pay attention to
moving onto bigger and better things than what times. when you were younger. But some of the deci-
we are doing and sometimes it makes me ques- "We're not a particularly political band," sions that are made and the impact they have
tion whether we are even good enough. But I Steve explains. "But it is something we talk on people are just... I see it at the school, I see
don't dwell on that for too long, because I know about between the three of us quite a lot. We families that are struggling to get by and I just
that we kick ass!" don't always agree on the state of the country think it is fucking stupid, like the way they
But it's a tough thing to do, to keep perse- and I don't mean to go into too much detail about changed the benefit system."
vering, never knowing if it will all be worth it in that, but what we all agree on is that the people So, given that we offer Steve a platform for
the end and so we ask the frontman where he at the top make the decisions and everyone else change and ask for something he would remedy
finds the inspiration and strength to keep push- has to clean up the shit that they make. if he were in a position of authority, something
ing forward when these doubts enter his head. "And that was the basis of the song, espe- which almost immediately springs to his mind is
"This is going to sound incredibly arrogant cially coming out of the COVID situation. People inheritance tax. "That shit can fuck off, ab-
and whenever I've been asked something like were suffering and you had different politicians solutely ridiculous," he says, before divulging.
this before I almost wince at my own answer," coming on the telly saying about how they were "Your old man works his entire life, pays all
he laughs. "But I think we are a fucking good doing such an amazing job and there were so his taxes, wants to leave a legacy to his kids and
band. We're a good live band. We're a really many people who were still suffering because of when they inherit it, they have to give part of it
SKAM