Walking into a bands dressing room you are always heading somewhat into the unknown. I’ve seen it all. The drugs, the groupies, the fights.  I’ve also seen the other side of book reading, ironing and bizarrely, juggling. As I head to the lower echelons of the Liverpool o2 Academy to speak to Everything Everything, currently mid way through a sold our UK tour, I am once again shocked to the core. Having had a couple of heavy nights on their ‘homecoming’ shows in Manchester, Everything Everything are slightly rusty. To help them take the edge off they are eating their speciality, Bombay Bad Boy Pot Noodle sandwiches. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it folks….

Gigslutz:  What the fuck is that?!

Michael Spearman: It’s a Bombay Bad Boy Pot Noodle sandwich!

GS: [slightly bemused] hungover are you?!

GS:  So, apart from the hangovers, how is the tour going?

Jeremy Prtichard:  Pretty good yeah, we’ve really enjoyed all of the shows. It feels like a bigger gig now. We’ve been able to create a bit more shape to the show because we’re not playing a 45 minute festival set anymore, we’re doing an hour and a half to our own fans so we’re able to sort of… bit more push and pull to it and a bit less, you know… ‘bang bang bang’

GS: 2013 has been a great year for you with the new album and sell out tours. You must be happy with the way things are going?

JP: Yeah, we just want to keep doing that really and make another record and keep going in the right direction. That’s all we can say really about that

MS: It’s been our busiest ever year. It’s felt like that, but in a really good way, we’ve done a lot of really good festivals and a couple of good tours.

GS: And what has been the highlight has been?

JP: Probably that pot noodle sandwich!

MS: The pad tai butty that we’ve invented also. Write that down Steve, as we were the first people to do this I’m sure and it needs to be documented!

JP: We went to Australia for the first time and a lot of other good places. Australia is the other side of the world and we had no idea if anyone was going to come to our gigs or know any songs but it was as good as it is here and we were really touched by that. We had a really good time there.

MS: We’ve done a lot of nice European festivals, been to America. It’s just been a year of touring really

GS: Arc has been a massive success. Was there any relief around that, or were you confident that was the way things would go?

MS: Oh yeah we were nervous!

JP: I’m always nervous before I put an album out but it’s a healthy thing. If you weren’t nervous you probably wouldn’t care. You want people to like it, and that has been the case. We’ve still got a way to go but it’s moving in the right direction and we are really happy with what the fans thought of it and the critics too. We can’t really complain…

GS: Cool. Onwards and upwards. So, what is the best compliment ever heard about yourself…

[Silence]

JP: It’s difficult. You get asked these questions, and then you can never recall what people have said to you!

GS: So what about the worst? They’re probably easier to remember!

[Laughter]

JP: Our first ever gig in Birmingham, about 5 years ago, we were supporting Bombay Bicycle Club and it was the first thing anyone had written about us. It was some really insignificant blog and we excitedly found it online.  It was really below the belt, what did it say? (turns to MS)

MS: It was really distasteful actually; it was something like “a screaming new born baby that nobody wanted”

GS: Ouch. Actually that could be a good sound, depending on how you want to twist it! 

JP: Yeah! We’ll have that as our best and our worst!

GS: Sorted! So there is quite an obvious R’n’B influence in your music and it’s very refreshing. How did that come about?

JP: It’s always been John’s pedigree really. As well as the other orthodox stuff people our age listened to growing up, he was really interested in the production and the ordacity of the vocals of R’n’B at the time. Things like Timberlands first album and Destiny’s Child, Michael Jackson, (obviously) and even stuff like Craig David. There was something quite nice about what he did yet it was still quite facile and dealing with insignificant subject matters. I think both of them subject matters fascinated him. As artists they’d have nothing to say but they’d do it in a much more interesting context then much more worthy rock artists. They were much braver with the music

GS: I like it, it frustrates me when people in bands only listen to two or three bands and nothing outside of their comfort zone

JP: Yeah I know. I think that is getting rarer and rarer nowadays though with the proclivity

GS: I don’t even know what that word means!

JP: I might have to look that one up myself! The internet, for all of its faults  of illegal downloading culture it does make people a lot less tied down to one thing.

GS: So on that subject matter, what are your favourite bands about at the minute?

JP: We all love the John Hopkins album which has been nominated for the Mercury Prize. That’s probably my favourite record of the year. All the bands we’ve toured with we really like too

MS: We are pretty lucky that we can put on a gig and pick the bands we like to support and all the support acts have been great. Dutch Uncles, Outfit, are just a couple we are listening to.

GS: Roger that. So whats your favourite venue you have played?

JP: A lot of places are beautiful to look at but not great to play. Union Chapel for example is great although the stage is about the size of this couch and it’s difficult to get the sound right. I like the classic smaller venues which are great to see bands in, like the Brudenell in Leeds.  We’re just starting to get in to the theatre size shows around 2-5000 which are really good

MS: I think it’s kind of the best size. They are great to play.

JP: The Ritz (In Manchester, where the band played two sold out shows the nightS before) is great. Great size great feel, it’s still got the intimacy about it. It feels an event when you play there

GS: So what about a third album, are there any plans in place?

MS: Plans yes! But not a lot of music!

JP: It’s getting there. There will be one. As soon as we can, we would like to work quicker, and get it out quicker but it’s a case of getting there…

GS: Well you can’t rush it can you. So, just before you go would you like to pick 3 songs for s mini playlist for  the Gigslutz Radio Show?

JP: I’ve been listening to McCartney II a lot. I would’ve said ‘Temporary Secretary’ but I used that for something the other day so I’m going to choose ‘Coming Up’

Alex Robertshaw: ‘Open Eye Signal’ by John Hopkins,

MS: I will say ‘Jubilee Street revisited’ by Nick Cave.

GS: Thanks lads. Anything else you would like to add?

JP: Please bring us some alka seltza!

Arc is available to buy now, whilst their tour winds up at The Forum this week. Pad Tai butties coming to a resturant near you soon

@gigslutz_steve