Formed in North London in early 2014, Lull have been bubbling under the music scene like the quiet before a storm. The four piece, consisting of Toby, Jon, Filipe and Simon have been steadily gaging attention of fans and industry insiders alike with their dreamy melodic sound. With comparisons to the likes of Smashing Pumpikins and Slowdive, the boys are mastering the ability to create velvety melancholic pop, with reverberating guitars and woozy lyrics. Set to release their self titled debut E.P. on 2^nd June, via Plastic Fish Records, the four tracked record includes the brilliant ‘Bubble Tea’, a brilliant 5 minute haze of swirling guitars and melodic hooks. Ahead of the imminent release, we managed to catch up with Jon, Lull’s lead singer to talk influences, signature sounds and those huge comparisons.

Hey Jon, Can you introduce your sound to our readers who may just be discovering you for the first time?

Think of it like a noisy ocean swell. Gazey guitars and swirling feedback form a big part of our sound, with calm, hazy breaks providing a respite in between. Weird chords tied to melodic leads that fizzle out as soon as they appear. Blink and it’s gone.

Who or what would you say are big influences for the melancholic Shoegaze noise you guys are creating? What sort of bands did you all grown up listening to?

We’re all big fans of bands like My Bloody Valentine, Ride and Slowdive, but there’s aspects to our playing that are inspired by bands like like Failure and The Smashing Pumpkins through to more delicate stuff like Cocteau Twins and Red House Painters. A big influence on me personally were bands like At the Drive-in, Anomie and Jeromes Dream, all bizarre chordings and quiet-loud dynamics. Infinite sadness forever.

You’re about to release your debut EP. What was the process like writing and recording this? Did you have a set idea as to what you wanted the record, as a body, to sound like?

I had already written ‘Bubble Tea’ and ‘Diving’ before starting the band. ‘Bubble Tea’ was this My Bloody Valentine-style lo-fi thing and ‘Diving’ was originally an acoustic song. Once we came together the songs really filled out into something special and signature-sounding. Toby (guitar) has this heavy playing style that just beefs everything up and makes for a nice contrast with my softer style. Filipe is just a beast on the drums and brings out a dynamic element I never would have considered alone. Simon’s bass ties everything together and makes us solid and he and Filipe just click. It makes for an insane, and loud, experience when creating new songs together.

You’ve already been compared to the likes of Smashing Pumpkins, The Jesus and Mary Chain (my faves) and Slowdive. Is it hard as new band to have your own sound compared to that of other big names?

We don’t really attach the word shoegaze to ourselves, but we don’t cast it aside at the same time. People can label it how they will. Shoegaze got thrown around in the past as a jibe but became this dirty word and bands suffered for it. I think now people are way more receptive to the characteristics of the movement, because suddenly it’s in everything you hear. It can only help to be compared, even if it only means people will find out about Isn’t Anything or more obscure shoegaze stuff like The Breastroke by Coaltar of the Deepers.

Are there any artists/bands that you’re all currently listening to at the minute?

Simmer are a fantastically heavy band that you have to play loud. They have these beautiful chords that they somehow make so pronounced through the noise. We played a show with La Bete Blooms recently and their gazy sound with added keyboards set my mind on fire with ideas. They were like a heavy Cocteau Twins in places, really unique.

What’s next for Lull this summer? Will you be doing any live dates/festival appearances?

 We just played an awesome show in Portugal and are writing a lot of new tracks right now. We’re itching to play more live shows where we can blow up some speakers (figuratively) and explode some heads (literally).

Thanks Lull! 

Lull- Lull will is out now via Plastic Fish Records 

Katie Muxworthy

@Katiemux