Adam Young from The Howlers answers some questions from Dom about influences, touring and more as we head deeper into 2024!
S] Hi guys, how are you doing?
A] Great thank you, we hope you are doing well
S] Cowboys Don’t Cry is such a beautiful track in terms of the influences, was it difficult to write, on reflection?
A] In simple terms no, as its just flowed, that need for a cathartic outlet during a really tough period of time for us, meant that the song just formed and in an instant, you’re confronted with a track you’ve created that is really raw still to perform, but ultimately that’s what we are about as a band that authenticity you rarely find these days, we don’t sugar coat who we are, or what it means to be an artist in 2024. Some days are good, some days are bad and that reflects in how we write our music.
S] From what I can tell from the singles, ‘What You’ve Got to Lose to Win It All’ is a hopeful and at times upbeat/uplifting record, at least in tone, is that a fair assessment?
A] Yeah, 100%. The theme (if you can call it that) is if something is easy then it’s not worth fighting for. The title in itself reflects that and ultimately its a record that was shaped by the trauma and experiences we have been through and survived together over and over and over again that many other artists may not of had the tenacity or conviction to push through.
It’s a record for the beat and downtrodden, the dreamers who’ve never been given the chance they deserve.
S] What were some of the best moments of building the album with Black Honey?
A] We’ve worked with them for a number of years now, and have a great relationship on the road and in the studio, both as friends but also as mentors to us.
Chris and Tommy took us under their wing and have that belief, that had never been shown to us before and in turn our respect for them as artists to look up to is shown in this record as they really challenged us to be better.
We often get a message to say how proud they are of this record and us, they hadn’t produced an album before, so their belief in us, we returned in kind with the faith in them that we could deliver and album together as an unsigned outsider, something were incredibly proud of collectively.
S] How does this album push you in new ways, compared to where you were as musicians a few years back?
A] To start, we recorded 16/17 tracks in about 9 days, which in itself requires endurance but we wanted to create a record that is ours, nobody else’s, our sound, our authenticity.
It’s both our strong point and a drawback, as we have no ‘Scene’ to slot into for the easy route, but we constantly challenge ourselves to be better and push what is comfortable and confront the uneasy. Every live show is a learning curve. I think we’re better for it, no egos here, just hard work and lack of recognition, but that’s the case with all troubled souls.
S] Given the early support you’ve received, how do you define success as artists, at this early point in your career?
A] Success is a funny one to define as it’s relative, to a band starting out, we may appear super successful, to a band winning awards we may appear as rookies. I think for us success is what we get out of it, this career isn’t for the faint of heart these days, any gratification you may get is short lived and deferred, because there are so many things going against you, unless your from a wealthy background (which is all too common these days with chart topping artists), but we’re still a ‘new’ band, so to speak so our success is being able to continue this career independently, at this stage which is the first major hurdle to overcome.
S] What about legacy, do you think much about what you want that to be?
A] Not really, I think legacy is the plaything of psychos. I think if we were concerned about what our lasting impact would be then we’re not doing it right. So many bands think that way, but the reality is in today’s world, the minute you stop releasing music, that’s it, end of the road.
The way people consume music in the modern world is geared towards instant gratification, so all we think is that in this moment if we can give those fans who come to shows that hour or so of time they can forget about the worries of the world, have a drink, have a laugh and just lose themselves in those four walls, isn’t that enough? I think that’s enough.
S] You’ve got some tour dates coming up, talking me through how you’re feeling about those?
A] Nervous excitement? It’s good to be nervous as it shows how much we care for what we do. We have an in-store tour in May, ahead of the album release on May 17th it’s our first time trying to sell records to make the charts, so of course it’s a stressful nail biter of a time, but at the same time we like to meet fans and that’s really what this is all about.
If there’s five or 500 people there it’s all the same to us, many of our fans are people we cherish and greet like old friends, because they are, as the rooms have got bigger, they’ve been there through it all.
S] Is there anything I’ve missed that you’d like to plug?
A] We have HUGE UK & EU tour being announced for Sep – Nov, very soon! But other than that, buy our record, you tight arses!
S] Thanks so much for the time today!
A] Thank you for speaking with us!
