Erstellt am 05.12.2006 - 11:55

relativ alt schon
aber da drin steht das mit der namensgebung

“We met originally in our former incarnations.” John Hassall, lead singer/guitarist with Yeti, leans forward and puts on his best storytelling voice. “We were all exploring the Himalayas together and we made a vow – just before the avalanche came down and smothered us to death – that we would regroup at some point in our future existences.”
Guitarist Mark “Harmony” Williams picks up the trail; “The last thing John saw before he was buried by the snow was a large hairy beast…”

Of all the strange and notorious things to emerge from the rock and roll circus that was The Libertines, Yeti may well be the strangest – and best – discovery so far. One million miles away from the hullabaloo and tabloid ridden world of his former band mates, John Hassall (usually pegged as “the quiet one”) formed a band whose heartfelt melodies, soft optimism and unobtrusive beauty are winning fans in droves.
We find ourselves in a leafy London café garden for a quiet chat. On the table pots of tea and slices of orange cake sit next to a stack of the band’s latest press shots (very impressive, a band with this many cheekbones doesn’t come along too often), and the four present members (guitarist Andrew Deian-Jung is away on holidays) are, unintentionally, complicating every New Band question in the book. Like this question of how they met…
“We didn’t meet through random, lame circumstances that’s for certain,” says John who, whilst friendly and talkative, is clearly over familiar and tired of journalistic tricks. “We didn’t meet in the pub.”
So you knew each other through mutual acquaintances?
“No,” John says, “we met in the Himalayas. It’s the truth.”
So why are you called Yeti?
“Because of the Himalayan experience,” says bassist Brendan.
Disorder sighs.
“Yeti is like music,” explains John poetically. “No matter how much you analyse it or transcribe it or review it, you can never really capture the essence of it. The magical aspect of it. Which is similar to the Yeti, because no one knows if it actually exists. Our music is a Yeti. It exists and it doesn’t exist.”
“What?” says guitarist Mark. “You mean in the way we play it and no one’s buying it?”

That isn’t exactly true. Yeti may just be starting out but already they’ve had rave reviews, support slots with the likes of Oasis and Razorlight, and single of the week in the NME for their life-affirming debut ‘Never Lose Your Sense of Wonder’. The follow up single is just as optimistic.
“The next single is called ‘Keep Pushing On’,” says John. “Which we’ve recorded and it sounds really good. It’s pretty basically about perseverance. It’s a call to arms. It’s saying that with belief and conviction and perseverance you can attain any goal you’re after.”
That sounds like a very positive message.
“Definitely, yeah,” he says. “I think there’s a lot of optimism lacking in modern music. I’m not saying everyone should be going round with inane grins on their faces, but I think it’s a trend of bands to maybe not show that side of their characters because it’s not cool or whatever.” He pauses and thinks. “I think when I was writing those tunes like ‘Never Lose Your Sense of Wonder’ and ‘Keep Pushing On’ I was writing myself a little lullaby for my own encouragement mainly. But hopefully people can relate to that.”

John is the band’s main songwriter and he wrote many of Yeti’s songs before the group even formed. Lumbered with the unfortunate and often unavoidable tag of being a side project (although they’re not), Yeti’s strength as a band has taken many by surprise. However the band is quick to point out that both their fan base and the attention they receive has little to do with The Libertines. Rather than through association their reputation, Mark says, is growing “through us being… fucking good.”
When asked how much being a post Libertines project has helped, there is a small pause.
“It’s opened a lot of doors,” says John. “Boring doors which take a while to open. But if people didn’t really like the music we would’ve been completely slated from the word go. I suppose the fact that I wasn’t actually writing in The Libertines meant that I didn’t have my past compositions to live up to.”
There is another pause. “Who was in The Libertines?” asks Mark.
Since Yeti are rejecting the fanfare of hype that usually accompanies any new band of worth, they’re acquiring the very unusual advantage of getting known for their music. Luckily it’s the kind of music that’s good enough to overshadow all former associations, the kind that is likely to get them a lot of attention.
“You want to be big because of the music, not making tabloids for other reasons,” says Mark poignantly.
“Again, it’s the old adage,” says John. “How do you measure success? Personally this year I want to have an amazing album in the bag and I don’t see why we can’t have it. And to me if we can do that, if I can create an album that I’d be happy to listen to myself for the rest of my life that would be immensely successful.
“If that happens and people dig it, buy it, come see us… that’s a plus. And you know if we get some money out of it that’d be a plus as well. And a bit of fame, sports cars…”
He starts again. “It’s like our new single, ‘Keep Pushing On,’ I’ve been listening to that every day and it just brings me immense happiness to hear it, to think that we did that and we captured it.”
Mark nods. “I think the good thing about the band and the songs is that they do capture a positivity which everyone needs to hear, whether they like to admit it or not. That includes us in the band; one of the best things about being in Yeti is that the message we’re putting across is something we can all relate to. I mean there is – I don’t know if John would agree – but a kind of bitter side to this message, the darker side. Everyone goes on about the positivity, but there is a flipside to it all. The songs are bittersweet they’re not just sweet. But to have that sweetness you’ve got to experience the bitterness as well.”
This rings true. ‘Never Lose Your Sense of Wonder’ includes lyrics like “I lost control and I fell/ from this early heaven into hell” or “at school they tried to break my soul”. On new song ‘Carpet Road’ a ludicrously happy melody tells us “I’ve been so hungry but I’ll tighten up my belt” and carries the chorus “it takes a long long lonely time/ a hard hill to climb.” If Yeti are optimistic it’s not from any innocent rose tinted view. It’s a hard earned optimism with all the knowledge of just how difficult the lows can be. Take stand out track ‘Merrygoround’ for example, one of the quieter songs in the Yeti catalogue:
“It’s about touring,” explains John. “It can be the most jovial and interesting thing in the world – you’re going around the country and being followed about and getting pissed and having a laugh, but obviously there’s two sides to every coin and there’s an incredibly sad side to it as well. It’s trying to sum that up really.”

That John Hassall has had some experience working and surviving in the music business means he’s more than aware of a few of the pitfalls too. And having a member who has already acquired the holy grail of success and recognition puts Yeti in an unusual position. For one thing, they’re very aware of industry politics.
“We’re not really marketable,” says Brendan.
“Yeah, it’s not very fashionable, the Yeti sound, but that’s because it’s timeless, and classic. But people haven't seen that yet,” says John.
Why do they think they’re not fashionable?
“Just because it’s not easy to slot in with another scene,” says Mark matter-of-factly.
“But that’s a part of the battle, isn’t it, to try and make it a better state of affairs,” John says when talking about his conflicted relationship with music industry games.
“That’s hopefully what we’re gonna do. That is what we do.”
How do they plan to do that?
“By refusing to succumb to the negative aspects of it.”
Unfortunately for Disorder, the benefit of John Hassall’s experience also seems to include a well-taught lesson in media wariness. Whilst he is keen to communicate what his band are about, he seems very aware that you could write something which will come back to haunt them. Maybe he’s been scarred by his former bandmates’ now infamous adventures under the media spotlight. But then again, maybe that’s all a bit dramatic. In any case Yeti are unusually quiet interviewees: polite and genuine, though an air of suspiciousness still seems to accompany even the most basic questions. Disorder points out that most new bands are eager to sell themselves;
“I’m not one to shoot my mouth off,” says John. “You’ve got to be very careful about what you say.”
Really?
He nods. “Yeah, you do.”
“I think the confidence lies in the music and the band rather than us shooting our mouths off about stuff that’s not really important,” says Mark.
“It all comes back to you, you know,” says John earnestly. “Slagging other bands off, like we’ve just done, [they haven’t] that’s gonna come back to us. You have to be careful about what you talk about, how you act, it comes around.”

It’s a subject that is returned to later on over a game of pool. John talks about the sense of responsibility he feels and the importance of being a moral band; it truly is a million miles away from the philosophies of his former outfit. Yeti are not the typical new band; they’re not the fame hungry youngsters or the naïve talented music lovers, or the hyped buzz band, or even The Next Big Thing. It takes a whole to figure out but suddenly it dawns on us that we might have stumbled across the rarest creature in the music world; the band that are actually in it for the music.
“This will all become clear in a years time,” he says later on. “Everything. You won’t need to ask me these questions because it’ll be apparent.”
But when asked what he foresees he is vague.
“I see myself being a lot happier,” says John. “I already am a lot happier, but it’s a continuing process.”
Happier because of the band or…
“Just generally. It’s driving for a goal, and when we attain it there’s gonna be a new goal, but you’re generally building yourself up, building a life.”
“It’s like the song says,” starts Mark, “ ‘keep pushing on till you get what you want’… that’s what we’re doing right now, hopefully in a years time we will have got what we want.”
“But you KEEP pushing on, that’s the point, you can’t just stop,” corrects John.
“What, until you get more?” asks Mark, laughing. “That’s just greedy though isn’t it?”
There will never be a day when we can all sit down and go right, that’s it, we’re happy,” continues John, “we’ll just stop playing. It’s just not going to happen, that’s not how life works. But if you can enjoy the process of getting there at the same time, that’s what it’s all about.”
And with Disorder deciding this is an excellent note to end on the tea is finished and the questions packed away. Yeti might not be screaming their presence from the rooftops, but if life’s taught us anything by now then we should know that it’s ALWAYS the quiet ones.

Erstellt am 05.12.2006 - 16:46

Our music is a Yeti. It exists and it doesn’t exist.”
“What?” says guitarist Mark. “You mean in the way we play it and no one’s buying it?”

Erstellt am 14.03.2007 - 14:23

n relativ neues
dezember glaub ich




Yeti
Just before Christmas we braved the hordes of Christmas shoppers and Salvatian Army carol singers to grab a very quick and slightly off the wall chat with one of our favourite bands of 2006, Yeti.

While they may have gone about things quietly and snuck under some peoples radars, I can assure you that come the end of 2007 their is every chance that they’ll be topping end of year polls for best album, if the first few EPs are anything to go by.

(AD) Andy Deian
(BK) Brendan Kersey
(GB) Graham Blacow
(HW) Harmony Williams
(JH) John Hassall

Firstly congratulations on three great singles / EPs so far, you must be pleased with the reaction you’ve had to the releases.

(HW) John’s pleased aren’t you?
(JH) Yeah, but Harmony prefers bad press.
(HW) I like people to tell me how terrible we are: makes me try harder.
(JH) Andy doesn’t read reviews.
(AD) I can’t read. I’ve lost my glasses.
(HW) So I read them to him… but I make it all up. Like the NME says “Yeti would be good if they sacked their lead guitarist and replaced him with a pine cone”.
(AD) So that wasn’t true?
(HW) No.
(AD) I lost sleep over that.
(HW) Sorry.
(JH) What do you think Brendan?
(BK) About what?
(JH) Never mind.
(GB) I think-
(JH) Shut it Blacow! Nobody cares what the drummer has to say.

Despite the acclaim for the singles you seemed to have generally kept a fairly low profile media wise, has this been intentional to give the band chance to grow on its own merits rather than on the back of Johns former band and the ongoing interest in them?

(HW) Yeah, why not?
(AD) Yes, that’s definitely why.
(HW) Nothing to do with people not liking us.
(AD) No.
(BK) What former band?
(JH) I think it is important that we be judged on our music rather than by association.
(HW) So long as we’re not judged on our hair.
(GB) I-
(JH) Blacow!

You’ve not done many tour dates so far in the UK, are there any plans to play more dates next year?

(HW) We did over fifty tour dates in 2005. And about the same amount in London.
Is that not a lot? I’ve not been in a Band before. I have other stuff to be getting on with. It’s not like anyone’s paying us to do this, so I think 100 free shows a year is probably enough right? What do you want from me, Blood?
(JH) Alright calm down.
(AD) We’ve been quiet this year. Recording.
(JH) And abroad quite a lot. Although we just got back from four UK dates and yes, we’re looking forward to plenty more next year, hopefully we’ll actually get out to Ireland as well.
(BK) Do you want to book us?
(AD) Do it now. Inflation will force us to raise our price in 2007.

How have you been received on your tour dates in America and Japan?

(HW) They clapped. What more can you ask for?
(AD) We’ve been all over Europe as well.
(HW) They clapped too.
(AD) France.
(HW) They clapped.
(AD) Vienna.
(HW) They clapped.
(AD) Zurich.
(HW) They had the clap.
(JH) They didn’t.
(HW) Not till I got there, but now they do.
(AD) Rome.
(HW) In Rome they believe a potato is a carrot. So if ever you order a pizza with potatoes on…
(BK) Why would you do that anyway?
(HW) I thought they’d be thin sliced and sautéed and then just laid on top. I mean, its just like having pizza and fries surely?
(BK) No.
(HW) Okay, it IS weird, but its LESS weird than having CARROTS on a pizza.
(BK) Or a plate of beans and peas.
(HW) Exactly. If you tell someone you don’t eat pork, they look at you like you’re an alien, and then give you a plate with beans and peas. Just that. Beans and peas.
(JH) Meanwhile back at the farm: We had a really good time and the audiences were really attentive and receptive.
(HW) And other things ending in ‘ive’.
(JH) Positive.
(HW) Yeah. And don’tknowwhatpotatoesareive.

You’ve been working on your debut album with Craig Silvey, how have the recordings gone and when do you envisage the album being released?

(AD) I think ‘where’ have they gone is the real question.
(BK) Yeah, we can’t find them.
(AD) Harmony put them somewhere for safe keeping.
(HW) Sure, blame the guy who was supposed to be looking after them.
(BK) We are doing.
(HW) Good.
(JH) Seriously though, some are great and some not so.
(GB) Because of the playing.
(JH) Blacow! How many times?
(GB) Sorry.
(JH) Shh.
(BK) Yeah, because of the playing. Craig’s done a great job with what we gave him.
(JH) But you can’t polish a turd. I think we can all play a lot better on some tracks so we’re doing some more recording in the New Year.
(AD) And we’ll release it when it sounds great.
(JH) Not before. You only get one chance at a first album, so why release a bad one when you can release a great one?

How did the band come together?

(JH) They’re cousins.
(HW) Yeah. Me and Graham met at a wedding when I was eight and he was five. He got up on stage with the wedding band and helped out the drummer by playing a tambourine.
(JH) And I knew Harmony through Carl. Harmony was Carl’s tap dance teacher.
(HW) He’s a fast learner that one.
(BK) Me and Andy met on a New Deal training scheme. In music engineering. We wrote a few hardcore Drum N Bass dance songs together.
(AD) But we preferred the Byrds.
(JH) And Brenders used to play in McNasty’s.

How do you feel about the current music scene. The fashion seems to have moved to skinny guys in even skinnier jeans playing New wave punk pop, you’ve obviously got a very different sound to that?

(HW) Our jeans sound quite similar. But other than that. We are different.
(JH) Is there such a thing as New Wave Punk Pop?
(AD) Apparently.
(BK) Time is the great reveal. We don’t really pay any attention to the current music scene. Not ‘cos we’re snobs just that there’s far too much to listen too. So if you wait ten years, history will do the filtration job for you. Then you can listen to who was good in 2006 without having to work your way through all the dross.

Obviously as we are coming up to the festive period we ought to finish on that note, so any special plans for Yeti over Christmas any potential treats for your fans?

(HW) Yes. We’ll be releasing an exclusive online Christmas Song.
(JH) Its called Hairy Christmas.
(AD) Keep you ears peeled.
(BK) And your mouth open.
(GB) And remember to spare a thought for others less fortunate this Christmas and give generously to the Save Yeti Fund… or alternatively visit www.timesonline.co.uk to make a secure donation, and make a real difference to those in need this Christmas.
(JH) Yeah, okay, you can say that.

Thanks for taking the time out to answer these questions, have a great Christmas and all the best for everything next year.


wie se alle aufm armen kleinem graham rumhacken

Erstellt am 14.03.2007 - 15:51

was für ein geiles Interview!!!! Die sind alle total lustig

Erstellt am 16.03.2007 - 21:19

scheint als sei John aus seinem Schatten gesprungen...

Erstellt am 13.07.2007 - 18:18

geklaut ausm livejournal


RANDOM INTRO STUFF

For those who haven't heard of you, who are you and what do you do? (and who's answering these questions...all of you? one of you? a robot?)

My name is yeti, i drive a pick-up truck and like ice cream, i am not a robot, but i believe there were robotic versions of me in Doctor Who in the 60's.

Do you find these email interview things a bit impersonal/awkward?

no. yeti's are notoriously shy beasts and communicating via electronic mail suits yeti very much

In your opinion, what sets you guys apart from the millions of other bands that are being hyped up?

lack of hype

Do you ever get sick of those NME-style questions about who's cheekbones are better?

our only problem with such questions is they never specify better for what: for instance johns are very good as a bottle opener.

Two albums that changed your life - and why? (Ok, that was a bog-standard question, but I have to know)

Electirc Ladyland- it taught me music was serious
Neil's Heavy Concept Album - it taught me music wasn't serious

It's Friday night, where can we find you, and what're you drinking?

friday night is eviction night. ginger pop.

Ever considered dressing up as actual Yeti's for a concert/photoshoot/best friend's wedding?

no.

What would you do if you did meet an actual yeti (it's been suggested that John's a yeti- any confirmation?)

film it or duck maybe. depends on whether they're as placid as we've been led to believe. i can confirm, that while John is in no way human, he is not a yeti either.

RECORDING
How do the band go about turning the start of an idea into a finished song?

accretion

So how does the recording process actually work - are you all divas or is there a healthy energy?

andy yells at everyone

What criteria do your songs, (and others) have to fulfill for them to be classed as “good”?

they should no contain lyrics stolen from jamie and the magic torch. but taking the tune is okay.

BAND SPECIFICS
I've heard that Harmony is also a screen writer - how'd this come about, and is there any chance we'll be seeing fruits of this at any point?

I was writing long before the band came up. I started writing when I got bored of acting. And I started being in a band when i got bored of writing. Now i just do all three. This limits the amount of boredom in my life.

For John - how does it feel to be playing bass again? Has this changed the band dynamic at all?

Great. Yes our sound is clearer now with the loss of a guitar.

Graham – ever chucked a major hissy fit and destroyed the drum kit? Or is that not part of the Yeti ethos?

I am too poor to do this as a rule, but when I borrow somebody elses kit i try and fuck it up as much as possible because i'm thoroughly eville.

Andrew – tell us about the first time you picked up a guitar, if you don't mind?

I was cruising sunset strip in my jalopy and there was this sexy biaatch just plying her wears on the sidewalk, so i gave her 20 bucks and she gave me a hummer... what? oh! guitar! oh, right, yeah, can't remember.

OTHER MUSICIANS
If you could be any other musician (ever - from that guy who played the lute back in 1066 to Brandon Flowers), who would you pick? Why?

Mike Batt

Who are your major influences?

Slade. Sometimes people forget they wrote so much more than "Merry Xmas Everybody"

With ones major influences, there's always a risk that you'll end up a carbon copy of them - however you guys have an incredibly original sound - how do you stop the 'heroworship syndrome"?

By all worshipping different people. Its the kind of mess you'd expect if you put John Bonham on drums for Arthur Lee, and then invited John Fogerty to play lead.


TOURING
Most bizarre tour experience?

Playing Kerplunk with Dave Grohl and Denise Richardson

If you could choose any year and venue to play a gig, where, when and why would you most like to play?

2054. The moon.

Any plans for tours to the US or Australia?

plenty of half formed ones, but nothing thats "come together" just yet

Are you ever going to release this long-awaited debut album?

we're sticking out an LP in Japan. but the long awaited album is still being recorded. we just keep writing new songs and prefering them to the ones we wrote the week previous, resulting in a never ending recording session

Thanks heaps for your time.

its a fucking pleasure


(I found it rather amusing how the 3 questions the deleted where "why don't you play insect eating man? is there a story behind the name harmony walliams? and "how has the band dynamic changed since the bands birth?...which they kinda answered in the other question about john playing bass. nevermind.)

Erstellt am 04.08.2007 - 17:25

ist das eigentlich ein richtiges interview oder so ein fake?? Die geben so komische antworten

Erstellt am 04.08.2007 - 21:16

das isn e-mail interview mit harmony
und harmony is ja eh komisch

Erstellt am 04.08.2007 - 21:29

Rotkaeppchn schrieb das isn e-mail interview mit harmony und harmony is ja eh komisch

genial, dann much ichs nochmal lesen

Erstellt am 21.03.2008 - 03:17

Cool thanks a lot.