Today, in our Franklin Fest 2017 special, step up Spencer Envoy of MFC Chicken and Gastronauts fame.

DS: Welcome Spencer. For those who aren't in the know, please could you give a little history of how the band met, and your musical background..

SE: The band started when I moved from Canada to the UK 7 years ago. I put the word out that I wanted to put together a group to play music inspired by '50s rhythm and blues and the '60s Pacific Northwest sound of The Sonics and The Wailers, and through the miracle of modern technology (Gumtree) I found a group of like minded individuals. We started rehearsing above a former fried chicken shop on Holloway Road, that's where we got the name.

DS: Okay, and what attracted you to that particular kind of music, was it something you discovered as a teenager? Can you remember what particular tunes were the turning point for you?

SE: As a teenager in the early 2000s I was really inspired by the so-called "garage rock revival", with bands like The White Stripes and, particularly, The Hives. I loved that high energy rock and roll sound and that's what made me want to be in a band. The first song I learned was 'Hate to Say I Told You So'. Then I basically traced their influences back to The Sonics, hearing their version of 'Have Love Will Travel' blew my mind and I understood then where The Hives etc. were coming from. Then it's logical to go back from there to Little Richard and Chuck Berry and that primal, exciting, fun sound always felt like the way to go for me.

DS: Fantastic! Was MFC Chicken your first band? I can definitely hear the influences you mentioned, The Sonics, The Wailers, and just good old fashioned Rock 'n' Roll.

SE: My first band was called The Xyphoid Process, back in high school. We played Hives, White Stripes, Ramones, Sex Pistols and Kinks stuff, as well as original material in that vein. I just sang in that band. Then I had a band called the Vestaloynes at college, moving in a more Sonics-styled direction...then I started playing sax, and MFC Chicken was the first band in which I considered myself equally a sax player and singer.

DS: ..and where does that voice come from?!

SE: Some people seemed surprised at my voice, I think my voice might not quite match my appearance. Maybe it sounds like it comes from a larger, older dude. I'm okay with that.

DS: Your voice is pretty astounding I have to say. When I first heard MFC Chicken I was like, oh my goodness, this guy sounds like Gerry Roslie! Enough of the flattery, haha!

SE: Well getting a Gerry Roslie comparison is the highest compliment, so I'll take it!

DS: I saw you at last year's Franklin Fest with The Gastronauts. That was so much fun, did you enjoy doing it, and do you plan to record?

SE: Yeah, that Gastronauts gig was one of the most amusing shows that I can recall playing. It actually started as a food-themed recording project that Angus McPake and I conceived of, so there are already a trove of recordings that may well be released in some form or another in the future. We'll see!

DS: I look forward to hearing that. So turning to this year's Franklin Fest... MFC Chicken doing the songs of The Wailers. It's almost too exciting!

SE: Yes it's something I've been excited about as well! The Wailers are obviously one of our major influences, so it's a natural fit I think. We'll cover the whole breadth of The Wailers catalogue from The Fabulous Wailers LP until the mid 60's Etiquette singles. Hopefully we'll hit all the fan favourites and more, and this will be the only chance to hear us doing this special Wailers set, so come check it out! We even have special outfits for the show.

DS: Cool, I can’t wait to see you guys play. Lastly, could you please describe the Franklin Rock ‘n’ Roll Club for those who haven't been before?

SE: The Franklin has to be the most fun you can have in a cricket club. I think it must be experienced to be fully understood.

DS: Absolutely.

Infinite thanks to Spencer for taking the time out if his busy schedule to chat. You can catch MFC Chicken at a venue near you, details can be found on their Facebook page here and don't miss them performing the songs of The Wailers on Friday 30th June, tickets for this gig can be found here.

Up next... I had the great privilege of chatting to international heartthrob and Sultan of the Squared Circle, Sir Randy "Captain Dynamite" Hornocker of Los Coyote Men. 

RH: Ah Ms. Sheringham, I've been expecting you. Sit yourself down kick off your shoes. You're in the company of Randy "Captain Dynamite" Hornocker of thee fabulous Coyote Men!

DS: Can I call you Randy?

RH: You can call me Randy.

DS: Randy, could you give (for those who are not in the know) a brief history of Thee Fabulous Coyote Men?

RH: The Mighty Masked Marvels of Moron-o-phonic Mayhem have a long and un-illustrious past as thee first All Rockin' Lucha Libre Rock 'n' Roll Grapplin' Garage Punk Combo™ spanning some 20 odd years with the distinction of NEVER completing a single year without splitting up! Using my colossal cranium I deduce that if we base the career of the band purely on the time we have spent as an active concern, we have toured extensively throughout Europe/Canada/The US of A and released 5 albums and a baker's dozen of 45's all in the space of 3 months...'n' that's a scientific fact.

DS: Wow, that's pretty impressive! and of course you had a few releases on Estrus during their heyday - that must have been pretty exciting?

RH: Exciting? It was a dream come true... for Estrus!!! Mr. Mono Man the master of mullet Davey Crider flew himself to England with the sole purpose of gettin' his hands on the John Hancocks of myself, Randy "Captain Dyn-o-mite" Hornocker a.k.a. Thee Grand Poobah of the Electrical Geetar and Helmut "The Bruiser" Von Schoen, going as far as to threatened to burn down the Estrus empire if we didn't join the Bellingham big boys on his fine roster of rock. Dave treated Los Coyotes real nice and flew us out to the Garage Shock fest and arranged a U S of A tour, so Los Coyote Men repaid him by recording a tribute to Captain Crider in the form of our Dull City Records hit 45 'Mullet Man', what can i say, we've got a collective heart of gold.

DS: Indeed. I saw you play recently in Newcastle supporting King Salami & The Cumberland Three, that was a pretty wild night..

RH: Oh yeah Prince Saveloy and the Hot Dog Trio, that was the first time back in action for Los Fabulous Coyote Men 'n' the first with new bassonist "Slapsey" Maxie Rosenbloom II, so I mark that one an "A-" for rockability on behalf of Thee Sultans of The Squared Circle.

DS: And since you're playing at the Franklin Fest next weekend, what can the punters look forward to? Is this the first time in Scotland for Los Coyote Men?

RH: As you'll witness at the Franklin Fest, Debs, I can call you Debs can't I? Scotland was the first place to take Los Coyote Men to it's deep fried heart. In fact Edinburgh's swingin' spot The Cas Rock Club (R.I.P.) was the scene of the second Coyote Men show and the last appearance of "Slapsey" Maxie I. He shuffled off this mortal coil in a car park on the journey home from the show. Doctor's said they'd never seen a case like it and that he'd died of shame. I myself, Sir Randolph Hornocker, have had many a great time spreading the sports/rock entertainment live spectacle to Los Coyotes tartan horde and categorically deny the frankly absurd rumour that I was once thrown headfirst through two sets of doors into the street and banned from playing with Los Coyotes...lies damn lies!

DS: Okay, so a night of mayhem is pretty likely! I look forward to seeing your interactions with Franklin Rock ‘n’ Roll Club’s cartwheeling barmaid Brenda...

RH: Yeah word on the wire is Brenda's a live one! Scotland will be receiving the usual Coyote Men all out organised chaos no more no less as Thee Greatest Four Man Rock 'n' Roll Wrestlin' Combo only have two speeds 'n' thats "Goin' 'n' Gone"! We be sittin' on a mountain of top of the pops tunes so maybe there'll be a 12" headin' your way soon but 'til then there's a brand new 7" out on FOLC Records in Spain that's crazy limited to 250 copies in four different hand screen printed sleeves featuring individual shots of each fantastic member of Los Coyotes (Obviously there's an extra few copies of the one featurin' the ladies choice The Randster!). Hey, Deb are you sure you haven't kicked off your shoes? There's a funny smell about...

You can catch Randy and the phenominal Los Coyote Men on the Saturday evening of the Franklin Fest, details here. Further details of the band can be found here. 

Ahead of this years Franklin Fest (where did the last 12 months go?), our very own girl in the garage has managed to have a good old fashioned gossip with few of the participating acts. They'll be an article each day this week leading up to the opening night - Thursday 29th  - so you can look forward to intimate tête-à-tête's with MFC Chicken's Spencer Envoy, Chrome Reverse's Lili Zeller and Los Coyote Men's Sir Randy 'Captain Dynomite' Hornknocker! no-less.

Up first is Erin Van Rumble, front woman and bassist of Leeds pop-punksters Nervous Twitch.

DS: ようこそ Erin, please introduce yourself..

EVR: We've been together for about four or five years and after a few lineup changes etc. we are currently a three-piece. Myself, Erin, on bass and singing, Jay on guitar and Ash on drums.

DS: Okay, and how did Nervous Twitch evolve, and did you know each other beforehand?

EVR: Jay and I are a couple and we met through music and going to gigs. Jay was in a different band at the time, and has been in bands since he was a teenager. I originally came on board as a drummer and it was my first proper band! In our early days we made the decision for me to move to bass which vacated the drummer position which is where we're introduced to Ash through a friend.

DS: So what kind of music drives the band?

EVR: We are all fans of various types of music but I think what we all share is a love of a catchy pop song and playing punk rock... so I think that's how we get our sound. Music that inspires our writing is bands like The Ramones, Billy Childish, Nobunny, amongst many many others!

DS: Care to mention a couple of tunes that have inspired you?

EVR: I would find it hard to pinpoint inspiration down to a particular song but album wise Nobunny Love Visions/First Blood (or maybe the song 'Chuck Berry Holiday'!) Ramones Rocket To Russia, or maybe just them all! Billy Childish has A LOT of great songs and far tooooo mannnnyyy albums ha ha!

Also big fans of '60s girl groups like Shangri-las and The Ronettes and the Girls In The Garage comps which has inspired our songs such as "Johnny's Got A Gun" 

DS: You certainly can't go wrong with a bit of Mr Childish. Any particular incarnation of his that you prefer?

EVR: I personally love The Delmonas. Today we had Thatcher's Children byWild Billy Childish & The MBE's on the turntable, which is awesome. Also a fan of the Headcoats, Headcoatees, Milkshakes, so most of his music! He just has a great knack with writing songs!

DS: Turning to output, how many releases to date?

EVR: Two Albums: both released on Odd Box Records on cassette, and then the first one “Get Back In Line” re-released on Vinyl on Middle Ear Recordings and our second “Don’t Take My TV” re-released on Vinyl on Odd Box Records. We’ve also had two singles out on Punk Fox Records and various CD EP's along the way.

DS: ..and what are the band up to at the moment?

EVR: Just finished album Number three “I Won’t Hide” (which we are all very excited about!) which will be released in October on Odd Box Records, as well as a single on Punk Fox!

DS: Will this be the first time you've played in Edinburgh?

EVR: We played in Edinburgh when we toured spring 2016. Awesome gig, so much fun! So we’re all excited to be back!

DS: Are you sticking around for the whole weekend, and who are you looking forward to seeing?

EVR: We are, and can’t wait to see all of the bands really! Sad to be missing The Fnords on the Thursday (I will catch them one day!) but otherwise looking forward to MFC Chicken, Coyote Men, Das Clamps, and The Sensation Seekers.

Many thanks to Erin for taking the time out to chat.

You can catch Nervous Twitch on Friday evening at The Franklin Fest 17. More information about the band can be found here.  

J & The Rest is the result of a series of happy musical coincidences. Frontman Jamal was raised in a musical family, but had never fully considered a career as a vocalist. While he studied music tech at Leeds Met, he left the course feeling that the path was not what he expected. However, his friend invited in to the studio one day to jam, where he met their uni mates John and Louis. The three clicked musically and, after their friend from the live circuit, Ricky, joined them on drums, J & The Rest were born.

MG: J & The Rest, who is who?

JAMAL: It's pretty much all in the name! Haha. There's J, me, the frontman, then there's the other guys - Ricky (drums), John (Bass), and Louis (Keys).

MG: J, did you piece the project together?

J: Well kind of...myself and an old member of the band (who is now off being a successful solo artist), decided to put the project together when we were broke and decided we would play some weddings and stuff to earn some extra cash!

MG: How did you find The Rest?

J: Well The Rest are a combination of Uni friends and awesome musicians we knew from around the circuit. Pretty much as boring as "Hey man, wanna be in my band?...Yeh ok."

MG: Who has the creative control of the group?

J: Ha, its a dictatorship! No, I'm joking. It's genuinely is a team effort in this band creatively, as most of the time we're all in the studio sessions together. I guess you could say ultimately though it is me who pulls the trigger on final creative decisions.

MG: How do you work together as songwriters?

J: There isn't really a set way of how we do it, it changes over time in the studio. Somedays I focus more on lyrics and other days it might be John, for example, who focuses more on the words as I'm more invested in the music side in that session. Everyone plays as many roles as poss.

MG: Who would you say are your key influences?

J: I'm personally influenced heavily by Prince and Michael Jackson but also grew up listening to a lot of Hip Hop and RnB. So it would be hard to pinpoint exactly where we draw most influence from. Each member has their own personal influences and they bring it to our messed up melting pot of J & The Rest flavour! 

MG: Your sound has a retro element married to a contemporary edge. Was that a conscious decision?

J: No! We go into the studio and literally make music as if we're just making it for just ourselves to listen to. Whatever comes out the other end is just what we thought sounded great at that moment in time. We literally never try to fit into a certain pigeonhole, but at the same time we don't try to avoid any either.

MG: If you had to choose your own comparisons, who would they be to?

J: I hate doing this! If I was forced, I'd say somewhere in between Prince, Justin Timberlake and Friendly Fires.

MG: The track '4 a.m. Again' heads up your debut EP. Give us 5 words to describe it...

J: Just. Your. Cup. Of. Tea. 

MG: Which song are you most excited to hear?

J: To be honest, I was really looking forward to '4am Again', but now I'm super excited for our next single. It's a banger!

MG: You're known for your striking live sets ow difficult was it to capture your live energy on record?

J: Not very hard, if I'm being totally honest. When we're recording, I always have live performance in mind anyway, so we try and stay as true to the live sound as possible. We just have to find the happy place in the middle.

MG: And finally, if you could perform at one venue anywhere in the world, which would it be?

J: Most people would say something like Madison Square Garden, which would be awesome, but I think it would have to be somewhere weird like the Sydney Opera House or something like that! Just to be different.

** 

J & The Rest's new single, 'Kisses On The Mirror' is out this Friday. To find out more about the band, including news on their upcoming EP and future live dates, check them out on social media.