Is Animal Kingdom the Next Coldplay?

© Animal Kingdom

The UK's current "it" band Animal Kingdom.

Animal Kingdom may be the UK’s latest buzz band, but they're virtually unknown in the states. One taste of this band's clean, accessible sound will change that. To introduce themselves, Animal Kingdom's Hamish, Geoff, Richard and Wayne recently took some time to talk to Rum Bum about how they got together, how they feel about being referred to as the next Coldplay and what fans can expect for 2010.

How would you describe your sound for those who have not heard Signs and Wonders yet? And can you give us a brief history of Animal Kingdom - how did you guys start writing music together?

Hamish:  I think the first record is quite a mix of styles. Like most debuts, some of the songs have been around for a while and others were brand new when we went in to record. I'd say our sound is always melodic and hopefully catchy, but with quite a bit of darkness underpinning the lyrics and instrumentation.

Can you tell us a little history about how the band formed? How did you guys end up together creating music?

Hamish: Richard and Wayne met and started playing acoustic shows together around the lovely dives of London. Then I met Rich through a friend of his at art college and we started rehearsing together at our church studio up in North London. Geoff and I had been in a band together at school and he was the best drummer I knew, so we poached him from another band.

You guys have been mentioned in Filter, Blender, and Spin (to name a few) as the hot new band to watch out for. How does this response from the media affect your band? What are you hoping to achieve next?

Richard:  Yeah, it's great to have these kind of things written about us, in that it might make a few more people check out the album, or become aware of our name at least  but beyond that, it doesnt affect what we do really, which is sit in a room and work on new songs, or play shows.  What comes next? We are looking forward to the record coming out in Europe and the States and getting to go and play some shows over there and then after that the next LP.

Animal Kingdom is already being hailed as the next Coldplay - those are some pretty big shoes to fill.  Do you guys see this as a challenge to overcome or as added pressure to impress?

Richard: Ha! It's definitely very flattering that some people are comparing us to these huge bands, but perhaps a little premature! Again, it's handy that it might make some more people check our music out.  Sometimes it seems like they're talking about a different band though really. We've been compared to so many different bands from different decades and genres that it's hard to keep track of who we are supposed to sound like. Can we be as big a band as Coldplay? Unlikely! Do we feel any pressure from these comparisons? No, not at all. They're flattering I guess, although I think it perhaps might be a bit confusing for people who hear our music thinking were going to sound like these bands and discover that we dont! 

Have you guys had the opportunity to tour with any bands you look up to yet? What would be your ideal lineup for a tour?

Hamish: We've done quite a few cool supports now: Vampire Weekend, Camera Obscura, Silversun Pickups, Snow Patrol, Band of Horses. All of them are great people and really inspiring to see bands who have been performing together for more than ten years and who didn't necessarily break through immediately. You learn a lot. Hardest game in the known world! As for an ideal line up? That's a tough one! I think Joy Division, The Cure and Radiohead in one room, and Neil Young, Lonely, Dear and Sufjan Stevens in the other room. 

What artists are you guys listening to right now?

Hamish: We have Neil Young's "After The Goldrush" on repeat in the van, it's a classic, but we really need another CD! I've also recorded a lot of stuff off BBC Radio this year and end up listening to documentaries and audio books more than music to be honest. I enjoy 'Bob Dylan's Theme Time Radio Hour' and 'Adam and Joe' cause they always play stuff you've never heard of and they both crack me up. Plus my Missus is podcast crazy so I get Bill Maher and John Stewart in my ears for a bit of US Politics.

Have there been any records released this year that have blown you away?

Hamish: I enjoyed the new Bat for Lashes record and have been getting into Mark Lanegan's various side projects too. It has not felt like an especially vintage year though. I need some new musical heroes!

What musical elements was Phil Ek able to bring to the table? Why did you chose to record at Electrokitty Studios, and what was the experience like for you guys?

Wayne: We were familiar with Phil's work with Modest Mouse, Band of Horses and the The Shins, but did not really know what to expect when we arrived there. It was incredible to be greeted by a barrage of vintage equipment inside a beautiful studio selected by Mr Ek. We spent the initial period going through the selection of songs for the album with Phil. Discussing ideas for drums, guitar and bass, vocals, sounds and textures – principally where we wanted to head with the tracks. Upon hearing the first recordings of the drum tracks, we were all blown away and felt pretty comfortable and assured with Phil at the controls. We finished the mixing of the album at Electrokitty Studios where Phil diligently crafted the sound that is now the album. It was great working with Phil and to be out in Seattle, for that period of time was incredible.

You guys had a very cool concept behind "Chalk Stars" single sleeves where each cover had an intricate single piece of artwork.  Once placed all together, all 500 sleeves created one image that was unveiled on your website as the singles were sold  How did this idea come about?  How did your fans respond to this?

Wayne: All of our art work for the album has been created by Thomas Hicks, and we are indebted to his hard work and talent for photography, illustration, video and design, throughout the building of the artwork for 'Signs and Wonders'. The idea for the Chalks Stars mural came out of a meeting from where we decided to release a limited 500 edition singles. Thom was keen on the idea and produced a giant mural from inside his crazy head of ideas, inside his warehouse studio and divided it into 500 separate squares. He documented the process and I think there is a video on our website of it all in stop frame motion for your viewing eyes to see. A fan from Belgium purchased quite a few of the editions in order to try and claim the prize poster of the artwork once the mural was complete.

You guys are continuously around each other and have to maintain a balanced relationship in order to make the band work.  What does each member of the band contribute, personality wise, to the group?

Geoff : Well to begin with, musically we are pretty much on the same page and have been from the outset. We each have our own guilty pleasures but there is a musical glue, a love for certain bands and genres, that helped bring us together in the first place. We do spend an awful lot of time together and there is a good mix of personalities within Animal Kingdom. Firstly Rich, he has a German streak in him that provides us with a well structured driving force, probably essential for any successful band although his wit is definitely English, and he is not always as serious and dark as the music would portray. Hamish is normally very optimistic and jovial and when deep in writing songs like "Mephistopheles", a one liner from him normally pulls us out of the gloomy hole it threw us in. He is also our technical wizard, if anything goes wrong in the studio, we ask Hamish and he normally gives us an answer using technical terms like "decomfobulated" or "uniphased tandomreverser" - basically he struggles changing a light bulb but gives it a good go. Wayne is the mysterious one amongst us.  He'll keep his head down for hours and then suddenly come up with an unusual guitar part or lovely wash of sound, bringing a dark but warm light to what would normally be a traditional sounding song. As for me, well, I'm just rather godlike with very few faults so everyone loves me and everything I do is magic.

Being on tour and constantly playing shows for weeks on end must be monotonous at times.  What makes a live performance special, or essentially, memorable for you guys?

Geoff: Bit of a cliche but the best shows are always the ones where the audience let themselves become part of the show, when they really listen and get in to what we're doing, you feel that on stage and it makes you love every moment of what you are doing and then you can't wait to do the next one.

And last but not least, do you have a cool or funny tour story so far that you can share with your fans?

Geoff: The funniest was when we played The Roundhouse in Camden supporting Snow Patrol and Silversun Pickups. Wayne managed to get locked  in the dressing room with his girlfriend. Snow Patrol had just gone on and we were about to go up to watch with Silversuns when we realized Wayne was missing. We heard him shouting from inside the dressing room but we couldn't open the door. Some how someone got a crow bar and tried to break the lock but failed. Then SP's tour manager just went for the run up and kicked it, he had done it before and you could tell, with four kicks Wayne was free and could watch the rest of SP's show!