Getting To Know... Plastic Sun

Having spent much of the last year releasing a wave of bold and impressive indie-rock cuts, London-based trio Plastic Sun are now back to add the next belter to their ever-growing catalogue with 'I'm Too Tired'.

Channeling a diverse array of influences that include David Bowie, Radiohead, Depeche Mode, and Queens Of The Stone Age, 'I'm Too Tired' is a wonderfully rich and soaring addition to their material. Filled with anthemic hooks, soaring rhythms, and an insatiable atmosphere, expect to hear a lot more from these fellas in the months to come.

So with the new single available now, we sat down with them to find out more about their background and what has inspired them most over the years.

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What were the first instruments you fell in love with?

Josh: Well, I've been singing since the age of five, so I would say vocals, if that counts. Singing has always been a visceral thing for me - a way to get out emotions I otherwise wouldn't be able to. Apart from that, the first instrument I was interested in learning, and did try to learn, was saxophone. That didn't go so well though! But I did manage to bring back some of my rudimentary saxophone skills and perform some on ‘Violent Blue Life’ - the first single we released as a band.

Keir: I’ve got to say, it’s always been drums for me. I remember seeing my dad play in his band and being absolutely fascinated with the drums. I was immediately hooked. They are just visually stunning, and such a force of sound. But I’ve since grown to love all instruments. I have an eager ambition to expand my instrumental skills on piano and guitar, but that’s become more of a hobby. Although, my love for synthesisers has become more useful of late!

Ale: I picked up the guitar at the age of 7, and it was love at first sight. I used to get emotional when hearing certain types of music. The organ, especially, used to bring me to tears. My mother guided me through the first steps in the musical world, as she was very passionate about the arts in general. In the past few years, though, I’ve invested my own time in learning bass, drums and keys – mainly for production purposes.

What has been the most prominent inspiration behind your music so far?

Josh: The artists I enjoy at any given moment obviously have a direct impact on songwriting. Apart from that, I'd say just my own life experiences - things that are going on in the world, injustices, inspiring documentaries, films, games etc… You know, anything that sparks that passion to write. It's hard to pin it down to one thing.

Keir: I would say it’s just that passion we have between each other. Playing with people as talented as my bandmates. It inspires me to want to do it more – to keep pushing the writing and our production. Of course, it all gets influenced by other artists, that is a given. But finding new technology, and new ways of manipulating that technology, is also really inspiring.

Ale: Our story is a classic really. Three guys that meet at Uni, who like each other, and decide to write some music together. And it has been as simple as that ever since. The band was very different back then, but we grew up together for the past 7 years - musically, professionally, personally - and that has been the driving force over these years: seeing the evolution, the change, and challenging each other.

What kind of music did you love as teenagers?

Josh: I formed a lot of my music taste in my teens, as I think many do. Music really served as a way to get me through that period. Like many, I didn't have the best of times. Radiohead were a big early influence for me, and a band that really made me want to write. Other than that, Jeff Buckley, Muse, Pink Floyd, Frank Zappa, Bjork, Fleet Foxes, Sigur Ros, Arcade Fire... just a few of the artists that were on heavy rotation as a teenager.

Keir: I felt like I really went through periods of music. As a young teenager, getting heavily into drums, I adored those classic rock and prog rock bands like Led Zeppelin, The Who, Deep Purple, Rush, Genesis etc… From there, I went into heavy rock and metal stuff, and transitioned through that to a broader world of music. In my late teens, I started enjoying artists like Arcade Fire, Muse, Biffy Clyro, along with so many others.

Ale: Oh, I come from rock n’ roll! I remember vividly that, when I was little, I would go through my parents’ CDs over and over again: Guns N’ Roses, Deep Purple, Toto, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd. I just wouldn’t stop!

What inspires you to make music?

Josh: Apart from the things I mentioned in the previous question, I have to say I don't need much to inspire me to make or just play music. Music is pretty inspiring by itself and it's really just something I do and am consumed with every day.

Keir: When I hear something that just hits me so much that I can’t stop listening to it, and I just say to myself, “I want to make something like that! I want to make others feel the way that I’m feeling listening to this.”

Ale: I do it for myself. It’s like a therapy really. I have always made music when and if it felt right. I didn’t try to push it. I was lucky enough to always have mates I could share new music with, which of course is stimulating.

Who are your favourite artists you have found yourself listening to at the moment?

Josh: I'm very into the new Fontaines D.C album.

Keir: I’m a lil’ obsessed with modern African sound artists, like Soma, Oumou Sangare and Angelique Kidjo. The way the beats are felt is so different to western music. As a drummer, I love the way it moves me. It’s also a real challenge to play!

Ale: I’ve been going through my old catalogue recently. I felt I needed something familiar in these times of uncertainty. One of the latest albums I enjoyed though was Ed O’Brien’s Earth.

How many of your songs have you written about people in your life?

Josh: I don't tend to write directly about other people in my life in that way. Although there are definitely quite a few lines that are love lyrics to my girlfriend.

What has been the funniest moment in your career so far?

Josh: I think it's pretty funny that, in a recent YouTube video we released of us performing ‘Somebody Else’, we got everyone to comment “Banjo Solo” on it. Watch the video, you'll know why.

Keir: It wasn’t funny at the time, but prior to lockdown we had been waiting and preparing to do this incredible music video for one of our songs ‘Wait’. We’d had long discussions about it, loads of prep; it was gonna be a mammoth task, but we were quite excited about it. Then boom! That all went out the window faster than you can blink. Incredibly frustrating at the time, but now I can kind of laugh about it. Sometimes life just kicks you in the shins.

Ale: It’s not just a moment. It’s a long period, over a year, of programming and rehearsing the live show. We had a blast preparing it, and shaping it with our mates, who are also professionals in the music industry. A real challenge, bringing that music production to a live environment! I want to remember 2020 that way.

If you could open a show for anyone in the world, who would it be?

Josh: Radiohead would be the dream!

Keir: 100% Radiohead.

Ale: RADIOHEAD.

If you weren’t musicians, what other path do you think you might have taken?

Josh: I'd likely be a teacher. I teach music privately anyway, and my parents are teachers, so it makes sense!

Keir: Y’know, I was always into arts as a kid, so maybe something in design or digital artwork. That being said, I wasn’t very good, so probably best I stick to the drums.

Ale: That was the big question when making my decisions about Uni. But there were no half measures, and I went headfirst into the music world. That’s why it’s so hard to imagine doing anything else, because there was nothing else on my mind. But I do love sports, for example, so I think I would have loved to be an athlete, which is why I take time to do sports now.

And what is the best piece of advice you have received as musicians?

Josh: I'd say: do music because you love it and it'll love you in return.

Keir: To trust yourself. If you like the music you are making, someone else will too. Don’t worry if it doesn’t fit into some categorical box or tick some musical checklist. If you like it, that’s all that matters.

Ale: Never turn your back on music and the path you have taken so far. It’ll always help you along the way, no matter where you are or what you’re doing.

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Plastic Sun's new single 'I'm Too Tired' is available to stream and download now. Have a listen to it in the player below.