Next month, those hugely talented purveyors of euphoric synth pop Chvrches unleash their much anticipated second record Every Open Eye. Now, history has long dictated that making album number two is often a testing time which sees some buckle thanks to two words: “pressure” and “expectation.” You can imagine our surprise then, when Chvrches singer Lauren Mayberry describes the experience of following up their half a million selling debut The Bones Of What You Believe as “peaceful.”
"It really was,” she laughs. “We made the album the same way we did the first one – back in our basement studio in Glasgow. We made the decision to return there as we wanted a sense of normalcy and routine I suppose. The second record for any band is a tricky one as it’s quite a transitional time. It seemed to us that involving someone else in that process (ie. a producer) didn’t really make much sense, it would just make decisions more convoluted, so we did it ourselves.”
Free from the shackles of time limits and label/management mandates, Chvrches thrived in the studio, as the stunning, just released ‘Never Ending Circles’ ably illustrates.
“‘Never Ending Circles’ acts as a nice bridge between the first and second album. It sounds like it could maybe have fitted on the first one but it’s a little more assertive. We felt very calm and independent when we were writing-there was no ‘You need to have another album in by June otherwise....’ I don’t think we’d perform well under that pressure.
“What was kinda weird this time around though, was we were all aware that the band doesn’t exist in a vacuum the way it did on the first album,” she continues. “When we were writing that nobody had heard of us. I guess you are aware that people now have expectations but you have to block it out as much as possible, because writing to please people is probably not a good way to go about things. It’s not a good way to collaborate.”
Speaking of collaborations, Chvrches have enjoyed an occasional creative relationship with comic artist Jamie McKelvie. Not only has he produced some beautiful posters and t-shirts for them over the years, but he’s incorporated the band’s music and their likenesses into some of his work for publishers Marvel and Image. Are Chvrches big comic fans?
“Iain and Doc are, Iain is especially. Jamie’s work is amazing. It’s always very cool to see yourself in animé form. I really like when music and art crossover. We love getting involved in that kind of stuff. It’s very cool. He sent us some copies of his new work [The Wicked + The Divine] and that was quite touching. Having leafed through it though, I have to say I am not as tough as those ladies in the book!”
Currently out on the road, Chvrches have been playing a number of new songs live and Lauren tells us she isn’t too concerned about fans uploading performances of unreleased material onto You Tube.
“I don’t think any musician would feel that the audio taken on a phone in a live show is how they want their tunes to be heard for the first time, but I choose to view it as people are excited about the band and it shows they want to hear new stuff. Then, as and when the studio versions come out, people will be excited about getting them. I try to be glass half full about these things rather than running around getting everything taken down off You Tube. That seems mean spirited to me.”
And of course, Irish fans won’t need to get their Chvrches fix by watching shaky footage on the web as the band (finally) return to these shores to play at Electric Picnic.
“We last played there in 2013 and sadly we haven’t been back since. We’ve only played two gigs in Ireland which we need to rectify. We’re looking forward to touching base before the record comes out. Festivals always bring out the best in us as you have to work harder and we can’t wait to get back over.”
Back on March 17, 2014, Chvrches released an EP entitled Blud by the then relatively unknown SOAK on their own label Goodbye Records. Now hotly tipped on a global scale, Lauren still recalls the first time she heard Bridie Monds-Watson. She tells us why the Derry native – who also plays EP – will take over the world.
“It’s amazing to see what SOAK has done since we put the Blud EP out on Goodbye Records. She’s already starting to take over the world and it’s really great when good things happen to good people.
“I first heard her music on late night BBC Radio One Introducing, when it was still in that format. I think it was Jen Long’s show (the Welsh version) and she heard it on the Irish counter-part of the programme and loved it. It was the original version of ‘Sea Creatures,’ which was on her first EP. I thought her song-writing was and is incredible for a musician of any age, let alone someone as young as her. She’s got an amazing voice lyrically and vocally and is such a hard worker. It was amazing to tour with her and see just how much graft she puts into what she’s doing.
“I think the main reason why people are falling in love with her is because she just sounds so incredibly genuine in regards to the way that she sings and the way she communicates. You can’t fake that. People try to recreate what she has to try and monetise it. They always fail. You can’t fake something that’s that authentic and genuine. I love when I turn on the radio and one of her songs is playing – you know it’s her immediately. Her voice is so original and unique and the filter that she looks at things through is really interesting. She’s awesome.”