FROM THE Tex-Mex connotations of their name to the distinctive guitar panoramics of their music, Bristolian quartet Santa Cruz are not yer average Britrock four-piece. Their recently-released debut album Way Out offers an abject lesson to the Travises and Ocean Colour Scenes of this world, peddling as it does a neat line in widescreen, electronica-influenced melodic vistas.
Singer Scott Jarrold, a human biology-obsessed John Coltrane freak, says: We basically gravitated to each other in Bristol. We rehearsed together for five years in a pub basement, so we re tight as a drum by this stage tighter than that, in fact. We went from the basement to the restaurant upstairs; we got promoted. It was a definite comment on our musical abilities.
Way Out certainly sounds as though a lot of care went into it, although Scott claims that their modus operandi when recording is simply to press as many buttons in the studio as possible at any given time.
We spent nine weeks making Way Out, he continues, at Mono Valley in Wales. We chose it cos it s got an amazing ambience. It was quiet, but the silence sort of speaks, y know what I mean?
BIZARRE AFFECTION
Mmmm. The band s press biography makes the four of them sound like fairly interesting characters, but, as Scott stresses, We get along disgustingly well. It s often a strain being together all the time, but . . . out of that chaos comes creation, in performance, pushing each other to get better.
What approach do they take to live shows? We sort of treat it like a DJ set. We link the tracks together in one whole piece, rather than here s one song, here s the next song , et cetera.
Are they concerned that people reading about Santa Cruz might just pick up on the word Bristol and draw the wrong conclusions about their sound? No, because the music is gonna shine through on its own merits. Anyway, the fact that we re from Bristol might draw em in. It doesn t really bother us at all.
While Scott is listing his personal top five records of all time (Marvin Gaye and John Coltrane feature prominently), drummer Pete Stillman wanders by and overhears our conversation. Is this an Irish interview? he enquires. Mention U2, then (laughs). No, The Undertones were a bit of alright, though.
Pete, incidentally, nurtures a bizarre affection for Stuart Pearce, the let s be kind weatherbeaten Newcastle full-back and erstwhile penalty specialist for the England national team.
He s a bit past it now, but he s a huge inspiration, says the sticksman. I like that roll-up-your-sleeves-and-kick-people approach. I ll always remember when he put away that penalty against Spain at Euro 96 and then went mad. Fantastic.
All this and their drummer s related to Toto Schillaci. n
Santa Cruz play the Mean Fiddler on Saturday 21st February. Way Out is out now on Universal.