Bolton upon Dearne four piece The Sherlocks are definitely a name that are not going unnoticed in the music scene at the moment. In anticipation of their forthcoming album, this is what happened when I put a few questions forward to The Sherlocks. Drummer Brandon Crook talks all things 'Under Your Sky', their upcoming UK tour and how ‘that’ Škoda advert came about.
Describe The Sherlocks in four words!
Brothers, Northern, Grafters, Kind
You've just come back from playing Reading & Leeds, what were your highlights from the weekend?
We had an absolute blast!!! Loved every minute of it, we had the secret set slot and it was great. Reading was packed and bouncing! Leeds was just a riot, loved it all! People couldn’t get in the tent at Leeds because it was so packed. Thankful to all our fans supporting us, we’d be nothing without them
Your album 'Under Your Sky' is released October 4th, tell us a bit about it! Do you have a favourite?
It’s 11 bangers! Literally all killers, 11 singles! No album fillers, not one slow tune on this album either which is something that surprised us. We did record one but it just didn’t feel right to put it on, so maybe we will release it in the future somewhere.
Could you briefly explain the creative process of 'Under Your Sky'?
We recorded it in Liverpool with James Skelly (producer) & Chris Taylor (engineer) we spent a month there and had a blast. Skelly is a very hands on producer who gets in the live room with the band and works it all out. We loved that about him, showed us some direction on structuring and trying songs at different tempos etc. It was a great working relationship and we had a proper good laugh. You’ll be able to hear this in the record I’m sure. It’s a very upbeat album. The favourites from the band include two tracks you’ve not heard yet, the title track Under Your Sky! Which is an absolute monster!!!! And probably the most relaxed but driving tune on the album ‘Dreams’ it sounds us but with a DMA’s and George Harrison vibe. It’s proper class!!
I know there's a huge UK tour running through October and into November off the back of the album! What can we expect?
You can expect what always happens on our tours: pure carnage!! Even from the early days people turning up to our gigs know they’re in for a sweaty rowdy loud gig that they’ll remember for a long time! Buzzing to be armed with two albums worth of tunes, this tour is gonna be special
Here in South Wales, we have a tight-knit local music scene. Do you have the same in Bolton? If so who are your current favourite local bands?
Bolton on Dearne, is a proper small village, there isn’t really any local bands around anymore. There’s a band called Shangralas who have just kicked off and doing well. But mainly cover bands in our surrounding areas
I'm not going to ask the obvious Brexit questions but do you foresee any impact in the music industry because of it? Is it something you worry about?
We don’t get into politics, music is our game. What will be, will be and you’ve just got to get on with it.
You're really making waves in the UK music scene at the moment, but what's next for The Sherlocks?
We have been focusing on playing in Europe a lot this summer and we have a great fan base growing in Germany! We are going to South Korea at the end of September for the first time which will be fun!
Okay then, how did the ŠKODA advert come about?
We had an email from our record label asking if we were interested and it seemed like a great opportunity. Things like this get sent through all the time, so we never expected it going through but it did and we are very happy we got the chance to do and experience it all. Amazing time, great people and an amazing company to work with!
What advice would you give to someone wanting to follow in your footsteps?
We get this question all the time, just enjoy yourself and work hard. You’ll automatically work hard if you’re passionate about what you do. Keep writing songs at all times, so when it comes to choosing songs for a single or album. You have a lot more options and have the strongest album possible.
What's the strangest fan encounter you've had? ie: strangest question, weirdest request!
Every time we go to Japan we have fans waiting for us at the airport, that still blows our mind how passionate the fans are!! Incredible passionate fans. Weirdest request was to sign a Jaffa cake box at a gig in Chester years ago.
Lastly, songs of your summer! What have you been listening to?
I’ve been listening to a lot of Ocean Alley and Holy Holy. There’s a lot of great music coming out of Australia!
A big thank you to Katie (press team), Michael Crook, Brandon and The Sherlocks for making this happen!
Be sure to pre-order 'Under Your Sky' here: https://thesherlocks.tmstor.es/?lf=45ecf39c3748fe8ea594988994b957ef
And catch them on their 12 date UK tour later this year! Tickets can be purchased here: http://www.thesherlocksmusic.co.uk/#tour
Latest single 'Waiting':