The Hoosiers got some decent chart success back in 2007 with a chart topping album and hit singles in the form of “Goodbye Mr A” and “Worried About Ray”. With their fourth studio album called “The Secret Service” coming out at the start of October and a UK tour, it’s an exciting time for the band. I was able to fire a few questions over to drummer Alan Sharland…
Hi, thanks for chatting to us, much appreciated. So you’ve got a new album coming out called “The Secret Service”, can you tell us a bit about what we can expect from this please?
So far, on average, we take approx 8 months to record an album. This has taken us a month. So hopefully it’s not an 8th of the quality. It’s a little more live as a result of not being as thoroughly scrutinised- we’re really excited. And, most importantly, the song writing is as good, if not better than ever.
This is your fourth studio album, is there much of a change in sound from last year’s “The News From Nowhere”?
Less synths – a little more guitar driven.
Did you try anything different in the studio on this album that you haven’t before?
I tried out a new top spin backhand at the table tennis table. But it was ineffective against Sam’s cutting forehand. You live and learn. We recorded a few tracks fully live – which in this day and age of cutting and shuffling, editing and auto tuning is rare.
How about any central themes? Any on the new album at all?
It’s is lyrically lead with the concept being secrets…
You recently parted ways with bass player Martin Skarendahl, I’ve read this was amicable. How is life after Martin?
It was as amicable as a split can be. We still love each other, we just had a different vision for the band moving forward. Plus he was getting all the girls. He just had to go.
You’ve got a tour coming up, so who is taking bass duties for this?
We have the wonderful Bill Banwell on bass. Who is absolutely brilliant, Ginger too.
2007 was a big year for you with a couple of hit singles, but you’d been a band for a few years before that. What had the band been doing before that and how did the major label deal come about?
Myself and Irweeny have been friends since we started playing together in 1995. Yeah, wow. I’m very tolerant. We played and wrote and played and wrote until a kindly old gent by the name of Toby (Jamiriquai) took pity on us and shaped us into the fearsome pop bastards that plagued the radio waves for far too long. It’s all about getting the record finished these days – not sure record labels would even listen to a demo these days (cynical? Maybe).
You’re now doing things yourself which seems to be a common thing amongst bands these days. Do you feel the major label is starting to die out and the fact that bands can do this for themselves with options like crowd funding a positive thing? And how is it going?
I’m jumping the gun in a lot of these questions. I think PPP music will always need financial muscle to break acts. It’s even harder to cut the wheat from the chaff these days. We’re fortunate to have had that clout in the early days…
You must have done some crazy things over the years though, what has been the strangest thing you’ve been involved in?
Hmm. Yep. Gunge runs on Paul O’Grady. That wasn’t something you anticipate when you first pick up a guitar. Otherwise, anything in Japan was pretty out of this world: we were in a Japanese cartoon.
I know you once turned the Christmas lights on in Winchester. How was that? I always imagine this being literally a huge countdown, a button press and a lot of panic in case the lights don’t come on. Is that pretty much right?
I don’t even recall seeing a button. I think Winchester have their lights on a timer. Just in case they are all away.
So what was the inspiration to form The Hoosiers from the offset and what bands would you say helped mould your sound?
We loved anyone who tried hard to do anything different. Bands like Blur, Super Furry Animals, Radiohead. Obviously Supertramp and Bowie. Loads. Now it’s Modest Mouse, Tane Impala. Sooo much good stuff out there.
You hail from Bracknell/Reading way. I’m from just down the road in Newbury so know you’re stomping ground pretty well. Have you played the basement in the South Hill Park Arts Centre before?
Haha. Never done the Cellar bar. Been there quite a bit though. Can you arrange it?
What about in Reading, what bands have you seen over the years from the local scene that you wish would reform?
We just played with Mike and The Mechanics. Who were brilliant. They never split, so that’s redundant. Did Cake come from Reading? (Irwin’s drama teacher played with them for a while) They were awesome.
In one of your videos Irwin can be seen playing as Reading on a football game, are you actually a Reading fan? And how about the rest of the band, are you all football fans?
Irwin is a self-confessed fair weather fan. Last time I asked him his favourite current player was Trevor Senior. I’m (Al) an Exeter City fan. Never forget the 6-4 drubbing at Elm Park.
So with a tour and a new album things are pretty busy for you this year. Have you got anything in the pipeline for 2016 already?
Already starting to book up. And thinking about a little acoustic EP. Really enjoying the writing at the minute.
Good luck with both the album and the tour, have you got any words of wisdom for the readers out there?
Thank you very much. Words of wisdom hmmm. Always change your socks. Everyday. Even if they don’t smell. And buy Hoosiers albums, unregrettable.
Alan chatted with Mr. T – Septemeber 2015
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