Interview | The Cheap Thrills: “The songs wouldn't be the songs if any of us were missing”
With the release of their latest EP, Mind Metro, and an imminent sold-out headline show, Liverpool's beloved indie quartet, The Cheap Thrills, are one of the most promising acts in the scene.
Fresh off the release of their latest EP, Mind Metro, just two days ago, and with their most anticipated headline show to date approaching rapidly—a sold-out event at Liverpool's Content on March 2nd—the Liverpudlian quartet, The Cheap Thrills, finds themselves at the forefront of the UK's indie scene as one of its most promising new acts.
From the infectious energy of 'Reborn,' praised by John Kennedy and the Evening Standard, to the heartfelt introspection of 'Calypso Blue,' their latest single delving into themes of love and loss, The Cheap Thrills demonstrate their versatility and compelling lyricism across the tracks of their new four-track EP.
Following a day dedicated to packaging and dispatching their limited-edition vinyls, I sat down with Lewis, Terry, Anton, and Callum to delve into the creative process behind their latest EP, their evolving approach to songwriting, and reflect on a particularly memorable experience at the Liverpool Academy.
Lauren: Congratulations on Mind Metro, it’s a great EP! How do you feel to finally be getting it out there?
Lewis: We've been sitting on the songs for over a year so it feels like a weight off our shoulders.
L: You already had the first three tracks released but then there’s the addition of ‘Calypso Blue’
Anton: It’s a bit different to what we’ve released so far. A lot of the tunes are quite punchy, guitar songs; this is a proper emotive song and it’s probably one of our favourites.
L: Is that why you left it to release with the EP?
Anton: Yeah, we knew ‘Reborn’ had to be first because it's a short, punchy, single but ‘Calypso Blue’ was always going to be a closing song.
L: Was the EP purposely written in that way? To be taken on a journey from a vibrant song like ‘Reborn’ to a deeper song like ‘Calypso Blue’?
Lewis: No, not really, they were all written before ‘Reborn’. ‘Reborn’ just sort of happened. We had a slow version then when we made it fast and we were just like shit, that's the single!
‘Calypso Blue’ took a little bit of time. We had an acoustic version [but] I was the one going around going I’m sick of this, don't like it, and the lads were going no, we've got to get this done.
Anton: When Lewis brought ‘Calypso Blue’ to the table we were like this is a tune!
L: Since it’s the closing song on the EP, do you think it’ll be an emotional closer for your live shows too?
Lewis: It depends on whether anyone likes it, no one might like it!
Terry: I think the way the song naturally goes sets it up to be a big end-of-the-set song but I don't know, like Lewis said it could go first or second, depending on the response it gets, but hopefully not!
L: I think what’s great about Mind Metro being such a tight four-track EP, is each song can stand on its own just as well as it does with the others. Is it very much quality over quantity for you?
Terry: Yes and no. At the time we were writing these songs, we were just absolutely churning out songs and it was dead hard to narrow it down. There's still a bunch of songs that we wrote that could have easily made the EP but we were [also] in the mindset that we wanted to write single, per single, per single and I think that's the way we went about it.
L: Is that different to how you've gone about it in the past?
Terry: Definitely. When we wrote these songs, it was different because a lot of them were written over the lockdown period.
That was a new challenge for us; we were using an online band web chat service — it was just chaotic. Don’t get me wrong, we still made it work. […] When the restrictions lifted slightly we were able to get in a room together again but we took the part of writing songs on our laptop and brought more of that into [the process] rather than just writing it all on our instruments. It broke it down a little bit more and it changed the way we wrote songs.
L: Does someone usually take charge of writing the lyrics and coming up with those ideas?
Lewis: It’s all of us. The songs wouldn't be the songs if any one of us were missing. I'll maybe bring an idea of a hook and if the lads like the hook then we’ll work around it.
Anton: Lewis isn’t giving himself much credit there, [he] comes in with an acoustic version of the song and the basic melody then it grows from there.
L: It sounds like the collaboration process between you guys is one of the best parts.
Lewis: For ‘Escape’ I had the verse and the chorus and I thought the chorus was “E-S-C-A-P-E with me” and then when I took it to the lads — this is a credit to the boys — they went no, we need to step it up a bit and then we added the next chorus “it won’t take long / it won’t be hard”.
Terry: It goes back to the laptop period as well. Lou's really good at putting loads of his ideas onto his laptop, bringing it in, and then showing everyone what he's got. I always remember coming into the rehearsal room and Lou and Anton were playing drums with Gavin, a virtual drummer, on Logic Pro. Lou’s trying to get this virtual drummer to play what he wants and you could see the ideas that they'd been working on, it was kind of nice. I’d then be able to step back and come in with fresh ears and be like, oh, I like that!
L: That’s super cool!
Anton: We owe a lot to Gavin to be fair, he put a shift in on those Demos.
L: Do you often revisit your old demos?
Callum: There's been times in the past, even when we’ve just had an old phone recording and you go that’s a boss little idea, that’s a boss little hook. We’ll pull that back and go see what we can make of it.
Lewis: Then you check and it’s from 2016 or something…
Terry: One that sticks to mind is the breakdown in ‘Last Orders’. We'd always do this thing every time we came to practice, we had this rap that we wrote on a whiteboard and we'd add a funny line every time we came in. Then, you'd always try and sing the rap after as a joke.
[When] we were struggling for a breakdown in ‘Last Orders’, Lewis and I, we looked at the board, and Lewis read the lines, and I was like put that in. He was singing and I remember him looking at me as if to say ‘nah’, and I was going no we can do that, it sounds boss.
L: That’s amazing, I love that
Callum: ‘Last Orders’ out of all of them is probably the most different from the original demo. It’s mad when you listen back to what we had initially, compared to what we have now.
L: I guess in a similar vein because you’ve had the ideas and the songs themselves for so long, does it make it then tiring to play live?
Anton: It's better, once people have heard them it's way better to play it live. When people know the song, it gives it a new life.
Terry: It's harder to sit in on them when no one's heard them but obviously you've got to get everything out at the right time.
L: I guess you pass them on and they're not yours anymore.
Terry: That’s it, exactly — they can carry it for a year now, ha!
L: You’ve got your biggest headline show coming up on the 2nd of March at Content in Liverpool, that’s very exciting!
Anton: It really is!
L: How do you feel about it?
Terry: You know what, I feel more relieved than usual because the tickets have gone! Usually, at this point, we're trying to put a bit more of a graft in, but it’s just clean sailing now.
Anton: The team went around in a van dropping off tickets to everyone [which] we've done with all our gigs but this one was way different. Normally we have to deliver a lot more tickets but these just got snapped up online, so we’re buzzing.
Lewis: Just need to make sure we're ready, and it’ll be fine.
Callum: We can put our feet up now, can’t we?
L: There’s no doubt that you guys have a very loyal fan base, do expect to see the same people when you do these shows?
Lewis: It’s changed over the years
Anton: At the O2 Academy in Liverpool, that was the gig when I realised I didn't know 90% of the people. For the last 12 years I would know everyone but that gig I was like, who the fuck are all these people?
Terry: Yeah, especially down the front! Usually on the front, you've got the ride or dies but this time there wasn’t one recognisable face.
L: That must be quite a moment of realisation!
I’ve seen the video from the same show, with everybody singing along to ‘Codependence’, it’s incredible.
Terry: That's probably one of my best moments in the band. When I was taking all that in it felt like I was at Anfield or something.
Anton: That was one of my best moments ever, that fucking nearly knocked me out.
Lewis: Have you seen the video though? I can't look at it because I was like I can’t look at them. You were all looking at the crowd and I was just like ‘oh my god’.
L: Is it one of those where in the moment you didn't quite realise what was going on and then after it, with some reflection, you're like, oh, wow!
Lewis: Yeah, almost!
Terry: I think I was fully in the moment taking it in. We talk about it now because it gives us a funny problem: every time they’re singing it we’ve still got more of the song to play and they're just deafening and we feel bad because we're interrupting them!
Anton: That was the first time that’s happened to that extent and I don't think any of us were expecting that reaction at that point in the song — that's why it was just mad.
L: Has it given you a higher expectation for the show at Content?
Lewis: Same expectation, the exact same. The crowds are always loons here so it's going to be great no matter what, so I'm excited. There’s not really a nervous aspect to it anymore — it's just more like we're going to go and do it again.
Terry: I definitely feel more comfortable when there are people there singing. It would be harder if it was that big room with just a bunch of people.
L: What about smaller venues, is it sometimes harder because you’re so close to people?
Terry: Over the years we've just built up that resilience. Whoever we're playing to, we're going to give it. If they're giving us a bit more, we're going to give it all back. But if no one's in there, we're just that resilient now we’re not arsed, as long as we're having fun. At that point, we’re probably then looking at each other and having a laugh, we’re not looking outwards.
L: I saw you had trouble getting to your Glasgow show, but after three van changes managed to get there! Is that down to the resilience you were talking about?
Anton: We were sat in a truck stop brainstorming for like four hours. We were texting people who we knew with vans and no luck. We thought the AA could have brought us to Glasgow but no luck. So, we got in touch with the promotor of the gig and were like look this is the last thing we can do, or we can't play. Some fella from Glasgow picked us up and kindly dropped us off at the gig. We walked into the venue as the support was coming off.
Terry: For the rest of the weekend, we were playing chess with ourselves — we were three moves ahead. We were going if we can't get this van tomorrow, then we're doing this, and if we can't get that van then we're going to have to do that. We planned out every possible move.
Lewis: I’m having post-traumatic stress disorder here.
Anton: What’s always good about us, is we make it work. We could have easily turned around and gone home but that’s not what we’re about.
L: How was the reception when you got there?
Terry: The Glasgow and Edinburgh shows were really good to be fair, the crowds were having it and I just hope we've just got all our bad luck out of the way for the next gig!
Luckily, I think if we broke down in Liverpool we could probably get someone to get us to where we’re playing.
Callum: Any next big gig out the city we’re going to go the night before aren’t we?
Stream Mind Metro now!
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Catch them Live
Mar 23rd – London, Stag’s Head Hoxton
Jun 1st – Netherlands, Vest Rock