The Punk Archive: Give us a brief history of Sisteray...
Dan: Myself (Dan) and Ryan are brothers. I met Mike through a job a few years ago. The band met Niall when we put an ad out for a singer a couple of years ago and become good mates from there. The band formed in Spring 2012 and we and our first gig in September that year. We’ve gigged non-stop since.
The reaction we got from the start was phenomenal really. We have curved out a strong base in a relatively short space of time. Our debut single, double A-sider Take It Away / Happy Endings was released in August and had a great reaction from both fans and the music industry. We released 4-track EP She Likes The Drama on February 17th.
The Punk Archive: Punk? Mod? Rock'n'roll? Where do you guys fit? And do you want to 'fit'?
Dan: How does Punk-Mod 'N' Roll sound? These tags are great because we are influenced by so many bands from these genres but we've never called ourselves anything but just a band. We want to sound like Sisteray and I guess the varied influences are what makes us unique. We're more of a rock'n'roll band than anything else. But we're also influenced by punk bands such as the Pistols, Clash and The Buzzcocks and also so called 'mod' bands like The Small Faces, Kinks and The Who.
The Punk Archive: You're a relatively young band already making a big splash. How does that feel?
Dan: It's great. It means all that hard work, writing tunes, practising guitar and doing everything we can to be different from your everyday pop or X-Factor type rubbish is paying off. It's amazing when a piece of work that you created on your own, in your bedroom, has such an effect on people. Some of those tunes I wrote years ago and only I knew so it's great that people out there love the music and make it their own. I've also noticed that we are influencing a few bands which means a lot to us. I think it's because we have got this far on our own, it makes other realise that you don’t need Simon Cowell and a million-dollar contract to get somewhere. Hard work and dedication is where it's at!
The Punk Archive: Musically, your influences are clear, but what influences your songwriting?
Dan: It's difficult to pin down exactly what influences the tunes. I guess it's whatever we're feeling at the time. Often I sit down and think to myself “How the fuck did I come up with the riff or that lyric? What on earth was I thinking then?!”. For me, when I try to push out and am determined to write one, not a lot happens. A lot of the songs seem to come from nowhere...well the best ones do anyway. A lot of the songs are about being young, free and not giving a fuck, as well as living in working-class London and day-to-day observations, drinking, life and so on.
The Punk Archive: You're known for extensively touring. You must love it...?
Dan: It's great. We're playing gigs and getting our music out there. It's the best part of music and anyone can be decent in the studios but the best bands can do it live, where anything can happen and really connect with the audience. There's no better feeling. Our EP launch was right in the middle of London, right in the middle of tube strikes. We thought it would be a stinker but the venue was packed. When it's like that and people are singing and dancing away to the tunes you've written, there's not a better feeling (apart from maybe if Arsenal win the league this year!).
The Punk Archive: There's a lot of attention on you as a band now, with people really beginning to increase the hype surrounding you as a band. Does that add pressure, and how do you manage to keep your feet on the ground and enjoy it?
Dan: We've never been ones to feel pressure. We've never felt rushed or pressured to release music, we've always gone with the flow and done what we feels right and it's always worked for us. I think the fact we've remained independent but had as much success as a lot of bands who have labels, booking agents, pluggers and so on gives us the confidence to keep going about our work like we are. It takes a lot of hard work doing it alone and we haven't got PR people or label executives telling us we're great and doing the hard work behind the scenes and this definitely keeps our feet firmly on the ground (as well as working full time jobs!).
The Punk Archive: What are your aims for 2014?
Dan: It might sound clichéd but to really take every day and every gig as it comes. We're planning on giving a lot back to the fans, so maybe a free release sometime in the summer. We have vinyl of She Likes The Drama out next month, which we're all exited about. We are looking to book a few more festivals and just gig as much as possible around the UK.
The Punk Archive: What tips do you have for young bands such as yourselves trying to 'make it'?
Dan: Don't rush. Don't send your recording off to every label telling them you're great because you'll get nowhere. Practice non-stop and get those recordings and live shows perfect because that's the only way to build a real fan-base. Play as many gigs as physically possible, even if they're in shitholes and only 5 people are there… that's still 5 potential new fans! Be professional about what you do and try to run like a label and be successful all on your own because that's when people really take notice!
The Punk Archive: Do you have any recommendations for bands our readers should look out for?
Dan: A band called The Deets, who supported us on our EP launch are great. They have a tune called Charlie that featured on Soccer AM that is well worth a listen. The Spitfires are a good band for anyone who likes loud Punk/Skinhead/Mod music.
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