China Rats interview

As well as running Rapture, I also write for a magazine called Vibrations. Have a look at some of our stuff here if you like what you see then you can like our Facebook.

So this is an interview that i did with the amazing China Rats at Live at Leeds for Vibrations. so have a read.

You are playing Live at Leeds for a second year. What is going to be different this year than last year?

Graeme - We have a lot more songs this year, last year it was quite early days, we had been together less than a year.


Luke – We have done a lot more gigs now, so we are a little bit more rehearsed.

Graeme - It feels a lot better to play together now.

Luke – Yeah it is more natural.

You got to play with the Cribs in London a few weeks ago, what was that like?

Graeme – it was just unreal. We all love the Cribs and to be that close and having beers with them in the dressing room afterwards was just crazy. You don’t think that kind of stuff is going to happen to you.

Luke – It was quite surreal.

Did anything crazy happen with the Jarman brothers?

Graeme – We were just bevvying really. They played a mad set, it went a little crazy in the 100 club, so we were chilling with them afterwards they were pretty dead.

Luke – I think they were pretty worn out.

Graeme – I think someone was covering Ryan Jarman in ice because he was just steaming.

Leeds is a very special place to you guys. What is it that you love so much about it?

Graeme – We all moved away from home to come to uni here, it is where we grew up properly really.

Luke – We are all from little towns. Leeds is a proper city and stuff; it is where we all got together.

Graeme - I hadn’t even played gigs until I came to Leeds, then all of a sudden I was playing with my Mates.

Where did you play first?

Graeme – First? It was in the Elbow Rooms.

Luke - That was five or six years ago, when we were in different bands.

Graeme – Yeah we were in a different band then, but were playing together as friends still. It was more like a college band back then.

Your tracks are short but stupendously catchy. Was this intended?

Luke – I think it was when we first started out, short was what we wanted.

Graeme – Everyone likes pop music don’t they, and we wanted to write music that was fun to play, and that we had fun playing. Also catchy so we can get stuck into people’s heads.

Luke – I think they have progressed a little from that now; they are more developed a little bit longer.

Graeme – We are still trying to get stuff recorded. Maybe something that is longer than two minutes long.

What is the most annoying comparison that people make about your music?

Graeme – I don’t think we get any annoying comparisons, but we get called pop punk a lot, but I don’t think we sound similar to Blink 182 or Sum 41.

Luke – I think there is a difference between the 2 genres. We are like pop and a little bit punky, but we are not pop punk.

Graeme – It is a set genre. People just say it and I guess that is the most annoying thing.

Luke – You read loads though, because people can just write what they want on the Internet.

Graeme – Usually it is just the Ramones, and stuff like that, which you can’t complain about.

Luke – It is quite simple to compare us to them, because it is quite fast. I don’t think we sound like the Ramones.

In ten words tell us what you sound like?

Graeme – Go on you pick five, and I will pick five.

Luke – A little Psychedelic with the new stuff.

Graeme – It is a bit more Dad rock.

Luke – We have gone from lad rock to Dad rock.

Graeme – I would say fast, sweaty, sharp, mental, electric, and sketchy.

Luke – Unsure, loud.

Graeme – Raucous.

Who are you looking forward to seeing at Live at Leeds after your set?

Graeme – I think Luke was saying someone like Everything Everything.

Luke - I was not into them at all, but I have been listening to their album a bit. I didn’t get them at first; I think it will be interesting.I wanted to see Happy Daggers, but they are on in half an hour.

Graeme – They are our mates. Savages they are playing as well we saw them in SXSW.

How was SXSW?

Graeme – It was crazy. I have not really been out of Europe, so to go to America was amazing.

Luke - It was our first time in America, and on the first night we got there we flew into Austin, and had to drive into San Antonio to pick up our bass player, and our manger, because the flight got delayed.

Graeme – So they got re-directed, and we were driving down the highway.

Luke – It was bit of nightmare though, because it was dark.

Graeme – We got a McDonald’s to see how big the portions are compared to here, they were massive. Good value for money.

What were the first records you bought?

Luke – Mine was Mr. Boombastic by Shaggy.

Graeme – I can’t remember what mine was. I had a couple of singles first. I got going deeper underground by Jamiroquai on tape.

Luke - I remember getting Michael Jackson History, it was a big double cassette.

Would you change them if you could?

Luke – No, Mr. Boombastic is still a quality track.

I have read at least three different versions of how you gained your name. The best being you named yourselves after Splinter from TMNT. Is it to keep things interesting?

Graeme – We messed that one up, because Splinter is from Japan, not China.

Luke - I think its just because we do not really have a story behind it, and we always get asked it, so China Rats is a different name, how did you come up with that? It just gets repetitive.

Graeme – I think it actually comes from a guitar being made in China.

Also give Rapture a like on Facebook and on Twitter