"I watch a lot of Kids TV and stuff like that. There's one song I've done which was directly influenced by The Tweenies"
We Show Up On Radar were one of the bands playing as part of LeftLion Presents at The Malt Cross on June 24 2005. The act in question is essentially one artist, Andy. He writes, produces and records his own material. However, when performing live he works with mate, and fellow musician Pete (aka The Petebox), who's in charge of the samplers, keyboards etc... while Andy sings and plays acoustic guitar.
As well as being in the band Andy is the in-house sound engineer at Nottingham venue Junktion 7. We met up with him in The Salutation Inn for a talk about the music he describes as "nursery rhymes for grown ups":
We Show up on Radar - where did the name come from?
It was originally part of a lyric to one of my songs. I never actually finished the song so it was quite good that I managed to get a band name out of it.
How would you describe your sound?
That's quite difficult. I'd probably say, lyrically and musically, My songs are nursery rhymes for grown ups. I try and make a nice little story out of all my lyrics.
Where do you get your lyrical influences from?
I watch a lot of kids' TV and stuff like that. There's one song I've done which was directly influenced by The Tweenies. All my lyrics are from different things that make me laugh.
Who are you influenced by, musically speaking?
Definitely Sparklehorse! Their track Sad and Beautiful World is one of my favourite songs of all time. I don't sound like them, but they've definitely influenced me. I also like Joanna Newsome. I heard her album The Milk-eye Mender after I finished recording my stuff. It's annoying as she sings a bit like me. I like some electronic stuff as well."
Are you a eighties new wave fan?
I've never been a huge fan of a lot of it, but I do like the drum beats, which I use.
What's been your best, and worst, gig, to date?
The worst gigs tend to be those that I play on my as with a purely acoustic set. No body seems to listen. My favourite gig was at the Rescue Rooms. There were about 100 people there, they were all listening and had smiles on their faces. Apart from a couple of townies in the corner giving me the evil eye, looking like they wanted to beat the shit out of me.
What's your favourite album this year?
It has to be the Joanna Newsome album, I mentioned previously The Milk-eye Mender. It's just brilliant, in my opinion.
Who are your favourite other Nottingham bands?
I really like The Henry Road. I've done their sound at Junktion 7 a few times. Lo-Ego are good as well. The Hellset Orchestra are amazing.
Where are your favourite hangouts in Nottingham?
I like the Rescue Rooms and Junktion 7. I'm not really one for clubbing, but if I'm going I'd go to Stealth.
Are you looking forward to playing at The Malt Cross?
Yeah, Definitely! The Henry Road are good and I'm sure Nutron Stars are as well. I've been to The Malt Cross socially before and it's a bit spooky to see bands playing on such a high stage. It should be a good night.
As a final thought, if you could have a dream come true what would it be?
No comment! It's definitely too rude to print.
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