BSP interview – answered by Anthony Wright (bass) and Joe Wingfield (guitar/piano)
R13: How did the band get together?
Joe: I was speaking to Alex over MSN one day and he was telling me about a band he'd just joined. I jokingly asked if they needed a guitar player. To my surprise, they did, so Alex put in a good word and I was there at the next rehearsal. Ant came randomly through the internet.
Ant: Yeah, about the same time I'd posted on a local music forum looking for a band to join. Lewis got in contact with me and it all slipped into place.
R13: Your press release claims that you were originally only a studio outfit but now tour live, why the intention not to play live and the change of mind?
Ant: I'm not sure if it was the fact that it was only two of them making the music originally - Lewis and Danny - and so probably couldn't play live effectively, or whether Blue Sky Project was a sort of stopgap between their other projects, but after some time Lewis was looking for other musicians to take Blue Sky Project live. Danny had left at this point. I think Lewis had gone as far as he could with Blue Sky Project as a recording outfit and sought to take things in a different direction.
R13: What do you think 'Fenestrae' offers that is different to music already out there?
Joe: Fenestrae is a blend of music. It keeps to the commercial side of things, but I think it also includes that musical innovation.
Ant: I think a lot of bands are too quick in defining themselves and restricting themselves to a certain genre of music. I find people are quick to judge a band based on their genre as well. With Blue Sky Project we play what we enjoy and we're not afraid to add elements of other "genres" into our sound. I think the Fenestrae EP really shows our individual personalities well, especially with all the interludes and small little touches. Also a lot of people seem to be playing music because a certain genre is popular or in the public eye - what's that about? I think our EP offers a nice twist on alternative rock.
R13: Who are the main influences on your style?
Ant: We all have different influences within the band who will have shaped our playing styles and techniques. As an individual I take my influences from people like Timmy Commerford, Bootsy Collins, Tom Morello, Takeshi Ueda, Justin Chancellor, Larry Graham, Juan Alderete and others. I think it's really important to have an open mind where music is concerned - as a band we just take all of our individual influences and work them into our sound.
Joe: We're all heavily influenced by Leeds bands like This Et Al, Forward Russia and Vessels too.
R13: Do you write songs together or who has the major input?
Ant: We've all worked on certain parts of our songs, at practice someone might bring an idea for a song in and we'll work on it together. Lewis has thought up some right cracking songs! He's far too creative, we need to bottle him - Eau de Denby or something.
R13: Do you think Leeds has an important music scene and is it a good place for bands to get heard?
Ant: Well, I've not had massive experience with the workings of the music scenes in other towns, but I think Leeds has a very important music scene, more Leeds bands seem to be getting exposure in other places. I think people have stopped thinking we're all farmers and thickos up here and are listening - Some of my current favourite bands are from Leeds and the surrounding areas.
R13: What are your plans for this Summer and beyond?
Ant: We plan on writing and recording more material, getting some gigs out of Leeds and probably releasing a new single towards the end of the year.
Joe: Yeah, we went for a band outing a few weeks ago to discuss our plans and our targets. The single was something that came out of that.
R13: Which festival would you most like to play at this Summer?
Ant: For me it would have to be Leeds Festival, I never have any money to go to it. There was this fest down in Thurrock I went to that was ace, best festival I've been to in fact - wouldn't mind playing that.
R13: Thanks for your time.
Ant: No, thank you!