(Musos's Guide, March 25, 2009)
Interview
The Hot Melts are a pretty awesome bunch of guys.
A four piece from Liverpool who meld the very greatest parts of 1950s rock with a severely rock-ready collection of noises. It sounds like - and is - the best part of rock heaven - frontman Will Bayliss is an angel with the devil’s tunes. “I suppose we kind of mix the 1950s and the 1990s, like rock’n'roll and grunge, we try and mix that kind of sound - good old rock’n'roll.”
The Hot Melts’ list of influences is long and distinguished, which makes Will a whirlwind to speak to. “I’m a big fan of Weezer and lots of old rock and roll, people like Chuck Berry and Elvis and people like that.” He could go on, but there’s more to discuss, like The Hot Melts’ much sought-after support slot - with the Eagles of Death Metal.
Kicking off the UK tour on March 28 in Portsmouth, the boys stand to make a lot of new fans - not least the headliners. Or are they already fans - is that how the slot came about? “I suppose we asked them if we could support them and they said yes? I don’t really know what happens with those kinds of things. I just write the songs and play them,” Will demurs.
Regardless, it could be seen as something of a step up compared to their last major support slot - with classical emo boy band Elliott Minor. Were they to the Melts’ liking? “It was really good - they’re lovely lovely guys. We come from different musical backgrounds,” he says, very diplomatically. And what about the screamo fans EM attract? “Most EM fans are quite young, which is great, because I want everyone to be our fans. I’m just interested to find out how other fans take us.”
By Will’s account, there are already Hot Melts superfans, following the boys up and down the country. “There are loads of people we see over and over at gigs. Good on them! Some of them have been to ten gigs! I don’t think I’ve ever seen any band ten times.”
Any ideas who Will would see ten times given the opportunity? He gives the question a lot of thought. “It would have to be over the years, you wouldn’t want to go and see them ten times in the same tour. You’d have to go and see them ten times if they’d done ten albums. I’d like to see Weezer, I’ve never seen Weezer. I’ve never seen them live, but I hear they’re great.”
Will and the boys are about to find out how good the Eagles are live - albeit from a different viewpoint to the usual punter. Just days away from a triple-threat event at the SXSW festival in liberal corner of Texas - Austin - there’s plenty on the boil for the boys.
Their debut album is set to hit the public in the summer, an event which has all the boys excited. recorded last year in Chicago with Mark McLusky, Will says that he still loves all the songs - not least current single, ‘Edith’. A riff-driven slice of raucous rock, it finds Will in great form, channeling ever-howling frontman from Bono to Jason Perry and everyone in between.
Being from the Merseyside does carry with it a certain weighty musical heritage. Does Will think of the spectre of the Beatles at all? “I was a Beatles fan when I| was younger - I suppose Beatles are really a kids’ band - but I don’t know whether it’s a pressure. There are great bands from every city in the world - for any band, there’s always going to be a legendary band from their city. I don’t feel the need to live up to the Beatles! But I’d still like to be the biggest band in the world, that would be nice.”
The Hot Melts do have the world is at their feet…
“I don’t think any band will have the same impact as the Beatles again because I just don’t think things are the same, really. I like what the Beatles are - I like that they are more than just a band, that they made films and were almost cartoon characters.”
Do the Hot Melts haver the capacity to make that sort of leap?
“I like characters in bands and I always have ideas for things, like Hot Melts comics or Hot Melts TV shows, I love that kind of thing. I heard once that Supergrass were offered a Monkees-esque TV show, but turned it down. I would never turn that down, I love the Monkees, I love that kind of thing. I’d love to do a TV show!”
Having ascertained that the Hot Melts are available to film the next sleeper TV hit, it’s important to address the band’s imagery. Bright and striking, the impact of the band’s MySpace page and sleeve art is memorable. Do the band have a hand in their artwork?
“They’re all our ideas. I love that kind of 1950s artwork. I think we’re going to start working on artwork for the album soon.”
One of the Hot Melts’ most unique features is their dedication to the medium of podcasts. Choosing their favourite music, each member takes turns in presenting their fans with a smorgasbord of the influences which have made them the band they are. What is the thinking behind the podcast?
“I feel like there’s a lot of bands who you mention to people and they don’t even know what you’re talking about,” Will explains. “The type of stuff that we play on the podcasts are the sort of thing that influenced us anyway. I’d love to hear the songs of bands that influenced my favourite bands.”
It’s like a musical education…
“So much stuff you hear on the radio, you just don’t know what to make of it, but there are so many great albums. There are even great albums that I don’t know that well. There are legends of music that I still, occasionally, someone will play me something that I’ve never heard before and should have done and it just rocks like it should and it just blows you away.”
Just like the Hot Melts. The Hot Melts’ single ‘Edith’ is out now. Their support slot with Eagles of Death Metal kicks off in Portsmouth on March 28, and tickets are available here.
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