You Me At Six www.myspace.com/youmeat6
Josh Franceschi – vocals
Max Helyer – guitar/vocals
Chris Miller – guitar
Joe Phillips – drums
Matt Barnes – bass
Gossip is not only the name of one of Surrey’s breakthrough pop rock act You Me At Six’s latest tracks, but it’s also an adequate way to describe their rise from local heroes to a nationally touring success story. Everybody’s talking about them. And what makes it even more interesting is the fact that none of the members have yet to reach 18 years of age, but their finesse and songwriting ability gives the impression of a much more experienced band. This can only mean that as the band keep performing and writing new material, their sound will progress further, along with their fan base and success.
They have become a symbol to young aspiring musicians that age can’t hold you back in today’s rock scene. Their pop punk-orientated sound is for teenagers, by teenagers, which gives their live shows a more intimate feel for younger fans and there is an overwhelming sense of hope in their music, lyrics, their journey as a band and the pure love of what they do. It is admirable, inspiring and a refreshing change from the norm.
2006 saw endorsement from Oli Syke’s (of Bring Me The Horizon fame) dropdead clothing company, success in the Taste of Chaos competition and performances alongside such huge UK unsigned bands as Enter Shikari, penknifelovelife and Flood of Red, bringing them to a whole new level and introducing them to a wave of new listeners eager to hear their unique take on the blend of pop punk riffs with up-beat emo vocals and a catchy rhythm section.
They have recently released their debut E.P., We Know What It Means To Be Alone, available at all shows and online soon. An essential purchase for anyone looking for a fresh take on the formerly ailing pop punk genre.
2007 can only be bigger for You Me At Six, the future looks bright for the Weybridge quintet. Catch them on tour, you certainly won’t regret it.
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interview: josh from you me at 6
1. Many younger bands tend to get together in order to emulate their musical inspirations. As a younger band who has achieved success quite rapidly, how do you react when new bands cite you as a main influence?
Josh- When I see other musicians saying they are influenced by us , it really acts as a rubber stamp as to why we’re doing what we’re doing.
We’re kids , I am still inspired every time I see flood of red play , or enter shikari , its amazing , these are bands who are going somewhere but at the same time have been where we’ve been , maybe we just gotta keep doing what we’re doing.
2. Does your quick rise to fame make you more confident in writing new material and playing live shows? Or do you still get nervous in the studio and on the road?
josh- It’s weird , I don’t ever think of as band as gaining fame , a lot of it is just based on the whole myspace thing, but I for one will never ever claim the internet has’nt enhanced our band significantly , but at the same time I can’t shake the feeling that we’re just another band who think their going somewhere based on a website.
I’ve only ever gotten nervous once or twice playing live and that was to my family , and my girlfriend at the time , that to me matters more than anything , proving yourself to your loved ones , fuck the douchebags at the labels!
As in regards to writing new material , we clash a lot in music tastes . When we wrote gossip , some of us , infact the majority of us hated it , but as some might say it’s helped the word of yma6 spread , we cant hide from that. We try and right songs that come easy , so there’s never any pressure writing songs that come with some kind of ease.
3. Where you ever told “you’ll never make it” or did you receive a lot of support from family and friends? And you think that support or lack of faith pushed you in any way to work harder and make your dreams come true.
josh- The first manager we ever had , we didn’t keep for longer than a few months because he said to us ‘ I wont put you on shows in less you play metal , all this pop punk shit just isn’t popular, you’ll never get anyway etc etc’ , 4 months later we headlined the barfly , I like to think that speaks for its self. That really is what , lyrically, I write about, ‘The rumour’ epitomises the feeling I have about this whole ‘scene’ or whatever , it’s shit , everyone has just followed everyone else , and I refuse to let me and my band compromise our musical interests to satisfy a bunch of kids who are just into some shitty fashion. We have amazing family , and realistically our friends have helped build this ‘hype’ around our band , so they know how we feel towards them, but it’s not so much people not believing in us , its us not believing we can do this , it seems impossible, but you never know what’s round the corner.
4. When do you plan to record a full length album?
josh- Ah man , soon as , as soon as we’re done with this education malarkey and get a good distro deal we’ll be on that shit.
Unless a large label approaches us we’re not signing onto anyone , so we will continue to do this ourselves , so album’s etc depend on how much we can earn.
But with that said , we have an ep on its way, which in my opinion , could get us where we want to be.
5. Fans always have their favourite tracks, but are there any of your own that you particularly enjoy performing live?
josh- It varies show to show , I love playing new stuff because its fresh , I hate ‘promise promise’ and ‘this turbulence is beautiful’ its just not what I want to play anymore.
6. What inspires you in the song-writing process?
josh- Our band is totally inspired by different things, I am honestly inspired by everyone else that is doing the thing I love , but ultimately when it comes to lyrics etc , theres nothing better than having a good old bitch.
‘Noises’ in one song sums up the shittest experience with the opposite sex ever, ‘gossip’ is about everyone around me and how I feel DTA , don’t trust anybody, and the rumour is the feeling I get every time I play a show , I want people to think , Hold the phone , these guys are trying something slightly different to everyone else I am listening too… rad!
7. What bands have you most enjoyed playing with?
josh- Well we only have ever done one tour, so death can dance will always be a band we’ve enjoyed playing with. Honestly tho , there’s two bands that stand out , flood of red and we’re not super heroes anymore, we admire, get along with and generally just enjoy everything about these guys.
8. Are there any particular venues or places that you really enjoy playing at? Or is the thrill of performing in front of fans that drives you no matter what.
josh- Even if we play infront of 5 people , to me , that’s perfect.
I prefer larger audiences because then I am not picking faces I know out of the crowd , but you know.
I hate backline in Guilford , at first it was cool , now its just like the older versions of pro evo , it just aint pro evo 6!! But one day I want to play the Astoria , it’s closing soon , so I am waiting for that call , that offer to play there.
9. What dreams do you hope to achieve in the future?
josh- World domination, if that’s not what you want in music , whats the point , if you don’t want to hit every single person on this earth with music , then put that shit down and go work in a supermarket.
10. Finally, do you have anything you would like to say to your fans out there, a message of hope perhaps?
josh- Just obviously , thankyou. It means the world to us.
Words: Christian Hawker
Photos: D Yod Yutamano
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