Introduce yourself…
Hi! My name is Nikki & I sing for The Signal....
How did the band start?
The band started back in 2008 although we all have been in previous bands over many years. We come from Inverness in the Scottish highlands. we have had a few line up changes over the last few years,some good some some bad! Currently Dave is on drums,Lewis on bass & Sheree on guitar,in fact me & Dave are the only original members in the band,we just try to keep it going for as long as we can,one day we will probably just say 'fuck it'!! But for now all is well in Signal camp...it's always been quite a volatile band from the very beginning...haha!
How did you come up with the name?
The name has no specific meaning,cant even remember how it came about really, but when it did we just thought ..yeah,we like the sound of that,so we just went with it, but we always had to be THE' something',& Signal sounded the best I guess!
Who would you say are your influences?
Our influences are pretty vast,early punk bands from the 70's & 80's, OI!, ska, metal, folk, rock... Whatever sounds good, I don't think 'punk' is anything to do with an image, punk is an attitude, so any band can be punk as long as they've got something to say.
What is the punk scene like in Scotland?
The DIY punk scene in Scotland is good,Edinburgh has big punk scene & Glasgow also,up in the highlands it aint so good, there are punk bands about but they are few & far between & getting gigs can be a bit of a headache to be honest,but you just keep pestering places until they give you a gig... I find that approach usually works... They give you a gig just so you piss off... haha!
Describe the song writing process...
Our song writing process is pretty straight forward,the band come up with the music & I write the lyrics after. We record our stuff on an 8 track digital recorder, all our songs were recorded in the attic of my house where the band practices,we've never been into a studio, we write, we record, we release, we make music the easy way & there is no pressure in that process, so it suits us. We like to dabble a bit when it comes to song writing,we might write a straight up punk tune then next time around it may lean more towards metal or even rock but there is always a punk undertone going on,we don't really want to pigeonhole ourselves into one particular genre when there are so many to choose from!
What have you released?
We have released a couple of cd's,our self titled EP back in 2009 & also a split album with Bin Laden's Daughter who hail from Elgin in Scotland & also Wifebeater from Aberdeen,it was a completely DIY affair, no frills, just the music... We usually take a batch of cd's along to our gigs & sell them for a few quid, enough to cover the cost of printing covers etc... we are not in it to make money, if people want to buy our cd that is good enough for us, we are just happy that people want to!
Who are some of the bands you have done shows with?
We have played with a couple of high profile bands but also a lot of great local bands too. We opened for Stiff Little Fingers when they played Inverness, which was a personal highlight for me, they are pretty much punk royalty, they were around when the punk movement started in the 70's & have influenced many bands since & we've also played with The King Blues. We have done a lot of gigs with Bin Laden's Daughter, they are a great local punk band, we always have a good gig with them, we are all in it for a laugh & a bit of banter!
Have you toured?
We haven't toured as yet but it is something we would like to be able to do in the future, we all hold down jobs & have families so it isn't as practical for us to just go off on tour as it is for other bands, the band for us is a hobby, we don't take it or ourselves too seriously, it's a fickle thing, a band. one minute it's going great then next it turns to shit, we've learnt that through experience, so we'll just enjoy it for as long as it lasts & gig as much as possible!
Do you prefer small clubs or large venues?
When you live in the Scottish highlands you cant really be too fussy about where you play, just take the gigs where you can get them, we'd play at the opening of an envelope! There is a great little venue in Inverness called The Market Bar & we love playing there. I cant explain to you just how small this venue is, it's like playing in someone's bedroom but with a bar in it & it is just the best place to play, it has a really cool, relaxed vibe about it, the crowd are right there in your face & it should be intimidating but it's the complete opposite. Out of all the places we played over the last 3 years it's the one place I'm always happy to play again & again, so yeah we are definitely a fan of the more intimate venues as opposed to larger ones as you can feel a bit detached from the audience in big venues,up close & personal is how we like it!
What do you see is the future of the Signal?
The future of The Signal? Who knows....we'll just keep writing songs,recording & gigging until we decide we cant be arsed doing it anymore I suppose!
How can people contact the band?
If anyone would like to check us out they can find us on myspace & punkrockers.com
myspace.com/the signal01
www.punkrockers.com/the%20signal
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