Introduce yourself…
St Tantrums are St.Sebastien. Frontman and all round nice guy.
St John the Bassist, Bass player by coincidence
St Ben the Nailer on guitar
St Gaz the sinner Drums
How did the band start?
John - me and seb played together in a couple of bands in the early 90's. after a good long while out of touch we met back up through a friend who also introduced us to gaz. ben joined us about a year ago after the first two guitarists left
How did you come up with the name?
John - ask Seb we've got no idea.
Seb - During one of my many ethereal wanderings I found myself locked in an 18th century lunatic asylum. The name across the wrought iron gate was St.Tantrums.
Who would you say are your influences?
Seb - We all have very different influences. My personal ones are Wild Willi Beckett and the Psycho Surgeons, Sultans of Ping and Sex Gang Children.
John - for me it's Motorhead, The Damned and The Adicts with a whole shit load of other stuff
Ben -My influences include Rancid, Trashlight Vision, Dropkick Murphys and the Misfits to name a few.
What is the punk scene like in the UK?
Seb - The place where it all began? It's certainly not the place where it thrives today.
John - Depends where you are, in Bradford where we are its difficult to find any interest, we get a much better reception almost anywhere else. There are a few people like Fungalpunk, Stu Taylor and Vince from Studs and Punks who do loads of work to keep the scene alive but most of the attention stays on the old 70's/80's bands.Fuck em all and up the underdogs is what we say!
How do you feel it has changed?
Seb - Punk was about doing your own thing and not giving a damn but like most things it has become far too commercial.
John -When me and Seb used to play 15 or so years ago there was a good audience at most gigs. these days the old 70's/80's bands usually do alright but there doesn't seem to be as much interest in the new/current bands. I've seen some brilliant bands play to empty rooms when some shitty "old" band with one original member plays to a packed house. people want what they know and aren't prepared to try something new. Having said that some of the Spit and Sawdust (Fungalpunk) and STP (Stu Taylor) shows we've done have been classic.
Describe the song writing process...
Seb -.. 'I need lyrics and it's half an hour until band practice'
John -Don't know about the rest of 'em but I get pissed on hombrew wine play my bass and anything i can remember the next day i call a song. seems to have worked so far.
You guys released a demo EP, tell us about the EP...
Seb - I'm the first to admit it's rough around the edges. I think it was more about just capturing the feeling of the band at the time than recording an E.P.
John - It was totally DIY, we recorded it for no money in our practice room but we're very pleased with the result, ben is some kind of mad mixing genius and made us sound really good. at the moment there's almost no copies in existence cos we can't afford ink to print the covers! the ones we did have we gave away. we should have more available soon.
Ben - Originally I did not play on the EP as I had not joined the band at the time it was recorded. When the initial mixes were sent back, John sent me all the audio files and I remixed the songs, adding my guitar parts.
What else have you released?
Seb - I was released from the lunatic asylum that was St.Tantrums into the band we now know and love. Other than that, not a great deal.
Who are some of the bands you have done shows with?
Seb - There are some amazing bands doing the rounds at the mo. Mainly The King Crows and The Mardigras Bombers.
John - we've not played with anyone that you're likely to have heard of but we've played with loads of really good bands. Highlights so far are definately The Mardigras Bombers, The Kingcrows and In Evil Hour (formerly The Zombie Headhunters). Another favourite was The Junk. I think we're supposed to be playing with English Dogs in January.
Ben - We've played with 'In Evil Hour' (formerly known as 'Zombie Head Hunters') they're awesome. We have also played with Mardigras Bombers and Kingcrows, I'd recommend watching these bands to anyone!
Do you prefer to do shows at large venues or small clubs?
Seb - We're lucky if we even get a stage to play on. We're often just squashed up in a corner of a bar somewhere.
John - Not really played any large venues, but i like the small clubs. you can get a really good atmosphere with not so many people.
Ben - I like doing shows in smaller venues because they look fuller.
Have you toured?
Seb - We did a mini tour with the bands mentioned before.
Is there a favorite band you like to do shows with?
John - gotta be the Mardigras Bombers, those guys are brilliant. We love playing with the Kingcrows too
Is there a favorite place you like to do shows at?
Seb - Anywhere out of our destitute little town is cool with us
John - My favourite venue was the Zuu Bar in Bradford but it's closed down now. I don't think it was cos we played there.
Ben - My favourite venue so far has got to be The Dog and Partridge in Preston because the pub was packed and there was a really good atmosphere.
Do you see is the future of the St Tantrums?
Seb - I'm almost certain that at least one of us will make front page news.
John - We'll keep on playing sleazy punk rock to anyone that'll stay still long enough to hear us until we've either had enough or someone beats us so badly we can't play anymore.
Ben -The band are currently working on a few new songs which should be ready for live performance in the near future. We also want to record a new EP in the studios at Huddersfield uni, which I study at
How can people contact the band?
www.myspace.com/sainttantrums, http://studsandpunks.co.uk/sttantrums/, or contact john bowman on facebook
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