Kendal Calling 2023: Interview With Daytime TV

I was lucky enough at this years Kendal Calling to get to meet and talk to rising band Daytime TV.

The four guys came along to the press tent for a chat, and afterwards a beer, it was great to spend some time with them and there is revelation in this interview, apparently, and not many people know this as he’s reticent to mention it, lead singer Will is from the Highlands of Scotland…. Sorry if that’s a spoiler and you hadn’t heard that already!

So Will, apparently, you’re from the Highlands?

Will: Yes, I’m from up near Ullapool.

John: He loves to tell people about that, you know often they didn’t actually ask but he still crowbars it in somehow to every conversation.

Will: I’m outnumbered 3.1, these guys are all English!

Where abouts are you all from?

John: Shrewsbury in Shropshire.

Chris: Black Country, near Birmingham.

Gareth: I’m from down south, Brighton.

So you’re completely spread out, how did you meet?

John: We all met in London, I was the last they met, we had all headed to London looking to find other musicians like us.

Will: We were like magnetised together. We found 3 other people deluded enough to try to do this.

John: London is full of people as stupid as you are, we just realised we got on.

Gareth: It was a case of three other people paying too much for rent…

Chris: Luckily the three people met who were all incredibly handsome.

Which three was that?

John: We’ll let you decide.

We all know I’m not answering that question!

How was it, you opened the main stage today?

Will: It was unreal man!

It was a bit quiet when you came on but it got quite busy, I thought?

Gareth: We drew them in an they seemed to get into it.

Will: I was pleasantly surprised, I was expecting to go and there would be a smattering of people, by song 3 it was a pretty healthy crowd.

John: There were a lot of tired faces its effectively Saturday morning opening the stage at noon.

Chris: You know what though, do you remember the festivals you would go to when you were younger? You’d be absolutely useless in the morning, quite often you didn’t make it into the arena until about 2 or 3 so have that many people for us was a real move, I think.

It got quite busy and there were a lot of people really into it.

Will: They all got into it, we’re looking forwards to getting out and getting amongst the festival, checking it all out.

You announced the tour during the set?

Will: Yeah, I really wasn’t supposed to! Our manager is here, in the crowd, after I said it, I looked out and could see his face, he really wasn’t impressed! But I thought why not. I didn’t get hassle afterwards, he was like you’ve done it now, it is what it is! Anyway it was a fun thing to do and if I hadn’t done it maybe half the people would never have known.

It’s an opportunity, isn’t it? There may have been a number of people who don’t know you that well and if they’re enjoying the music….

Will: It happens all the time, you get a bit excited, you, well, I, just blurt out all of the secrets

John: Usually he shouts out I’m from the Highlands!

Will: Being from the highlands it’s very quiet and chilled up there. I get all excited on stage and shout things out.

John: I’m a size 11 shoe.

That’s a different boast…

Chris: We have announced, accidently, a tour, the full dates are out on Wednesday the 2nd of August.

Will: It’s the UK and Europe. Lots of Germany, Amsterdam and maybe Paris? We are doing Austria and Warsaw.

Will: First show is Glasgow, we are covering a lot of the UK, we are doing all of the main bits apart from London. We are doing London this Wednesday coming (this was the 2nd of August). We’re doing Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow, Exeter, are we doing Leeds and Newcastle?

Chris: No, nearest to here is Manchester.

Do you actually know where you’re going?

Will: No, we’ll find out on Wednesday (he laughed at that).

Chris: It's going to be really exiting though, I think all of us just love playing shows. It’s like one of the main reasons we’re in a band. We just love playing gigs.

Will: I think the way music works now a lot of bands haven’t played live much. It’s all about social and streaming. If there was no live, I wouldn’t bother. That’s where we all come alive. It’s that exchange of energy with the crowd.

John: A lot of people take themselves too seriously, we are enjoying ourselves, we want to have a good time on stage and hope that comes across.

Will: We’re excited to tour; it’s going to be wicked.

You’re getting a lot of good support from Radio One at the moment.

Will: It’s been quite mad, the last track 'Jessica', we’ve been really lucky to be championed by some DJ’s.

Chris: That’s what this Wednesday night is, we are at a night curated by one of the DJ’s. We’re playing a small venue in Shoreditch which is going to be small and sweaty. It sold out really quickly. We are playing for an hour.

Will: We have been working on some new music as well, 'Jessica', we’ve been it live for a while. Lot of people encouraged us to put it out as an interim single, it’s gone really well.

So how’s the studio going?

Chris: Absolutely wicked, it’s been fantastic. I’m so excited, I love it, I think it’s the best stuff we’ve done.

Will: We’ve been working with this really cool producer called Ross Hamilton, it feels like he aligns with what we want to do. In the past there has always been some compromise.

John: We’ve found our guy with Ross; we finish each other’s sentences.

Chris: I’m buzzing, he’s, our guy! He is literally our guy. That’s the thing though, most bands find that producer who fits with them and that’s when they take off.

John: I saw Ross on the way out and he said he hated you Chris…. Sorry, that’s a rubbish in joke we have!

Will: I’ll be really interested to see how people react to the first one we’ve done with Ross.

It is different from what you’ve done before?

Will: Its not a departure from our style, it’s just sonically different.

Chris: In my mind its tip toeing into the ether or vibe we’ve always wanted to go into but couldn’t quite describe.

Gareth: It’s just sonically better.

Chris: It’s just great songs backed up with incredibly modern refreshing production.

Will: Our brief was to make music that sounds like its form next year. Let’s not put anything that sounds stock, we don’t want anything boring. We’ve pushed some boundaries. We love it, hopefully other people will as well.

Chris: I’m so excited.

Will: You are excited, aren’t you?

Chris: I think I need to sit apart or have a cold bath.

With the weather today just sit here, you won’t need to go anywhere!

John: Chris does not have the best poker face.

Clearly not!

Chris: I feel like we’re in a very good position, both live and the music. It feels like there is a groundswell of excitement around us which is great.

Is this your first time at Kendal?

John: Yes, first time here.

What do you think of it?

Chris: It’s mint Kendal.

Will: We need to go have a good walk around? There’s loads of acts I want to see.

So who do you want to see most?

Will: Mystery Jets.

They’re on right now!

Will: I know thanks for keeping us here!

Sorry!

Will: Only joking! Really want to see Rick Astley, Blossoms, obviously.

John: The Lottery Winners who we played with last week and the Kaiser Chiefs.

You know the Lottery Winners have been coming here for years and worked their way up through the stages, they started on the woodlands, they played the Parklands which is the one behind us just now last year and now they are quite high up the bill on the main stage.

Chris: I saw them posting about another lake district festival they support. It was closing this year, they’ve been there every year. They are lovely people.

Will: There is a band playing, I don’t know on what stage, called the Mary Wallopers.

It's Parklands, the one right behind you.

Will: I saw them on the tv when I was watching trnsmt, they are so class! They are verging on ridiculous but they are brilliant. They are mad.

Will: I know there are bands who struggle to get a crowd but we were pleasantly surprised with our slot, midday is a big ask! People waking up feeling all vinegary from last night.

Chris: I’d love to think that give it a couple of years and people will be saying they were there to see us opening the main stage, that they will boast about it!

John: Lottery Winners are an example of what you can achieve, they had a number 1 album this year and they are getting bigger and bigger!

Will: They can take that to the graves, we had a number 1 album.

Not many people can say that.

Will: We’re just enjoying it, we’ve played quite a few festivals already this summer and the audiences have been getting into it and enjoying it.

So is there a new album in the offing?

Will: There will be new music, we’re not sure how we will release it yet. There will be an album at some point. We want to do a bunch of singles. We want to give each song it’s chance.

Gareth: Otherwise it’s just sitting there for ages! The attention span isn’t always there now.

Chris: I think for us it works quite well, we are drip feeding. We are constantly busy, we are just realising music, playing live. We have shows coming up, we are also supporting the View soon.

Will: It’s two nights at the Caird Hall in Dundee.

That’s a homecoming for them.

Will: We know, it should be great, we are also supporting the P&J. We started in covid which was one of the worst times in history to try and be a band. It was a moment we could easily gone let’s not bother but we stuck with it. Since then we’ve been super lucky with lots of things coming our way. We want to just keep doing what we’re doing!

Do you honestly think it’s just luck or is it perseverance?

John: It’s a bit of both.

Chris: It’s intention and perseverance, we do work hard.

You see a lot of bands working hard and sometimes its luck but most of the time it goes well because they are actually good?

Will: I agree with that. That’s true but you also see a lot of really good bands who never make it!

Gareth: Saying that we won’t stop knocking until someone opens the door!

Chris: The situation for us is no-one really has a plan B so we need to make it work! I am genuinely excited by the new music, its comes from a place of positive vibes! I think its contagious, hopefully!

You started positively there and then caveated it with hopefully!

Chris: I know but I am genuinely excited!

Thanks guys, it’s been an absolute pleasure.

Will: Thanks, it’s been great, if you want to come to any of the gigs on the tour let us know?

I will take you up on that!

Will: So I have heard a rumour you guys have a couple of beer barrels in your tent…

We do, courtesy of Lancaster Brewery who have been brilliant, we have an IPA and a Raspberry Beer, I can get you some?

Will: Let’s go now!

Beer time!

Daytime TV

Website - daytimetvmusic.com

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/DaytimeTVOfficial