It’s no surprise that a city as unique and combustive as Liverpool would bring together a band so striking as Wide Eyed Boy. Two parts British, one part German and one part Australian, this four-piece take their adopted home’s heritage seriously – from the internationalist culture of the city, to its inevitable musical lineage.
Oliver, Johnny, Kobi & Tom found themselves bonding at McCartney’s LIPA, over a shared love of Michael Jackson, Bowie and modern Liverpool cult favourites like The Wombats, The Zutons and Circa Waves. The Decision was made to decamp to Budapest to write new songs, a trip that gave birth to the groups latest single ‘Loving You Is So Easy’. The sophomore track taken from their self-titled debut album is a snarling, stomping and swirling 3 minutes of bass-heavy, funk-influenced rock n roll. – produced by fellow Liverpool resident Rich Turvey (Cabbage, Blossoms, Darlia) -Wide Eyed Boys potent, polished sound screams of a young band in full flush– a swaggering track to introduce what’s sure to be a one to watch in the coming months.
We caught up with the guys to see what they are all about in yet another YACK! Q&A…
You all met at LIPA but individually you all come from varied backgrounds. What does that bring to the band?
Jonny – I think that although we have a lot of similar tastes in music it brings different perspectives or outlooks to the stuff that we write – the end result being something we probably wouldn’t have been able to make individually which is really cool.
What was the writing process behind LYISE, did you all sit down and write together or was it an amalgamation of different ideas?
Oliver – We tend to write most songs together in a room at the same time cause it’s fun to vibe off each other. With LYISE it was a bit different however. Kobi and I decided to meet up in our practice room in Liverpool to just jam on an acoustic for a bit and see what happens. We had a couple of beers and after 4 hours we thought we were finished. Then Kobi started to improvise something on the guitar and out of nowhere I had this melody and lyric in my head. ”Loving you is so easy, easy when I’m down”. We recorded that idea and the next morning I couldn’t get it out of my head, so we got Tom and Jonny involved and finished the song the next day in about 1 hour.
Do you actually like The Beatles?
Jonny – Speaking for myself i love the Beatles – and they had a huge influence on me growing up. For us to have had the opportunity to have a songwriting tutorial with Paul McCartney was massively surreal and amazing as it’s just something you would dream of doing when you were younger.
You cite a collective love of Bowie and Michael Jackson but are there any bands that aren’t as well known that have had an impact on your music?
Kobi – Yes very much so. We’re so lucky to be based in Liverpool where we’re surrounded by artists such as Clean Cut Kid and Dan Croll who are doing great at the moment and who we’re big fans of; which definitely has an impact on the Wide Eyed Boy music. But not only do we take inspiration from them, we also love taking inspiration from our close friends who are also musicians, people that we just hang out with, artists like Mutant Vinyl, Oya Paya and Native Kings. I would say these guys have just as much impact on our music as Bowie, MJ and the other legends that inspire us have.
Equally, are there any non-musical people that have influenced your music?
Oliver – This doesn’t mean your Mum and Dad, even if they did. I can only speak for myself, but anyone really that I become close with influences my songwriting and our music, sometimes even unconsciously. You learn from other people’s experiences, you listen to their stories and they inspire you, especially when you’re having writer’s block.
What does the second half of 2017 have in store for Wide Eyed Boy?
Tom – We have another track to come out soon which we are all really looking forward for you to hear. We’re also going to be doing a load more gigs over here and in Germany. That’s so much fun so I can’t wait to get back on the road.
Who is your favourite member of the band and what is your favourite thing about them?
Kobi – Jonny, because he never says no to a party.
If you could change one thing in this world what would it be? World peace and an end to hunger are not options here guys sorry.
Tom – Ok so we’re not going political and serious so you’ve definitely asked the right person here but it’s hard to narrow it down to just one. I hate ticket touts, missed out on so many gigs cos of them. They can go. Virgin Trains – why is it costing me so much to go anywhere. Sorry Richy B Chewing. Ask anyone in the band. I hate the crunch of apples and stuff, I don’t know why. But Jonny come near me with that toffee apple (how has he even got that??!!) and we will have problems.
Picture the scene, you’re walking home one night after a few too many drinks at your favourite bar. A stranger approaches you in the dark and asks for all of your possessions. Its Hulk Hogan, what do you do?
Kobi – He can have my possessions if he let’s me do his signature move The Leg Drop on him and tell me that the move now belongs to me. It’s no longer a Hulk Hogan move.
Same scenario only this time its Carol Vorderman who is trying to Mug you
Tom – So we watched Supersonic last week in the van so I’m going to go Liam over her. I’m gonna throw whatever I have in my hands on the floor and shout come on Carol let’s ave it. I’m obviously not going to actually do anything to her but she’s not gonna know that. If she doesn’t back down I’ll do what any respectable guy in a pop band would do. I’ll run.
Lastly, who will be the most and least sexy celebrity of 2017?
Oliver – I’m pretty sure Donald Trump will be the least sexy celebrity in 2017. For me he tops the list every year! The sexiest for me is probably Ariana Grande. She’s always been beautiful in my eyes but the way she handled the catastrophe in Manchester and managed; with incredible help from everyone involved, to put on a beneficial concert that will go down in history is truly heartwarming and inspirational.
