What Comes Next? Psych-pop Heroes HMS Morris Plot A Future In Immersive Theatre
Monday, 10 December 2018
Written by Laura Johnson
Over the last year we’ve been fortunate enough to speak with some awesome up and coming bands about some of our favourite albums of the year. But we wanted more. MORE!
So, as the end of 2018 drew ever closer, we decided to find out how they’ve been doing since we initially caught up with them and what they’ve got planned for the year ahead.
After checking in with Tali Källström of Estrons, Goat Girl guitarist Ellie, and Bristol punks Lice, we sent up a flare to see what’s new in the world of Welsh psych-pop heroes HMS Morris. Over to vocalist and guitarist Heledd Watkins...
Stereoboard spoke with you in September around the release of ‘Inspirational Talks’. What have you been up to since then?
Well, after we saw Helen we played the last few dates of the 'Inspirational Talks' tour and then we got on a plane bound for Montréal. We played a great festival called Pop Montréal. It’s a bit like [Cardiff’s] Sŵn Festival where there are gigs across the city. We ate some poutine and discovered some nice new bands like Holobody and Sparklesaurus. It was wonderful!
During the interview you discussed how the Cardiff music scene had come together even more through the Save Womanby Street campaign. Have you seen that camaraderie continue and do you think that sense of community is essential to the growth of the Welsh music scene as a whole?
Yes, I think so. We played Sŵn after returning from Canada, and the vibe around Womanby and beyond was awesome. You could really sense the camaraderie, from the volunteers who were giving up their time, the venue peeps who were excited to get their spaces involved, and of course the gig-goers loving the music. It was a similar feel but with less music and more free booze at the Welsh Music Prize celebrations a couple of weeks later. Great times to be a band in Wales.
You also spoke about a musical based on your track (On Our Way From) Earth. How's that going?
Yes, we’re working slowly on an immersive theatre show with live music—I hate musicals so I’m going to avoid calling it that. There's a story arc and a few key scenes on paper already, and we’ll be taking some time away from gigging in January to solidify the backbone of the show and begin to bring some more people on to the team. We’re excited to venture into unknown territory and challenge ourselves a bit.
Are you already working on album three?
We’ve done a little bit of writing but no definite plans as yet to work on album number three. We’re going to be concentrating on the show for the next few months, by which time I wouldn't be surprised at all if some new songs have cropped up for nurture and release by the end of the year.
What have been your best band moments of the year? Please let us know all the lovely details.
Our trip to Montréal was a highlight, of course, but another stand out moment for us was our performance on the Walled Garden stage at Green Man festival. The place was rammed and the weather was perfect, plus they have a cider bar in that part of the festival so I was in my element. It’s a pretty great festival and it’s so close to home!
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