“We started calling it nu-rock because it’s a big modern, shiny sound,” Dead Pony vocalist Anna Shields says, describing the irrepressible, dancefloor-ready blend of big riffs and even bigger choruses that has propelled the band out of the Glasgow scene. “We take a lot of influence from nu-metal as well as early 2000s rock bands and pop stars. We also have a lot of electronic influences, like The Prodigy and Pendulum.”
The band — completed by guitarist Blair Crichton, bassist Liam Adams and drummer Euan Lyons — have been gathering momentum since the release of their ‘War Boys’ EP in 2022, but they took a huge stylistic leap forward with this year’s debut album ‘Ignore This’. Delving deeper into their own self-styled sound, they refocused their attack around electronics, scuzzy bass and bags of energy.
It paid off, too. Having completed a largely sold out UK tour last year, and with a slot at Glastonbury already under their belts, they’ll soon hit the stage at Reading & Leeds, where they’ll be bringing the party to tens of thousands. Following that, there’s the small matter of a December UK tour, where their tales of deadly assassins, brainwashing, and zombie outbreaks will take over venues in Sheffield, Nottingham, London, Birmingham, Bristol, Manchester and Leeds.
But how did Dead Pony create an album bold enough to wear a title that, quite literally, dares anyone that sees it to ignore them? We caught up with Shields to talk about musical identity, bucket list moments, being DIY and that time they put a broken arm on a T-shirt.
‘Ignore This’ marks quite a big sonic shift from your earlier work. How did you find your sound?
It was really when we started writing the album that we realised this is what Dead Pony is — this is what our universe looks and sounds like. We just knew that if we made this statement, changed up the style and came out with something that was undeniably amazing, then no one would be able to ignore us.
How does it feel to have already landed some massive opportunities, such as Glastonbury and Reading & Leeds?
I think it shows you that hard work really pays off. I've never even been to Reading & Leeds, it’s been a dream of mine to go to that festival, never mind to play it. Now, the first year that I’m going to the festival is the year that we’re playing it, which is incredible. These little achievements, these little moments of recognition make you realise that all the hard work is worth it.
What other bucket list shows do you have?
I’ve always wanted to play the QMU in Glasgow. It’s a really iconic old venue, and we’re headlining that in December. The Barrowlands in Glasgow is literally my favourite venue in the whole world, I love everything about it, and it’s a dream of mine to headline that one day, which isn’t too much of a step up. I think that once we headlined that it would just be like, ‘Great, we’ve made it.’
On your last tour, your bassist Liam broke his arm. What made you put the X-ray on a T-shirt?
We just thought it was funny. Paramore did it before. As soon as Liam broke his arm, I thought, ‘This is dreadful, he's in so much pain, he has to have surgery, but we’re going to get something good out of it.’ So we got the surgeon to download the X-rays onto a CD. And now it’s on a T-shirt.
How important is it to you to have a sense of humour?
Having a sense of humour and being able to have fun is just as important as being a good musician or being a good singer. If you're not having fun, then what's the point in doing it? A lot of our fans like that we don't take ourselves too seriously, and you can tell that we really do have fun on stage. Things go wrong and people break their arms, but we're still able to see the funny side of it.
You’re often heavily inspired by movies, like the ‘War Boys’ EP being based on Mad Max. Do you enjoy doing character-based or movie-based songs like that?
We've never written songs that are literal. I’ve always been inspired by cinema, books and by stories that people tell me. I think that for every real life political band, you also have to have a band that's all about escapism, and that's what our band is about. A lot of our songs, although they’re not explicitly about the world today, anyone can relate them to it. Mana is about a zombie apocalypse, and sometimes, going outside, you feel like you're living in a dystopian future.
Your approach as a band is very DIY. How vital is that?
It’s so important, because me and Blair are such control freaks. We know exactly how we want everything to look and sound. Blair takes control of the sonic [aspects] of the band, and I take control of the visuals of the band. We’re so particular about how we want everything to be and look because if you leave it up to someone else, they might not fully get what you’re trying to go for, or they might not fully get your sound.
A key message behind Dead Pony is self-acceptance. Does that relate to the growth you’ve gone through from developing your own sound to where you are now?
It definitely does, but I think for us it goes back even further than that. It wasn’t until I started to make music and accept who I am that I started to feel really happy in life. It definitely has been relevant in our music as well. In the past, we were just making music because we thought it sounded cool, because that’s what everyone else was making, but you can only be happy when you’re being authentic.
Dead Pony Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Tue December 03 2024 - SHEFFIELD Leadmill
Thu December 05 2024 - NOTTINGHAM Bodega Social Club
Fri December 06 2024 - LONDON Garage
Sat December 07 2024 - BIRMINGHAM O2 Institute3
Mon December 09 2024 - BRISTOL Exchange
Tue December 10 2024 - MANCHESTER Deaf Institute - Music Hall
Wed December 11 2024 - LEEDS Key Club
Fri December 13 2024 - GLASGOW QMU
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