Feature
INHEAVEN on tour: "We're like a haggard, newborn baby!"
Following the release of their self-titled debut in September last year, INHEAVEN's just-finished Dork-badged tour hit up loads of spots they didn't get a chance to on the album run. It was loads of fun.
Published: 3:00 pm, February 19, 2018
Not only is tonight in Cambridge the second date of INHEAVEN’s headline tour, but it’s also guitarist Jay Lucas’s birthday, and something of a homecoming as drummer Joe Lazarus actually lives here. With family and friends piling in to see them, the band are in good spirits.
As they rattle around the empty venue before the show, the four-piece bring the gang mentality of The Clash and stylistic observation of The Strokes into a melding factory of their own creation. The room quickly sees stars and stripes draped over instrument cabs, roses adorning every spare surface, and a large blood-red velvet style backdrop.
“We’re really into that,” singer and guitarist James Taylor admits. “My favourite thing is when you walk into a gig, and you feel a part of it. A band with a smoke machine, and like, one light bulb is not inspiring, is it?”
“It could be cool though, just one light,” singer and bassist Chloe Little swiftly interjects. “I like the sound of that!”
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Photo: Sarah Louise Bennett / Dork[/caption]
It’s clear they take this approach very seriously. During the show’s set up, James and Chloe can be seen scattering roses across the stage, with every position picked meticulously, as if each stem is holding its own individual role in their grander scheme.
“We design all the backdrop and the drum skin and everything so that when you come in it’s like our world,” James says. It’s all of these little flourishes that come together to create the environment that matches the sound they unleash: proof that INHEAVEN has cracked the balance of both style and substance.
As if kicking off the new year with a tour wasn’t enough, they’re also jetting off to the US for the first time in March with fellow Dork faves, Pale Waves. It’s not hard to see why the band are excited about hitting the open road across the pond.
“A lot of our favourite bands are from America,” James begins. “We’re looking forward to going to Seattle, Chicago, New York…”
But it’s not all just going to be about the long drives and bright lights.
“Have you seen all these crazy food Instagrams in America, [and] food bloggers?” Chloe asks excitedly. “[I’ve] been screengrabbing things that I want to eat in certain places, because I love a list. So I’m making a ridiculous list of all the places that I want to eat. Not oh, ‘I want to see Niagara Falls…’
“It’s easy to want to sit and do nothing when you’re touring,” she continues. “Because it’s weird hours, and you have to get up late and things like that. You have to make a conscious effort when you’re in new places to try and see something or to be reading or writing every day.”
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Photo: Sarah Louise Bennett / Dork[/caption]
