The Kut – Valley of Thornes

By starrymag | June 7, 2018

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

Q) How would you describe your sound?

 

A) [laughs] Such a tough opener! I like to call it basement rock…It was a label given in a review back when The Kut became a project. I guess it was the idea of mixing a load of genres, but if I was to define them it would be mainly rock and punk and I guess a bit of grunge and possibly metal with the odd breakbeat.

 

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

 

A) I love so many bands, but I’m really feeling a lot of BMTH, Linkin Park, Korn, Janes Addiction, Incubus, Placebo, Pendulum, Radiohead and Alice in Chains at the moment – even more than usual.  The new RHCP album is great. Then, I’ve also been known to listen to a lot of Green Day, Rancid, Nirvana, Neds Atomic Dustbin, Faith No More, Hole and then in the same breath Kasabian, The Stone Roses, Happy Mondays or Garbage. There used to be more of a divide between fans of rock and fans of indie when I started playing, but I just loved them both.  Nowadays I just pick up a stack of albums from the store and binge listen to them until I can’t listen to them anymore. That said, Alexisonfire – Crisis permanently lives in my car. That and Janes’ The Great Escape Artist.

 

Q) Where did the title for your Valley of Thorns album originate?

 

A) The album took a decade to release, so a lot of the inspiration in the title came from that alone. I’d say that the life of many musicians is probably like this – I sometimes think we have no choice but to suffer in order to create – and that suffering somehow transforms into something positive when channeled into music.  I mean, I’ve had to make a lot of major life sacrifices, lived on the bread line for years although I’m working incredibly hard and faced a lot of disappointment and obligatory self-doubt on the way. It doesn’t bother me – because it’s part of who I am. Of course, when we look from a distance the valley is always green, but when you get there and it’s just thorns…well that is where I was going with the title.  I just wanted the title to be an expression of the album and where I’ve been to create it, rather than a description of the songs.  It would have just been so easy to pick a well-known song name and call it that…I’m not a musician because I thought it was cool or something – it’s the fibers of who I am.  I’m really interested in mental health and there’s a good deal of evidence to suggest that creative individuals are quite prone to low moods.  So, the idea of being in a valley of thorns is actually how I feel about my life.  I guess that might be difficult for anyone to hear right now, especially when the album just become a Top 10 Rock Hit in the UK. But when people ask me if I’m happy… well probably not, but it doesn’t actually matter.  I am incredibly proud and grateful to everyone for supporting the album. It blew me away that we hit so many UK charts, seven actually, and I’m still in shock.  It was such an incredible feeling to realize just how well the album had been received.

 

Q) What did you find the most challenging part of creating the album?

 

A) Promoting the release was challenging – the biggest project I’ve ever taken on – but when I saw all the photos of our friends and supporters with the album, all across social media, I started to realize just how many amazing people had our back.  It was overwhelming in the most positive sense.  The album was way bigger than the work I’d put in to get it out there, or the project itself, or the music on it. Valley of Thorns was the biggest underdog and getting a chart position was such a win for the underground scene.  I know a lot of bands on our scene have been really inspired by it and will somehow feel comfort to know that we tried something impossible – something that the industry says you can’t do – and that it can in fact be done.  Then, when the chart figures started coming in, it started getting incredibly real. It was a really special moment and something that I think will have a huge impact on everything The Kut does going forward.

 

Q) What is your song writing process? Do you need music before you can create lyrics?

 

A) Sometimes it starts with lyrics, sometimes it’s a riff or beat I’m working on. I sometimes feel songs building up in the background for a while, kind of like you can feel the blood gushing in your ears when you get stressed out.  I get moments where I think, “Someone pass me a pen because I’m going to write an album.”  To be honest, I wish I had more time to work on music right now though. It’s all been really full on with the album coming up and so little time I have can be spent on writing new material.  It’s almost ironic that I became a musician because I love to play and write songs, but I end up spending so much time on managing the project and release, booking tours and arranging the logistical aspects of everything we do.

 

Q) What was it like working with producer James Le Rock on the album?

 

A) It was amazing to work with James on the album. We knew about him through a friend who was making dance music at the time, but I just liked the production a lot. I was really happy to find out that James is into so many of the same bands as I am, as well as having a big thing for grunge in general. We recorded the album in a number of different studios and I think we both moved houses between the start and end of recording dates!  Everything just sounds perfect now though, and I’m so happy with the album.  I’m really into Skindred and My Vitriol, who he also produces.  Man’s a legend!

 

Q) What do you hope listeners take away from listening to your album as a whole?

 

A) I’ve heard so many great comments on the album so far, and it’s been really so humbling to hear what it means to our friends and supporters.  I can’t wait to be playing the album out on the road now. We’ll be playing the whole album all across the UK on our launch party tour, so that’s twenty-two playbacks in a row as well as another twenty or so festivals that we love. I guess everyone can expect all the usual antics and stage invasions, but it’s really going to be a celebration. I mean, I won’t go into specific tracks right now, but when I set up Criminal Records I remember putting together a statement about the death of the album. At the time, the bigger labels were finding bands with some absolute gems of singles and then rushing them into the nearest studio to complete the record. I can think of so many albums I was excited about based on said singles, only to be a bit gutted when the rest of the tracks were filler. So, I just wanted the debut to carry a torch for the concept of an album as a body of work. Although many of the tracks are varied from each other, I think the quality of the tracks is similar across the album and I’d like to think there’s no filler tracks.

 

Q) Where are some of your favorite places to perform and what makes those locations so significant to you?

 

A) I’ve always loved playing in Camden. Well, I mean, it is still part of London and only up the road, but it’s just got such a great vibe. Every show we’ve played in the last five years has been incredible.  I remember when I was starting out as The Kut – the rehearsals went really well and the songs were there, but then for whatever reason I’d end up on the wrong side of a few beers.  You could call it self-sabotage, but I just wasn’t ready.  Thankfully, that was a good learning curve to get out of the way early on. It’s not how I want to represent myself and not what supporters deserve. I see bands mess up being too drunk all the time and it’s just a disappointment to everyone who has paid to get in. Sure, at the time I think the front row used to look happy enough watching to see if I’d fall of the stage as I staggered around drunk in stilettos and there were a few tape recordings of me changing the lyrics of songs to alcohol references…but, I mean, that’s not who I am or how I feel about The Kut. I just had to solidify the idea that gigs were not parties and that if someone offered me a drink I should totally be cool saying, “No thanks, I’m fine.”  I hardly drink until after the shows now.

 

Q) You were Rock category Finalist of the UK Songwriting Contest 2017 and Semi-Finalist of the International Songwriting Competition. How did that make you feel?

 

A) Honestly, it was incredible. It was a really validating moment. I just remember entering both competitions on a whim. The UK Songwriting Contest I entered after a chat with my sister. I’d always thought why not, but never entered. She really spurred me on to go for it, so I entered one song – “I Want You Maniac.” I was really blown away when it became a semi-finalist and then a finalist in the rock category. I wasn’t expecting it and it couldn’t have come at a better time: We were on tour, having a day of down time in Glasgow. There was lots of jumping and hugs. Best feeling ever.  I guess this made the International Songwriting Competition even more of a shock. I know it doesn’t work like that, but sometimes a big win makes you feel like it’s not likely to happen again – or at least I sometimes feel like that. When I found out that ‘I Want You Maniac’ was also a semi-finalist in the USA counterpart, it was incredible. Both competitions are huge, but I’d been selected as a writer out of 16,000 entrants in the USA competition. I’d literally entered one song because I didn’t have any money to enter another one. It was brilliant.

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who is a fan and supporter of you and your work?

 

A) I’d like to say a huge heartfelt thank you to everyone who has been supporting The Kut and the debut album. It’s been so incredible these last few months, but it’s the longterm bonds we’ve made that have been so important to making this happen and spurring The Kut on to get here. Whether you’ve been supporting via Pledge, online, in stores or from a far, you’ve really pulled something incredible out of the bag. THANK YOU!  Me and the girls can’t wait to get back out on the road now. We’ve over 40 UK tour dates coming up this year, and we’d love to see you all there to celebrate. YOU ROCK xx

 

 

All Questions Answered By Princess Maha