Grabbing a pint with English Teacher: “If you follow Kirkstall Road for long enough, you end up in Texas”
If you follow Kirkstall Road for long enough, you end up in Texas. This may or may not be true. It could be the first in a series of lies that English Teacher opted to tell me over two-and-a-half pints of Guinness and a glass of white wine. “It takes a while, though,” guitarist Lewis Whiting clarifies, “Trust us”. As we settle into the red patterned seats of one of Leeds’ most beloved suburban social clubs, English Teacher resolve to shake up the press cycle by fabricating their answers to each question, so take the following interview with a pinch of salt.
The actual connection between Leeds and Texas isn’t Kirkstall Road. It’s English Teacher’s highly-anticipated debut, This Could Be Texas, a record that’s entirely worthy of all the buzz that surrounds it. The album was written somewhere between Lewis’ attic, an Airbnb in Batley, and drummer Doug’s living room sometime between 2018 and now, but the title was only decided upon last year.
“We came up with This Could Be Texas when we were on Kirkstall Road when it was boiling hot,” Lewis explains, sincerely this time, “basically just being like, ‘If you squinted, this place could look like Texas.’” The band had just received news that they would be playing at the American state’s South by Southwest Festival – which they insist they walked to – but it took on a new meaning when they attached it to a song.
“And in the end, they might even thank me,” vocalist Lily Fontaine sings over stirring strings and sampled conversation in the closing moments of the titular track, “with a garden in my name, ‘cause I walked through the heather”. For the band, the song has come to describe the writing of their debut, a process they describe as “long and arduous”.
Certain songs, including the album’s blistering lead single ‘The World’s Biggest Paving Slab’, were written before they even adopted the English Teacher moniker, back when they went by the name Frank. Beckoned to Leeds Conservatoire by their love for West Yorkshire’s musical alumni – the likes of Eagulls, Drahla and Menace Beach – they stumbled upon one another and began to contribute to the city’s sound with songs about self-love and orange juice.
“Can we just take a moment for Pistol Shrimp?” Lily insists, “Best band in the world”. Even before there was Frank, there was Doug’s hometown project Pistol Shrimp, which seemed to operate entirely on inebriation and tight deadlines. “I had three friends back home,” the drummer remembers, “and on the weekends, we’d come to mine, drink a case of Becks beer – it would always be Becks – and then we’d record an EP in a night.”
One piece they penned between lagers was titled ‘Lily’s Sieve’ and, although it wasn’t written about Lily Fontaine, the English Teacher frontwoman has come to relate to it. “I do have a good sieve,” she notes. The off-kilter, ultra-specific track title seems to preempt their current songwriting style, which is littered with references that range from Dracula to desire lines.
“If people don’t like referential lyrics, then, sorry,” Lily shrugs, “I don’t know why I write like that, but I just do. In ‘Mastermind Specialism’, I just list references, which is really kind of lazy as a writer, but it’s also one of my favourite songs”. The piece, and the album as a whole, is particularly preoccupied with science fiction, with nods to the genre including Britain’s most beloved series, Doctor Who and Jaco Van Dormael’s 2009 film Mr. Nobody. However, the influence of sci-fi can be found within the digital, alien-like sound of parts of the record, too.
As Lily tries to put her songwriting process into words, citing random phrases and mind-map-making as key elements, Doug compares her meandering musings to “that bit in The Simpsons Movie where Homer’s having his epiphany”.
“I thought it’d be cool,” Lily retorts, “like when Alex Turner takes like half an hour to answer a question, but apparently I just look more like Homer Simpson. I just took a long time saying nothing, which is how I’d sum up my lyricism.” Her humility is wildly misplaced. She has so much to say on This Must Be Texas, from bearing crosses and albatrosses in the album opener to discussions of hatred and belonging on ‘Albert Road’.
Somewhere in between those two works, the ranting ‘I’m Not Crying, You’re Crying’ is a standout track, a song Lily sings differently each time they play it live. The track was particularly inspired by Scottish art-rockers Life Without Buildings, who were a major influence on the whole record. “I think they’re really addictive,” Lily explains, “and I love the fact that they did just one album, and that’s it.”
“There are a lot of artists that I feel influenced by but I’m always worried to mention them,” Lily admits, “because I worry that people think that our music will be too derivative.” Still, she notes the influence of electronic duo Jockstrap and Irish post-punk favourites Fontaines D.C. on the record.
“Fontaines is a big one,” Lewis confirms. The guitarist was particularly inspired by their most recent offering, 2022’s Skinty Fia, which he suggests feels like “a bunch of classic songs” marked out by memorable melodies and authentic writing, elements they strive towards in their own output. They’ve certainly managed to mirror the sincerity and catchiness of Grian Chatten in their own work, as well as his confidence.
Doug terms Skinty Fia “such a fucking confident album”, but it’s a description that could just as easily be applied to This Could Be Texas. Far from derivative, it’s one of the most considered and self-assured debuts in recent memory. It’s the sound of a band with complete creative control, something that extends beyond their sound and into their visuals.
The album cover for This Must Be Texas was a combined effort between Lily’s sketching skills and her mother’s penchant for painting. “It’s been really nice that we’ve still been able to keep our fingers on the artwork a little,” Lily comments, “Especially with the themes of this album, it made sense to use my mum’s work and to use work that depicts the West Yorkshire countryside.”
The painting perfectly captures the Cow and Calf rocks in Ilkley, a visual representation of English Teacher’s all-consuming artistry and their continued odes to the places that made them. Alongside their artwork, Doug co-directed the music video for ‘Albert Road’, shooting at Leeds’ cosy Cardigan Arms with the help of Sodium Films. “They really understood what we were trying to achieve,” Lily enthuses.
The band are just as keen to share their success with the other Leeds acts they know and love, roping in the likes of Bug Teeth and Fuzz Lightyear for support slots. Gladboy and Pleasure Centre will soon be joining them on the road, too, two groups Lily considers to be amongst her favourites. “It’s nice that we weren’t just picking bands from the north because we felt like we wanted to support Leeds,” she adds, “but because they just are the better bands.”
“I feel like we got very lucky that this all happened to us,” she concludes, “and I think the more we can do to disseminate that luck, the better.”
This Could Be Texas is out on April 12th. Listen to ‘Albert Road’ by English Teacher below.
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