An interview with psychedelic rock band Temples
Following the Moon Duo gig earlier this month at the Brudenell Social Club in Leeds, we decided to get in touch with the support act on the night, Temples, and discuss touring, their new label Heavenly, and how they create a sound that’s making a comeback after a 30-year hiatus.
All you have to do is check out the songs Temples have posted on their website to see that their influences range from the modern era with the likes of Ty Segall and Moon Duo, all the way back to the 1960s, ’70s and beyond with the likes of T. Rex and Fleetwood Mac. It also wouldn’t be far-fetched to think that the four musicians from Kettering are big fans of Perth-based psych-rockers Tame Impala, a group who are making a big noise at the moment and recently appeared on later live with Jools Holland.
Their musical knowledge is undoubtedly expansive and deviates from the tired-out classics you might find on a shitty mixtape covered in peace signs and flowers selling for £4.99 in HMV. For example, whilst looking through their site, I came across a German band called ‘Amon Duul II’ a number of times, which shows deep-seated originality in Temples’ musical taste and influences.
As far as a support act, which they currently are, it’s hard to work out what sort of path they’re trying to take. They’ve just recently been playing with the aforementioned Moon Duo, which Thomas Walmsley, the bassist in the band, described as a really positive experience: “We’re big fans of Moon Duo, so it was an exciting night for us to be a part of,” the band tells Far Out. “We always love playing live”. As with any band growing in stature, they’ve had to do their time up north, with Walmsley keen to mention that “It’s been great to play places outside of London”.
Perhaps a slightly more surprising choice of band to support is softcore single producers Mystery Jets with the adolescent indie crowd in tow. However, Temples point out that maybe the experience is more important than the headliners: “We’ve played seven shows with Mystery Jets so far. It’s been fun, they’re really nice guys. I’m not sure what the indie crowd is, but if people stick around to watch us then that’s great.”
Naturally, with an up-and-coming band, it’s interesting to gauge their integrity, are they all about the touring or the big-time rum and cocaine-fueled single launches? “I think whatever a band does, the music has to come first. Playing live is the only way you can really get through to people.”
And yeah, we really enjoyed seeing them live; part of that was their unique sound which, whilst being technically sound, remained seemingly effortless. It seemed like a sound that had taken a while to perfect: “It’s mainly from experimenting with sounds, effects, not being afraid to put things in the red. Very little was calculated though; with [our new single] ‘Shelter Song’, we found sounds we liked and ran with them.”
Of course, as new kids on the block, being referred to in relation to better-known bands is common practice; however, Temples have it a bit more difficult than most being in a genre people know little about. Their psych-rock sounds have caused them to be compared to the likes of the Beatles and the ‘67 era; when asked if these have become tiresome Walmsley’s answer is short and polite: “It’s always flattering if people sight similarities. We love ’76 as much as ’67, though.” My guess is that, yes, it has become tiresome.
Alongside some pretty successful sounding tour dates, Temples have reached a milestone in ‘making it’ having recently signed to Heavenly Records, an outfit that is currently teeming with cool, on-the-pulse bands. The group appreciate the break they’ve been given and are taking on all Heavenly’s advice: “They’ve got a wealth of knowledge to impart. It’s great sitting down and talking to them about music.”
The band are also big fans of some of the other Heavenly projects that are gaining national recognition: “We really like the TOY album, Charlie Boyer & The Voyeurs, Stealing Sheep are great too,” they explained.
Temples themselves are no stranger to media attention and are gaining critical recognition; all that is taking a backseat at the moment, though, whilst the boys concentrate on gigging the fuck out of wherever possible: “It’s always positive if people dig our tracks, but playing live ought to be a different experience altogether, no matter the preconception people have of us. It’s better to be exciting and unpredictable that way.”
