Band Of The Week - Weatherstate
This week’s Band of the Week is Weymouth punks Weatherstate who have just released their new album ‘Never Better’ via Rude Records. They have risen to the challenges that COVID has posed and, whilst the pandemic threw a bit of a spanner in the works, the band have been working with Four Year Strong’s Alan Day to produce new songs with them, albeit remotely. “I feel Alan really taught us a lot about how to approach a song and see the potential in having an open mind on songwriting,” enthuses Callan about the process and connection. “We really wanted to level up and evolve as a band. He's a super talented dude and has great vision in the potential of new music.”
They took a moment to talk to us about how the album came together.
Hey there Weatherstate, how are you? So your album is finally here, how does it feel to have it out there in the world?
Yeah really good thanks, After 3 long years it feels amazing to finally get a new record out, we’ve all been itching to get back to it especially after the terrible last couple of years. Its something we are really proud of and were so excited that people can now share it with us.
It is called ‘Never Better’ - what is the meaning behind that?
The name Never Better is a sarcastic playful response to the question of being asked are you ok? I think the nature of losing interest and enthusiasm for tackling life’s challenges can be seen in both the lyrical themes as well as the Title Name. The name and sentiment actually came to me during a monotonous conversation with a friend whilst catching up, and it stuck from there.
How does it differ from your previous releases?
When going into this album cycle, we wanted to put more focus into the dynamic range of the songs, whether that be the songwriting itself in regards to structures, or experimenting with softer and heavier parts. Overall this record is both the heaviest and softest side of Weatherstate since the inception of the band, and that’s something that we hope shines through when people check it out.
Where was the album recorded? Any behind the scenes stories from the creative process?
Originally the plan was to fly out to the States to record with our producer Alan Day. Unfortunately given Covid restrictions on International Travelling we were unable to make this work, so the album itself was tracked in the UK at the Ranch in Southampton with Neil Kennedy, and then mixed remotely by Alan. We did lots of pre-production and songwriting with Alan remotely which was a really tough but a cool process. It meant some really long nights given the time difference, but was totally worth it for the end product and we can’t thank him enough.
What are the key themes and influences on the album?
There’s no concept or story to the record, it’s just an autobiography of one person’s thoughts in their head over the space of a few years. The ups and downs of day to day life in a setting unfamiliar to many. And if people can relate to any of the feelings or messages within each track, then that gives me happiness. It doesn’t have to be as deep as that sounds, I’m just excited at the thought of people enjoying listening to and enjoying these songs.
Do you have a favorite lyric on the album? If so, which one and why?
My favourite lyric in the whole album comes from the album track “Here in my hell”. The lyric itself is “Dilated pupils, sick from vertigo, living the mantra of taking it slow”. This to me is the perfect oxymoron to summarise the back and forth opposing range of feelings someone might face in any given day. Feeling that you should be calm and content but in reality being the polar opposite and out of control in your own thoughts.
Now the album is out there, what next for you?
With everything hopefully on the mend from here, we just want to get out and play these songs to as many people as possible. Getting back to why we started writing music in the first place, to play together and share it with anyone who wants to listen. We have some cool plans in the works for the rest of the year and hopefully we can share more on this stuff soon!
