Slow Club are Sheffield duo Charles and Rebecca, and their debut album, ‘Yeah So’, is a guitar driven pop record with a heart. Their latest single was the fantastic ‘Giving Up On Love’; and now Bowlegs is eagerly awaiting album number two with excitement. We caught up with the twosome as they arrived at The Great Escape Festival in Brighton to talk festivals, albums and crackers.

Bowlegs: Have you played The Great Escape before?

Rebecca: We’ve been here the last two years. We love it.

Bowlegs: How does it compare to South by Southwest?

Rebecca: We actually prefer playing The Great Escape.

Charles: Near the beach; the weather is good!

Rebecca: And only playing one date rather than the seven, which we did at South by Southwest, makes it a little less stressful! Pretty much every band you can think of is there. It’s like spring break for bands!

Bowlegs: Who are you hoping to catch tonight (tonight being the last night of The Great Escape Festival)?

Rebecca: We’re playing when a lot of good bands are on, which is a shame. I think we’ve missed a lot too, as we’ve only just arrived.

Charles: I really wanted to see Real Estate but we missed them.

Rebecca: And Sky Larkin, and the Moshi Moshi night – missed them too! The last two years here have just been non-stop parties. I ended up sleeping on the beach last time. But I’m heading back home tonight.

Bowlegs: So you have a tour coming up after this?

Rebecca: In about a week or so.

Bowlegs: Do you like the tours?

Charles: Yeah, they’re amazing. This one is short and just around the UK. We’re playing at Koko in London which will be our biggest date yet.

Bowlegs: And with Veronica Falls, Spectrals and Summer Camp you have some great support acts: do you choose who comes along for the ride?

Rebecca: Yes we choose them, they’re all amazing. I mean I would go and see our gigs just to catch them.

Bowlegs: They’re all great, real buzz bands.

Rebecca: More buzz then us at the moment!

Charles: We’re just tired old dogs now.

Bowlegs: You get some great press in America – the late release of your debut this year was met with excellent reviews. Do you have plans to get back out there?

Charles: I know. Came out in March. We’re hoping to go back next year.

Rebecca: So much booked. But we’re going to start on the new album soon.

Bowlegs: What can we expect from that?

Rebecca: It’s a new era. Halfway through writing at the moment. We know what we want it to sound like; it’s just hard to explain.

Bowlegs: A new direction?

Rebecca: We don’t want to write music that people think they can dosie-do too!

Bowlegs: Talking about music descriptions, we read somewhere that you take particular offence to the press describing your music as twee?

Charles: It’s just fucking idiots that describe us like that. They obviously haven’t seen us play. We are not twee when we play live. This second album is gonna be a lot more direct.

Bowlegs: So how do the two of you write songs?

Rebecca: One of us starts something and then we work on it together, or sometimes one of us writes the whole song. We kind of know when it’s a solo song or not.

Bowlegs: Ever tempted to get a few extra members for the band?

Rebecca: Yes! We’re getting a few people together for the Koko show, and we want a few more members for the second album. We don’t want any constraints on the new record.

Charles: We’ll get someone who can play a few different things, just so when we play live some of the melodies aren’t lost.

Bowlegs: Does being a man/woman duo bring up the same old question of relationships?

Rebecca: We are not together, never have been and never will be!

Bowlegs: How did the two of you start playing music together?

Rebecca: Charles had his heart broken by my friend at school.

Charles: She dumped me by text as I was getting out of the shower.

Bowlegs: Ouch. That’s harsh.

Charles: I spent a year listening to Leonard Cohen with my Lava Lamp.

Bowlegs: Sounds like a good year…

Rebecca: I then guested in Charles’ band.

Bowlegs: So it all started when you were quite young?

Charles: We were about fifteen.

Rebecca: We were trying to be The Rapture.

Charles: We were going to go to Uni, but started recording and got a tour lined up, so we ditched University.

Bowlegs: That fork in the road where so many bands fall, where they’re afraid to make the jump and chase the dream…

Charles: Definitely. A lot of bands fail because they try and stick to what they ‘should’ be doing as well as what they want to be doing.

Bowlegs: So is it true that your music is used for advertising crisps, crackers and toothpaste, among other things?

Charles: Not true! (Laughing)

Bowlegs: It’s not true?

Charles: Well yes..it’s true!

Rebecca: It’s in other countries, so it’s not too bad.

Charles: The way we see it is that we can sit at home all day and play music, and when people say we’ve sold-out we think it’s either that or we go out and get real jobs. I can handle what people say, it’s only toothpaste; we’re not advertising oil or anything!

Bowlegs: What is it about your music that the advertisers find so appealing then?

Charles: Because it’s twee I think! No. We’re like the cheap Devendra Bernhart.

Rebecca: It’s cool being on an American series.

Charles: We recorded a song last year that was used on some Super Bowl promotion. It was heard by something like sixty-million people. It just blew our minds.

Bowlegs: We recently posted your new video for ‘Giving up on Love’ which features Mckenzie Crook. We love it! How did that come about?

Rebecca: My friend Lucy – who made the video and had the idea – and my other friend were in a play with Mckenzie in the West End. He looks so awesome and we knew he would be perfect, so we wrote to him and sent him a copy of the song. He liked the song. He is a bit of a muso and is not interested in the money. He is just so great!

Bowlegs: And so good at lip syncing.

Rebecca: I know! Better than we are.

Bowlegs: Great idea for a video, cheap budget too?

Rebecca: All the money was spent on hiring the Ferris Wheel for the day. Mckenzie didn’t take a penny.

Bowlegs: So what’s on your iPod?

Rebecca: I left my iPod in LA. They’re charging me seventy pounds to post it back.

Charles: Just get a new one.

Rebecca: Listening to loads of Shangri La’s and Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Rumours’ at the moment.

Bowlegs: Is that influencing the new album?

Rebecca: It’s just so good. One of the best albums ever made.

Bowlegs: Does recording the album in a foreign country seem like you’re losing yourself somewhere unknown?

Charles: Staying at home makes life easier. But we’re not sure where we’ll record at the moment.

Bowlegs: No Bon Iver cabin in Alaska then.

Charles: You just need a good space. A good album is a good album, and Bon Iver’s is a great album.

Bowlegs: How about your iPod Charles?

Charles: Been listening to Woods’ ‘Songs of Shame’. I really like that. Also the Women album. That’s great.

Bowlegs: Thanks for your time and good luck with the show tonight.

Charles & Rebecca: Thanks!

Slow Club are touring late May/early June – check the dates here: Slow Club Tour Dates