So how long has the band been going and how did you all meet in the first place?
The Red Eyes have been going since May 1997. The Line -up at the moment
is myself (Alan) - Vocals/Guitar, "H"- Lead Guitar, Raymond
- Bass and Ewan - Drums.
Myself and Ewan work together in a Print Factory
and are the original members of The Red Eyes. "H" answered
our advert for a Guitarist and has been with the band for 4 years and
we knew Raymond from a mate's band and he's been with us for about 6
months .
What releases have you had out? And what is your favourite
track you do and what is it about?
We have 2 CD Albums and one CD single. All of these
are D.I.Y releases by The Red Eyes ourselves.
"
Up To Our Eyes In It" - 1998 ( 12 tracks )
"
On Prescription" - 2001 ( 12 tracks )
"
All Dressed Up ( Nowhere To Go )" / "Rottenrow Baby" - 2002
( 2 tracks )
"
Woman In Disguise" - From The Angelic Upstarts Tribute Album "Power
To The People" - 1997
"
Teenage" - From The U.K. Subs Tribute Album - "Brand New Rage" -
2003
My favourite song is All Dressed Up (Nowhere To Go) and is about when I was
in San Francisco at H.I.T.S a few years ago and I couldn't believe the amount
of homeless on the streets. Instead of the usual, "can you spare us
10p for a cup of tea" they would tell you stories how they used to be
an astronaut or a brain surgeon and had fallen on hard times. You wanted
the stories to be true but it was all so tragic. Land of the Free, Aye right!!!
What can people expect from your live gigs and are there any
covers in there?
There's no political agenda ( other bands can do it so much better ) just
77' style Punk energy.
We've done a few covers over the years. We usually
do one at every gig. We've done Stranglehold, Teenage (U.K. Subs), H-Eyes
(Ruts), Doesn't Make It Alright ( Specials / S.L.F ), Hurry Up Harry
(Sham 69), You've Got My Number, My Perfect Cousin (Undertones), Woman
In Disguise (Angelic Upstarts), She's Automatic (Rancid), Wasted Life
(S.L.F) and we've done a Punk cover of Seasons in The Sun (Terry Jacks)
which was a laugh.
How has the scene changed since you have first got into it
and is it for the better or worse?
It's much better now with bigger crowds at the gigs compared
to the late 80's/ Early 90's. There's more Punk gigs on all the time now
and loads of bands of all different Punk styles which is good. Getting gigs
can still be a problem and getting paid is still rare. Expenses is usually
a bonus. All this "Pay-to-Play" is a pain.
What is the best sentence you have ever heard, that someone
has managed to get into a song's lyrics?
I like all the lyrics in My Perfect Cousin as it still
makes me smile and takes me back to buying the single as an 11 year old.
I'm sorry I can't think of something cleverer at the moment.
If you could see any band play live, either of the past
or present who would it be?
I'd love to have seen The Clash ( London Calling Period
)
Name the best 5 releases of the past 12 months
Don't know if these were in the last 12 months but here
goes.
Indestructible (Rancid)
Too Little Too Late (Dead Pets)
Get What
You Need (Undertones)
Mutiny On The Bay (Dead Kennedy's)
Loadestone
(Spear Of Destiny)
I also think Grave Disorder (The Damned) is a real return
to form even though it's been out for a couple of years now.
Who would you most like to be stuck in a lift with and why?
A lift repair man ( the old ones are the best or maybe
not ). Jello Biafra would be interesting if you could get a word in.
Plans, gigs and releases planned for 2004.
I'm playing The Platform Acoustic Stage (Morecambe) this
Sunday (5.35pm) I'll be playing songs from The Red Eyes back catalogue
and various Punk Covers from The Undertones, Angelic Upstarts, The Clash,
U.K Subs, Slaughter and The Dogs and S.L.F. If anyone's hungover ( who isn't
by the Sunday) and want's to break themselves gently into the day with a
hair of the dog and a few Punk songs on an acoustic guitar that's the place
to be. It's listed under "Red Eyes Acoustic". Hopefully a few turn
up as we gave away 400 Cd's last year at the pre-show party. Hopefully people
have listened to it. Great review in punk&oi ( Cheers )
We're hoping to bring out a live Cd of our gig at the Barrowlands supporting
S.L.F in 2003. The Recording Quality is great!
We have a gig with the Apocalypse Babys in Glasgow in November but that's
all that we have organised at the moment.
Any final comments?
Cheers again for the interview and sorry for the delay
and hope to see everyone at the platform next Sunday for the Red Eyes Acoustic.
For any other info onThe Red Eyes check out our website at www.theredeyes.tk
All the best Alan THE RED EYES
Return to interview list
Please note that the opinions expressed by band
members does not necessarily reflect the views of this website. Punk & Oi
in the UK Limited are in no way liable for comments made by interviewees.
|
