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What does the name "Michael Carlisle " stand for?It is just my name.

What made you call the band "Michael Carlisle "?I didn’t want to give myself a stage name because I wanted my fans to have a personal experience when listening to my music, and I feel having a stage name distances yourself from the fans in some circumstances.

How was the band formed? I don’t really have a band, I choose to play by myself because that’s how I write my songs and I write from personal experiences.

What made you form the band? I have just always wanted to play my music for whoever will listen

Can you briefly introduce your band and who you are?As I have said, I play solo so there is no band. Im a singer songwriter from Ireland.

What was the ambitions of the band when you started?I started writing as a way to get my feelings onto paper and gradually gained confidence in the songs and wanted others to hear them and hopefully relate to them.

Could you explain your music to someone that haven't heard you? I write acoustic songs about me experiences with past and current relationships. I also try to take the experiences of the people around me and take an interesting approach to them.

Where was your first gig? In a local youth center

Where was the latest gig? In a venue in my local city called Amplified Bar

Who writes your songs?/Who writes the music who writes lyrics?I write all of my songs and lyrics as I write about my own personal experiences. 

What's good/bad with the band? What genre do you feel you are? I feel that my live performances are the best thing about me. I like to have interaction with the crowd and include them in the background of my songs and explain to them how I felt at the time I wrote them. I feel like I am a mix of pop and folk.

Do you write your own material or mainly covers? I like to play a mix. Playing covers gives me the opportunity to include the crowd which would then make them more interested in my own material.

Have you made any albums? If yes what are they? I have released an EP called ‘Blow Me Away’. It is a 6 track EP and is available on iTunes, Amazon and all the other major online retailers.

Do you have any clips on YouTube? I have a few old videos and a few of my tracks from my EP. I am planning to upload more and more videos over the next while in order to get my name out there more.

How old are you? What got you started in music? I am 21 and I started in music when I joined secondary school. I started taking guitar lessons and I haven’t looked back since.

At what age did you start playing? I started playing guitar at the age of 11, singing at 14 and writing at 16.

How old were you guys when you first stood on stage? I was about 15 when I played my first gig, and I was not very good!

What year was the band started? Officially I started playing my own music around 2007

How old were you the first time you saw a liveband play?The first major band I saw live was Dragonforce when I was 16, however I had been attending local gigs before that.

How old were you at your first gig? Best/worst gig you've played?I was about 15 when I first played a gig outside of school. My best gig was the launch of my EP. The crowd was so attentive to me and all the support acts, who were all friends who were kind enough to play.

What places will you be playing in in the imidate future? In the immediate future I have no gigs on the books because I am about to start university. I am studying a songwriting course in an attempt to gain a better understanding of my craft.

Where have you played from then till now? I have played a number of different venues around my local area and in various towns and cities around me, but to be honest there haven’t been any of real importance.

What songs are in your live set's? In my set I tend to open with a cover in order to engage the crowd and then I just play a selection of my own material. I never really make a set list either so every show is new in a way because I never know what I will be playing in advance.

What has been the best/most promising gig so far? My EP launch gave me an idea of what it would be like to play in front of a crowd who are there to hear you. Any other gig I have done, I have been a support act so the crowd are nice but they are not there for me.

Have you had any bigger tours from start till now? I haven’t had any consistent gigs to be honest. I would love to go on a tour playing the likes of churches and town halls in order to have a small intimate feeling for my gigs.

How big crowds do you usually play for? The biggest crowd I have played for is around 50-60 people.

What are the plans for the rest of the year? My plans are to knuckle down and get started in my songwriting degree. I also hope to get involved in the local music scene.

Where do you usually play? I normally play in small bars/venues

How do you get psyched up for a gig? I have a Pint and talk to the crowd.

What are your goals with your music? My main goal is to become an established songwriter. If I get the chance to perform as well then that would be fantastic, but I just love to write and that’s how I want to make my living. 

When did you decide to go all in for the music? From the first time I played the guitar.

Is it easier to get your inspiration from older bands or from bands more modern?I find I can find inspiration for different aspects from both. By this I mean for vocals/melodies I would lean towards older music like the Beatles but for the likes of rhythms and mixing different styles I would go for more modern stuff because I feel they have more of a mix of influences.

What are your sources of inspiration? When looking for inspiration, and I have no recent experiences of my own to draw from, I listen to music and take ideas from lyrics or rhythms. If that doesn’t work I tend to watch movies.

What's the first step when making a new song? I come up with a chord progression or a riff and then just start singing until I sing something I like and then go from there.

How do you feel about the downloading of music instead of buying albums? I have illegally down loaded music in the past, as has the majority of people, but now that I am trying to embark onto a music career I have decided to only buy albums in an attempt to support the industry.

What would be your dreams for the band? My dream is just to get recognition for my songwriting. I hope people can relate to my music and reach out to tell me. I think that would be the highest compliment anyone could ever pay me.

Besides your own music, what genres and bands do you listen to? I tend to focus on acoustic/singer songwriter type music for my own personal listening, however I am partial to anything from electronic to metal. 

What do you hold most dear? My family, friends, girlfriend and my guitar! 

What would be your greatest fears for the future? To fail having not given it my all. If I give it 100% and don’t make it then at least I know I couldn’t have done anything more to influence my career.

When you are on stage, what do you fear most then? Falling flat on my face! I have no fears of messing up because I have done it all before, and I have the ability to heckle myself before the crowd has the opportunity to do it.

Have you been part of any other projects? Not outside education. I have been involved in bands in school for assignments but nothing outside of that.

Have you been in any other bands?Not ones that went anywhere

What do you work with outside of the band and the music? I am currently studying a Songwriting degree in Brighton. So they both sort of interact with each other. At the minute music is my entire life which I couldn’t be happier with.

What would you do if there was no music? I would probably be an emotional wreck!! Music is how I communicate my thoughts and emotions, so if there was no music I wouldn’t be where I am today.

How important are your fans? My fans are a big part of why I continue to write. Obviously I do it for my own enjoyment but I have reached the point where, if I can’t play my songs for people then there’s little point in writing them. So without the fans I wouldn’t have the drive I have to succeed!

What's the funniest/most memorable thing a fan has done for you?I had a message of facebook from a guy from a completely different country and he asked me to send him my autograph. I had no idea that anyone, who I hadn’t previously had contact with, was listening to my music so that was a big moment for meJ

How often do you rehearse? I am playing and singing every day, often to the annoyance of my family and housemates!

Where do you rehearse?I am a bedroom songwriter, so I just write and play in my room mostly!

Name 2 of your own songs you like at the moment?The two songs I have the most emotional connection to at the minute are the last 2 songs I have written. The first is a song about my girlfriend called ‘Stop it! You’re embarrassing me!’, which I wrote before I left to go to uni. The second is one called ‘Stories’ which is about a couple who are sort of shunned because the guy is 2 years older than the girl. I just like the way I have written the lyrics in ‘Stories’

What do you feel is the best liveband you've seen?The best live band I have seen would have to be a split between Paramore and Newton Faulkner. Paramore were just a very tight and powerful gig and Newton Faulkner was hilarious, his interaction with the crowd is something that I have really incorporated into my own live act.

What drives a band that isn't all that famous and renowned to try to make a living on their music and to keep playing?Well for me it’s just the love and passion I have for writing songs and music in general. Obviously I can’t speak for other bands but I would imagine it would just be for the love of what they are doing.

Do you have any webpages? I don’t have an official website but I have a facebook and twitter page. (Facebook/michaelcarlisleofficial) (Twitter @carlislemusic)

Any pearls of wisdom for all other bands out there?Well I don’t think I am really in a position to be giving advice to up and coming bands because I am in the same situation they are. The only thing I can think is to take on criticism as a constructive thing and not as a personal insult. I know a lot of people who can’t take constructive advice and it really effects their confidence.

Would you like to add anything else? Enjoy what you’re doing!

Describe your show, visually and musically. My show is me on stage on my own, having a laugh (hopefully) with the crowd and enjoying my music along with them. I am very informal when I play live.

How do you view the music industry of today? I think the industry is focused so much on the money side of the business opposed to the product they are selling (AKA the artist). They manufacture these fake artists who can’t set a good example for the kids who are listening to them. I think they need to try and rework the system so that it both incorporates the vast array of different genres on offer to day while maintaining the development of young artist that was going on back in the day!

What advice would you like to give other bands? Be nice to the people you are playing with and playing for. If you aren’t nice to the other acts then nobody will want to play with you.

What are the biggest obstacles for a band? Getting people to go to your gigs I think.

What is best/worst with playing the clubs? I think playing clubs means that you aren’t always playing for a crowd who want to hear you, they are just there for a night out.

Tell us about upcomming gigs and why we should be at them?Well I don’t have any gigs coming up at the minute, but if you follow me on twitter or facebook then I will let you know when I do have some. You should come because I will do my best to make sure that you have a laugh!

How would you describe your sound in one sentence. Songs about love basically!

What was one of the most quarrelsome times for you in the band? As I have said I am a solo artist but the hardest times for me are when I am suffering from writers block. I tend to start questioning myself in these periods as to whether I am cut out for the industry but I inevitably break through it.

Whats your Pre-show ritual? Before a show I just love to have a pint of cider and chill. I don’t get why bands try and get themselves pumped up before a gig and end up psyching themselves out and increase the chances of making a mistake. I prefer to just be laid back about it and enjoy myself

What Won't you spend money on? Pedals and drugs!! An odd combination I know but I have never really been one for guitar pedals. I’ve just never seen the point of having them in my songs, and I think the ‘drugs’ bit is obvious. I don’t want to fall into the trap that so many artists have done before and ruin my career because of what I’m shoving up my nose!

What do you feel a band/muscian should spend their money on? I feel like the most important thing to spend your money on is a good recording studio. You can have the greatest songs but 9/10 times they don’t sound good without a good quality engineer getting the levels and production right!