interview with Project Jam Sandwich
Have any of you played in other bands? Yes we all initially studied classical music so we've done everything from symphony orchestra to contemporary classical music to big band to string quartets to salsa band.
How is it that you started playing music? We were looking to create something that would allow us to have total freedom and creativity over our music. And also to create music that we liked.
What are your names? / Who plays what? / How old are you?Katie - Scotland/Edinburgh
Abel - South Africa/Soweto
Henry - England/Cambridge
Ali - England/Bury
Delia - England/Loughborough
Have you had other previous members? Yes we originally had a different bassist, but he went off to study in Germany.
Did you make music even when you were young? I think we all started at different ages. For example our bassist Ali started out really young as a chorister, then an organist and then found his true calling as a double bassist! And since he has also been known to dabble in digeridoo, tuba and banjo.
Where are you from?
Katie - Scotland/Edinburgh
Abel - South Africa/Soweto
Henry - England/Cambridge
Ali - England/Bury
Delia - England/Loughborough
What year did the band form? 2013
What's your style of genre? World music
What inspires you? We are very open-minded and take inspiration from everything to
How often and where do you rehearse? 1-2 times a week if possible in a church, music college and our house
Do you have other interests of work outside the band? Henry works at a church. The rest of us our "full-time" freelance musicians.
Are you looking for a booking agency, and what are your thoughts around that? Yes - some festivals only use booking agencies, so they are very useful for opening doors that you might never have access to. Plus if we are already able to secure 40 gigs a year without one - imagine the possibilities with a little extra help!
What made you decide to make this music? To push ourselves creatively
What are your songs about? Traditional tunes from around the world that we put our own stamp on is the ethos of our set list. However, it is pushed to the extreme sometimes, for example combining reggae with Scottish folk or gypsy jazz with dubstep!
Do you compose in a certain environment? We always compose collaboratively within a rehearsal. It is not a case of one person going off to write the notes and explaining it to the rest of us. We try and bounce off each other and let our combined influences shape a song instead throughout the whole process.
Have you done any covers live? Nearly all of our songs are actually 'covers' although for us it is more a starting point for an arrangement and it often goes off in a completely new direction. We never do an 'exact' cover.
What language do you sing in? So far, English, Xhosa (click language), Portuguese, Spanish, Swahili
What are the least and most people to attend one of your gigs? Most 2000 - least 40.
Do you always play the same songs live, or do you vary? Yes we never give a programme because we like to pick and choose depending on the setting, and what we have recently come up with as a band, or our mood.
Do you have a regular place you play live often? Not really - we go all over! However, we get rebooked to come back a lot which is a very good sign.
What was your first gig like? It was a spotlight concert at the Royal Northern College of Music so it was super supportive and all of our friends came! Musically it was probably pretty hairy but we had a great time and it sealed the deal on the band's continuation!
What was your latest gig? We did a concert in Shropshire. We had spent a day in primary schools in the local area giving them all a concert and then teaching them an African song. In each school we taught a different rhythm and harmony so when we put them altogether in the concert it sounded really incredible. We then invited them onstage during our evening concert and it sounded amazing because children's choirs fit really beautifully with African music. People in the audience actually cried! With happiness - hopefully!
Have you had to cancel a gig? Luckily not yet. Noone is very replaceable however because our arrangements are so intricate so once our violinist had to play, whilst on a break from throwing up which was very dedicated of her!
Where have you played live this year? Within the past year we have played the BBC Proms, Greenbelt, BBC Free Thinking Festival, Ulverston/Fishguard/Swaledale International Music Festivals, Ireby Folk Festival, MusicPort Festival - we are really lucky in that our music can fit in at an arts, classical, folk or world music festival - so we find ourselves all over the country.
Where do you plan to gig the coming year? We have a really exciting Summer of concerts coming up - from Cornucopia Festival in Yorkshire to Spitalfields Festival in London all the way to Tropical Pressure in Cornwall!
Here is our diary:
http://www.projectjamsandwich.com/#!diary/c18q9
When did you start to sell merchandise, and what do you have for sale?
We have T-shirts saying our slogan #spreadthejam on them. They come in black or white, and a variety of sizes including men's and women's fits.
We also have our debut EP - Whistle Stop Tour including 4 tracks from Scotland, South Africa, Bulgaria and Israel.
Where can people buy your merchandise?
At our gigs or on our website: http://www.projectjamsandwich.com/#!shop--cart/c1726
What do you think about people downloading music instead of buying records now a days? Because they can. So therefore they don't expect to pay - however it is quite shocking how expensive it is to make a good recording from the other side of the coin, running into tens of thousands of pounds up front, so I don't know how sustainable this will be.
How do you think the music industry have changed because of this? I think live performance has to be more exciting, flexible and innovative to justify people coming a concert. I think for us this has been our most successful part of making music.
What are your web sites?
www.facebook.com/projectjamsandwich
@projjamsandwich
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0DyHb9dbzx2P1KbV6vYJKg
How can people reach you? Follow us on social media or email us on [email protected]
What are your plans for the future? Our goals are to record our debut album, make some more videos and tour abroad.
Do you have something to add? Thanks for the interview!
