Radio Active Team in Ibiza

August 17th, Monday Rocks @ Ibiza Rocks Bar

We catch up with Fickle Friends on their Balearic debut at the legendary Ibiza Rocks Bar in San Antonio. Birthplace of the Ibiza Rocks franchise, this venue has played host to some legendary performances and events over the years.

Ibiza Rocks have nurtured talent from the offset. There is a special relationship between the acts that have been through the various Rocks venues graduating up to Main Stage at Ibiza Rocks Hotel. Mark Ronson, Plan B, Ed Sheeran, Rudimental… the list goes on and they all consider the Ibiza Rocks team as an extended musical family.  With that in mind it is fitting to see the Ibiza Rocks Bar now playing host to Monday Rocks. There is no better home on the island for giving emerging talent their first taste of the White Isle.

A broken necked Telecaster hangs in a perspex case above the stairway to stage illuminated by a crafted pink neon light. “Up The Albion” scrawled next to it with Pete & the band’s signatures glowing neon pink. The guitar fell victim during recent sold out gig. The stage itself is nicely sized but would of been fun for larger setups like Mark Ronson’s Business International or Kasabian. The stage is set low – overhung by a sizeable digital screen tonight rotating between Viber & the Fickle Friends logo.

The 5-piece have already setup with synths pushed up to the front of stage. Fickle Friends have been out on a long run of shows since May’s Great Escape with more to come before the season closes. Major European festivals like Melt! in Germany, Helsinki Sideways all ticked off the list. Secret Garden Party, Boardmasters, Ibiza Rocks Bar then Malmöfestivalen in Sweden this weekend – the band are surprisingly fresh on stage despite the travel. The Brighton music scene breeds hardy bands. That could be the sea air or may partly be testament to stamina built up over a well spent youth & party scene around the Level.

Fickle Friends blossomed last summer into the emotive, floaty & ethereal pop sound that sits so well tonight. They released two tracks that soared up the Hype Machine charts, ‘Swim’ and ‘Play’ followed by ‘For You’ & the latest release ‘Could Be Wrong’ earlier this year that caught our ear. All of which sound perfectly weighted in the set with the warm breeze floating in from sandy shored San Antonio harbour – 10 steps from the Ibiza Rocks Bar open air frontage.

Ahead of our interview, check out Fickle Friends ‘Could Be Wrong’

 

Radio Active: Origins. You are Brighton based as a band but Natti you met Sam (drummer) in Liverpool. How did that come about and when did the rest of the band come into the picture?

Natti: Sam and I went to LIPA (Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts) and played in a few projects together so when we both moved to Brighton and I wanted to get my own music off the ground he was the only drummer for the job ha. We met the others at uni down here…we were just messing around for a long time so the band only really became like it is now 2 years ago. We’ve come a long way since the early days….we had a double bassist at one point. (I’m not joking)

 

Radio Active:  Life on the road, has this summers festival circuit been treating you well and what have been the highlight shows to date? Tonights Monday Rocks must be right up there for location, tonight sounded special.

Natti: Our touring schedule is pretty mental for an unsigned band. We’re very very lucky! Playing Best Kept Secret in Holland is definitely a summer highlight, it was a special show and just an amazing experience. The hospitality there is just incredible too…plus we got to go on a private safari – giraffes literally liking our faces. Not much can top that but Ibiza is certainly is up there with our fave moments of this year! (And the Ibiza Rocks cocktails)

 

 

Radio Active: There is always an emotive feel to your lyrics Natti tell us about your latest single ‘Could Be Wrong’ and the story behind it.

Natti: I tend to write about my own experiences but in a universal way. Quite often that’s through some sort of narrative. I tend to vent via songwriting ha…a lot of our songs are about unrequited love and relationships in general. CBW is a bit more visual lyrically but just talks about how some of us remain in relationships that aren’t good for us because we are constantly thinking that we could be wrong about the other person, hoping that things will change/get better if we stick it out. Other times I just write as a means of therapy, for example… I worry A LOT… so I wrote a poem about it and that in turn became the lyrics to another song.

 

Radio Active: The video for ‘Could Be Wrong’ captures a live show, was this home crowd in Brighton? What can we look forward to from you next?

Natti: That was actually a show at KOKO Camden (London). We’ve had some of our greatest moments on that stage so it kinda has a special place in our hearts…and now it’s captured on video too! Next up for us….well we have a new single coming out in September which we’re pretty excited about. It’s such a summer song and it’s brought about some great vibes over the festival period – We’ll be doing a video for that too.

 

Radio Active: The scene on the South coast has undergone a regeneration of late, tell us who else we should be looking out for and best parties?

Natti: Oooh there’s just SO much down here! So a couple of our Brighton faves at the moment are Miamigo (Their EP Hard To Love is super cool) and Lion Bark. I actually went to a Lion Bark show last night which they held in a quirky little living room with a balcony- it was an email for a secret address thang. I love it when bands use different ways of interacting with their fans and creating buzz. Musicians throw the best pardies in Brighton!

 

 

 

 

Radio Active  Quick Fire Q&A:

Radio Active: Favourite tour snacks when on motorway between shows?

Natti: Oh jeese….well I’m vegan so that’s not the best Q for me ha. I CAN tell you our go to snack when we’re on the motorway in Europe….Lays paprika crisps. We go through bags and bagssssss!

 

Radio Active: Which band member is controlling the playlists on tour?

Natti: It’s usually me or Harry. We both have Spotify on our phones ha. I also put together the Fickle Friends Friday Fix playlist on Spotify so it’s always good to give that a spin!

 

Radio Active: Current anthem for you this summer?

Natti: I Can’t Feel My Face – The Weeknd (It’s an undeniable banger!)

 

Radio Active: Dream gig & other band on the bill with you?

Natti: Headlining John Peel at Glasto is definitely a dream gig for us. How about a Fickle Friends / Friendly Fires show at Ibiza Rocks. Now THAT would be a party!

 

Radio Active: Skate, Surf or Snow?

Natti: We skate the most. We don’t get a lot of Snow down in Brighton ha and it’s too stoney for surfing. Can’t beat a Ski/Surf trip though! 

 

Thanks Natti! Go hit the pardies & come back to see us soon!