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May Kay started off by apologising huskily "Sorry. I've got a bit of a sore throat. Too much partying!", and then we kicked off the interview....
What was your most memorable gig on your tour and why?
Leeds I think because I lost my voice, again! The crowd sang two songs for me and got me out of a potentially embarrassing situation. They all had great voices which was brilliant.
How do you think Fight Like Apes went down with the UK crowd in comparison to the Irish crowd?
It was actually very similar. I think the UK audience get a chance to see a lot more dynamic bands and theres lots more different types of music happening in the UK, so there not quite as shocked as Irish people when they see us on stage. However they were just as open, willing and relieved to see a band that act so stupid!
Have you always been so mad on stage? Where do you get your energy from?
Ha Ha! The way I see it is that when I watch a band on stage that stand totally still, that actually takes a lot more effort. It seems more natural to be energetic to me. We get really excited when we play a gig! The way we are is how I imagine animals to be when theyre hungry and find food totally excited!
Why does Pockets stand at the front of the stage and stare? When I saw you play at the Dragon Bar in Birmingham during your tour, he picked up some drumsticks and looked like he was going to do damage with them he actually scared me. Why is that?
I find it hilarious myself that Pockets stands at the front of the stage and stares at the audience myself. I have absolutely no idea why he does it. It scares me too! He always looks like hes going to lop someone's head off. One day he picked up a table during a gig so thats a little bit messier than a drumstick!
You seem to love smashing your equipment/ instruments at the end of the set? Have you ever had the replace them as a result?
Yes we have broken them! Jamie has three keyboards so he has to keep rotating between them. Toms bass actually took two years of bashing before it finally gave in, so we were quite lucky on that front. It is a risky one but we like breaking the shit out of everything!
I want to move onto your debut album now, 'Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion' which was released in the UK at the start of this year. What's the album cover based on? And the title where does that originate from?
We actually named it after a Mister T cartoon! We'll probably name other albums after it, so Fight Like Apes and..... it's the first episode of many really. The cover is actually a result of amazing artwork by Marian Rush, a Dublin artist who has a ridiculous and wonderful imagination. She's really influenced by Japanese culture and art, so it's totally Japanese! She has done all the artwork for our singles and albums and always manages to come up with something ridiculously insane!
I noticed that Pockets seems to wear a Cobra Karate top when he's on stage a lot. Is he into Karate then?
We're actually all totally obsessed with anything to do with the martial arts! He (Pockets) thinks he looks pretty sexy in that!
What's your favourite song on the album and why?
'Digifucker' is my most favourite song. It completely changed over the course of recording it. Some of it was actually recorded in an amazing loft space in Seattle. I saw a completely different side to it whilst recording it, which is why I love it so much now.
If you could describe your album in five words what would they be and why?
The most ridiculous thing ever! The way I see it is that were four not very talented people in our own right that managed to get a label to sign us and spend some money on recording an album thats actually quite good!
You attended amazing festivals like Glastonbury, T in the Park and Oxegen festivals last year have you got any lined up this year so far?
Glastonbury I know that. We're playing at Oxegen at home this year too, which is amazing. I just love going to get pissed and watch other bands playing!
You've just finished your UK tour, now you're jetting off to play in New York at the Mercury Lounge and the SxSW festival in Texas. How come you're going over there?
We're actually going to NYC on Friday to play with a load of other Irish bands at the Mercury Lounge. Then we're leaving there on St Patrick's Day to play at SxSW which we were invited to. There's loads of Irish bands going over so it's going to be a bit like a holiday. It's really cool getting to travel, playing gigs and seeing new places at the same time.
How come you're involved in the Camden Crawl this year?
It's something we wanted to do last year, but we probably didn't get invited! There's some great bands playing! Also weve started to build up a small but decent following in London so we want to go back there and get some more people to listen to our music and see if we can get a few more fans.
You're booked to play at the Great Escape in Brighton too aren't you?
Yeah that's right!
Finally, I just want to take the chance to ask a few personal questions about you so the eGigs readers get to know May Kay a little more..... Have you got a different on stage persona to what youre like doing the shopping or going out with your mates? How would you describe your personality?
I'm certainly a very different person to the one on stage! I speak very loudly which is a sign of me being a control freak, which I am. I'm obsessed with Buffy the Vampire Slayer and spend most of my days watching the re-runs. I'm determined, ambitious..... other than that I like shit food and shit TV!
When you're not touring or recording what do you do on a typical day?
I watch all the latest episodes of 24. Other than that I spend my time at Pockets' house, which is where I am today, writing, messing around on the keyboards. Oh and I like spending as much time with my family too as I'm really close to them. I love being at home. The feeling of sleeping in your own bed is wonderful!
How do you feel as being described by men as 'terrifying yet ultimately attractive'?
Ha Ha! I like that! It puts me in a position of control! I find it strange that men are attracted to a woman on stage that's getting ridiculously sweaty! But that's totally fine with me!
And men surrounding around you when you jump off stage at gigs, how do you feel then?
It's a bit creepy, but it's funny though. Very amusing. The guys look like little dogs all crowded around me!
Finally, your Mum's a top journalist has she prepped you with plenty of media training to prepare you for Fight Like Apes?
Ha Ha woah that's a really interesting question. My ma's never done anything resembling media training with me! She's really excited for me and there's nothing that she could do to prepare me for bad press anyway. I'm not reading any press at the moment. It's not gonna change the way I write. We (Fight Like Apes) would rather do our own thing, have fun doing it and ignore what anyone else says! I'd definitely like to keep it that way too.
If you haven't watched Fight Like Apes live yet, or taken the chance to listen to their unique riot pop, you should as it's an experience that has to be seen and heard to be believed! Catch them at festivals in the UK this year eGigs totally recommends them!
article by: Michelle Owen, Tricia Williams
published: 12/03/2009 12:39
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