The Sherlocks FAULT Magazine Cover and Interview

As fans make their way through the newly released third studio album, ‘People Like Me & You,’ from The Sherlocks, the stage is set for their most audacious musical endeavor yet. With their recent singles turning heads and earning critical acclaim, the album promises to be a captivating journey into a sound that pushes boundaries and takes their signature indie/alt-rock hybrid to soaring new heights.

With all that said, we caught up with the band to discuss their musical journey and of course, their FAULTs.

Your recent singles have been described as hookier, edgier, and bigger than anything you’ve done before. Can you tell us about the evolution of your sound and what inspired this change?

It’s always hard for us to notice any changes to the sound and what our sound even is cos we’re too busy being in it and just rolling with it. But I suppose it all just happened naturally really and we gravitated towards a rockier sound with the songs. I don’t know why but it just sounded good at the time and we were all digging it in the rehearsal room. When you do start hammering out a tune like ‘Sirens’ you feel like you’ve discovered a bit of magic or struck gold cos you know it’s going of in a gig! Absolute chaos. C’mon!

As you gear up for the release of your new album, “People Like Me & You,” how does it differ from your previous work?

I think this time around we were all playing well as we’ve had more time to gel as a band… we also recorded it in the middle of our touring schedule so were really tight in the live room when doing guide tracks and feeling the tunes out. I think we’ve just got better at making decisions and knowing want we want and also what we don’t want in our music at the time. We’ve definitely tried a few more things out on this record though and been open to ideas, we delved into a few programmed elements sat underneath some tracks to add a few more layers… that’s probably Al’s influence. We didn’t get too carried away though… the guitars are still well and truly pumping and in your face! I think people are gonna get a real shock when they hear this record, the songs are just good songs. Simple. No tricks to try and disguise stuff… just an album full of proper anthems with huge solid chorus’s which I think in many ways will be refreshing for people. There’s not really that many bands writing huge chorus’s these days … everyone’s trying to be too clever with production and half of the time there’s no real songs under it, or there is it’s just bang average. It doesn’t blow you away… so if bands aren’t into writing big chorus’s anymore cos they think it’s been done and it’s not cool anymore we might aswell do it. That’s what we’re into. We don’t need to try and be trendy, we just wanna write great songs and go out and tour them and give people a band they can get behind!

How do you prepare for your live performances, and what can fans expect from your shows?

I honestly think this is gonna be our best tour yet. I know that’s a little predictable to say but it is true… we’ll have four albums to pick a setlist from, the newest record is full of songs that probably lend them selves to being played live more than any other record we’ve done… we’ll have been playing together a lot longer so we’re a lot tighter…. Just everything points towards a class tour. We’re just up for it anyway, to us this is the best job in the world and it feels like a party every night when you’re on tour. Can’t wait!

“People Like Me & You” showcases a range of styles, was this by design or do you just go with the flow? 

No I think that is just how we are. I can’t really write the same song twice or put together a collection of songs for a record that all have a ‘’theme’’. Look at all our records, all the songs are really different. But I prefer it that way, it keeps it interesting for us never mind the fans. And because it is like that I think the fans probably enjoy the albums more.

you have been performing a run of intimate shows hosted by local independent record stores. How important for you are these intimate performances as you gear up for a larger tour?

Really important. They are helping us massively to promote our new album and I think we are helping them aswell by playing there. It’s good to support each other and return to the places you’ve played on the way up to where ever you’re at… it doesn’t hurt to give something back. We’ve been having a blast playing them to be honest!

Are you regimented with your songwriting process or do you prefer to wait for inspiration to hit? 

Definitely the second option, I don’t force it cos it’ll just never happen for me. I’ve tried sitting down to consciously write something but I just can’t do it that way… I prefer to just let it come to me unannounced and let it catch me off guard. I could be chilling in the garden or walking the dog then all of a sudden a melody will just come into my head… that’s the time to start getting excited for me.

When you look back on your musical journey, what’s been the hardest creative hurdle you’ve had to climb? 

I’m not sure you know, they all pose different problems sometimes but more recently id say something off the new album. I’d not really finished any songs for this new record lyric wise… to the point where I had to write the second verse to pretty much all the songs in the studio and even lyrics to the chorus on a few. It was pretty nuts to be fair… I’ve never left it that late before but I do think I write better when the pressure is on. It makes you really get inside the song and force out something that blows you away. In the last working week of the album which would have been Monday to Thursday, I had 5 songs to sing in four days of songs I’d not even written yet. I don’t know what I was thinking…!!

What is your FAULT?

Overthinking stuff probably… I’m a bit of a perfectionist but it’s only cos I care about what I’m doing and what we as a band are making. I want people to talk about us in a positive way and be like ‘’Dyou know what, they’re a solid band them that write great songs and sound class’’. That’s all I’m bothered about, and the fact that we work hard and do everything ourselves.