Words: Tom Willmott
Tom caught up with Belfast’s post-hardcore 4-piece Lafaro to talk about their brand new album ‘Easy Meat’ and much more.
The new album “Easy Meat” has been released today. Are you proud of the end product?
Alan: Very much so!
Jonny: We couldn’t wait to get it out to be honest and just get it toured and hopefully people will like it!
Were the little intermissions on this record intentional?
Jonny: Yeah, it was just a lot of really stupid recordings that were mastered between the first and second one, particularly in Europe. We just got a load of crazy Europeans talking funny stuff to us and decided to record as many of them as possible. If Europeans are being funny, that’s something that should be documented!
How did you come up with the name “Easy Meat”?
Jonny: It’s like a colloquial kind of slang where we’re from. There’s a couple of ways you could say it, like “That’s a gift” as in that’s easy.
Alan: Like a girl could be construed as easy meat.
Jonny: No!
Alan: I think so!
Jonny: I hope we’re not misogynists. We love girls!
What bands inspired you to form your own band?
Jonny: I think locally we’re into similar things but also very different things. We were all born with a love of early 90s metal/rock music such as Stone Temple Pilots, Alice In Chains, Nirvana, Queens Of The Stone Age.
Alan: There’s a few similarities but a lot of stuff we listen to is I suppose that harder edge and slightly discordant bands that we all love.
Jonny: At The Drive In too!
What is the scene like in Northern Ireland at the moment?
Jonny: It’s particularly healthy. It’s healthier than it has been in a long time. There’s a lot of good bands in particular And So I Watch You From Afar and Mojo Fury who are contemporaries of ours. We’ve known them for years and are good friends of ours. But underneath that, there’s also kids in good bands and they’re also getting better and stronger all the time. You probably haven’t heard some of them yet but you will!
What bands would you recommend?
Jonny: I would recommend Abandcalledboy (that is the actual name of the band!). I’d also recommend Gascan Ruckus, great wee band and Rupture Dogs, Silver Theory + More Than Conquerors.
Alan: Pay*Ola!
Jonny: No don’t listen to them! Lantern For A Gale if you like hardcore!
Favourite tour story?
Alan: This is the first tour we’ve had a soundman come on the road with us. He’s a lovely ginger fellow from Donegal called Conor Mullan who’s taking a liking to lighting farts on this tour. We played Blackburn two nights ago and he tried to light said fart and shat himself!
You have some very interesting lyrical themes. What inspires these?
Jonny: You remember The Wombles? They would go around picking up bits of rubbish that everyone else would throw away. I kind of do that with lyrics. I just kind of regurgitate the stupid things that get said but never get picked up on.
Alan: Like a lyrical Womble!
What music are you currently digging?
Jonny: On my stereo always Interpol! I love a lot of early 50s rock and roll and blues music. That’s always on there, as well as Queens of The Stone Age!
Alan: Metallica!
Have you heard the song with Lou Reed?
Alan: Not yet man. It’s a whole album I believe!
Dave: Awful!
Jonny: They don’t really have to care. They don’t have to make any money do they?
Cahir O Doherty from Fighting With Wire/Jet Plane Landing has recently filled on bass for this tour. Is he fitting in well?
Jonny: He’s one of our oldest and best friends. He’s like a brother and an extremely competent musician so he’s fitting in great. His wee brother Oisin is actually coming in full time from November so he’s filling in that gap just perfectly at the moment.
Coming back to Lou Reed and Metallica’s collaboration, who would you have temporarily join the band?
Alan: Katy Perry! She could be my drum tech.
Jonny: I would love to get Tom Waits in to do some vocals.
Dave: I’d like to get Hayley Williams in!
Alan: I’d like to get Dave Lombardo instead of me!
Name bands you’d happily erase from this planet.
Alan: N Dubz! There’s a band called Bears Killing Bears we played with the other night and they were the worst thing we had ever heard.
Jonny: Or seen! They broke Alan’s drum kit too. He’s not happy!
Alan: Brand New too!
Jonny: We could talk for days about this!
Are there any future plans for the band in the new year?
Jonny: We’re touring Europe in December, then come home for Christmas and then going straight back to Europe in the new year. Hopefully we’ll do as many fucking festivals as possible!
