British-based electrosurfbilly band, Flirt With Danger have released their debut album, ‘The Mini-Album’.
The music is an imaginative, provocative and eclectic mix of neo-rockabilly, surf, 60s garage and proto-punk, combined with analogue synth sounds. The lyrics draw on both modern concerns and retro-futuristic imagery, very much in line with the burgeoning atompunk artistic scene. It represents a significant departure from the existing UK music scene and has already attracted considerable interest in the USA, particularly in California and Texas.
The tracks were written by Les ‘Spaceman’ Rowley, the former keyboard player of South London indie rock band, Brilliant Pink, theatrical heavy metallers, Aunt May, and drum’n’bass trio, Tectonic.
Mr Rowley said, “This is just a taste of a large catalogue of material that provides a refreshing alternative to a popular music scene that’s become somewhat staid and formulaic in recent years.”
In true punk DIY spirit, Flirt With Danger are not signed to a record company, and the mini-album is both self-financed and self-produced. All songs were recorded in Worcester-based studio, The Space Underground and professionally mastered at Metropolis Studios.
The mini-album can be heard at https://flirtwithdanger.bandcamp.com/releases
The mini-album will be available through bandcamp, iTunes, Google Play, Spotify and all the usual digital stores.
LES ROWLEY REVEALS ALL TO MHBOX
Is it surfer, punk or rock tell us how you describe what you do ?
‘Punk Noir’ – a term I use to describe its mix of rockabilly, surf, garage/punk, 40s detective film themes and analog electronics.
What is your new album about and what’s the main song ?
Main track on the Mini-album is Even Spooks Need To Rock & Roll. Inspired by checking the server stats for the band website and discovering a whole load of hits from British Indian Ocean Territories – it gave me a vision of guys working the spy centres out there, getting bored on the night shift and using their surveillance equipment to listen to rock & roll instead.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years time ?
I hope the music will have evolved, got more sophisticated, and I’ll have more time to create it. Either that or retired to a tropical island.
Where does your band name come from ?
An idea for a website project a long time ago, I still had the domain name when I started recording my own material and it seemed a natural choice. There’s a line from a Doors song which may have inspired it, “There’s danger on the edge of town”
Where have you played live ?
With previous bands played the Marquee 3 times (Charing X Rd, not the original). Played a few mini-fests, nowhere major.
Is your family musical ?
My grandfather played the barrel organ 🙂
How would you handle a mistake during a performance ?
Try and get through without breaking rhythm, the audience rarely notice.
Do you get nervous before a live gig and how do you manage this if you do ?
Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. Still get nerves in the few minutes before starting, usually feel fine as soon as I start playing, the nerves just disappear when the focused mind takes over. For all that, it’s a great adrenalin rush, and to some extent I enjoy that. I suspect a lot of other performers do, too.
Where can people get your music online ?