Today we’re talking with the blokes from UK’s Panic Attract. They’re currently in the midst of building hype for their debut album which is still being recorded. They’ve given us the opportunity to have a listen to their first public track, and in two words, their sound is ‘very promising’.

In addition to the fun percussion, uke strumming, vocal harmonies, and sharp lyrics I’ve heard other Panic Attract songs that delve a bit into the electronic. They mention DJing on their website too, so it sounds like there is more magic behind the curtains here. Well anyways, let’s get the straight dope from the band itself.

Frank: First, Panic Attract started as two people and now you have four? How did this thing come together?

Greg: Band members are like busses! We were looking for one, two showed up. As a duo we had songs where on stage I would play drums and guitar together as well as triggering a synth on the side. It was starting to get a bit too amusing for my own good.

Tim: Yeah, it kind of came about through a necessity to stop Greg’s octopus impression. We were looking for someone to take over on the drums, but all our online adverts seemed to attract metal heads who didn’t listen to reggae. We’d been working a bit in the studio with a great London band called Bob Constant and the Goodbye Horses and loved their drummer, Matt. We asked him to play with our improvised noise project “BonBonJoviJovi” for a couple of shows and it was glorious..

Matt: I went to see Panic Attract play a few times after this and loved their willingness to experiment whilst keeping it pop. I secretly wanted to join them and when I realized they were decent fellows who lived down the road I finally manned up and asked to play!

Tim: Then Noel turns up from Wales.

Noel: My brother used to live with Tim in London. He once told me that Tim had written a song about how getting head was the perfect state of being and that everything that followed was a steady downhill until the next opportunity to exalt oneself again.

Tim: Really???!!

Noel: I was a HUGE Panic Attract fan living in small-town Wales. I moved to London and asked Tim if he wanted to start a project. When I was at his flat, Greg came over and we had this big, a-tonal jam. The next time that I spoke to Tim, he suggested that I join and I was very very excited.

Frank: What are some Pitchfork-esque music journalist jargon that they might say to describe the sound of Panic Attract?

Matt: On record: solid intelligent pop songs, complete with pleasing bleeps and an endearing, playful experimental edge. Live: the same but with added energy, sweat and freedom

Tim: I have to be careful with this, I was once told that I had “waxed metaphysically” about my music from a DJ on the radio.

Noel: Not enough people write about the fact that Greg does this weird march on the spot with his knees lifted high as we play. He also tries to work heavy metal sections into the songs – journalists: take note!

Greg: Excusez moi?

Frank: How does this opening single, The Wrong Place, represent the sound of the forthcoming album?

Noel: It compounds a bazillion genres into a couple of minutes. I think (fear) that is becoming a bit of a theme…

Tim: Ha yeah maybe. It gives a general impression of the sound I guess. Not every song will have a ukulele funk chorus, but the main features of the songs on the album so far have the melodic hooks and dub style groove to them. The thing is it’s hard to know because since the other two turned up the sound is constantly changing. The problem is that we think a track is finished then play it together in the rehearsal room and someone will do something amazing and it’s like “back to the studio then…”

Frank: You guys haven’t been a band for long, how has the writing process transferred to performing the songs on stage?

Matt: I thought the songs written by Tim and Greg were really strong and I wanted to add something to them without changing them too much. They aren’t too precious about the songs though and are always up for trying out different ideas; for example, ditching the first 4 minutes of a song when Noel pointed out that the last 3 minutes were amazing and this was the only 3 minutes that people’s ears needed!

Tim: Yeah well when someone tells you it sounds like a crap demo by a band he didn’t like you can’t really ignore them. Especially when they are in the band.

Greg: At the moment we’ve just been working through the back catalog with the guys. The sound has developed so much that it is almost like writing new songs though. We do a lot of jams and try to record as many as possible. There have been some nice songs starting points from this.

Noel: I just try to realize the original idea as accurately as is possible. However, the more sporadic cymbals that I can fit in, the better!

Tim: We’re starting to write as a band though I think. It’s definitely easier for me to turn up with my acoustic guitar and go “here is a new song!”, but we’re starting to work each other out musically. It helps that outside of Panic Attract we all make music together in different forms. Greg and I produce noisy techno, Noel and Greg have recorded some lovely instrumental acoustic guitar tracks and Noel and I are currently working on a concept album about an angelic love story, which is sonically based around the only synthesizer that the watch company Seiko ever made. It sounds cheap and 80s.

Frank: When can we expect the album to be released and are there any plans at this time to tour the States?

Tim: The album is looking like a late 2010 / early 2011 one. At the moment we are just going to keep releasing singles on our own label (Wailing Woo) to keep the hype building and hopefully someone somewhere might put their hands in their pocket to help us out with the full-length release. As for touring the states, it would be great but we’ve barely toured London…

Noel: The only place that we wont go is Arizona as we recently agreed to lend our name to a petition of bands boycotting the state after they introduced the SB 1070 law.

Tim: This may be a lie.

Frank: Any influences you would cite for this particular album?

Tim: I’m definitely more influenced by American acts than anything. Bradford Cox’s stuff, The Silver Jews and the new Ariel Pink album has been in the CD player a lot. But the other guys bring different influences which is great and chaotic.

Greg: Pavement, Gong, Lee Perry, Mano Negra

Frank: What are your favorite types of muffins?

Noel: As a child, it was always blueberry, but I’m afraid that I didn’t grow into much of a muffin man.

Tim: He’s vegan.

Greg: Diva Muffin Zappa

Matt: I’ll go for double choc but I’m really not fussy and would rarely deny my tummy a muffin.

You can pick up their lead single The Wrong Place from Bandcamp (pay for it or don’t, up to you).  And like Tim said, be sure to keep your eyes on their website as they will be releasing singles periodically until the whole album is completed.  In fact, last I heard they will be releasing another single any day now.  Oh, and here is some music…

Panic Attract – The Wrong Place

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