Project Description

Interview With

Martin Doherty (Doc) of CHVRCHES

Interviewer: Kelsey Hentschel

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Glaswegian punks CHVRCHES have already announced to be appearing at Splendour in the Grass in July 2018, synth-pop sensations CHVRCHES have also dropped the hottest album of 2018 “Love Is Dead”. Amnplify writer Kelsey had the opportunity to chat with Doc about the album, and their upcoming return to Australia. Read the full interview below….

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Four years ago played Splendour In The Grass. You guys mentioned that you were sick! I suppose that happens a lot on the road. Must be exciting to redeem the experience.

Yeah that’s right. It ended up being up there with one of my favourite shows. Lauren & I were both really sick. It has been winter & we’d been flying y’know working too hard. We were totally energised by the show, and then we piled straight back into the car to go back and have a sleep. It was quite the experience. I’m so happy to be coming back to Splendour.

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Do you have any tour tips for travelling bands to avoid getting ill?

Its good to be in a band with Lauren because she’s really on top of stuff like that. She’s got a humidifier for the bus. Ordinarily I’d not think that far ahead and then you get all sorts of colds. She’s really good with that, I suppose because its much more important for her. If she gets a cold or a throat illness that can be a show canceller.

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Yeah Definitely! So you’ve got a few sideshows lined up for Australian fans that cant get down to the festival in Melbourne and Sydney. A portion of the proceeds from both shows will go to the charity Girlsrock! So amazing of you, what inspired this? I don’t see that often.

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That’s something we do whenever we can. Its something that’s important to us. Its especially close to Laurens heart. A charity like Girlsrock! is really important to us because it gives opportunities to those that it otherwise wouldn’t be there. If you look at festival line-ups or just general representation of women in music, women are still under-represented. This charity encourages young kids to get into playing in a band and roles that otherwise wouldn’t be offered to them. Its something we consider to be positive & totally worthwhile.

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Wow that’s so cool! I really love that!

Thank you!

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‘Miracle’ just released you guys mentioned you thought about giving it to another artist, writing for someone else. At what point did you realise you wanted to keep it? So glad you did.

Oh cool, that’s awesome. The way that it came around was I was writing with Steve Mac who’s a huge pop producer & we had the idea for the song initially & it was this massive anthemic song. We didn’t necessarily know who we were writing for. We were there on Chvrches business but we were just feeling our way out, trying to find a song somewhere. When we hit on that everyone got kind of excited. It was when we started playing it to the people that we work with, our manager etc. they started to get really excited & that song became a big part of the composition for the album. Even though in our minds the album was done at that point, it found its way onto the record. It was uncharted territory for us. We’re not holding back on that record. That can sometimes feel uncomfortable, but that song felt right so we’re happy with it.

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It’s such a big sounding song as well, really lends to rounding out the album overall I think.

Yes! And I think it’ll be really fun to play live!

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Yeah, wow. Cant wait to hear it live in July! So… the Miracle video shot in one take. It features the members of Chvrches staying calm amid riots, street fights, and lots of paint. Such a cool concept. How was filming?

It took A LOT of rehearsal! (laughs). My role in the video is rather small so it was kind of in & out in the beginning and watching this thing happen over and over again in front of our eyes. It took a lot to get it right but you know, I’m glad we did.

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Before the release of the album, you released tracks ‘Get Out’, ‘Never Say Die’, and a Matt Berninger duet ‘My Enemy’. What about these tracks made you want to release them as singles?

It’s a nice way to get a feel for the record for people. It was the first release for a while, that all the labels agreed on as a good taster. A good introduction to the album. I still think there’s a few stories left to tell in terms of where the album goes. I think people will still be surprised by a few of the songs on there & I’m happy about that. Its got the right kind of variety, but still feels like a Chvrches record.

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With the name of the record ‘Love is dead’ – its not a breakup album & I feel like it can get misconstrued as such for those who haven’t yet heard the album. What was the idea behind that title?

I’m okay with that. As long as its invoking some sort of a reaction from people. That’s the function of a good album title. That’s what we were kinda doing. Its deliberately provocative & designed to start a conversation. I don’t feel like we’re a political band but I also think its hard to make music in these times and not comment on what you see going on around, & Lauren really feels that political perspective & she has commented on it on this record and a name like that seemed like a good way to start a conversation about where we are.

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A lot of this album about those internet trolls who made life pretty difficult for the band in the beginning, do you see that shitty situation as a blessing in disguise as its lead you to where you are now & inspired a large part of your music?

Its hard for me to look at that stuff with any kind of positive outlook because I lived with Lauren through that & saw what she went through, and continues to go through. I don’t think that much has changed. I think its positive that there’s a conversation happening in the mainstream about it now & that’s cool. Seeing the daily threats and the daily hatred all for just being in the public eye. That challenges a certain type of person, a certain type of male. Its hard to take any positives from it. Even now. I still see it going on. I suppose in some way its good to have a creative outlet & a means for cathartic reasons to get that out of your system. I see what you’re saying though.

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In brief, how would you explain this album? Only a few words, I know it’s hard to boil down that work to just a few words.

This is kind of a distilled progression from the first two, where we really wanted to celebrate both sides of the band. We wanted to be extreme and dark when we feel like being extreme and dark, but also embrace the direct pop aspects of what we do & not compromise.

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You mentioned earlier how you guys are not a Political band, however I do find you get that association a lot. Do you like that association? Or is it an unwanted comparison?

I don’t mind it. Its not for me to criticise other peoples opinions. We can only control what we do & how we present ourselves. There’s noting wrong when people comment on that. We’re not politicians, but like I said its hard to not make music about life around you. In twenty years when you look back, the people that weren’t doing it, It’s gonna seem really bizarre & really odd. Its not like a hard line message that we’re trying to get across. Music should be escapism on a level too, but it should also have a conscious. We’re politically conscious, but ultimately, we’re a band.

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So you guys self-produced your first two albums. Both Iian and yourself have that producing background, and once said “We were incredibly against any idea of outside collaboration”. What changed?

It was about building an identity at the start. I was about not coming into this part of the business before we’d really established ourselves & getting to a place of security where we really felt strong & that we had a strong identity & a strong idea of what our band is musically & in every other aspect. When we eventually got to that point, we felt totally comfortable so it made sence then to open it up to collaboration. I still maintain that if we had not found the right collaborators we would’ve continued as we were, creating music and producing ourselves. We found that special energy with Greg Kurstin & with Steven

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I’ll let you go then. You’ve got a really jam-packed day of press for the album. Thanks for chatting to me Doc!

Sorry we got cut short. You’re welcome. All the best.

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Kelsey Hentschel

Studying a Bachelor of Business, specialising in Music Industry! At just 24, Kelsey has years of experience across multiple sectors of the music industry, gaining valuable insight into this world! Kelsey joined the AMNplify team upon returning to Australia from her time living in London. While abroad, Kelsey collaborated with Sony Music UK, and an array of independent artists. Kelsey has been globetrotting since the age of ten, coming up on twenty-four countries, and counting! It’s been a struggle for us to keep her in one place! Kelsey has a vast passion for music. As she would say, “Music commands ever facet of personality”!