James Gillett (left), myself and Sam Douglas (right) before the show.

Photo: Joe Savins

(Originally published for Concrete). Please note: The original top photo used for Concrete has been replaced by the one taken by Joe.

Cambridge-based rock band Mallory Knox consists of lead singer Mikey Chapman, bassist and singer Sam Douglas, lead guitarist Joe Savins, rhythm guitarist James Gillett, and drummer Dave Rawlings. On the third night of their UK tour I spoke to Sam and James about family, the music industry, and the influences behind new album Wired.

Why did you decide to become a band, and why the name Mallory Knox?

Sam: Music’s been there for us since we were about 13. We did the whole being a kid, playing on a back of a lorry with your parents only the ones there to watch you – it kind of spiralled from there. Ever since this band has been taken seriously we haven’t looked back. We needed a neutral name. Mallory Knox could be a metal band, or pop punk, you can’t work it out. We didn’t want to be defined straight away from the name. You don’t judge a person from their name when you meet them for the first time, so why should you judge a band?

What does this band mean to you?

Sam: It’s everything. Speaking for myself, it’s been my life for the past eight years – everything I’ve got in my life right now is built from this band. It’s what I put everything into every day when I wake up in the morning, it’s the first thing I think about.

James: It’s not until recently we can go, “You know what, I don’t really know what I would do without this”. You take it for granted. Things fell into place quite easily for us early on. Now we’ve got that drive and passion again – we never lost that, but we’ve got it more so. We want an influence on every decision being made, we care about every little part of it again.

What do you think the fans’ reaction to Wired has been like?

Sam: I wanted to have an album from 1 to 11 where people would genuinely enjoy listening to it the whole way through. I think that’s what’s happened – you could probably put 5-10 of our fans in a room and go “what’s your favourite song from Wired?” and I would guarantee that at least seven or eight of the songs would be mentioned within those ten people. You can dream about chart positions and you can dream about venues, but at the end of the day you can only achieve what’s in front of you.

How is Wired different from previous albums?

Sam: When we wrote Signals we were what – twenty? Now I’m 27, I’ve seen the world, I’ve missed my family, my friends and girlfriends, and emotions are a lot more intense now – there’s a lot more life stresses involved, so that alone created this frustration and anxiousness. I think you can hear how vulnerable the songs are at times. It’s so easy to get carried away and put layer after layer after layer, tuning every little bit so it’s perfect, but those little imperfections match the insecurities we felt when we were writing the record.

James: Everyone is trying their hardest to keep music alive, that’s what it’s all about. Record sales are on their arse. You have to try to keep the interaction with people, that’s why social media is such an important thing. That is a subject we touch on, how it is so necessary these days but also so bad in places as well.

What about songs like ‘Mother’, in particular?

Sam: ‘Mother’ is a song that we all relate to. It’s a tip of the hat to your parents; thanks for supporting me for the first four years when I wasn’t making any money and letting me live rent-free and letting me follow my dream, and I know that it was stressful at times and I know you miss us when we’re away and you see us when we’re stressed, but you still stand by us. My parents, regardless of their own personal difficulties, stuck together and still were my parents regardless of what they went through together, and I really fucking respect that.

It’s been six years since your Pilot EP came out. What is the most important lesson you’ve learnt since then?

Sam: To never lose track of what you want and how you want to be Mallory Knox, without drifting away. The biggest lesson you can learn is that you have to put in everything you’ve got to reap the rewards – it’s not just going to fall into your lap, no matter what. For a band like us, you’ve got to give it everything. You’ve got to strive to be the best, constantly – to survive in this fucking industry that is sometimes too hard. That would be my advice to myself from six years ago – do not lose hope and faith and belief in what you’re doing, and always strive to be better.

James: In the early days, you’ve got to enjoy moments like “we’ve got a record label, oh my god!”, but we’ve learnt now to still be in control. No-one is going to care about your band as much as you.

Sam: It’s very much like a football club; players, managers, coaches will all come and go but the fans stay forever.

What do you think is the biggest thing you’ve been able to do as a band?

Sam: The Roundhouse was a moment. One of those moments where you don’t know what you’re doing until you watch it back a few days later and you’re like, “Fuck!” That’s still my number one.

James: When you’re older and you tell your kids you got to go to America, they’ll think “that’s cool,” but then you go, “we played this venue and look how many people were there,” they’ll think, “Bloody hell!”

Mallory Knox are currently touring the UK and Europe, and will be playing Reading and Leeds festivals in August.

Frances Butler