Newcastle Think Tank. 15/12/17
Now, we don’t get a lot of Swedish bands in today’s Rock world, but it was a real privilege to be invited down to chat with the three-piece group; Normandie. It’s their second tour of the UK in a year as they were supporting Yellowcard’s headlining farewell tour this time last year as well. I sat down for a chat with them to talk about everything they’ve been up to recently.
So guys, tell me who exactly are Normandie?
“As a band or as persons? We’re a Swedish band from different parts of Sweden and put together in 2013 by management because the scene was losing a bunch of great bands and they thought it was a good idea to put us together.”
I was going to say, you don’t normally hear about rock bands from Sweden too much in today’s world.
“Exactly. There were a bunch of bands that were put to rest and we were supposed to fill that space.”
“But, as persons who are we? Relaxed, easy going, positive dudes.”
And how’s it been playing UK shows again? I saw you guys last year supporting Yellowcard but it’s fantastic to be able to see you on the headline slot this time around.
“That was a great tour. It’s been super nice to be back in the UK and this tour has been amazing. We did a headline tour one and a half year ago and we can see a big difference now. “
“The best part from that tour was that we did a show in a place called Boston Music Room so that was the first ever UK show we did one and a half year ago and now we played it again and it sold out so it’s great to see the progression of the UK fanbase.”
And you’re also touring with Ryan from Yellowcard again, how does it feel to be out with one of the same artists again?
“Amazing. He’s a great guy and it’s really fun to have him with us.”
On the tour have you ever come out and done a quick-fire collaboration with him? I know some bands like to do that with their supporting acts on occasion.
“No. I don’t think we’d like to put him in that spot. I don’t know if he’d enjoy it or if he wouldn’t and if we would, it’d be a surprise, but I don’t think I could ask him. I’d rather just be Normandie and have fun with him backstage.”
The new single; Pay For This has been out for around a month now, how’s the reaction been to that new material on the run of shows?
“It’s been good. We did a campaign and live stream which worked out quite well for that, so it was really good to try something new.”
And being an unsigned now, does that give you more freedom?
“Plenty. We’ve had so much time to work on the new album and we were proud of what we’ve done but we don’t want the pressure of doing that same process again, we want to find what the real Normandie sound is, not that it’s going to be really different but find ourselves in the sound. We’ve done that now.”
So, would you say it’s a more personal record than the last?
“Personal and way broader. Not that it’s way more poppy or more like that. Every song isn’t the same but they’re in the same area and there’s some that’ll stick out and are close to the old sound so It’s more diverse. “
So, will it be released next year?
“Hopefully. If it wouldn’t be I’d be a little surprised and ashamed because I don’t like it when bands take four years to write an album, especially if it’s the second album”.
And what else can we expect from you in 2018?
“Probably a lot of touring hopefully. But we can’t say anything really because it hinges on the first few months.”
You can view Normandie’s video for ‘Pay For This’ below.
You can find Normandie’s music on iTunes, Amazon, Google Play and Spotify.
You can also follow them through their social media accounts via Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Almost Anything Music 