I recently shared the news that indie rock band The Holloways are reuniting for their long awaited comeback tour. I also had the chance to have a catch up with the group: Alfie and Bryn, and we chatted about their music journeys, the upcoming tour and so much more!
Please share your musical journey(s) from the very beginning.
Alfie: Born in Leeds, Alfie Jackson is a creative, fun loving, determined dreamer with many names. Aged 9, my family moved to Melton Mowbray where I grew up and made friends for life, played a lot of football and most importantly, sliced my finger open one Saturday morning whilst working on a fruit and veg stall. At the hospital, I was instructed to go home where he turned on the TV to be greeted by the sound and sight of Oasis.
With a bandage on my finger, I picked up a £25 Encore acoustic guitar and figured out how to play Old MacDonald Had A Farm and Last Of The Summer Wine. I went into school on the Monday and told the trained musicians in the school, “We’re gonna form a band.” 2 years later, my band “Marvel” sold out The Princess Charlotte in Leicester and “Jacko” was running down the path of rock ’n’ roll with blinkers/blinders on.
However, a back up plan was deemed necessary and this led to 3 years of Media Studies at Worcester University. This earned me a job at ITV in foggy London Town. 3 years or so was enough before the itch to do music full time became unbearable. Summer 2004. Fate lands me in Holloway, and the birth of The Holloways. In 2006, we signed to TVT and the rest is a whole other story!
Bryn: My house was always full of music as a kid. We had records or the radio on before the TV most days, and the top 40 was on every Sunday. Leonard Cohen, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and the Kinks were some of my parents’ main choices. This led me to wanting to learn an instrument.
Unfortunately for me, that didn’t mean the guitar straight away! It meant having a go at all the other instruments in the house first before I could get a guitar. So, I went through the clarinet, trumpet and saxophone before finally, on my 14th birthday I was taken to the big guitar shop that used to be in the middle of Birmingham and was able to choose my 1st guitar (a red Squire Strat)!
From there I had lessons and then joined a band at school, the person nominated to play bass couldn’t really do it so I took over and in that band (Silverline), I was the lead singer, lyricist (some terrible GCSE poetry for sure…) and bassist. We played around zero live shows but had many rehearsals and songs with big dreams of being the next big thing. Unfortunately, in a small town in the midlands in the 90s, there weren’t a lot of places to play or people to hear us! The band was short-lived and I moved to London for Uni where I explored other creative endeavours but never really left music behind. Meeting Alf in 2004 brought it back into focus and the rest as they say is history…
How did the Holloways come together?
Bryn: Alf and I met at an afterparty in Crouch End in 2004. We got on and made a loose plan to meet up should my plan to move to Tufnell Park/Holloway come to fruition. I did indeed move there and on walking out of my new house almost literally bumped into Alf in the street.
Alf promised to show me all the best places in Holloway, so a trip to Nambucca was 1st on the list. There, we hatched the plan to start a new band. Alf had some great songs already and I was really into it from the start. We went to Denmark street and bought a bass so we could truly say we were starting a band.
Still we needed other members. We tried a couple of guitarists and other musicians but it wasn’t quite there. Then one fateful Sunday at Nambucca, who should be playing at the open mic? (Also well overstaying the 3 songs he was supposed to do. None other than Rob Skipper. His talent was plain to see and he was highly recommended by the crowd reaction to him. Alf asked if he wanted to join a band and he said “Yes!” Still, a drummer was yet to be found…
We had a few songs and Rob and Alf played another night at Nambucca where Dave Danger (who at that time was known to us as the promoter for Nambucca and Frog nightclub) suggested he had a go at drumming as he used to drum. Wow! it clicked instantly. The songs started coming out almost fully formed, and the 3 men instantly hit it off and it was like they had known each other for decades, not weeks.
A great thing about being from different backgrounds and places then being thrown together by a love of music meant the influences came from all over the shop, giving us a unique view on songs and making our music not tied to any 1 experience or person. The name was harder to come by, many were suggested but our hands were forced when we had a gig (supporting Babyshambles at Nambucca) thrown to us as basically our first show. In the car on the way from practice, The Holloways was chosen as a temporary name, but one that paid homage to the place where we all lived and that had brought us together so serendipitously.
What’s the story behind your 2007 hit song Generator.
Alfie: I remember Rob singing this little hook Generator now and then. Then one night, Tom Frog started singing it and saying it was a great idea that Rob had.
And I said “What!? I thought that was a Ramone’s song!” Genuinely didn’t know it was Rob’s idea, but as soon as I realised, I grabbed him. We were at a party above Nambucca. I remember sitting in Dave’s bedroom with Rob, Dave and our mate Ben-Joe, and I was super excited and loads of ideas started coming.
Rob had it as quite a laid back thing but I injected my energy and ideas, and then the band added the groove with our whole gang adding many opinions on its vibe before it became the beast that smashed Radio 1.
Tristan Ivemy did a great job on the production of the original version.
Which songs can your fans expect to hear from you on your comeback tour? What will the set list be like?
Bryn: We will not be scrimping on the songs! All the hits will be there, some very choice b-sides and we always loved throwing in a surprise or two…..
Now that the band has downsized, how does this affect your live set up?
Bryn: We play with 4 people and 100% energy. The main difference now is that Alf takes more lead work on the Guitar and I does a little more singing. One thing we always did and will always do is give 100% in shows. The crowd will want to dance, sing and party their cares away just like live music should make you.
Name your favourite musical influences.
Alfie: Oasis, Simon and Garfunkel, The Beatles, Smashing Pumpkins, The Kinks, The Strokes, The Libertines, Supergrass, Radiohead, The Smiths, Brendan Benson.
Bryn: Blur, Supergrass, Pulp, Leonard Cohen… Sleeper made me want to move to London… Smashing Pumpkins and Weezer. I was a child of 90s Britpop when my musical journey started so you’ll see a lot of that kind of social commentary and some poetry in the way I like my music. I love a lot of new artists now, I think there is a really varied music scene at the moment and that can only be a good thing.
Will there be any new music from The Holloways? Any future projects?
Alfie: I’ve always had ideas for The Holloways but recent reunion tours and spending time together and feeling the love from the fans is still strong has really re-lit my fire. I’ve been writing a lot of Holloways ideas recently and I am proper excited by them. So the answer is yes. How and when is to be figured out, but yes…
Thanks so much Alfie and Bryn for your time and sharing so much. You can find The Holloways on all popular social media and music platforms.
