Congrats on ‘Best Behaviour’ – it feels both personal and punchy. What moment sparked the idea for this song? Was it based on a real experience?
The song talks to the underlying pressures you feel when meeting the parents. It’s always laced with trepidation. To be on one’s best beahviour is the expectation. To be nervous is understandable. To be perfect is unlikely. The rawness and fragility of this song reflects everyone’s state of mind in such moments. Even being an artist can’t prepare you for moments like these.
The track was originally written years ago but came together in Chantilly, France – can you paint a picture of that songwriting session? What was the vibe like?
Ned could give you a 10 minute spiel on this, and he has been known to do this after a long night with a fair few Guiness consumed prior.
Chantilly, known for its cream, soon to be more commonly known for being the birthplace of NO CIGAR’s third record. A beautiful chateau and the bucolic gardens and grounds just a 15 minute walk away from the stables, turned Airbnb where we resided. Late November 2023, the trees shedding their leaves as the European winter slowly took hold. The house was old, and the stairs they creaked. The fire crackled, and a deer’s head watched over us, as we explored soundscapes new and old, experimented with a freedom and escapism never experienced before. It was a session like no other we’d had, and very quickly bore fruits. The idyllic beauty of the town and its surrounds a constant source of inspiration. By day the drums bet loud, and by night, an oven mit softened the kick pedal so as to keep our host’s young child from waking. I’d do it again. 10 times over. Hopefully you think the music is as good as the time we had there.
You’ve said meeting the parents is nerve-wracking – what’s the most awkward or memorable “meet the parents” moment from the band’s own lives?
Arty once dated a girl with the same last name as him, so her dad wasn’t all that friendly until he knew the family trees didn’t entwine. Made for a few awkward dinners. They’re no longer together, so probably for the best that they never reproduced, just in case there was some mutual lineage.
Your sound blends indie rock with psychedelia and groove – when you’re writing, do you lean more into jamming as a band or structured songwriting first?
We write off the vibe in the room. It starts jammy, and refines quite quickly into structured material. Particularly since Willy has stepped away from the guitar, he’s immediately finding phrasings that work with instrumental parts, and we’re all spitballing ideas off the bat. It’s a collaborative space, and a productive one too. It feels like we’re not short of ideas often.
Willy’s vocal delivery on ‘Best Behaviour’ is full of character – how do you approach vocals to make sure the emotion always cuts through?
Willy is a very emotive person. He brings passion to every facet of his life, and singing allows you to create a vulnerability and expression of self like no other. He often likes to think that he’s singing in the shower, as if no-one’s listening, which may help reduce the fear of performing and allow him to tap into that extra emotive state.
You’ve played everywhere from sold-out NZ shows to venues across Europe and Australia. Which city surprised you the most in terms of crowd energy?
The Mancs do it well. Always bringing the energy and ready for a good time. It was hard not to send it in Manchester the night before our biggest headline show in London the next night. Glad we’re ending the UK leg of the tour there this year.
What’s been your most surreal ‘we’ve made it’ moment so far – a festival, a message from a hero, or a random place hearing your track?
The most surreal moment would have to be selling out our first London show (three times). Taking the leap as a small band, and testing the waters as far from the Shire as you could go, and selling out was wild. You always aspire to more as an artist, it’s a constant work in progress, so we’ve never thought “we’ve made it”, but that was pretty damn special. Playing the show was even better.
You’ve worked with Conor Jaine (Mako Road, Summer Thieves) – what did he bring to the track that took it to the next level?
CJ is the ultimate facilitator. He’s a studio on wheels, and in the case of this album, he grew wings and flew with us to Chantilly, France. He enables the escapism that we so seek, breaking away from the confines of a studio, to somewhere a little more homely. That alone breeds a healthy environment to create. He elevated this on so many levels. He always does.
With ‘The Great Escape’ still charting after 70 weeks, how do you balance the pressure to top that success with staying creatively free?
Being independent gives us the freedom to create what we want. It doesn’t feel like there is any real pressure at this stage, just an eagerness to release new music and share it with people worldwide. We were already writing ‘Under The Surface’ before ‘The Great Escape’ was released, much like we’ve already started the fourth record before releasing the third. Maybe being one step ahead means the pressure hasn’t had a chance to catch up with us yet.
Last one – if each of you could describe NO CIGAR in one word, what would it be?
Arthur – Escapism
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