The Silver Factory was formed in early 2009, and the band is based in Derby, East Midlands,
UK. Members: Fran (rhythm guitar, backing vox), Pete (lead vox/harmonica), Pablo (lead guitar), Luke (bass), Paul (drums).
From the outset the main musical aim for the band is melodic guitar-based pop music, focusing heavily on the fantastic jingle jangle of the electric 12-string, fused with plenty of vocals. To date the band have released two self-funded EPs and two professional promo videos, and are in the process of making their debut album (hoping for a summer release if a suitable label is found) with a third promo video in the pipeline!
01 How did the band get together?
Fran had been amassing a collection of songs and wanted to form a band to get his songs to a wider audience. Plus I had a few songs of my own to add to the “pot!” He already knew Pablo, so it was just a case of finding a rhythm section (easier said than done….!) It took us a year to find the right people. Once we found Paul and Luke, that’s when I really thought we could do something special.
02 Where did your name come from?
From the Andy Warhol connection. We seem to share the same ideals (art/music) as Andy. Plus,it’s a great name anyway!
03 Who are your major influences and inspirations and who do you despise?
The band has got a very eclectic and varied taste in bands and music in all its weird and wonderful forms! I could write pages just on this question alone, but the main three bands that we share the same thread are:- The Byrds, The Stone Roses and Love. You won’t get me telling you who I despise I’m afraid!
04 What drives you to make music together?
Just a shared love of the whole process of being in a band. It’s great fun and fulfilling on so many levels, and it can be quite lucrative if you are extremely lucky!
05 What can someone who has never seen you live before expect from your live show?
First and foremost, we sound pretty much the same as our recordings live. We try to be as tight as possible (therefore plenty of rehearsing) I’d like to think we look pretty good? We think the image is very important. A bit of friendly banter with the audience is always good too. If you’re looking to see the guitar players with their legs draped on the monitors with a fag dangling from the side of the mouth, or the singer half naked, smearing himself in peanut butter… well we’re not that kind of band!
06 Who writes your songs? What types of themes and subjects do you deal with?
Myself and Fran write all the songs. We write about our lives in real and abstract ways. A bit of Oscar Wilde for good measure too.
07 How has your music evolved since you first began playing together?
I was listening to some demos we recorded last year,and i am very pleased in our steady progress. I wouldn’t say we’ve evolved. As from the outset, we knew exactly the dynamic we wanted to achieve. Obviously as individual musicians, as long as you put in the hours, you’ll improve as a band and as a musician!
08 What has been your biggest challenge as a band? Were you been able to overcome this? If so, how?
Too many really. Being in a band is a gift as much as a challenge. We’ve got high ambitions, so the obstacles tend not to get in the way. We’ve had our fair share of bad luck in our tenure. Shit happens!
09 Do you play covers? If you could pick any song, which would you like to cover most and why?
We never play covers! What’s the point? We want to record our own music. We like to jam along to 12 bar blues sometimes (in our reheasal room). So that must cover at least a million songs!
10 Where do you envisage the band being in five years time?
Split up, probably!
11 Who would you most like to record with?
I’d love to have John Leckie produce and record us. That’d be nice!
12 What should we be expecting from the band in the near future?
Hopefully we’ll carry on recording our brand of pop music, and some more colourful band videos. Hopefully some gigs too. That’s my personal favourite part about being in a band. I hope we find a sympathetic outlet to get our music out there. As we’ve got at least 2 albums worth of material ready to go!
Links:
Links to two promo videos on youtube:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayFBgpM1qUw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6kcN7dgkPc
Links to youtube pages with live clips on:-
