As we’re nearing warmer climes, it seems like the perfect time to get out your sunnies and listen to the coastal indie dance sounds of Folkestone band, Native People. It’s been quite a whirlwind year for the foursome. After releasing their début single ‘Calm Forever’ last summer and playing a slurry of live shows, they’ve garnered praise from the likes of BBC Introducing, BBC 6 Music and Propaganda. Soon to follow is the band’s début EP, proving that you ain’t seen nothing yet.
We took a few minutes with their frontman, Reuben Todd, to chat about his formative years in music and the music that has made the most impact on his life.
Who was the first person to inspire you to pick up an instrument and play?
The very first person that inspired me to begin playing an instrument was my best friend in secondary school. He spoke to me about starting a band which sounded great but I knew nothing really about it. As in a musical inspiration, I would have to say Eddie Vedder from Pearl Jam. His vocals and position in the band blew my mind.
What was the first instrument you learned to play?
Leading on from the first question my friend needed a bass player so I decided to buy a bass. After not touching it for a while one day I found myself actually sitting down and practising. From that point on I couldn’t put it down!
When did you realise that music was your passion and you had to pursue it?
My passion for music came from buying lots of cd’s in secondary school and sitting on my bed with the artwork in my room listening to the albums. After listening to all these albums and starting to go to gigs, I thought how amazing it was to go and find like minded people that are there for the same reason.
Where did you play your first gig?
The first gig I ever played was with my first band at my own house party. We wanted to play the covers to our friends but we only had a few songs so not enough to play a gig. I decided to have a end of year party and we thought we’d play in my bedroom for it. I have a decent size room but there were 50 people in there and it was great.
What has been the definitive record that has made the most impact on your life?
It’s incredibly hard to choose just one record that has had such a large impact on my life! I think it would have to be Pearl Jam “Ten” as growing up I had this on repeat so much. There are so many albums to go into but I would also say “Friendly Fires” first album showed me lots of different things too. This album also really helped me to develop a love for dance music crossed with indie.
What’s your earliest musical memory?
The earliest musical memory for me would be dancing as a young child. I remember my parents putting on the radio, Tv or any kind of music and just prancing around.
Who is your favourite songwriter?
I couldn’t begin to list my favourite song writers as there’s so many different people and different ideas to come from different places. Someone who has wrote an insane amount of good songs would be Anthony Kiedis (Red Hot Chili Peppers) as well as all the band.
A song lyric that means a lot to me is…
A song lyric that means a great deal would be ACDC (It’s a long way to the top, if you wanna rock n roll). This just summed up being in a band for me, as in you have a long way to go but enjoy everything whilst you’re doing it.
A song that describes my current mood/frame of mind at this time is…
A song that I’ve been listening to lately is by Jungle “Julia”.
Native People are offering up new track ‘What You’re Looking For’ for free download (see below).
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