'Fear Without Reason' 'Interview with Elliot Leaver'
- Genre: 'Rock'
W&H: For those who may not know who you are, introduce yourselves quickly.
We are Fear Without Reason, an alt-rock band from the UK.
W&H: Describe your sound in as few words as possible.
Hard edged alternative rock, American leaning with a British twist.
W&H: Who are your three biggest influences as a band?
(Zaz - Vocals) Nirvana - In Utero was the the first album I ever brought so that’s a major influence on my life - recently I have been loving Thrice, their new album is immense. But it’s so difficult to say what are the bands biggest influences - we all listen to so much stuff, from Rock, to Jazz to Video Game Music - we all bring our influences to the table and it comes out as us.
W&H: What’s the meaning behind your band name?
(Z) Mental health is so important to us, anxiety and depression has affected band members and family and friends, it influences everything we do. My wife originally came up with the name and it felt so right, but it’s a name we have grown into, it means more to us now than it did when we formed all those years ago.
W&H: Did you try anything differently this time around than with previous efforts?
(Z) We have just really settled into the groove along with our 2 newest members - Rich and Phil (Guitar and Bass) and they have really helped us push the more mature, hard edged sound we have been moving towards. (Ste Roberts - Guitar) We don’t deliberately try to approach things differently, its more of an evolution as a band.
W&H: What was it like to work with Dan Willett?
(SR) Dan Willett at Univibe is amazing, he’s our 6th Beatle!
W&H: Do you have any personal favourite songs on the release?
(Z) Broken is based on my interpretation of a true story where a drink driver killed his daughter in a car crash, the story really hit me hard and I wanted to tell it in my own way - I like to write stories.
W&H: Describe the concept of the video.
(Z) The video follows the concept of the song but also like the lyrics it’s open to interpretation, was the whole thing a wake up call in the guys head, or did it actually happen? It’s his view under the influence of alcohol.
W&H: Does it tie in with the themes around the song? If yes, why? If not, why not?
(Z) Definitely, it was difficult to bring the vision of my lyrics alive in the video but I think all the team did a great job.
W&H: Was it fun to shoot or did it prove to be quite a challenge?
(SR) This was our first proper music video, so it was a massive learning curve for us and an important milestone for us as a band. Anything we do as a band is always a lot of fun even if it's really difficult. Jay Hillier did a great job directing and editing.
W&H: Do you have any dates lined up at present?
(Z) Our last dates of 2018 are October 27 and December 1 - both at the o2 Academy 3 Birmingham. October 27 is the halloween show where we are main support and December 1 is our headline show to end the year, we are very excited.
W&H: What are your favourite songs to perform live?
(SR) I love ending the set with Monica, at our headline show we broke it down before the last chorus and the whole room sang with us, it was a great moment.
W&H: What are the best and worst shows you’ve played to date?
(Z) Back in 2009 we played a place in Walsall called Stein Bar, not even the promoter turned up, we played to an empty room!
W&H: If you could open for anyone, who would it be?
(Z) For me it would be Alter Bridge, Myles Kennedy is amazing and they are fantastic band.
W&H: Any comical stories from your time as a band you can share with us?
(Z) Probably when Andy bailed on toilet door duty at Leeds Festival leaving me to be discovered by 2 girls opening the door on me with trousers around my ankles.
(SR) Or Andy losing a toilet roll down the M6 in a queue for the festival … maybe just anything Andy related.
W&H: What’s the plan for the rest of 2018?
(Z) Our last 2 shows as we mentioned and we’ve also pencilled in a date with the studio to start work on our follow up single to Broken. We’ll have more news to share soon.
W&H: Any closing comments?
(SR) Thanks so much for your time and for anyone who checks us out, it means the world to us!
