Rising from the ashes of British Beef, Fire In Cairo are making a name for themselves in London’s live circuit as the snappiest dressed punk rockers out there. A slick, tight act combined with a progressive punk pop sound, Fire In Cairo stake their claim for your attention with a fistful of well driven, driven tracks…Guitarist Geraint took some time out to have a little chat about how life’s going in Fire of Cairo…
So what’s with the name? Ever been to Cairo? And are you pyromaniacs?
No, I’m afraid I haven’t to Cairo. I’ve heard its nice there though! It’s the name of a Cure song. We wanted a name for the band that was slightly different than most bands at the moment. It has an interesting edge to it. Personally, I also feel that my generation has grown up with awful problems in the middle east ever since I can remember, I’m no politically driven person but feel it has a certain underlying feel to the name.
How did you guys get together? Half of the band were in British Beef, who were signed to a major – are really just a new line up of British Beef?
Yeah, Pat and Felix were in British Beef who were on Sony BMG. When British Beef came to an end Darren (Bass started writing and decided to start a completely new fresh band. We still have many industry associates that were formed through British Beef, but as far as Fire In Cairo goes we are a completely fresh new project in sound and line-up) and myself (Guitar) hooked up with the guys to actually to a Beef set as a one off gig. As Patrick’s twin brother i had always been around with Beef, helping where I could. During the rehearsals we
Describe your sound to someone who’s never heard it.
We like to think of it as energetic more than anything else with audiences dancing and wanting to move. We believe in catchy beats, big riffs and melodies that burn into your memory. You could say we lean towards a sound that mixes The Automatic with Bloc Party but with more balls!
You’ve got a certain stage ‘look’ as well – explain please! How important is the band’s appearance?
Ha ha, well….After playing some of our tracks to people we got the same feedback that we sounded like a English band which they thought was a good thing. Going by this we had the idea of mixing ‘Traditional English Gentry’ with loud guitars. People have also picked up on the fact three out of four of us went to public school, so it was an obvious way to go we think! [laughs]
You also run Twin Velocity music and work as a sound engineer/producer. Do the other guys let you take control in the studio? What producers would you most like to work with on a Fire in Cairo record?
Yes, I started TVM whilst doing my music production degree a couple of years ago. I wouldn’t say I take control in the studio because everyone is a seasoned player and Felix as well as myself produces, but when we recorded earlier in the year I engineered and recorded all the vocals and overdubs in my studio. The band produces itself I would say, we all have some great ideas. I still write and produce with other artists as-well.
What bands/artists are you most influenced by?
The band are gonna hate me for saying this. My hero is Slash. As a guitarist he has always influenced me as a guitar player, the tone, feel, timing, its awe inspiring, well for me anyway. Other than that I love all types of music, India Arie, The Used, Iron Maiden, The Eurythmics, anything that makes me feel something inside and gets me thinking.
How hard is it slugging away trying to get a deal? In the perfect world, which label would you make your own?
It’s not an easy thing to achieve. I think bands can make life a lot easier for themselves by doing what they want to do, but keep an eye on what the latest new thing is without just following the crowd. Creating something that stands out from the other bands but also appeals to their fans is important i think. If you put the energy into the right areas you can save a lot of wasted time and effort, but at the end of the day, the songs still have to be good. I think its a fine balance between talent and marketing. As far as making a label my own, I would say it would be Geffen if they are still around, just because of all the bands I grew up listening to were on there.
How do you feel about the London music scene at the moment?
I think it’s brilliant. There are some really cracking venues around town. Last night we played the Carling Islington Academy for the second time, which i think is a wicked venue. London has a music scene that really supports its smaller bands and artists.
When are you next playing, and how can people have a listen to your tunes?
You can get all the details of all our other shows coming up on our myspace page.
How would you label your sound?
Trashy indie power pop rock.
Finally – please leaving a parting shot for the dear readers of Crossfire right…here…!
Check out our myspace leave a message and come down to one of our shows and have one of the best nights you will ever have!!
Thanks Ger!
See what all the hype’s about over at www.myspace.com/fireincairomusic.com