Acclaimed softcore-psych group CHILDCARE return with the release of their eclectic new single Bamboo, out now via Big Indie Records.
Bamboo is the first of its kind for the band, with Emma Topolski (bass) taking the reins as lead vocalist instead of usual frontman Ed Cares. Talking about the decision, Emma elaborates, “Ed already had an idea for the chorus but wasn’t sold on the verses, so I did some soul-searching and came up with “I wanna be someone else”. We finished it together in my kitchen over a nice cup of Lady Grey. It was very good of him to step aside and let me take lead vocals on this one; this is CHILDCARE taking on another dimension.” Bamboo maintains the quartet’s unique ability to create skewed psych-pop complete with bombastic guitar riffs, world’s-strongest- man drums and effortlessly flawless harmonies. Emma’s vocals are served over a roaring triple decker soundwich; a brawny guitar/bass/drums triptych that tastes a little like Our Girl smothered in gooey Everything Everything sauce.
In this interview spotlight, I chat with CHILDCARE about the latest project, motivations, challenges and more.
Full Q&A along with links and music below.
Let’s dive a little deeper into You, the artist and your music. What attracted you to this genre(s) or style(s)?
It’s a challenge to do something original with guitar music. We are the Northern Hemisphere’s premiere softcore-pysch four piece – name a better one. I’ll wait.
What led you into this journey with music? And further, what drives you to push it out to the public?
Every member of CHILDCARE came from another band or project. We’ve become best friends and that means our time together is more often than not fantastic. It would be selfish to keep this love to ourselves, so we record the songs and put them out to give other people the chance to experience our glow. Our sound has become more skewed and stranger, we’re keen to take that further.
Who or what influences your creativity? Have your tastes in music changed over time?
My personal tastes have changed a lot. I haven’t been listening out for new guitar music like I used to. My current tip is romantic techno music, anything with lots of percussion layers that feels warm and embracing. What I’ve found that works well is if you go out to a club and hear this stuff in the middle of the night, maybe with a friend and after a few drinks. Helena Hauff is the most incredible musical force on the planet right now.As a band we like the styles and statements that other artists put into their work, without directly emulating their sounds. Pixies, Missy Elliot, Ringo Starr… they all get our attention.
Were you trying to accomplish anything specific on this new project? Creatively or otherwise?
At the beginning when Ed started CHILDCARE there were no specific goals for the project, apart from appeasing the children he was nannying at the time because they thought he should start a band.Since those early days the key to it has just been making music which can be recorded and then performed live.
What was the last song you listened to?
White Russian Galaxy by The Crimea. It’s one of the most romantic, invigorating songs ever and by a band that deserved to be huge but were content being a gem for suckers like me to fall deeply in love with. Get to know.Footnote: this actually wasn’t the last song I listened to but I wanted to tell you about it, so I listened to it and then it became the ‘last song I listened to’. Chicken or egg sort of thing yo.
Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?
Snog – Vinyl
Live in a loveless but functional relationship with for decades– MP3s
Avoid but still keep in a box at Mum and Dad’s house – CDs
How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?
Do you mean as an artist to use or as a listener to listen on?They are all essentially lists with play buttons.If I had to pick one as a favourite it would be Bandcamp because it doesn’t bother with: ‘Music to Do The Dishes To’, ‘Songs For Dual Carriageways’, ‘Rousing Anthems for your Tax Rebate’… that stuff is naff… but if our new single Bamboo got added to ‘Your Coffee Break playlist’ we’d probably start tweeting Spotify saying how awesome that is… PLAY THE GAME, MAN.
Other than the digital era overwhelming us with access to an abundance of music, what is the biggest challenge you face when trying to connect with or find new fans?
The cost of playing shows and doing the show you have a vision for. We love touring and want to play abroad, but it requires financial support to be able to do it. Our amazing sound engineer Karima is vital, and we need a vehicle that has enough space for our lighting rig (x1 neon sign).We really hope to have some exciting international news for next year though.
Where is the best place to connect with you online? Discover more music?
If you want more CHILDCARE than just our first two Eps, I think searching on YouTube brings up some interesting live versions of our stuff. It’s nice that there are people out there archiving certain performances, I forget how to play a lot of songs and watching those is genuinely helpful.We’re thinking in the future we may put out a collection of b-sides and ideas that haven’t quite made the cut to be properly released.
Anything else you’d like to add before signing off?
Our debut album is coming out in February 2019.
Peace and love to all beings.
Keep your skin healthy by drinking more water. This is the key to good skincare.
