Eight questions with Flatlands

We caught up with Flatlands, a young indie rock band from Oxford who play at Tap Social Movement in Oxford this Sunday (13th August) for our Yan Tan all-dayer alongside the likes of Hazey Jane, Self Help, Holly Redford Jones and more! They're also heading across to the big smoke next week for a headline show at The George Tavern on Saturday (19th) with Self Help and a DJ set from Macho Trax - both are free entry! Get to know the guys with our interview and take a listen to their latest tune, Share My Smile.

1. First up, who are Flatlands?!

Flatlands are Nat (guitar), Tom (vocals, guitar), Jamie (bass, vocals), and Rob (drums). We're a four piece act from Oxford aged 17-19.

2. How long have you been making music? Tell us your biggest musical influences as a band!

We've been together since about November 2016. Our sound largely comes from two scenes. Modern indie rock akin to Will Joseph Cook, Circa Waves and High Tydes alongside the dance punk vibes of West Coast America; Modern Baseball, The Front Bottoms and Remo Drive are huge for us.

3. Having just lived in Oxford as a student for three years one of the things I miss the most is the incredibly tight knit and diverse music scene - how important do you find this is for yourselves as a young band in the city?

Oxford is definitely well known for having an amazing music scene. Currently, the young bands around are seriously strong: the likes of Catgod, Self Help, Slate Hearts, Daisy, Wolfs and 31hours have combined into a great little scene bubbling under. I think its been really great for all our confidence having fellow musicians playing alongside and watching each other.

4. You recently released a new tune ‘Share My Smile’ - anything you can tell us about the writing or recording process for the track?

We wrote Share My Smile whilst in a really upbeat summer vibe. Everything about it is glowing with energy. We recorded it with Nick Moorbath in Evolution Studios over a couple of days. I think the track really developed a lot in the studio with the end result having much more rhythmic flavour and pop sensitivities than our original intention.

5. You’re headlining at The George Tavern for us on 19th August with your Oxford pals Self Help supporting and Macho Trax DJing til late - what should we expect from the show?!

Yes! Extremely excited for this one. Danny, Silke, Sean and Elizabeth (Self Help) are just our absolute favourites. We haven't gigged alongside them since our March headline slot in The Library, Oxford, though Silke has joined us a couple of times to dep on drums. Its going to be a fantastic set and a really exciting first gig in London for Flatlands.

6. Who is your audience and how do you connect with fans - all the usual social media?! Any crazy, fun, exciting stories about your fans are very welcome!

Our local audience is a diverse group of friends, musicians and, most importantly, our mums! Online we've done quite well at promoting ourselves. Definitely worth checking out our Instagram to see some Flatlands silliness. I'd like to think fans have been very receptive to some of our daft antics. Sadly we're still waiting on a super fan to send in a photo of 'Flatlands' tattooed on their forehead but I'm sure its coming.

7. Describe your dream gig to us! Any venues that you’re desperate to play in Oxford, London or further afield? Any artists you’d love to collaborate with on a performance?

There's a few bands we'd love to grab a slot with. Early on in our career we supported Yonaka who, since then, have gone on to do some pretty special things. A reunion slot alongside them would be an absolute honour. If we're really going for dreams though, supporting Modern Baseball at O2 Forum Kentish Town would be unreal if they do ever get back together...

8. As 2017 speeds along, what does the rest of the year hold for you… we hope that new music is in the pipeline!

August is busy. We're glad to be branching out across the country with a number of cool slots in places outside of Oxford. September should see some important recording getting done which we're super excited about, just in time before we head off to university in London together. We've got no idea what'll happen when we all move to the big city! Whatever it is, it's going to be exciting though.