Behind the scenes of this year’s Reading & Leeds, Lovejoy spoke to NME about the loyalty of their fanbase, frontman Wilbur Soot’s growing Tamagotchi obsession, and recent response from their US shows.
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00:00 (audience cheering)
00:03 - Hi, I'm Liberty, I'm here with NME
00:07 at Reading and Leeds 2023.
00:09 I'm sat with Lovejoy.
00:11 How are you guys doing?
00:12 - Good, how are you?
00:13 - I'm doing very well, thank you.
00:15 - Hello.
00:16 - Hello, thank you for having us.
00:18 - He can't speak.
00:22 Since the incident, he can't talk.
00:23 - How are you guys finding the festival so far?
00:28 - It's a lot of fun.
00:29 Yeah, it's great.
00:30 This is my first time, actually, at a festival,
00:32 to be honest with you.
00:33 It's my first time here as a guest, as well as performing.
00:36 And yeah, it's really fun, it's really good.
00:39 - I mean, you got to Reading on Saturday, right?
00:42 Who have you managed to see so far?
00:43 Have you managed to fit many gigs in?
00:45 - Was it, what, sorry, was that?
00:46 I couldn't really hear you.
00:47 - Sorry, have you managed to fit many gigs in
00:49 since you got here?
00:50 - I saw Sleep Token.
00:53 Sleep Token are incredible.
00:54 Nothing But Thieves, they were also incredible.
00:57 Soft Play.
00:58 They were great.
00:59 Didn't see anyone on the Friday.
01:03 My mind's gone blank.
01:06 - Yeah, we're like.
01:08 - I saw James Marry yesterday, he was very good.
01:10 - Nice, and what's the highlight been for you so far?
01:13 What's the highlight been for you so far?
01:16 - For me, personally, seeing James Marry,
01:19 'cause he's our friend, he's awesome.
01:21 And Sleep Token, 'cause I've always wanted to see 'em.
01:22 They were so good.
01:24 - Sleep Token killed it yesterday.
01:26 They were amazing, weren't they?
01:28 First time seeing them?
01:29 - Their drama is mental.
01:32 That snare sound is crazy, I love it.
01:34 - How are you feeling about the set today?
01:38 - Excited, really excited.
01:39 I don't know what to expect, if I'm honest with you.
01:42 But yeah, I'm looking forward to it.
01:44 Yeah.
01:47 (laughing)
01:50 - So have you learned anything from your set at Leeds?
01:53 What was the response like there for you?
01:55 How was that one?
01:56 - Yeah, it was really good.
01:57 I feel like for this one,
02:00 we've packed the set list a bit more towards the middle
02:04 than we did last time, so it's gonna be exciting
02:06 to see how people react to that.
02:08 But yeah, pretty much same kind of vibe.
02:11 We want lots of people shouting, lots of people dancing.
02:13 We had our first proper mosh pit in Leeds.
02:16 That was fun.
02:17 - I feel like Reading and Leeds
02:21 is where the mosh pits happen.
02:23 Like, I've seen some mosh pits of some bands
02:26 that you wouldn't think would warrant it,
02:27 but they managed to make it work.
02:29 What's it like getting that kind of response
02:31 from the crowd, getting that energy back from them?
02:33 - Fun, it's really fun.
02:34 It feels like I'm invited to a big party
02:36 and everyone's doing a dance.
02:38 (laughing)
02:41 - So tell me about your recent EP.
02:43 So it's been a couple of months since that came out.
02:44 Or what's the response been like for you?
02:46 How are you getting the feedback from the fans?
02:48 - Incredible, beyond what we could ever imagine.
02:53 It's like,
02:54 (laughing)
02:56 our first two EPs were
02:59 distributed entirely by us
03:02 and we've had the pleasure of having a team behind us
03:05 for this next one.
03:06 And it's been really fun.
03:08 It's been a great learning environment
03:10 and I'm really happy with how it's done.
03:11 And I'm really happy with the product.
03:13 - How are the new songs coming along in a live setting?
03:16 What's the response like?
03:17 - Yeah, they're taken about the same as the old ones.
03:19 People know all the words already
03:20 and they're all belting it back.
03:23 We always call ourselves zero hit wonders
03:25 'cause we don't have, there's not one song
03:27 that everyone chimes in for.
03:28 Everyone's always singing for all the songs,
03:30 which is flattering, humbling, it's crazy.
03:33 - 'Cause I feel like you guys have such a devoted fan base.
03:36 I mean, it's been two years since you formed
03:38 and you've had such a big cult following already.
03:41 What's it like for you to have that in a festival setting
03:43 and have it even on the road?
03:46 - It would be terrifying if we didn't have them.
03:48 I think having them really legitimizes our performance a bit
03:53 which is a blessing to have this early on in our career.
03:58 We had a couple shows where we had not very many
04:02 of our season ticket holders there.
04:06 And you could feel it, I felt lonely.
04:08 I missed them, I missed them when they weren't there.
04:10 And it's a blessing to have them.
04:12 - Yeah, I feel like they really carry you through.
04:14 They've got your back, I've seen your socials.
04:17 Those guys love you, they've been there from day one.
04:20 - Yeah, yeah, and we just wanna,
04:22 we wanna make something good enough
04:24 that they stick around, I guess, that's the goal.
04:27 - And another thing that they love
04:29 that's why we're gonna have to touch upon,
04:31 the fans love the Tamagotchi.
04:34 I feel like I need to know the story behind that.
04:36 - I just really like, do you wanna see mine right now?
04:39 (laughing)
04:41 - Where'd he go?
04:44 (laughing)
04:45 What's happening?
04:47 - Here it comes.
04:51 - Is it always the hand?
04:52 - I can't get it out 'cause I'm in a pink bag right now.
04:59 There it is, I can't get it out of the bag.
05:00 This isn't very masculine of me.
05:02 (laughing)
05:03 I'm nothing if not a machismo man.
05:06 Here it is, here's my pink Tamagotchi.
05:09 - Amazing, do you take it everywhere you go?
05:13 Is it an essential?
05:14 - That's a new one, that's a new one.
05:15 My everyday carry Tamagotchi is at home right now.
05:19 It's a limited edition gold one.
05:22 I know, I know.
05:23 2,500 of 2,500 I'll have, you know.
05:27 - Amazing, see I can tell how much you care about it.
05:29 You came with your little matching carry case.
05:31 I feel like you're playing this down a little bit.
05:33 - Yeah, yeah, yeah.
05:33 Our fans actually give us Tamagotchis
05:36 and that's one of the ones we were given most recently.
05:39 I'm a big fan, I've always have been since I was a little kid.
05:42 The name, the surname I use online, Sutt,
05:46 comes from a Tamagotchi forum I was on when I was 10.
05:49 So.
05:49 - Amazing.
05:52 Are the rest of the guys into anything like that
05:54 or are you alone with this one?
05:56 - Are you into anything like that, Joe?
05:59 Am I into anything like Tamagotchis?
06:01 No.
06:02 He's a massive, massive football fan though,
06:07 aren't you Joe?
06:07 You are the resident football lad.
06:09 - Speaking for myself, Mark.
06:11 - But yeah, he's not interested in anything like that, no.
06:14 Joe's got his Switch.
06:18 He loves his Switch.
06:19 No I don't, I lost it.
06:22 Remember, the real incident.
06:26 I lost my Nintendo Switch.
06:30 I played about 300 hours of Zelda
06:33 and yeah, super sad times.
06:35 Ash, he can't talk since the instant map.
06:39 Ash likes Pokemon cards a lot.
06:41 He's a big Pokemon card guy.
06:43 Being a millennial, he's really into his Pokemon cards.
06:49 (laughing)
06:51 - See, I feel like everyone loved Pokemon cards
06:52 but no one knew how to actually play it.
06:55 Like, don't lie, do you actually know?
06:57 No.
06:58 It's just, it's cool to collect them, right?
06:59 - He just likes the pictures.
07:00 - How are you guys feeling about going on tour next month?
07:05 It's come around really quick.
07:06 - Excited, daunted, everything in between.
07:10 - What do you think it's gonna be like
07:14 having your fan base, having your own headline show,
07:16 your own venue versus somewhere like a festival
07:19 where you've got all the artists in the world here?
07:23 - I hope it'll be quite similar to our US one.
07:25 I've missed our UK audience a lot though.
07:28 Being in America for the past few months
07:30 has been a lot of fun and it's been a great experience
07:33 but I'm really excited to get back
07:34 and play places like Birmingham again
07:37 as opposed to New York City, Los Angeles, California,
07:40 San Francisco, Birmingham.
07:43 They all tie together.
07:46 - What was the response like in the US?
07:48 - They were great, yeah, it was really exciting.
07:50 It was, they're a very different crowd, the US crowd.
07:53 I'd say that the peaks are louder,
07:57 as in like the volume peaks are louder
07:59 and the volume drops are quieter than the UK.
08:01 They get louder but they also go very quiet
08:05 whenever you speak and it's like, oh my God, hello.
08:07 I'm here.
08:08 I don't know, maybe it's the British accent.
08:10 Makes me sound smarter than I am.
08:11 - Okay, so going forward,
08:14 already we've had three EPs from you guys.
08:17 Any plans for a new music?
08:18 Do you reckon you'll be thinking of a full album
08:21 anytime soon or are we enjoying little releases and touring?
08:24 - Yeah, we've been working on some stuff,
08:26 just like normal people things and stuff.
08:29 Just like whatever, you know.
08:30 Normal people things is like the stuff
08:33 that we do every single day
08:35 and we can't wait for more songs.
08:39 - Yes.
08:41 (audience chattering)
08:44 - We have stuff coming.
08:46 (laughing)
08:47 That's what we're trying to say.
08:48 - Tell us about the stuff.
08:49 - Oh, I don't know.
08:51 I don't know, they'll hit me.
08:52 They have a shock collar around my waist
08:55 and if I speak, I get zapped every time.
08:58 I wanna tell you but I can't.
09:00 They have the button.
09:01 - Okay, what can we expect from today's set then?
09:03 - Something shouty, dancey, sweaty, guitar-y, music.
09:10 - Nice.
09:11 - I mean, it's a Sunday, people are a little tired.
09:13 Can you bring your A game?
09:14 - Oh, we can, can they?
09:17 - Oh.
09:18 - The question.
09:19 (laughing)
09:20 - Cool, thank you so much guys.
09:22 Thanks for taking the time.
09:23 - Thank you very much.
09:24 [BLANK_AUDIO]