INTERNATIONAL FEATURE ARTIST: The Sourheads (ENGLAND)

The Sourheads are what happens when classic rock wades into quintessential modern alternative waters - think Iggy Pop meets Kasabian, with a touch of Queens of the Stone Age.

With two years chalked up in their current state, The Sourheads have actively drenched crowds with their fiery swagger and rocking fervour, including a raucous album release last year with 'Care Plan For The Soul'. But what's next for this pounding quartet? In between simultaneously ripping up onstage and writing their second album, The Soundcheck chatted with guitarist and organist Mik Crone about diverse influences, the burgeoning underground UK rock scene, plus where you'll most likely find the band during a zombie apocalypse. Interview below.

• BAND NAME: The Sourheads

• LOCATION: Wakefield West Yorkshire, England

• BAND MEMBERS: Jake Coxon - Vocals Mik Crone - Guitars and Organ Ben Taylor - Bass Chris Lambert - Drums

• HOW DID THE SOURHEADS START? The band was formed by Jake and his brother Sid. Sid left 2 years ago and I joined we then wrote and recorded our debut album care plan for the soul and signed to Oak Island records. Wakefield is a small City so we all knew each other beforehand. I produced the band demos in the early days before I was actually a member.

• HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN AROUND FOR? In its current state, 2 years.

• WHO ARE SOME OF YOUR INFLUENCES? The Doors, Alice Cooper, Deep Purple, Clutch, Pearl Jam, Iggy and the Stooges, White Zombie. Our drummer Lamb has more of an indie music influence. The fusing of our influences is imperative to the sound of the band.

• DESCRIBE THE SOURHEADS IN THREE WORDS: True, pure, bombastic.

• WHAT'S THE MOST MEMORABLE GIG YOU'VE PLAYED SO FAR AND WHY? We play a lot of gigs so it's hard to pinpoint the most memorable. We really like the smaller shows where we play with our friends and fellow comrades of Rock such as Red Spektor. There is a really big Underground Rock scene in the UK at the moment and everyone is genuinely supportive of everyone else. No jealousy just everybody diggingeach other's music and shows.

• WHAT'S YOUR FAVOURITE THE SOURHEADS SONG? Our songs are quite varied personally I like Secret Cigarette. The other members would probably say something different. We tried to look at the album as a whole and not just individual songs. Bands today seem to concentrate on releasing singles. We are more over 70s style band where we want to build a solid work off albums.

'SECRET CIGARETTE' (THE SOURHEADS)

• WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY WORKING ON RIGHT NOW? ANY NEW THINGS ON THE HORIZON? We are currently touring throughout the UK and would love to go abroad. We are also writing our second album. We would like to make some really nice music videos and continue doing wonderful interviews with people like you.

• IF YOU WEREN'T PLAYING MUSIC, WHAT ELSE WOULD YOU BE DOING? Jake likes to paint and cook, Ben is also a good cook so maybe we would be cooks. I don't know any different I'VE done music since I was 7 years old. I used to record music videos from late night TV.

• IF YOU WERE STRANDED ON A DESERT ISLAND WITH ONE OTHER BAND MEMBER, WHO WOULD YOU CHOOSE AND WHY? I would choose Jake because we are both like Oliver Reed and Keith Moon. Plenty of tomfoolery and genuinely daft times.

• PINEAPPLE ON A PIZZA, YES OR NO? Whatever floats your boat. I'm not a big lover of pineapple I am however partial to aubergine.

• CATS OR DOGS? Dogs. Genuinely more loving and less selfish then cats. Although there are exceptions to the rule. House rabbits are the best, very clever and shouldn't be locked up in cages.

• WOULD THE SOURHEADS SURVIVE A ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE? Yes, we would all survive a zombie apocalypse because we are hard as nails. We would be there with our baseball bats fighting like Warriors. We would have no mercy we will fight them in the Streets, in the fields and the supermarkets

• AND FINALLY, WHAT'S THE GREATEST SONG OF ALL TIME AND WHY? Laura Palmer's Theme from Twin Peaks because it's so damn cool. We liked Twin Peaks long before the hipsters and we will continue two like Twin Peaks for the foreseeable future.

THE SOURHEADS:

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BY TIANA SPETER

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