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Graham Clark
Music Features Writer
@Maxximum23Clark
11:02 AM 21st July 2020
arts

Interview With York's Hottest New Band - Bull

 
Bull are said to be the hottest band to come from York at the moment. The band have just released a new single, Green that is coming out on EMI records. Exciting times hopefully lie ahead for the group. I asked lead singer and guitarist Tom Beer about the new single, York and what he misses about his home county when touring

There hasn’t really been a big band to come out of York since Shed Seven, do you think with a bit of luck you could be the next band to come from York?
Here's hoping! I might add that the Howl and the Hum, fellow York band might pip us to it!

A lot of good venues in York like Fibbers and The Duchess have closed over the years, what was the live scene like in York prior to lockdown?
Yes, some great venues have sadly closed (RIP), the live scene however is currently thriving! (Or was). To my knowledge, there are currently three venues in York all doing very well and serving different purposes.
The Crescent keeps getting better and better and with a real sense of community offers a big stage, excellent staff, sound, and hero promoter Joe Coates bringing respected names and great music to York.
The Fulford Arms across town offers a somewhat different but vital accompaniment to the proverbial York music meal (salad?), smaller, closer, louder, likely sweatier, and though similarly eclectic, has its own excellent niche. Lastly
The Victoria Vaults on Nunnery Lane, smaller again, offers a different kind of experience and provides the perfect place for perhaps more informal, raucous activity and ownership for bands starting out, giving them vital opportunity. And then I suppose you have The Barbican if Van Morrison is in town!

The new single has a touch of The Pixies in there, who did you listen to growing up?
The Pixies! Me and my brother used to play x-box and listen to the album, 'Doolittle' by the Pixies every day after school.
I grew up listening to The Beatles, Bob Dylan and David Bowie. As well as 80s pop like Prefab Sprout, Orange Juice, Talking Heads, Go Betweens, Scritti Politti etc. As a teenager I loved Greenday and all the UK indie stuff, Arctic Monkeys etc. A bit later got into Pavement, Dinosaur Jr, American bands, and also loved Yuck who were carrying that same torch. Now I listen to a lot of bands that we have had the good fortune to meet and play with over the past, however many years.

How have you been spending the lockdown?
In Scarborough, learning lots of songs on the piano, (Got a piano on freecylce) I'm gonna try and learn 'Shut Up' by Madness later. We had just finished recording our album in Amsterdam when lockdown hit in The Netherlands so had to immediately drive back to the UK. It was two weeks after that before the UK was locked down proper.

What do you think of the current state of the singles chart?
Not sure I'm qualified to say if I'm honest! I like that Dua Lipa song with the phat bass line.

Do you have a favourite part of Yorkshire?
I live in Scarborough now and finding everything around here a bit magical!

What do you miss about Yorkshire when you go on tour?
The green fields. Yeah, driving to Hull from York once with the band, I really noticed that Yorkshire has got its own thing.

Will there be an album coming eventually?
Yes - soon!