If you want to feel old, somehow, it’s 15 years since Brum indie rockers The Twang released their second album, Jewellery Quarter.
To celebrate the milestone (or, for me, the unwelcome passage of time) they’re re-releasing the album on vinyl for the first time and playing it in its entirety at a series of shows over the festive period.
Ahead of the band’s Sheffield date at The Leadmill on 20 December, I sat down with lead singer Phil Etheridge for a catch-up.
And it was a catch-up because, in a past life, the band I was in toured the UK with The Twang in support of their debut album, so, on a personal note, catching up with Phil after more than 15 years is a late entry to my 2024 highlights.
However, as much as I enjoyed chatting about mutual acquaintances, parenting and Emi Martínez, that’s not what we’re here to talk about. We’re here to talk Twang. And, more specifically, their now annual run of Christmas shows.
“It’s become a bit of a thing, a bit of a tradition,” explains Phil. “You want them to change each year, so the re-release of Jewellery Quarter on vinyl was the perfect excuse this time. We’d already done one of these ‘anniversary tax tours’ for the first record in 2017, and it was really good.
“We haven’t played any of these songs for years. Some of them, never. As long as we’re not arguing, I love it. It’s a good craic.”
Despite a couple of lineup changes over the years, the band’s core members – Phil Etheridge, Jon Watkin and Stu Hartland – remain, alongside long-time drummer ‘Grandmaster Ash’ Sheehan. The four of them will play the album in full, but fans will be pleased to hear they also plan to make space for some of the hits.
It’s hits like ‘Either Way’ and ‘Wide Awake’ that I remember seeing kids lose their minds to on that first tour, such was the excitement for The Twang when they burst onto the scene in 2006–2007.
The hype was enormous for that first record, but the comedown was arguably even bigger, as they were dealt some heavy criticism for album number two and were ultimately dropped from their label.
In a way, it’s sort of remarkable that they’re still here, still doing their thing, where many bands (including my own) failed. They managed to pick up the pieces and, against stiff odds and an ever-changing industry landscape, they’re still playing big shows to a devout fanbase.
“I wasn’t aware of how hyped we were until Jewellery Quarter came out and it got panned,” says Phil. “When the label dropped us, the guy said, ‘Do you want to go in writing with other people?’ We were like, ‘Fuck off, man.’ We took it as an insult because we felt we still had something to offer as a band ourselves. Whether that was a bit deluded or a bit mad, who knows?”
Over a decade later, now that the dust has settled on the madness, how does Phil remember those times?
“Honestly, I look back on it all fondly. It was a crazy few years from 2006 to 2009.
“Normality is relative, isn’t it? I use that quote a lot, because I might have been looking at a band like Kasabian and thinking, they’ve made it to the shore, and we haven’t—we’ve fallen off the boat.
“At the same time, there’s always another band looking at us and thinking, how lucky were they to sign a record deal? It’s all relative, isn’t it?
“I’m happy with what we’ve achieved and really proud. I’m not embarrassed about it. We’ve done our thing. We’ve done what hardly anyone gets to do, which is make a living off music. I haven’t had another job for going on 20 years.
“We’re still in a room jamming, and I’m under no illusion how fortunate we are. People keep coming back to see us, and I’m really grateful for that.”
Like normality, gratitude is also relative, and life often has a way of putting things into context. For The Twang, being in a band became a trivial concern when set against the devastating news of bassist Jon Watkin’s wife’s passing last year.
Phil tells me he doesn’t feel comfortable talking too much about it, other than to say that he’s glad that Jon has decided to get back in the room.
He said: “It’s tough to see your friend go through something like that. These things make you see what really matters. The band and tunes, that doesn’t really matter. It puts things into context and makes you realise every day is a blessing and beautiful.
“Jon’s dealing with it as best as he can. One of the better moments since it all happened was actually at The Leadmill last year. Late into the gig, I’m thinking, that bass is fucking mad. I looked round, and Jon was whacking his bass, spinning round, big grin on his face. It was one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen for ages. I’ll always remember that moment; it made me so happy.”
Happiness is key for Phil, it seems, and the band hope to carry the good feeling into the release of new music in the new year.
“While it feels good, we’ll carry on. As soon as I don’t want to do it anymore, I’m gonna knock it on the head. I know how I feel on stage at the moment, and I still feel okay up there, but as soon as I find myself questioning myself or I feel like I look like a twat, I’m gone.
“I’m definitely conscious of that nostalgia thing, and it does smell a bit, doesn’t it, when you see bands wheeling it out? But, at the same time, we’re lucky that our band creates that nostalgia. It means something to people.”
Tickets for The Twang’s Jewellery Quarter 15th Anniversary Tour show at The Leadmill, taking place on 20 December, are on sale now: leadmill.co.uk
