Trail

We noticed Trail had been a little quiet lately! Probably counting down the days to their big album release! We thought we would get in touch with them for a quick catch up!

Piewatch – Hello Trail! What are you guys up to these days?

Alex- Funny you should ask that… We’ve been pretty busy recently, getting ready to release our first single ‘Prism’ which will be available to download on I-Tunes on the 14th of September for just £0.79. We’ve also just got back from a gig in Dover playing to around 200 screaming kids in a giant Harry Potter style dining hall. There is no such thing as a typical Trail gig!

Piewatch – So you started playing back in 2007.  Alex and Charlie were the first members, with the rest of the team joining in later. Simon and Eireann were Alex’s housemates – was there any special criteria that had to be met to join in (cooking, cleaning?)?

Alex – None of us can really cook or clean so instead each prospective member was sent off for a brief psychiatric examination. When we realized that all the drummers were failing this as well, Minco had to come through a best of 3 competition involving Battleships, Connect 4 and Hungry Hippos

Piewatch – Can’t get past your songwriting! Where does all the drive come from? What or who are your influences?

Charlie - Between us our influences are quite varied. I’m a big Faith No More fan but have also been known for my softer persuasions like Eagles, Crowded House and the Waterboys. Even Billy Joel and Leonard Cohen have crept onto my list of lyrical influencers… Alex is a blues and rock man – anything from Guns n’ Roses to B.B. King. Si and Eireann are big fans of the Beatles as well as the Foos and Chilli Peppers. Minco likes anything with a drum beat.

Songwriting more and more has become a process for Trail. Where as in the beginning it was a more isolated experience for the original creator(s) of an idea it’s evolved to include us all. We realized in LA that any of us can come up with a catchy idea, but to make it work as a band song it needs all of our sweat (and tears!).

Piewatch – One of the key points in your career was surely the “direct financing route” on Slicethepie. How did you find the site?

Alex – Well we’d been down the ‘direct financing route’ on another site but didn’t like the terms and conditions so were looking for an alternative and came across Slicethepie. After a few beers with a couple of their team, the rest as they say was history.

Piewatch - You have played many gigs together. Was there any one special occasion?

Alex – The gig supporting Fiction Plane in London was great. The venue was completely packed and the crowd were really up for a good time. With any gig, it’s all about the crowd.

Piewatch – Your album is now recorded and you have announced the date of the first single. Why exactly did you choose Prism to be the first single?

Alex – The album itself is pretty varied but we wanted to pick a first track that we thought was a good overall representation of the Trail sound and what we are all about. It’s also my Mums favorite track.

Piewatch – Moving to another track; “I want to know”, some heavy emotions there! Are they coming from personal experience?

Charlie – Haha ‘yes’ would have to be the answer there. Not sure you could easily find a guy or girl growing up without having had a heart-wrenching experience of unrequited love. And given that we wanted the first Trail album to represent a path through life or a journey of some kind we felt it wouldn’t be complete without including our own version of these honest emotions.

Piewatch – You must be very excited to see it all happening. What are your expectations after the album is released? What would you consider a success (sales wise) and what are you hoping for and fearful of?

Charlie – I think our biggest hope is that people just get what we’re trying to say. We all love playing catchy songs that people can dance to or enjoy at a party but our real satisfaction is when listeners take it into their own private space and really get inside. There are a lot of layers to this record and sometimes we worry that it may be too much at once for people to take on. But I think just as people may be trying to size us up as a band right now we are doing the same with them. We want to see what kind of fans we attract and on what level we have connected with them… Maybe if we get to know our fans we can begin to understand the music we’re creating.

As for sales who knows? Obviously we would love to make an impact on the album chart and get some good reviews but all that has to come a distant second to how fans receive it and how many good gigs we can get while promoting it. If we can with this record secure a future for ourselves writing and recording the music we love then we have definitely “made it”. For now.

Piewatch - Album release aside, what are your plans for the near and far future?

Alex - We don’t like to get ahead of ourselves so no-one is really thinking beyond that ‘difficult 2nd album’. However once the dust has settled, I want to go and record a blues album in New Orleans, Si wants to start up his own vineyard in France and Minco wants to run his own breakdancing school for underprivileged kids in Belgium. For now though, it really is all about the album release (and the single on the 14th September).

Piewatch – We have the chance to get to know you guys better through your blogs (link) where readers are notified of anything from your playing skills and eating habits through to RayBans and lost bicycles – but is there anything that doesn’t make it to the blog?. What are the things we would never see you guys doing, carrying or listening to?

Alex – I think it’s fair to say that the blogs leave very few stones unturned. Anything that doesn’t make it into those blogs, sure isn’t going to be appearing anywhere else!!

Piewatch – To get a little more insight into your minds – post a link of the last youtube video you have watched (no cheating; but do keep in mind that there might be innocent eyes reading/watching this too).

Alex – Youtube Link

Charlie – Ah and we get to live with Alex’s humor on tour!

Piewatch – Well, thanks for talking to us! We wish you guys all the best for the future and we look forward to the album. Anything you would like to add?

Alex - Did we mention anything about a single?

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