The  Maybes? – Feature

In the midst of the rise in popularity of the indie-pop act, we have seen a plethora of exciting and interesting talent arising from the embers of those that were in fashion last time round, circa the late 90’s.

Recently the download charts have been awash with offerings bridging the gap between rock-pop and indie and have brought such sounds to the aforefront of peoples attentions.

Therefore it has become inevitable that along the way some bands will falter whilst others flourish, picking up fans on their journey until their music is released, invites to play the more notorious festivals arrive and they start getting the recognition they deserve, or not depending on your opinion. 

And this is exactly where likely lads The Maybes? are in their 5 year career and after their first single releases ‘Boys’ and ‘Talk About You’ earlier in 2008, the debut album ‘Promise’ is complete and ready to be unleashed on our unwitting eardrums. 

The Maybes? are an indie rock quintet currently emerging out of the city so entrenched in iconic musical history, Liverpool. Actually it’s fair to say that whilst they are starting to make waves on the UK music scene, they have actually gained notoriety and become legendary onthe Liverpool scene since forming in 2003. 

They are Nick Ellis, Lee Smith and Timo Tierney, all on vocal and guitars, with Nick Otaegui on bass and vox and Dominic Allen handling drums and percussion.  Over the last 5 years of the band they have strived to develop and refine their indie-esque sound to prepare for their debut record, as Timo explained to us when we spoke with him: 

“I’d say that when we started playing together it was really hard to find space to craft our own individual sounds, I mean there are three guitars, a bass and drums then four vocals across the front.  But we have worked really hard in constructing the sound, so everything has developed including the music and our songwriting.  We have all grown as musicians and people together”.

So with that in mind and with the support of Xtra Mile Recordings who have championed them and provided backing since 2006, The Maybes? have been able to produce a record that they describe as multi influenced and diverse.

“People can expect something for everyone taken from lots of our influences, from a classic British pop song to really dark dense reggae track. It will hopefully give people an insight into where we are from and what we are about”, said Timo. 

Such diversity of the record can also be attributed to the involvement of Head on production duties, who has previously worked on high profile projects for Massive Attack and Mercury Music winner PJ Harvey.  This working relationship arose after the band were asked who they would like to work with on their debut and Head was suggested as the ideal candidate, due to the caliber of his prior back catalogue.  A meeting was scheduled.   

Timo explained, “ When we finally did meet up with Head we just all kind of kicked it off and got on.  From that we just knew we had to work with him because everything seemed right about the partnership, and I think that comes across on the album”.

And as for Xtra Mile Recordings who are also responsible for folk troubadour ‘Frank Turner’ and Oxford quartet ‘A Silent Film’, their support since discovering the band in 2005 has resulted in their first EP ‘Olympia’ and subsequent singles being released to critical acclaim.  The decision to sign to Xtra Mile came as they offered the band “creative freedom” which was the most important thing to them at the time, as well as it being a label that had big ideas for the future, which correlated with where the band wanted to go themselves. 

Since the events leading up to the completion of 'Promise' this spring, they have amped things up noticeably and the wheels of the PR machine behind them have been turning rapidly. This summer saw The Maybes? play numerous festivals in the wake of single release ‘Boys’ including the infamous Latitude, which hosted the lads in the Sunrise Arena alongside the likes of Crystal Castles, Metronomy and the Black Lips.

“[Latitude] Lived up to our expectations.  The line-up was really good, with bands like I Am Kloot, Sigur Ros and Elbow, and just being able to play along side some of those bands was brilliant” claims Timo.  “Everybody who was at the festival was there as a music fan from young to old and I felt like everyone who came to see us got what we were about in the short time that we had to perform.  We interacted with the crowd and I think they understood us”. 

That kind of interaction is something that The Maybes? are renowned for during their live shows.  In particular front man Nick Elis’ onstage banter has added credence to their energetic displays and the cocky scouse charms have provided The Maybes? with a charisma that many a group seem permanently devoid of.

“You know for anyone coming to see us at a show they can expect five people all giving everything for something that they all believe in. Energy and a good atmosphere as well as audience interaction is most important to us because without the crowd the band are nothing live” explained Timo.

Such an open-minded attitude counts for a lot in this current industry and it’s with such humility that a music buying fraternity in the UK and beyond can be wooed, as long as it’s not obviously an act.  The fact is The Maybes? have been working solidly to establish their music for the last 5 or so years and in this time have paid their dues, playing to both packed and empty venues but giving 100% in all cases.  Perhaps the dedication to their cause has been affected by the hallowed musical history that has gone before them in Merseyside, giving them something extra to strive for and possibly providing a harder path to follow.

“There are obviously lots of musical icons from Liverpool, so I think it does give any band or artist a platform but at the same time it can also can be a problem because alot of bands from the past here haven’t always lived up to expectation.  So straight away you can be tarred with that brush and that can be difficult when you are trying to get heard.  But I’ve always felt that you shouldn’t try and be like a band that’s been before you, just learn from their mistakes and hopefully do it successfully” says Timo. 

Not a groundbreaking vision but one that speaks volumes if they are able to live up to the expectations put upon them.  The Maybes? are set to bring their music to the masses and success is perhaps within reach.  We can expect a debut full of multi-faceted sounds with explorative lyrics that are in the main part emotionally driven. Unashamedly pop but again bridging that gap between the rockier side of indie and influentially diverse as Timo explained:

“The influences come from everywhere.  We all like different music and all have different ideas about how we’d like to sound, so by putting all the ideas into the same pot it comes out as 5 different ideas making 1 original sound. Anything can influence us, love and loss or even buying the Echo(local newspaper) [laughing]”. 

So with that in mind and the passion that clearly exudes from this 5-piece with such grand purpose we look forward to hearing what else they are capable of, no maybes about it!

‘Promises’ is released on Xtra Mile Recordings now and for more information about The Maybes? go to -  

www.myspace.com/themaybes

Feature by Francesca Strange

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