Maybeshewill
Biography Maybeshewill
Maybeshewill
is James Collins, Matthew Daly, John Helps, Robin Southby and Jamie Ward. Based in Leicester, UK, they have always aspired to be as self-sufficient as possible, sticking to a steadfastly DIY ethos and self-recording all their material to date. They’ve worked tirelessly over the course of three full-length albums and countless tours to build a loyal and enthusiastic following around the globe. The band released their debut four-track EP ‘Japanese Spy Transcript‘ on their own label (Robot Needs Home) in early 2006 followed by debut album ‘Not For Want Of Trying‘ on Field Records in May 2008. The album was Huw Stephens' record of the week on his Radio 1 show in its week of release and received glowing reviews from RockSound (8/10), Kerrang (4/5) and Drowned In Sound (8/10) amongst many others. Just a year later in June 2009, ‘Sing The Word Hope In Four-Part Harmony‘ was released to a similarly enthusiastic response. For their third record, ‘I Was Here For A Moment, Then I Was Gone‘ Jamie Ward, who had relatively recently joined them on bass took over production duties, marking a step up in recording quality. The album featured live strings for the first time, and a more electronic direction. The record was released in May 2011 and was praised widely by the music press including RockSound, NME, Artrocker, Kerrang, Big Cheese and Metal Hammer. The Finnish National Ice Hockey team chose ‘Words for Arabella’ from the record as their ‘skate out’ music during the World Cup. The album was played in its entirety on Kerrang radio twice, and gained Maybeshewill ‘Band of the Week’ on RockSound.tv for an unprecedented two weeks running. Touring has been fundamental to Maybeshewill’s existence so far. They’ve covered the UK and mainland Europe extensively, as well as Russia, China and Japan with the likes of 65daysofstatic, And So I Watch You From Afar, And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Lite and The Ocean. Having taken a rare few months off from touring to step back and take stock they’re now determined to see how far their idea of what it means to be a ‘DIY’ band can take them. Self managed and produced and working with a small team of trusted friends, they’re about to embark on their most ambitious album cycle to date - pushing the music, production and touring to the limit of what is achievable for a band of their stature. Maybeshewill’s fourth studio album ‘Fair Youth‘ will be released on 25th August 2014 through Superball Music (…Trail of Dead, 65daysofstatic, Oceansize). It’s an overwhelmingly positive record, with the band creating a musical solution to dealing with real world problems and difficulties. It touches on themes of nostalgia and oneirism, and the connections, disconnection and constant feeling of motion that comes with spending so many months of the year on the road. Once again Jamie has taken the production helm but this time they’ve vastly expanded the pallet of sounds and instruments at their disposal. By working with live instrumentation wherever possible, but also augmenting the real with electronic flourishes, it is simultaneously the most and least organic Maybeshewill record to date. It’s been shaped largely by influences from outside the musical world they exist in - from washes of hazy Shoegaze guitars to glitchy Electronica; chopped and screwed Hip-Hop beats to ornate Chamber Pop orchestration, as well as countless other threads coming together. Importantly, it’s the band re-imagined as a larger ensemble - a hundred-year-old grand piano, string and brass sections, an enormous old drum kit, glockenspiels, vibraphones and a sea of guitars - while still remaining a cohesive whole.
