Pete Gustard

Interview With Pete Gustard

SBS:  Hello and welcome to ya!  It’s always best to start off with some kind of introduction to who you are and what kind of music you make, isn’t it?  Tell us a bit about yourself & the history of your music, and give the people out there reading a couple of concrete reasons as to why they should be listening!

Pete Gustard:  Hey Jer!  You all encompassing music supporting legend you!  I’ll make this quick… I’m Pete, I do music, it’s my thing, I love it.

..oh you want a bit more eh?  Ok, I’ve been doing it for longer than I care to think about and I tend to wear my musical heart on my sleeve.  I’ve released a few solo albums, I’ve released a collection of albums with bands I’ve been part of and I spent a whole past life as a gigging musician staggering around on many stages after indulging in more low-quality riders than I care to discuss. ☺

You want reasons to listen to my stuff?  Well, firstly it may come as a surprise, but I always have zero expectations in that regard and am perpetually amazed when I see that anyone has listened, bought, downloaded, streamed my stuff!  It’s a true privilege!  But I guess in summary I’d say my music is not made for the masses, it’s not written with markets or styles in mind, it’s simply written with a specific message in mind.  I like to pick on both constructive and destructive forces in the world, both of people and events, study them through music and words and link them thematically throughout a body of songs.

If that’s for you give me a spin!  If it’s not, there’s so much choice out there, go find something to love. ☺

SBS:  While we’re still getting to know you and quite possibly introducing you to these pages of ours, what would you say is the newest and/or most exciting thing you’ve got going on with your music right now?  Is there anything you’ve been working on that just got released, or something happening behind the scenes that you haven’t mentioned yet?  What should your fans be looking forward to this year?

Pete Gustard:  I’ve just finished recording my fourth solo album.  So very happy about that!  I will announce it soon….or maybe I just have. ☺

SBS:  So far to-date, what do you feel like is the song of yours that listeners respond to the most?  Do you feel like you knew they’d like it when you first created it, or was it just another song to you at the time?  Sometimes it takes a few spins and a bit of time before we realize how special a song truly is.  What is it about this particular track that you feel people connect to?  If someone was to ask you to play one of your songs to get them interested in your music, would you choose the same one that listeners seem to enjoy the most, or would you risk it and choose something different from your catalog instead?

Pete Gustard:  This is a bit of weird one really for me.  As I write songs, I sometimes recognize good hooks and maybe even dare to think to myself ‘ooo yeh that’s a hook, people are gonna love this!’…but if you’re like me, you’ll immediately think ‘they’ll hate me, I’m a sell out, I don’t write music for hooks, where’s the message I worked so hard to write into this piece of music, I’ve failed in every way possible and I’m now going to give up on music forever.’

…but literally five minutes later, I’ll usually have sprinkled a weird harmony in somewhere, or a sound that no one would want to pop in any right sounding production ever, and the universe rights itself and I’m happy the message is intact and still represents this very imperfect world we all live in. ☺

So, yeh, the question, sorry!  There are songs on all my albums that are 3-4 minute neat and tidy tunes that have (even if oddly defined!) hooks that many years ago I would have thought might be an easy, yet interesting listen to the folks out there!…but it doesn’t really work like that in any way whatsoever!  The weirdest thing happens….and here’s some examples…

With one of my bands (Seashaped) we wrote an album full of lovely melodies and glorious vocals from the one and only Alison Riley, so any one of those tunes might have worked its way into the public’s affection right?  Nope!  Now don’t get me wrong the album did ok, but the crazy indulgence of the last track “Children of the Universe” which I wrote as a ’10-minute acoustic Alt-Prog-Rock-Folk sprawler that lyrically pitted quantum mechanics and religious dogma up against each other on a verse/chorus footing’….such an easy listen eh, never to see the light of day sat at the end of that album and too inaccessible to be listenable?!  Nope.  It’s the number one streamed track on that album!  WTAF indeed.

There are similar stories to that with my solo albums…also packed with shorter punchier tunes, but no the public streams “the Dream Decade” (the nearly 7 minute song that parodies peoples tendencies to be era specific in their choice/love of music and sometimes find it hard to move beyond that…and the song demonstrates this by using literally the same verse structure 5 times, each time recorded with era specific instruments, styles and attitudes to try and prove that tunes are just tunes and melodies are universal outside of production styles…yep, people streamed that first, literally from the day the album dropped!)

There are examples of this on virtually every record I’ve made!  But, ahem, trying to go back to the question!  Again!  It’s impossible to pick a song from so many, they literally all mean something very specific to me…but if I had to pick one that’s a bucket of fun, reminds me of getting together with good friends after the world had gone through the horrible pandemic, it would be “My Quiet Hour.”  It’s simple, it was a blast to record, and importantly for me, had my awesome musician mates Chris Smith (Giant Silent World) blasting out the chorus with me and some proper tricky guitar riff’s from Gareth Adshead.  It’s not like the songs I mentioned above, its structure and message are simple…life stopped, and thank feck its back.

SBS:  Is there a concert you’ve been to that…maybe it was the best you’ve seen, maybe it wasn’t, but it was a completely unforgettable moment in time that you might not even see from the same band or artist again if you saw them play in the future?  Know what I mean?  Like, maybe a band you saw was touring a certain album and they never played those songs again…or like, maybe an artist climbed up the frame of the stage like Eddie Vedder did, and of course he’s probably not doin’ that now as an older dude…there are countless examples of amazing shows from the artists & bands we love most that we will never see happen twice.  Tell us all the details you can remember about an unforgettable show you saw, and why you don’t think that if you saw that same artist/band today that it could all happen again.

Pete Gustard:  I’ve been to so many gigs over the years, so there’s so much amazing choice I’ll be kicking myself forever for not spending more time with this analyzing all those years and gigs to produce the ultimate performance for me….so I’ll keep this simple!  As I write this, the last gig I went to was John Bramwell (previously the front man of the insanely good ‘I am Kloot’ and all-round legend from Manchester UK) who was on a solo tour, just him, an acoustic and a stool.

I chose to see him at Bush Hall in London, which is a beautiful Edwardian Dance Hall and the perfect venue for an intimate set.  He didn’t disappoint, two sets with a short break to sample the local IPAs which John had already recommended ‘you might want to pop to the bar while I’m still playing as it’s so small you’ll still be thirsty if you all choose to all go there in the break’

He played songs from his Mercury Prize nominated album from 2010, played new solo material and beautifully meandered around his whole career of observation of the human condition and life.  His anecdotes and stories in between songs were some of the saddest, warmest and insightful of any gig I can remember….it was a truly amazing night!

As an aside, I first met John many years ago when he was playing under the name of Johnny Dangerously and we played events together as part of the Anti-Nazi League movement…sadly, something I think, sentiment wise, we need again in this crazy world!!!

SBS:  I’ve heard it said many times that it’s harder to write a song in a happy mood than to write one when you’re feeling down.  Of course, for some folks, the opposite is just as true…I guess maybe that’s a reflection of who we are on the inside perhaps?  From YOUR perspective, what’s the particular emotion you associate with the most, or connect to the strongest when you’re creating your music?  How does it play a role in what you write & why do you feel like that specific emotion gets the best songs out of you?

Pete Gustard:  100% it’s a sad mood that drives creativity or me.  But, saying that, anger is even better to be honest!  Those emotions for me give me to the drive to write something, plan something, produce something, do anything really!  If I’m happy, I’m more chilled that’s absolutely and completely true…but does that make me want to jump on my high horse and tell the world about something I feel strongly about?  NOPE!

I’ve tried to study the affect the world has on us via my ‘…of Mind’ series of songs across my albums (Chaos, Beauty, Power, Hate).  No one wants to be driven by negatively perceived emotions, but the reality is far more nuanced than that!  For me the fight for the positive outcome is sometimes driven by the very real and negative feelings towards the injustice….

SBS:  Let’s ask ya this…would you rather create a massive hit song that the whole world knows and sings along with, or risk toiling in obscurity for the length of your career to fully keep your artistic integrity intact?  Is it really that much better to be one of those artists or bands that are only known for one song, or is it better to build a whole catalog you can proudly stand behind that might not be known at all?  One-hit wonders tend to get judged pretty harshly and are often crushed under the weight of constantly trying to find that second hit – but the flipside of that coin is the right hit song can be so financially lucrative that it can often be enough to build a whole career around.  Still…I have to wonder whether or not that would suck all the joy right outta the craft…maybe it’s really better to have no hits than one hit – what do you think you’d prefer and why?  Do you feel like creating a hit song is truly crucial to a music career?  If it’s not, what’s the alternative?  Can you still have a career without really becoming known?

Pete Gustard:  Honestly, I couldn’t even imagine having (or even wanting) a hit song.  I’d take obscurity forever if every person who did listen to my stuff took some positive message from the things they’ve heard…yeh I know, given what I’ve said above about sadness, anger, hate etc. makes it sound like you might wanna get your coping mechanism in place before you spin one of my tunes, but I can promise you the bleak messages of human suffrage I write about are always framed with stories of selfless action and the fight for successful positive change.  Those stories always interest me the most….and if you call that art within the bounds of music, I’m happy with that, because the alternative (for me anyway) is formulaic music based on the chance of success in volume terms, rather than its integrity.

SBS:  Alright.  Personal taste.  It’s a weird thing right?  Impossible to predict, isn’t it?  We always talk about A-sides and B-sides when it comes to making music, and I like to believe that albums are generally put together with the artist or band bringing their best (theoretically, the A-sides) to an official release.  But once a song has been put out there into the world, it takes on all kinds of different meanings to every set of individual ears listening, doesn’t it?  For example – I’ve heard plenty of songs on what are considered to be B-side albums, or second songs that came along with a single that I might like even more than an A-side.  On the same side of that coin, just about every artist and band I know of tends to like certain songs they release much more than the ones their fans respond to the most.  So…I guess the question is…is there really such a thing as an A-side or a B-side to begin with?  What’s the point in worrying too much if everyone out there will draw to their own conclusions about what they like anyhow?  Should we just put absolutely everything we make out there online & let people be the judge?  When we label something as an A-side or a B-side, doesn’t that somewhat limit the listener’s objective ability to assess how they feel about a song on their own?  Who really decides what’s an A-side or a B?

Pete Gustard:  There’s no real A or B sides for me, just moods, tempos, emotions, ideas and the odd weird noise.   J  I usually plan an album around a theme and let it flow to tell the story itself!  The whole A or B side to me is too much like marketing…I wonder if Vermeer chose the pearl earing as his best A side, but had a painting of a guy with a small silver nose pin as B side to fill the wall on that side of the gallery because they had so much square foot to fill? ☺

Joking aside, I try my best with every song, and they pop out as they are and they are presented to the public with no wrapper, priority or grading.

SBS:  Who’s someone you would be able to pinpoint as an influence on your music, or who you are as an artist, that even your fan-base might not have expected?  How has that person affected the way you make your music, and do you really feel like the influence ends up showing up in your sound, or not?  Maybe it’s something they said, maybe it’s something they did, maybe it’s something they accomplished that you hope to as well someday…maybe they’re simply iconic, or have become legendary.  Tell us why this particular inspiration matters to you & how they made an impact on how you view the art of music.

Pete Gustard:  There’s so many bands/people/friends/family that have a huge influence on my music which makes it so difficult to pick just one!!!  I was influenced by the Manchester music scene I grew up right in the centre of like New Order, Happy Mondays, The Smiths, massively swayed by the Punk and Post Punk sounds of the Buzzcocks, Magazine etc, jumping around to the Beastie Boys when they released Paul’s Boutique, moshing to all the grunge outta Seattle, indulging in the sublime Bristol scene of Massive Attack, Portishead and Tricky….I could even cite my cousin Rob as my biggest influence cos he placed a guitar in my hand when I was smaller than the smallest hobbit. ☺

However, and given the above and much more has been fed into my consciousness over the years, I think the single biggest wake up moment was listening to “Maggot Brain” on Funkadelic’s third album (but the first I’d listened to) when Eddie Hazel let rip with the most unconventional yet musically ascendant guitar solos ever…to start the record!  Which then led me into a whole George Clinton obsession…which still remains today.  ☺ Basically it made an indie kid have more wonderfully weird ideas that he would have done had he not randomly listened to that track on that day all those years ago….

SBS:  I’m going with a motto of being unafraid to fail this year, because I think even though I’ve failed in so many things that I’ve tried, maybe I still haven’t failed enough to have learned to not be so afraid of it yet, you know what I mean?  We can learn so much by failing…by trying different things…by stretching outside of our comfort zones – and heck, we don’t even know if we can find success at all unless we’re really willing to see what we’re capable of, right?  So let’s ask you this – what do you consider to be your biggest failure with your music to-date, and ultimately, how did that experience actually end up helping you later on?  What did you learn from whatever mistake you made & how did it assist your evolution?

Pete Gustard:  I think the biggest failure music-wise for me is trying to do absolutely everything myself!  I always write, record, produce, mix, master, and even make the videos etc. etc….

So yes, that stretches my abilities and controls my costs 100%, but the results where I’ve had people write songs with me, helped me mix something I was struggling with, given me feedback with production…or just plainly told me to ‘do better!’ I think has helped me more than anything I can think of.

So, in summary, relax, reach out, listen, learn, implement, collaborate, change…everything will sound much better!

SBS:  As I always like to remind people participating in our interviews, there is no such thing as an interview that has ever covered everything that someone would want to talk about, this one included.  We cover that here at sleepingbagstudios by offering you the ‘open floor’ at the end…a space where you can talk about anything else you want to.  You can mention anything we didn’t bring up.  You can talk politics if you want to.  You can swear.  You can tell us which websites we should go to in order to listen to your music.  You can tell us your favorite movie if you like.  Heck, you can full-on repeat yourself and say something you’ve already said if you feel so inclined – it’s YOUR space to say whatever YOU would want to say to the people out there, completely free of our influence on the conversation…all I suggest is that you take it for a ride and make good use out of it.  Thank you so much for talkin’ tunes with us!!!

Pete Gustard:  Jer, my friend, my brother, my favourite independent music supporter legend you!  What can I say at this point beyond thanks!!!  Heartfelt, real, genuine thanks man!  I might have said that before, but genuinely you’ve influenced me, you gave me feedback when I needed it years ago when I was at a junction between being a gigging musician who’d been in tons of bands and becoming an artist who would consider releasing stuff on his own…huge step for me…and honestly I wasn’t sure, but I did, and I’m happy.  You helped and that I will never forget!

But not everything is rosy in the garden my friend.  I have to say that being a member of this independent music community for so long has given me a bit of an insight into attitudes and trends that quite recently has bothered me more and more….

I hear artists talk about ‘reach’ before talking about ‘art’ or ‘message’…click volumes mean more than self-expression or new funky sounding fuzz pedals…we distil music down to 10 second essences that work with a short term memory loss generation…albums are curated to include 10 bangers that re-sell the same songs that have streamed successfully via algorithms for months…the streaming platforms are driving content via cost and favour…and their payouts mean that an artist needs in the region of 7.5 million streams to reach UK minimum wage income requirements…

All that said, it’s still mind blowing the world is a flat market place which means anyone from (most) countries in the world can listen to my music…but it’s still limited by a subscription barrier that favours the affluent places in the world, rather than a random physical product making its way to some place that could not afford that subscription but absolutely deserves to right to access art, reuse and share it as they see fit.

I see advice on ‘how to make it’ generate more exponentially more views and revenue, than people who just create good music or art…there’s advice from the middle aged (and older) for the youth to say how they should behave, make music, make it big, change the world…but it’s not their world any more, but it doesn’t stop them giving it and the younger generation taking it, thinking there might be a shortcut to success!

I am of that generation and the only piece of advice I would have for someone starting out in the music industry today would be ‘don’t listen to me or anyone my age, go make summat I don’t understand, change the world, scare the f**cking living daylights out of me!’

Now that would make me happy. ☺

Find out more about Pete Gustard at the official links below!

Main Site:  https://petegustard.co.uk

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/petegustardmusic

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/petesworld

Apple Music:  https://music.apple.com/au/artist/pete-gustard/787203475

Spotify:  https://open.spotify.com/artist/0dwXvwmIrXjAyLv2ANU4QZ

Ya ha!  This link right here is the key to being the next artist or band featured here at sleepingbagstudios, so instead of just ignoring it, click it instead!