In the future expect to hear considerably more about Man Of Moon but at this point they are a well-kept secret and have only got one release to their name, however the promise of the 19 year old duo from Edinburgh is hard to ignore. Michael Reid and Chris Bainbridge amalgamate psychedelia with post-punk motoric grooves and I recently asked Chris some questions to find out more about Man Of Moon.
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Musselburgh and went to school in Leith. I've lived by the sea for 16 years. The sea has had a big influence on my music and the style of music I write.
What music were you brought up on?
I was brought up on The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Tracy Chapman and loads of others when I was much younger. Then my older sisters and cousins introduced me to artists such as Nirvana, Jonny Cash, Billie Holliday, A Tribe Called Quest, Rage Against The Machine, CAN and Radiohead.
What was the first instrument you played, and when?
The first instrument I played was the guitar when I was five or six. I played some drums and bass guitar at school, as well as bass in quite a few bands but then went back to playing guitar a lot at about sixteen.
Has your style of music always been the same?
Our style of music has slowly changed over the past 2 years. It’s become a lot more fast paced and heavy. Until recently we were still trying to figure out what kind of music we wanted to create but now I feel we are very clear.
What made you start Man Of Moon?
We both met at college studying sound engineering. Our class needed a guitarist and a drummer to record a few jams so that the class could practice. We then started skiving off college to practise and write which then quickly led to us leaving the course.
How would you briefly describe your music?
I would describe our music as intense, fairly dark at points and spacey.
What are your main influences?
We both like loads of different styles of music and artists but the main influences for our sound would be Russian Circles, Mogwai, She Keeps Bees, Jeff Buckley, Radiohead and CAN. My lyrics are inspired by my mates and family.
Do you prefer writing music or recording music?
I prefer writing music a lot more than recording due to the fact that you’re constantly changing little bits and listening back to them, and figuring out what sounds best and then trying it out live. I prefer this over recording where you’re setting something in stone.
Tell us a bit about your debut release, The Road?
Our debut single 'The Road', is probably the closest we've come to Krautrock yet. It's been a big song for us in the live set for a while and it felt like a natural single. It's been released on the Melodic label and features 'This World' as the B Side, it gives a good balance to the 7" as both tracks are very different, so we feel it shows two sides of the band.
What are your future plans?
We still have a few festivals coming up: Belladrum, Electric Fields, Joctoberfest and Twisterella are all looking good, we've had a great summer playing festivals and don't want it to end! We also get to play our first show in mainland Europe it's in Belgium at BIG NEXT FESTIVAL on 12th Sept, we're excited about that one! There are other dates in the pipeline for October and November, but still be too announced, so watch this space! Other than that, we are booking in dates to record an EP, which we expect to release early in 2016. Finally I must mention that we are absolutely delighted to have been asked by The Twilight Sad to support them at The Barrowlands in December we saw Mogwai there recently and it's an incredible venue!
Website: ManOfMoon.net
Facebook: facebook.com/ManOfMoon
Twitter: twitter.com/Man__of__Moon