News Colours: ‘This 7” Is A Fresh Start’

East London bands get a lot of stick - sometimes with good reason, sometimes with no reason. Any particularly skeptical outsider judging Colours before they listen to them might expect another bunch of fake hipsters, jumping on whatever band-wagon is cool at the time, making music to get attention rather than to, well, just make good music.

Any of those who actually bothered to listen to Colours would get an entirely different impression. The East London-based four-piece are far more interested in the music and the ethics behind the music than they make than any kind of aesthetic or look - and it’s clear to hear in their hynotic, twisting, and powerful songs. We caught up with Leon - one quarter of Colours and the man behind Marshall Teller Records - for a quick chat about things ahead of the release of the ‘Drip Haze’ 7’ on 27th February.

Firstly, congratulations on an excellent EP. How has it been putting the 7’ together?
Thanks, it’s great that you guys are into it! Putting the 7” together has been really fun. We feel that we haven’t released anything we have been 100% happy with and with this record we are all super happy and excited for its release.

What are your hopes for the release?
I guess our hopes for the record are that we can get back to playing shows again. We dipped out of doing things for a while due to line-up changes and generally not enjoying ourselves, so the 7” is kind of a fresh start of things to come. I mean, everyone can only hope for major attention and success, but I would think this might take a little longer for us. It’s fun with friends right now, so anything else be it getting booked for a tour or getting released is a bonus.

What’s it been like recording with Rory Atwell? Does working with one of your friends just make the whole process less stressful?
Recording with Rory is always good clean fun - he gets it! We like to record quickly and get an instant track down. We have recorded a bunch of times with him, he’s a good friend, so it just makes sense.

Sometimes relasing music on your own label can be looked down on in a ‘couldn’t you get anyone else to release it?’ kind of way. But presumably that wasn’t the reason you’re putting it out on Marshall Tellers?
Releasing your own stuff is a good way to go. I remember moving to London a few years ago and looking at labels like Sleep All Day Records, Paradise Vendors and Italian Beach Babes all run by various guys from bands and being really into the idea, so thought it would be cool to start our own label. It means we can work quickly, record a track and think about putting it straight to record. It keeps it exciting and gives us something to work towards. I think at the moment, putting yourself out just shows a little more commitment to the music and an understanding of the industry. But - by all means, someone else wanting to release us would be welcomed with very huge open arms.

Bands DIY-ing has been on the rise recently, and you as a band (as well as Marshall Teller as a label) seem to be behind that kind of ethic. What’s the importance of bands keeping things DIY?
Releasing music yourself is a really the best way to start, especially right now. It’s getting harder and harder for bands to get financial help from labels with releases, tours and so on. As we said earlier, doing things DIY just shows a little more love for the ethics, which people nowadays are just as interested in - not just the music.

You’re playing a few dates with YRRS over the next few weeks. What are some of the other lesser known bands you’ve been enjoying recently?
YRRS are great. They are good buddies of ours and they really remind me of Colours as a two-piece way back. We are looking to release the guys on tape later this year, then maybe a 7” in the summer. With the label we get sent lots of tracks from bands which is really cool. Recently Tucker Rountree from Total Slacker recorded a band called Weird Rivers - they sent over the track and we were really into it, so hopefully we will get to hear more from them soon.

Other than the 7’, what does 2012 hold for Colours? Any chance of a full-length anytime soon?
Well once the 7” is out we will look to do another one for around May time. We are in the process at the moment of writing a bunch of new tracks but already have enough stuff for an EP or full length. So by the summer we will be ready to put something together, be it through us doing it ourselves, or help from another label would also be great.

Colours’ new ‘Drip Haze’ 7’ will be released on 27th February via Marshall Teller Records.