Introducing Get To Know… Egyptian Blue

Ahead of the release of their debut EP ‘Collateral Damage’, we catch up with the new Yala! Records signees.

20th June 2019

Hello and welcome to DIY’s introducing feature, Get To Know… getting you a little bit closer to the buzziest new acts that have been catching our eye as of late, and working out what makes them tick.

We’ve recently introduced you to punk-funkers Public Practice, Brooklyn bunch Barrie, Yala! Records newbies Talk Show and young whippersnapper Alfie Templeman. Today, we welcome Yala! Records’ latest signees Egyptian Blue into the club.

Having already served up a handful of darkly fierce tracks, we caught up with Leith Ambrose of new Yala! Records signees Egyptian Blue. Ahead of the release of their debut EP ‘Collateral Damage’ tomorrow (Friday 21st June), they open up about their musical memories, Brighton peers and dream collaborators.

Describe your music to us in the form of a Tinder bio.

Post-punk music obsessive, influenced by the surrounds of faded seaside glamour and the people it attracts, with only a loyal cat for company.

What’s your earliest musical memory?

One of my earliest memories would be watching an old man through a window deep in thought whilst he was playing the piano.

Either that or having my father relentlessly trying to install the sound of Bob Dylan into my brain. It seems to conjure up similar thoughts these days!

Who were some artists that inspired you when you were just starting out (and why)?

We found a lot of inspiration and energy from watching footage of chaotic gigs, where the music and the atmosphere was totally on the edge … for example, The Jesus and Mary Chain gig in London that turned into a riot, or the on stage disintegration of Brain Jonestown Massacre. I guess it’s moments like those, and in-particular the raw energy and unpredictability of the live performances that tapped into our sub-conscious somewhere a long the line.

You’re based in Brighton - what’s the music scene like there at the moment? Are there other artists breaking through at the same time that you take inspiration from?

Brighton does seem to be thriving at the moment in terms of interesting artists and bands. It is one of those places where lots of talented people seem to gravitate towards (mainly to study), but then they find this support network of like-minded people and a way of expressing themselves artistically. At the moment Happy Couple are one of our favourite bands. Lena who sings and plays bass in Happy Couple also created the artwork for our latest EP, her work seems to sum up our sound perfectly. Also our friends Ralph TV deserve a shout out for their woozy pop songs.

Who would be your dream collaborator?

Collectively Wire is one band that would be a dream for all of us as those records as they have so many great ideas. Maybe I could even put forward Echo And The Bunnymen also (.. as ‘Heaven Up Here’ or ‘Porcupine’ era as something we connected with at one point or another).

Musically or otherwise, what are you most looking forward to in 2019?

The opportunity to go on our first national tour with The Murder Capital has already been one highlight, but asides from that meeting more people, releasing more music and spending more time in that van. What’s not to love.

If people could take away one thing from your music, what would it be?

At the moment I think we’re managing to capture a lot of our live energy in our recordings, thanks to our good friend Theo Verney being at the helm. We’d hope that those moments of recorded time enthuse people both, to not only express themselves, but to experience EB in its most natural live state.

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