Festivals Brooklyn’s Model/Actriz talk upcoming set at Wide Awake: “I’m excited to play music and meet people outside of our bubble”

We caught up with the band ahead of their set at South London’s favourite alt all-dayer.

Words: Sarah Jamieson
25th May 2023

South London’s finest alternative festival - aka Wide Awake! - returns for a third time this weekend, with pop queen Caroline Polachek at the helm, topping a bill that features everything from mucky post-punk (Viagra Boys, Warmduscher) to dancefloor fillers (Daniel Avery, Oneohtrix Point Never) and breezy guitars (Gretel Hänlyn, Blondshell).

What’s more, Brooklyn quartet Model/Actriz will be in the middle of a trip supporting Gilla Band when they take to the stage at London’s Brockwell Park this weekend, with new album ‘Dogsbody’ in tow.

To mark their first visit to the UK, we caught up with the band to hear more about their recently-released debut, and what they’re looking forward to most about reaching our shores…

Hello! You released your debut album ‘Dogsbody’ a couple of months ago; how did it feel to get it out into the world?
Ruben: Surreal to have something so familiar and personal transform into something communal. [It’s] hard to put into words but it felt like I couldn’t breathe because I was being hugged so tight.
Cole: It felt like we were sending our child off to college, but in a way that I felt like a proud dad for the child my bandmates and I raised.

How did you want to build upon your previous EPs and singles?
Jack: I think there’s a both natural and premeditated thread that’s existed in the way and style that we’ve written, and I’ve found it interesting to see it unfold and show itself to us from afar now that ‘Dogsbody’ and the previous EPs are a little farther removed from us personally, now that we’re not living inside of the writing anymore. But ‘Dogsbody’ feels to us like a sharpened and more distilled version of the music we were trying to write back in 2016 or whenever. Still excited to see where it goes in the future.

You’ve also just come off a US tour - how were those shows?
Ruben: Really amazing and emotional to feel our energy reciprocated by people we’ve never met. We’re used to playing shows for our friends or people who we are familiar with, so it was a big leap of faith going on our first headline tour and it’s just crazy that people were out there singing along to songs that aren’t the 'hits' and were present for the fuck shit up moments but also the intimate and soft moments.

What's your favourite thing about playing live?
Jack: I think seeing how each crowd reacts differently to the set is always special. It feels different every night, and it changes according to the set list we play. It feels sort of scientific and fun to gauge and keep track of how different groups of people react to these songs.

You’ve got a whole host of UK and European shows coming up - what are you most looking forward to about the shows over on this side of the Atlantic?
Ruben: I’m excited to play music and meet people outside of our bubble.

You’ve also got a handful of festivals, such as Wide Awake in London; are you looking forward to playing festivals? Is there anyone on the line-up that you’ll definitely be checking out when you’re there?

Jack: Festivals are pretty alien to me so I’m a little nervous and excited to see how they play out for us. [We’re] hyped to see Arooj Aftab!

Model/Actriz play Wide Awake (27th May), where DIY is a media partner. Head to the festival’s website for more info, and to buy tickets.

Tags: Model/Actriz, Wide Awake, Festivals, Features, Interviews