Chvrches, on their new album: “We don’t exist in a vacuum anymore.”

In the August 2015 issue of DIY (out Friday 7th August), Chvrches invite us into the studio to find out about their second album.

With ‘Every Open Eye’ due out next month, the trio discuss how LP2 saw them getting to grips with being a Very Big Deal. “I guess I had never thought about it before,” says Lauren Mayberry, “because I had never made a second album before. From my point of view, the thing I found difficult is that we don’t exist in a vacuum anymore. When we made the first album, it was the first record the band had made so it was about, ‘What should the band sound like?’ and it was determined by that record. Whereas I guess, I’m aware now that we have a pre-conceived idea of what the band sounds like and so do a lot of other people, so it’s just about trying to figure out how to divorce ourselves from that and actually do the work.”

“I think, especially when we started writing lyrics and stuff, I would get to a point where I would write four or five lines and then I would delete 90% of it. I was like, ‘That doesn’t sound like anything I would say, that doesn’t sound like anything we would write’ and then I realised I was being ridiculous. I was second-guessing myself all the time, not necessarily because I want to write something that other people think is what we should do, but just because you don’t have as blank a slate as the first time, so you want to do something that feels consistent, but you can also be proud of and feels authentic. Eventually, you realise you need to stop worrying about it, you need to stop focusing on it and just get it done. It’s hard to remember that at the start, but once you’ve finally jumped in, then it’s easier to just say, ‘This is where we are’. As much as there’s not a concept or theme on the record, I think there are things that tie it all together. I think there are similarities and differences between the lyrics on both records so I guess once you find your route and get back up to speed it’s easier.”

Chvrches’ new album ‘Every Open Eye’ will be released on 25th September via Virgin EMI / Goodbye Records. Photos: Rachael Wright.

Read the full interview in the August 2015 issue of DIY, out 7th August. Pre-order a copy below.