1. Below Boulevard
They're Back. Below Boulevard are returning after their year away from the
music scene with an impending EP due to be released in early 2016. The two lead
singers from the band have grown up in Sunderland and are returning to the
North East playing their first in a long line of concerts at the O2 Arena in
Newcastle this December ahead of their music release. Matte was recently given
the pleasure to interview Amy, one of the lead singers of the band, to find out
what her plans are for the future with the band along with their life at the
moment.
So Amy, how does it feel to be back in your hometown after spending so much time
in London?
It's really nice to be back home with family and friends. Sunderland is just so much calmer than
London and it's nice to be able to walk around without being recognised as we pass each street
corner, y'know. London's a lovely place but there's nothing better than coming to your
family home and let's not forget the home cooking; that's definitely something we all really miss
when we're away.
You've mentioned home cooking there, is there anything in particular or is it
specifically your Mam's cooking?
We all know that is something very difficult to beat but I've always got time for food from Oak
Tree Farm. The food there is just amazing!
What do you miss the most when you're away from home?
Other than the home cooking, it's got be the shops. The Bridges has so many good shops in one
place. It's a nightmare to find them all in London because they are always in co mpletely different
places. I also really miss spending Christmas here; I think we're going to be able to this year but
last year, we were still recording over Christmas. Other than obviously being with family, it's been
a tradition for the band to go to the Christmas market in Newcastle so not doing that was very
different last year.I think we all really missed that to be honest.
Have you had the chance to go shopping since you've come back?
I actually went with Josh (the guitarist) last week. The shops here are amazing, nothing beats the
classic shops like Topshop and River Island. The Bridges has a really good range of shops like it's
all the shops you would need everyday. A lot of people expect us to be shopping in all these
ridiculously expensive stores but sometimes you can get the exact same item in H&M for example
but for a lot cheaper.
Yeah it does,what are your all time favourite stores?
Topshop. Always Topshop. It's just so good for a variety of things. It's an all round good store. I do
love H&M as well though. It's really reasonably priced and everything is amazing quality.
Honestly, you'd think it was bought from designers sometimes.
2. We'e talked about clothes a lot but your fans are also interested in the shops that
you buy your accessories from so what are your favourite stores for those?
Actually, for shoes, I love Garage Shoes in the town. The shoes there are amazing quality and last
forever! That's definitely been my go to place recently; I've been sending my family to get shoes I
see online so they can post them down to me when we were in London recording!
So what do you plan on doing while you're back home?
As we're going to be staying here over Christmas, we are definitely going ice skating!
Olly (the drummer) hates it but I think we've managed to persuade him this year. I'm
also looking forward to going to the Barnes on Christmas Eve.The band and all of our
families have gone there together for years and we were all saying the other day that it
was really boring notgoing last year.My sister actually skyped me while everyonewas
there last year and I was so jealous ofher. I mean, Christmas in London is really lovely
and some of the sights are incredible but there's nothing better than spending
Christmas in the traditional way with ourfamily and friends in your hometown.
What is a traditional Christmas for the band?
Well the lead up to it is usually full ofMe and Ella (the other lead singer) dragging the
boys around the shops buying everyone's Christmas presents and buying new
decorations for our houses. We have all recently bought a house together so I imagine
it's going to be a bit more hectic this year. I give the boys a week of the shopping and
then they'll not come with us anymore. When it gets to the actual holiday,we usually
spend Christmas Eve with our own families and then we all meet at the pub for a meal
and drinks to see the night in. Christmas Day is no different really, we spend the day
with our own families and then we switch between houses. This year I think everyone
will probably cometo our new house as a house-warming event alongside Christmas
obviously.
Straight after Christmas, you start touring the UK and Ireland, how do you feel
about that?
I really can't wait to start again. When we went last year, we didn't really know what to expect so it
was really strange at the start but as it went on, we started to understand what was best. It's
amazing to see so many different places. Last year, I bought a souvenir from every place that we
went to so I have everything kept in a 'memory box' that I leave at home with my Mam. She likes
to be able to look through all of the different places we went to. I might do the same this year but
send her the souvenirs so it's a surprise for her.
Is there anything you can tell us about the tour?
The tour is going to be completely different this year. We're going to a lot more venues so
everything will be very different and not only new for the fans but we're going to places that we
3. have never been to before so it's going to be a lot of new experiences for us as well. We also had a
lot of the basics last year like the basic lighting displays and no stage displays at all. We're
upgraded this year so there's going to be a lot more to see rather than the four us trying to make
people enjoy their time there!
I'm sure everyone will be looking forward to it now that you have revealed
something new! Thank you for spending your time here at Matte Magazine today
and I hope you enjoy your tour!
Thanks for having me! This has definitely been one of the best magazine companies I've been to;I
mean, not many places let me and the team run riot like you guys have!
Below Boulevard's EP Velvet is due to be released early in 2016 and they begin their
tour prompting their revival in December this year. T ickets go on sale on the
14th November.
