Music

Boy Jumps Ship: “We’ve always wanted to be a great live band”

Newcastle rockers Boy Jumps Ship have been on a roll since signing to Amazing Record Co. at the end of last year, and now they’re heading out on a full headline UK tour this May.

We caught up with guitarist Jonathan Douglas to talk touring, the new record and cover bands before BJS head out on the road later this month…

You just released your debut album, what’s the reaction been like so far?

“It’s been amazing to say the least. Across the board, the album has been received really positively. We’ve been sat on it for quite a while now so it’s kind of weird trying to imagine what it’s like for people to hear it for the first time but we couldn’t be happier with it. I hadn’t listened to it in something like three or four months until the day it was released and it was playing in our local HMV. It was a completely surreal moment to be honest. I’m excited to see which tracks people enjoy the most once it’s been out for a while.”

How have you gone about working new tracks into your live show? Any standouts so far?

“Until now, we’ve had to hold ourselves back from playing too many tracks off the album live in order to keep it fresh for everyone. Now it’s a case of us all wanting to play pretty much every track live. Again though, we’re making sure we leave some space in the set for a couple of older tunes which are still well loved. I’d say the standouts so far have been Lost & Found and Burn. The reaction to those tracks live has been phenomenal.”

Boy Jumps Ship - Burn

Does having a full-length worth of material change your touring experience?

“I’d say so, yeah. It certainly gives us a lot more scope in terms of dynamics when on tour. With the older EPs, we only had four or five songs to make our mark whereas, with a full length, we can spread our wings a lot further. There are a lot of different sounds on the album compared to some of our older material. What’s great is that we can tailor our set a little more towards the sorts of crowds we’re playing to. If we know the crowd are going to enjoy the heavier stuff than we’ve got the opportunity to do so when touring. Same can be said for the lighter songs on the album.”

For anyone who hasn’t seen you live yet, how do you think it compares to your sound on record?

“First and foremost, we’ve always wanted to be a great live band. Larry Hibbitt, who produced the album, did an unbelievable job of transferring the energy from our live show onto record. We’ve always had this ethos of not going overboard in terms of production and keeping it as close to our live sound as possible. I’d like to think that when you hear the songs live, you’re hearing the parts we recorded in the studio. Probably just a lot louder. If you like the record then get yourself down to a show and we’ll make sure you’re not disappointed.”

Boy Jumps Ship - Lost & Found

What records will you be listening to in the tour van?

“Our van music spans pretty much every genre and decade you can listen to so it’s hard to pin us down on that one. I know we’re all super excited to hear what Blink do with Skiba and the new BABYMETAL album is kicking around in the van right out. We’ve been trying to learn the words and failing miserably. When we’re driving from city to city and it’s late you can be sure that there will be something raucous on. Something like The Bronx or Every Time I Die.”

If you had to be a cover band for one set, which band would you choose?

“That is such a tough one. If I had the chops then I’d love to play a Rage Against The Machine set. Too many amazing riffs. There’s no way I could get near Morello’s solos though. He’s too good. I know for a fact we’d make a fantastic Bryan Adams tribute band. Si would be buzzing!”

Boy Jumps Ship tour the UK this month:

May
1 – York, Fibbers
2 – Liverpool, Arts Club
3 – Glasgow, Stereo
4 – Manchester, Gullivers
5 – Birmingham, O2 Academy 3
7 – Tunbridge Wells Forum
8 – St. Albans Horn
9 – Southampton, Joiners
10 – London, Barfly

Book tickets for Boy Jumps Ship’s UK tour now at Ticketmaster.co.uk now.