Interview with Jam Tub

Tell me a bit about yourself, what have you been up to over the past 12 months?

The past 12 months have mainly been spent gigging and writing. Considering we only started this band back in January last year, we’ve been decently busy. We took a bit of a recording break in April to finish the EP after recording the singles back in September, done some insane headline shows, all stuff we’re really buzzed about. Jam-packed if you will.

What has been the biggest highlight of making music so far?

So far in our time as a band, we’ve had many incredible opportunities that we are astonishingly grateful for. Some notable ones include having the honour to play at Stockton Calling in the Social Room earlier this year, having our singles played on BBC Introducing by the lovely Shakk and headlining Bobiks in Newcastle before it shut down (made even better by the free flapjack we were provided by the guys there). However, currently in our horizons, we are collectively most excited to play with The Skinner Brothers at the back end of this year in ThinkTank.

 How would you describe your sound?  

We have been asked about how we would describe our sound many times over the past year and at no point have we particularly given the same answer twice. Jam Tub has undergone extensive sonic metamorphosis over the last year, which is particularly present on the tracks in ‘NO SCRAP VALUE’. The proverbial melting pot in which is our ‘genre’ is full of dad-rock, blues, punk, indie and will never truly stay in the same place as we discover new musical inspiration and continue to be curious and experimental regarding our sound. To sum it up, we are if radgy and groovy had a baby.

What was the process like in recording your upcoming EP 'No Scrap Value'?

It all started with writing really, over the past year we’d been accumulating a worthy selection which we were proud enough of to have them feature on the EP. We no recorded it in two different sessions, spaced fairly far apart. When we laid the first two singles ‘Riverside’ and ‘Daisy Chain’ down back in September last year we had the lingering idea of a debut EP in the back of our minds, then when we started writing new material as we moved into 2024, we started to become more interested in completing it.

In April we headed back to the studio to record the remaining 3 tracks, which we did in 2 days. It was very exciting, recording is anyway, but the prospect of making more than singles was another level, so we were very driven.

What is 'No Scrap Value' about?

'NO SCRAP VALUE' doesn't hold one set message that we are trying to present, rather multiple as each song has its own meanings. This makes each track stand out from each other as each song tells a different and unique story for the listener to immerse themselves in. Whether it is “superficial" love or the "affirmation of the exploitation”. This EP has it all.

If any song from 'No Scrap Value' could be in any film, which one would it be?

If we could pick any song from the EP to be in any film, we think it would have to be our song ‘ABIOTIC’ put into the scene from Step Brothers where they’re singing at the end. It’s just a great film that pretty much sums up our humour as a band and it would be an honour to see such passionate lyricism come out of Will Ferrell’s supple lips.

If any celebrity could feature in a music video for a song from 'No Scrap value' who would you choose?

As a group we would love to have Isaac Holman and Laurie Vincent from SoftPlay to feature in our music video. As a band we love their music and personalities and believe that they would help us create a sublime video. Additionally, Snoop Dogg or Gordon Ramsay would also make for great features.

What can your listeners expect from your upcoming music? 

We want our future to shock people, we don't want people to be able to expect what's about to happen. We feel that keeping things unpredictable is what keeps things fresh and exiting. So I guess you'll just have to wait and see.

What's next for you as a band?

Plenty going on, besides the EP release, but we’ll be celebrating that at our hometown gig at Bede Lodge Social in Durham on the 20th July. Got a few little festivals up North during the Summer and then obviously later in the year we’ll be supporting The Skinner Brothers at ThinkTank, so there’s plenty in the pipeline. We’re always writing new tunes, trying to elevate our live set as much as we can, but all will be revealed soon.

Words - Katie Graham