Ahead of the concert tour this September, Tige from The Sukis joined us to hype things up.

You may know the band from their breakout single, released back in 2021. ‘Becca’ has racked up a whopping 19 million streams on Spotify, and consolidated the four boys as a flavour of the decade.

“The flavour we’re bringing is excitement, energy, that Indie rock side”

They channel Arctic Monkeys and all the noughties greats in their tracks, but Tige and the gang have found an audience because they have something completely new to say. Starting out, they were writing songs about all the 16 or 17-year-old struggles, going to gigs with girls, but have matured to delve into other issues, like social anxiety and fitting in. Surely it was the given that such a hot topic band would be front and centre stage for ‘World in Motion’. 

“They wanted to look into the past and do all the bands together,” Tige says. “With all of us going around and sleeping on hotel floors, that sort of thing, bringing live music back to its roots. Well, they had us at hotel floors!”

“I think there will be real diversity in sound and that’s one of the big reasons we really wanted to jump on. The Jaques played with us in London and I was really blown away by their sound, and the intricacies of their own music. So, when people come down, they’re going to be overwhelmed by the amount of overwhelming music and different types of style”

It marks a real gear shift for the group, who have spent the last few years getting their names out there in Liverpool as one of the must-watch young talents. 

“In the last couple of years we’ve definitely started gigging more, and we set up our first tour last year independently, but we’ve never had this sort of back-to-back days thing, so it’s giving us so much experience and maturity as artists.”

As for Becca, the track that got them where they are now, Tige was originally unsure about recording it. 

“We released it at the beginning of 2021, when everybody was getting out of lockdown, into the gateway of this world we’re in now. When I wrote it, it was prime lockdown. We put out loads of demo tapes because we were conscious that people might like our sound at gigs but not know any of the lyrics. People would sort of mosh to everything!”

“We were very inspired by Arctic Monkeys for a long time, then when we went into the studio with producer Andy Theakstone, there was a whole new element to it, and we realised this was the song we had to lead in. We played our cards right!”

They are not a band that are settled on being one singular sound, or defined by one hit single. With recent singles To No One and Olivier, Tige has truly dug into the emotional core of his songwriting, positioning them in a good place ahead of their upcoming tour. 

The Sukis, alongside their two peer bands, will be heading to renowned destinations like the Newcastle Think Tank and Manchester Factory251, but the one that catches Tige’s attention most is the final date on their tour, Hitchin Club 85. 

“It was the first place we ever performed, so that will have a sweet spot, but there will be a lot of places, venues and cities that we’ve never performed at before, so I’m kind of excited about that.”

All that leaves is how they are going to rehearse for their biggest tour yet. 

“We’ve spent a lot of time in the last year doing support stuff, with bands like The Molotovs, and with those sort of gigs, it’s kind of like ‘get in, get out’. With these sort of shows you have a lot more space and freedom to do a show, rather than just an impression.

“The real thing we lasered in on was to make it all flow really well and to not be stale at any point. That’s a thing we’ve always prided ourselves on as a band, whether that’s transitions or adding a song of ours in that people will remember from years ago.”

Ps and Qs

Favourite post gig scran: “There’s a place in Liverpool called Kentucky Fried Chicken which we all like going to! Probably the chicken burger and popcorn chicken. Can’t beat it man.”

Favourite vocal warm-ups: “I always do a weird Michael Jackson ‘he-he’ to check I’ve still got my falsetto.”

Which member of your band would be best in the zombie apocalypse: “I’d say Freddie, our bassist. He’s just got it going. He’s a gym lad. I don’t think any of us would survive long, but he’d be able to survive a good few hours!”

What’s the one song you haven’t written that you wish you did write: “Either ‘Love My Way’ by The Psychedelic Furs, or ‘It’s My Life’ by Talk Talk. Both weirdly simple but complex and get stuck in your head for days on end. 

Do you work better at daytime or night: “It doesn’t feel appropriate when there’s sunlight to record a song. I like working on voice memos in day then going through them at night. Other than Becca, which was in the day, so who knows?”

If you were to go on holiday as a band: “We’d get a villa in the south of France, bring a couple of guitars, get some beers, stay there for a week and just chill.”

The Jacques

As for their flavour in the neapolitan triad that we will see this Autumn on the Wheels in Motion Tour: “We’re more of a strawberry, definitely not vanilla,” says Harry from the Jacques, a band who have been on a mighty journey this past decade from their early indie garage works to more celestial synth music. 

“The temptation when you’re going out live is to create the most raucous garage band music because it creates such an energy, but we have so much to write, and only one life, so if it resonates with all of us, we’ll put it on wax.”

The tour sprung up on the group by surprise: “We’re working on an album at the moment, so we’re leaving some space to think about whether that will influence the set lists and the equipment that we take.”

Their last album, Make Repetition, was their finest work yet. Since then, they have toured as support for Public Image Ltd, when John Lydon became a father figure for the band after their van and equipment was stolen.

Mulling on an album is very different from the buzz of when it first drops: “I’m proud we managed to get it over the line,” Harry adds. “Any of the projects we’ve been a part of are a snapshot of us, so by the time that came out, they were songs we’d had for a little while, and we didn’t want to lose that moment.”

So, the horizon is bright as they approach their new tour. As we discuss which venues the Jacques have the most affinity with, Harry gets up a list of dates. 

“Hare and Hounds in Birmingham is a really iconic venue we’ve done a great gig at before. Most of the towns and cities on here we’ve played at, but I’m really excited to play in Liverpool and Glasgow to play in the home towns of The Sukis and Pistol Daisies, and soak up that atmosphere.

“Then there’s venues I’ve been to as a punter but haven’t played at. It’s just, you get so tight when you’re on the road, weeks on end, that by the end, you don’t want to stop gigging, because that’s when you’re most in the pocket. I can’t wait to get back in that flow state.”

The Jaques have crossed paths with the other Indie rockers in this musical Avengers assemble once before. 

“We did a great show with Pistol Daisies in Hamburg which was awesome. That was really cool, and I thought they were wicked. Then we had one of our favourite ever shows at the Finsbury, supporting The Sukis, and they’re all lovely guys. It feels like a family affair of sorts and I’m excited to get to know them all a bit better.”

Some big inspirations spring up for The Jaques, but there are a few that are rarely brought up into conversation. One they receive a lot is Blur, which Harry is very happy about, as a lifelong fan. 

“People don’t mention Pavement, but we take a lot from their style of songwriting. Not the sense of humour per se but the fun of it, and the texture of it. It depends on our set though, whether we’re leaning more into the synth pop or the celestial. We take a lot of inspiration from heavier music. We’re big into the OCs.”

Food: “Something regional, depending on where we are. When we were in Groningen, I got those Dutch croquettes. When I’m in Newcastle I’ll be getting a parmo. In Liverpool a bowl of scouse. In Norwich the East Anglian delicacies. But I say all of that, and it ends up being pizza or chips.”

Testing: I’ll say one-two-one-two then I’ll shout “AH!”. I’ve met bands before that take the vocal warm-ups seriously, which is the smart thing to do, looking after your voice, but as a reaction to that, I just sort of go “AH!”

Apocalypse: Elliot (the drummer) has every film he’s ever enjoyed on DVD and he’s very good at building stuff. He can pack the van really well. He also lives in a very rural area so they’ll definitely get to him last.

Wish: I remember listening to “Getting Killed” by Geese and Cobra is just so nice. When the songwriting feels super obvious but hasn’t been explored yet, I always think f***, I should have just come up with that.”

Day or night: I need to have a full day or have just done some stuff during the day. I wouldn’t wake up and pick up a guitar straight away. I need to feel like I’ve done everything I could possibly do before picking it up. 

Ideal holiday: We’d really like to go to Spain because it feels attainable and good value for money! So we could do some recording, enjoy the siesta, and go to a fiesta.