Biography
The New Normal started out when, during the lockdown in 2021, drummer Neil Woodside posted an advert on Musician Search N.I. seeking a bass player for a punk band. Bassist Carlin Brown found the ad and brought guitarist Paul Buckby on board to join Neil and vocalist Cathy Lewis. Within a couple of weeks, the new four-piece already had a number of songs written and have built on that to release debut EP Not Yours in October.
Describing the sound they’ve created since, Carlin told us: “We are very in line with the American style of punk rock/skate punk. Our songwriting process is probably the same as most bands but to break that down briefly, usually I will come up with a bassline and we will write a song surrounding this or Paul will come up with a guitar riff and vice versa. A lot of the songs we have out at the moment started as basslines so they maybe have a different sound to them than the ones that began life as guitarlines as both me and Paul have different styles musically.
“Depending on who has written the main riff, the songs can sound entirely different from one another, which to us is a great thing and keeps us feeling fresh and constantly exploring new ground. We have a fantastic drummer in Neil, you can give him basically anything and he will just be jamming along beside you in seconds. Of course without failure to mention, Cathy is our lyricist and will come up with the majority of the lyrics in our practice room with us and we will all contribute ideas for themes, formats, etc… But mainly, she is our rock and whilst we write the ‘music’ she is definitely what drives it.”
As mentioned, the band recently released their excellent debut EP Not Yours, which opens up with the title track. It begins with lively guitar chords and driving drums that support Cathy’s engaging vocals. The verse ends with repeats of “What’s mine’s not yours,” which tees up a chorus of big shouty vocals “My mind, Not yours, My voice, Not yours, My body, Not yours, It is mine.” Second time around, the chorus ends with a cry of “It’s not fucking yours,” the pace slows down and builds back up again with a chugging guitar that feeds into a deliciously heavy final blast of the chorus.
(Interview on GigRadar - December/2023) https://gigradar.co.uk/2023/12/18/newbandoftheweek-thenewnormal/
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