The Painting | Matt Connarton Unleashed

0:00 Speaker 1: What a great song that is. I love that. That is called Scarlet. The band is the Painting, the album is Before the Rain, and let's get Lewis in here. Lewis Taylor is on the line with us via Microsoft Teams. Hello, Lewis, Hi.

0:14 Speaker 2: There, how's it going good?

0:15 Speaker 1: Good, Welcome to the show. I love that song. I love that song so much. That is that is so good? We play that. We played it when it first came out, and I still love it as much as I I did. Listen to the entire album, by the way, Before the Rain. I think the whole thing is great. So I'm really happy to have you on the show today.

0:32 Speaker 2: Oh, thank you. I'm really glad to be here to this.

0:34 Speaker 1: We excellent.

0:36 Speaker 2: Just before we go in it further, I went to pass on condolences as well to yourself about your dad. I lost my dad a couple of years ago, and so I know what it's like.

0:46 Speaker 1: Yeah, no, I appreciate that very much. Yeah, it's it's it's rough, it's yeah, it's it's uh. I'm still I'm still kind of processing it all. But I'm sorry to hear that you lost your dad a couple of years ago. But yeah, so you you know what, uh, you know what we're going through here. But no, I appreciate that very much.

1:04 Speaker 2: No, no, no problem, but uh.

1:06 Speaker 1: So happier subjects. So, like I said, I love the band and you guys are from Glasgow? Is that correct?

1:12 Speaker 2: Yeah, we're we're based in Glasgow. We're all all the members are were you know, originally from different parts of Scotland, but we're all based in Glasgow.

1:20 Speaker 1: Okay, okay? And then how long has the band been around?

1:24 Speaker 2: Oh as this iteration of the band, maybe around the year and that's what I thought. Yeah, beforehand we were in a we were a different band with a different name, but that will that will changed about a year ago and we decided to change name and change direction slightly with what kind of music we played as well.

1:49 Speaker 1: So The Painting as an entity then is a is a relatively new, uh project, which is interesting because you've already got you've already got a full album out, Like when when you became when the band became The Painting, did did you immediately start working on this album?

2:06 Speaker 2: I think at that point in time we didn't realize it was going to be, you know, an album. I think we had thoughts it might be maybe a couple of singles or you know, a kind of a shorter release. And by this time went on and we realized that we are very prolific when it comes to writing songs, and we we think it's mostly we find it easy, but we'll be just it just comes quite naturally to to just you know, to write to write music. And very quickly it became evident that we were you know, we were having had a large batch of songs and we decided, let's just record an album.

2:43 Speaker 1: It's cool when when it seems so natural and it and it kind of comes easy, right, because that's when you know you've really got something. I mean, it's you know, it's fine if you have to to really work at it, that's that's okay too. But when you when as a band, when when just the songwriting process, when these songs just come together quickly, it's that's how you know you're really onto something. I think when it's when it's just kind of natural and organic. And and part of why I was so curious about that too, is because it is a full album.

3:11 Speaker 1: Because we live in a time, as you know, and you referenced it too, you you know, you were talking about how you had to decide, you know, are you going to do a full album or are you going to do singles or an EP or whatever. So yeah, so to make the decision to do a full album, that's a big undertaking right out of the gate, but it sounds like it made a lot of sense given your situation with the band.

3:31 Speaker 2: Yeah, we're definitely very, very ambitious when it comes to things like, you know, like recording an album or you know, we don't do things by half measures. We always try to, you know, elevate things and aim for something quite ambitious. Yeah, yeah, and yeah, you're Redially, it's a very I think it's quite a rare thing to be able to be with another group of musicians and be able to come up with things very very quickly and you know, efficiently. I mean I've been in projects before where it would take it could take you months to even write one song, whereas we could write a song not easily.

4:10 Speaker 2: I mean, it does come with it does come with his you know, roadblocks, but we can write songs fairly quickly. So yeah, I think it's quite a rare thing, and you know, it's it's always a fun process. With the rest of the band members.

4:26 Speaker 1: I think I neglected to mention too. So you're the best player in the band. So I am myself a bass player. So there we go. Bass players unite absolutely. How many how many people are in the band? Is it a four piece? No, so.

4:42 Speaker 2: It's not became you know, kind of public knowledge. We wear six six piece, but band well down to we're now down to a five piece at this moment in time. Okay, Yeah, we recently had someone exit the band, and I won't go into it. It's it's not really you know, there's no point in then too as what is But yeah, we're yeah, we're five members and we're just continuing as normal. There's no you know, it's not gonna Empeters or anything in any way. We'll just keep going.

5:11 Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, Now the album Before the Storm is there, I'm sorry, before the Before the Rain rather is there? Oh, I know why I was singing storm. I was seen about the song Waited the Storm, which we're gonna play at the end of the segment. But yeah, but is there any kind of a theme, you know, lyrically, is there any kind of a theme of the album. It's it's really cohesive. It almost feels like there could be a theme, but maybe not. I'm not sure you tell us.

5:38 Speaker 2: This is this is the hard book because I'm probably the wrong person task based as in Keaton, who is the you know, the sega and let us as to the band. But I think we all collectively agreed like when we were you know, when we saw the lytics and we heard the lytics, so it all kind of points to can the new beginnings a lot of the time. Yeah, and I think it's quite relevant obviously with regards to us becoming a new project, you know, coming from the ashes of an old band basically, and I know Kieren wouldn't mind me talking about it as well.

6:12 Speaker 2: But obviously he went through a breakup during this time and then has now moved on to you know, a new relationship, and that's essentially what the song Scarlet's about, is a new relationship. So there's a lot of kind of new beginnings is probably I think a quite a big you know theme within the album, within the lyrics. I think you're right as pretty cohesive, and I think it was quite unintentional. I don't think it was it was set out to be like that, but yeah, I think when you you know, in retrospect, if you were, if I was to go back and listen to it, or you know, listen to the lyrics, I could definitely see that there's a lot of you know, and intertwined kind of themes that makes sense basically.

6:56 Speaker 1: Yeah, and it's very I find overall, it's got a vibe that is very you know, it's it's sort of dreamy and light in a sense, but also hopeful. Yeah, you know, it's it's gotta there's just a hopefulness to the to the album that I really like. And also I wanted to ask about the cover for Before the Rain. It's appropriate for a band, uh called the painting because it looks like a painting. But I'm I'm and it's a you know, I encourage people to look at it online. It's it's a really nice cover and it's very I think it's classy to the way the name of the band and the name of the album.

7:33 Speaker 1: It's it's in the upper left corner, you know, kind of kind of small, you know, big enough so you can see it. Obviously it's you don't have to hunt for it. But but but the way it's sort of unintrusive in terms of of the uh, the rest of the image of of what looks to be a painting. But I'm curious about the artwork. I mean, is that an actual painting that that's hanging somewhere and uh or is it specifically for the album or where does that come from?

7:57 Speaker 2: No? Actually, it's it's actually a fool graph really yeah, yeah, we I think it's maybe slightly been edited to to make it kind of look more like a painting that I'm not entirely sure, but it certainly comes from a photograph that we came across online and by a photographer, and we you know, we obviously spoke to the photographer and got permission to use it. But yeah, I understand where you're coming from. It it does look like a painting.

8:24 Speaker 1: Yeah, it really does. It really does. Absolutely. What was the so, what was the name of the band that that pre pre dates the painting.

8:34 Speaker 2: It was Arcade State.

8:36 Speaker 1: Arcade State. Yeah, that's a that's an interesting name. That's kind of cool. Two random ones and then and then so so how many how many members from that are in the painting.

8:47 Speaker 2: So at this moment and tell you just three? Three, So it would be myself Jordan the drummer and Kevan who is the guitarist and singer.

8:58 Speaker 1: Okay, okay, now that project and then start the painting. Was that was that difficult? Like was there a lot of I'm especially curious because I've been in situations like that. I don't play anymore. I used to play in bands at this point. At this point, I'm more focused on on broadcasting and stuff. But I've been in situations where it's like, in fact, I've been in that exact situation where one band, You've got one band, and you're thinking about maybe making a new project with some of the same people.

9:27 Speaker 1: So then it's like, well, what do we do we just take what we have and change direction, or or do we just say that's it, We're gonna do this whole new thing with this new name. How much of the old thing gets brought into the new thing and all the nuances of that. So I'm really curious about that.

9:45 Speaker 2: Yeah, So, to be honest, things then in particular, will I think, I think and they can. A plan for Keaton was to do this as almost like a kind of a soul project. We'd all it's into a big long story about it. We all didn't perhaps part way is quite. You know, it wasn't really amicable. It was quite. It wasn't the most you know, it just ended quite abruptly and will not fell out and hated each other or anything. It wasn't like that. It just wasn't. Yeah, it just looked like we were It was just over and that was the end of it.

10:23 Speaker 2: And then Keran announced that he wanted to start a new project. It would be The Painting. He was the only member at that point. I don't know if his plans were to you know, get other members or do everything on his own, but eventually, maybe after a week or so, he asked me to come back and play bass for him, and then Jordan, who is his brother, actually to play drums. And then eventually it just got to the point where we were just essentially a few members of Arcade State. And then we started looking for a keyboard player and another guitar player, and that's where Marta and John came into the equation.

11:01 Speaker 2: Yeah, and when when it comes to the style of music, we beforehand, we were more alternative rock. Maybe I wouldn't say we weren't heavy like kind of heavy music. You know, it was more a little bit more abrasive than what we are now, obviously, but we wanted to lean more into the kind of pop aspect of things. And I think all of us, like our one of our biggest influences is the war on drugs, and we wanted to kind of lean more into that as well, a bit more of a kind of I guess I'm trying to think about what you would define them as, almost kind of Americana sort of music.

11:44 Speaker 2: I guess, yeah, like and mixed up with a kind of pop element. So I think we're getting there. I think with the album Before the Rain, that's only just the first step in our revolution and sound. I think we were still writing now like for future releases, and I think with what we're writing is certainly evolving. So yeah, yeah, it's been a long It's been a very quick year, but also it feels like a very long year at the time.

12:14 Speaker 1: Yeah, well, you guys have been busy. You've been doing a lot. That's wonderful. I'm curious did any of the material from Arcade State make it into the painting or did you just start completely new?

12:23 Speaker 2: So we started completely fresh? Yeah, Yeah, we actually think even had a number of songs that we could have carried over, you know, to this project, but we just scraped them essentially. There might there might be a little bits here and there, like a guitar line, or like a few lines of like lyrics and things like that, but it's not you know, it's not like a base of a song that's came from the project. Everything is essentially new.

12:51 Speaker 1: Okay, Okay, what was that difficult? Because you know, song like some some songwriters will describe songs as being almost like their children and it's hard to you know, it's hard to leave them behind. Was that was that difficult at all, like leaving all of that behind or did it just seem like the natural thing to do or what was that like?

13:13 Speaker 2: It definitely felt like the natural thing to do. Good, But also we are quite cutthroat, well we we well just scrap things and and just move on. Obviously there'll be there'll be certain songs that you they will miss from the old from the old band. Yeah, none of it fits anymore. It really makes sense. So I mean, I guess you could argue we could make it fit, but I think we're quite content with the direction we're heading. But no, I think we might be a little bit of a kind of were entity there where we're quite cutthroat.

13:52 Speaker 2: We don't mind, We'll just move on and write something else.

13:55 Speaker 1: Oh that's good, that's that's excellent. Good for you. And then what's the lives situation like for you guys? Are you playing a lot lot of live shows or so?

14:06 Speaker 2: There was a period of time when we were writing the album we weren't really playing at all. It was more just focused on the writing aspect of things. But as the years came to a close, like coming to a close, we have played a few gigs recently. We played a headline show in Glasgow in October and then another headline show in Edinburgh in November. It was sorry, everything this whole year is just a blur. Yeah, but yeah, so and we also played a kind of mini festival like like a day festival, indoor festival in Aberdeen as well.

14:46 Speaker 2: It started December, so you know, we were quite busy coming towards the end of the year and then moving into next year, we've got quite a lot coming up. We've got a lot dates planned, We've got almost a small mini tour of the UK planned as well, and yeah, there's many other things in the works that hasn't you know, it's not been announced jet and it's not being confirmed yet, but there's a lot Next year is gonna be really really busy for us?

15:13 Speaker 1: Well, very good, good good. So in a moment, we're going to play at the end of our our conversation, we're going to play the track Waiting on the Storm. What should people know about this one? This is one because I had asked you, so we'll pull back the curtain a little bit. I did ask you, Yeah, what you wanted to what you wanted us to play at the end of the at the end of the segment, and I don't I mean, is this going to be the next single or is this just one that that that you're really proud of or what?

15:38 Speaker 1: What should we know about this song before we play it?

15:41 Speaker 2: Yeah? So this is an earlate single from the album and the final single from the album. And this song was actually written in I think maybe ten minutes. Wow, it was a yeah, yeah, it was a very very quick This is one of the occasions where we didn't overthink it. We just played what failed natural and this is what came out.

16:07 Speaker 1: Wow, excellent, excellent. So before we let you go and before we hit that song. What should people know about where to keep up with everything that you're doing as a band? Where should people Where's the best place to go online to keep up with the painting?

16:20 Speaker 2: Oh, I would say definitely on Instagram. Instagram's the way you know where we are probably most active. You can find as the painting official on Instagram, and yeah, that's definitely the best place to keep up to date with us.

16:37 Speaker 1: Outstanding outstanding, Well, Lewis, I really appreciate you joining us here today this morning or well, I don't know what time is it where you are, where you are, it's probably afternoon, right, Yeah, it's two theory tooth theory you.

16:48 Speaker 2: I'll forgive you you.

16:51 Speaker 1: It is indeed, it is inded. No, but I do very much appreciate you doing joining us. Like I said, I listened to the full album and we've become fast fans of the painting here, really really like what you're doing. So we'll definitely have to do this in the future, and certainly once you have some new music, we'll have you on or you know, or anything that you have coming up that's exciting. You know, we'd love to have you back and we will definitely do this again.

17:14 Speaker 2: Thank you so much for having me and moving to quietly come back on. It's been been a.

17:18 Speaker 1: Pleasure, wonderful, wonderful. All right, Lewis, thank you. We'll let you go. We're gonna hit this track and we will talk to you soon.

17:24 Speaker 2: Take care, no problem, Thank you any much.

17:26 Speaker 1: You got it, Bye bye, all right. That is Lewis Taylor. He is the bass player for the band The Painting. And here's another great track, and this is going to be the next single. You heard it here first, at least on American radio. You're hearing it for the first time, so I don't know if it's been played over there yet. But this is from the album Before the Rain, and the track is called Waiting on the Storm.