Haddowfest Special – Steve Heron

In the fourth instalment of our Haddowfest Specials, we catch up with Edinburgh’s next-gen troubadour Steve Heron and talk Jason & Kylie, taps aff & hairy bellys, and the importance of meaningful lyrics. What a combination!!!

Steve Heron, as a man, is a slightly bearded bloke in his late twenties who loves a rant at a modern world filled with a obsession for celebrity, the reliance on modern technology for simple day-to-day tasks and the relevance of Miley Cyrus and her ever present tongue. Steve Heron as a musician, and thus as a band collective, is somewhat of a modern day poet who has a knack for writing cracking melodies with lyrics filled with flair, satire and sometimes a good old dollop of “fuck you” for good measure.

Although Steve has a knack for writing a catchy pop melody, it is his relentless drive in remaining true to himself in his song writing, that makes him stand out in the current scene. His lyrical content is formed from how he sees the world around him. Although that might not be apparent from the first listen of a Steve Heron record; delve a little deeper and what you’ll find is an endearing quality that adds a dollop of substance to the fun and quirky melodies found in the likes of recent singles “Picturesque” and “Let’s Pretend We Are Friends”. In an age where dance records are king, and when Rihanna’s walk is somehow the lyrical focus of a hit record; it’s lyricists like Steve Heron that ensure good pop music doesn’t have to mean sacrificing lyrical substance.

It’s this quality which has attracted national radio coverage from the likes of Vic Galloway, Jim Gellatly and many other national and international radio stations in recent months, as well as multiple sell out shows in his native Edinburgh and also playing to packed audiences in venues around Scotland. Following plaudits from both his peers and from bloggers for his previous single and album releases, it feels that Steve Heron has found his niche in where he is comfortable in making his music for the masses.

The Buzz Stop. Hello Steve! How on earth are you?

Steve Heron: How am I on earth??? That’s a good question! Oh, I misheard you! *laughs* I’m hanging in there, gathering grey hairs at a rate of knots but powering through as always!

TBS. Your last single Picturesque was released to critical and commercial acclaim, and your current single “Let’s Pretend We Are Friends” has garnered a similar reaction. Do you feel that you are starting to make big leaps forward in the Scottish music scene off the back of these two releases?

SH: I think so. I think the quality of the last two singles has taken people a bit by surprise to be honest. I knew the songs were good enough to be acknowledged along side most of our peers but we were hovering just under most people’s radars as just another Edinburgh Indie band. It wasn’t until we started putting ‘Picturesque’ about for people to hear, there now there seems to be a bit more interest in what we’re doing that wasn’t there before.

TBS. Both singles were promoted solely by the band and the band retained a controlling interest over the recording processes. How vital is it to remain an independent artist and how difficult is it to be independent in an age where social media means that any average Joe can promote their music? How do you stand out from the crowd?

SH: For us it’s more of a case of focusing on what’s going on locally. We all keep an eye on what’s going on in Edinburgh and try to figure out what’s missing, or what the music scene could do with more of and try out those things to see how well they work for us. We’ve put on a couple of video launches rather than doing a gig to promote a single on its own and we’ve had some success with that. People weren’t sure what the idea was all about but it got a lot of people interested in the band so it can’t be too bad. Things like that have helped us stand out in a very crowded Edinburgh scene at the moment. We’re also very fond of trying to collaborate with as many fellow local musicians as we can, and that’s why it’s important for us to remain as independent as possible. It means we can throw ideas out there and see what works without fear of a bollocking from a label!

TBS. You started out as a solo artist but you have more recently turned to making music with a full band. Following many line-up changes the band has become established over the past year or so. Do you now feel a sense of solidarity within the band and how do you feel the band has developed as a live unit now you have an established line-up?

SH: I’ve never been that comfortable standing up on a stage by myself and I always feel that while my songs are fully formed songs, they miss all the other parts when I just stand alone with my guitar and voice. Getting the band together was a no brainer for me. The big challenge has been getting the right people who get it to be involved. At the moment though the line up has a great chemistry so it feels like a traditional band, rather than it being ‘Steve + Backing Band’ type deal. I spoke at length with everyone in the band before they joined and talked about the way its set up and made sure they were cool with it – and I think that honesty has paid off because there are no surprises once we get into it. Everyone knows what’s going from the off and means we can get in about the music with no worries. It’s also a good way to judge how well a personality will fit in with the other guys very early on but it’s worked out well for the line up as it is now and I think that shows when you see us live.

TBS. How does the song writing process work? Is it a case of bringing a song to the band or is it very much a collaborative process?

SH: I’ll most likely sit and spend ages writing a song alone, working out the structure of the thing along with all the chords and lyrics so it’s a coherent piece of music, then I’ll take it to the band and we’ll work on the arrangement together. I’ll have ideas in mind for bass, drums and guitar while I’m writing but I’ll leave it to the other guys to come up with their own parts. Even a year or so on though, songs are still being worked and re-worked on so we’re always working on things to try and make them better.

TBS. Your lyrics are often described as ‘honest’ by music critics, bloggers and the like. How important is it that you retain a sense of identity when you are writing a piece of music? Is it your main focus when sitting down to write a song?

SH: The lyrics are the heart of every song I write. I always think that for better or worse people can listen to the music we play as a band and say; “Oh that song sounds like/reminds me of” – and comment on what influences they can hear in the songs. But I always want people to listen to the lyrics and be able to say “That’s a Steve Heron lyric”. There is a lot of people stuck in this groove of trying so hard to put across how rock n roll they are, writing about generic things like getting hammered every weekend and all that sort of thing and I always feel like it’s just fantasy. I can’t relate to it, and it damages how much I like a band. I feel like I’ve heard that 100 times before so it’s a bit of a turn off for me as a listener. Honest lyrics are my main focus because I know that as a band we can come up with interesting music between us but the lyrics are all on me. (I feel) you’ve got to make what you’re saying relatable and interesting because that will go a long way in setting you apart from everyone else.

Also, I want women to know how wonderful, shy and sensitive I am so they’ll speak to me….. *laughs*

TBS. This is the third year in a row that you have played HaddowFest, while you will be opening Day 2 of the festival on The Liquid Rooms Stage along with Edinburgh Songstress Carrie Mac. You must feel like you are becoming a bit of a HaddowFest veteran? What is it about the festival that is such a big draw for Scottish artists?

SH: I know, we’re in with the furniture now! I should clarify though that we are on after Carrie and will sadly not be playing along side her. Maybe next year we can get a Kylie & Jason style duet especially for HaddowFest, who knows? I think the fact that it’s a festival based around local acts is a big draw for local bands. It’s a good chance to see who else is out there too and if bands like We Were Promised Jetpacks and Dry the River are involved, it means that the attention they help to bring to the event will hopefully help other bands like us pick up a few more fans. I also think that there’s not enough live music events like HaddowFest so people want it to do well.

TBS. You are a very sociable bunch! Who are you most looking forward to seeing at the festival?

SH: I’ll probably start by spending an hour or so warming up in the Liquid Room smoking area before Carrie Mac goes on, as to avoid a torn hammy from all the running about that’s likely to follow. But I’ll be in the house for Carrie early on but once we’ve finished playing (1:50pm @ Liquid Room folks!) I’ll be hot-footing it to see Universal Thee then after that I’ll be down the front, “Taps Aff”, hairy belly oot for Ded Rabbit, Echo Arcadia, The 10:04s, Last Battle, Caravan Club, AMWWF, OKSC & WWPJ amongst others. And hopefully we’ll end up catching some random delights along the way too.

TBS. You mentioned that you are working on new songs at the moment. Are there any new releases in the pipeline?

SH: We’ve been working on quite a few new songs with an eye on starting recording an album early next year. So it’s unlikely that we’ll be releasing any singles until 2014 now but we’re working on a few video projects at the moment though. The video for ‘Let’s Pretend We Are Friends’ should be out in the next month or so. RJAH Films are working on it at the moment and I know Ryan will do his usual top job on it and we’re also working on a short film with Ryan at the moment for an unreleased song called ‘Saltwater’ that we’ve been working on for a good while now. That potentially could be out before the end of the year or failing that, in January. I’ll be putting my chat about it on the band Facebook so I’d just keep an eye on there for any more info on future releases but at the moment we’re pretty much going to be focusing on new songs so that next year we’ll have something special to present to you.