INTRODUCING LEEDS BASED ALT ROCK BAND LOST IN OLYMPUS….
Lost in Olympus are a Leeds based Alt Rock band consisting of 5 members;
Andy Twigg (vocals) | Rob Kewley (guitar, backing vocals) | Mark “Sparks” Bray (guitar) | Danny Pollard (drums) | Jonny Ridout (bass).
They formed in late 2011 and in-between sipping Baileys and listening to Savage Garden, they play some cool as f*ck music to anyone that will listen.
We kidnapped all of them at one of their band meeting, tied them up, drove them to a forest and posed some questions to them at gunpoint, here's what they admitted to us…..
Introduce yourself and your music in one sentence…. “Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen, we are Lost in Olympus an Alternative Rock band from Leeds, England !!! “
Last time you used public transport and where did you go?
Today ….The peasant wagon to work & back ….Please someone sign the band –Sparks
I can’t remember exactly when it was but I went to York on the train a while ago - Danny
Hahahahahaha public transport. - Jonny
Last time you felt proud?
Yesterday when we were announced as a confirmed act at the Summer jam Festival for 2014. –Sparks
Listening back to the completed EP for the first time – Rob
When I saw the video for our single “Free”. It summed up all the hard work we put into the EP in the studio- Danny
I wrote lyrics for the first time ever for a new LIO song today! Well… I wrote lyrics for the intro then my brain went into meltdown… I’m still counting it as an achievement though, SO PROUD! - Jonny
What classic song do you wish you recorded and why?
Hey Joe by Jimi Hendrix, because it’s an epic classic song, nothing more, nothing less. – Sparks
Chuck Berry - Johnny B. Goode because it’s the song that inspired me to learn guitar - Andy
Decadence Dance – Extreme – Sums up Nuno when he reached the peak of his guitar mastery! – Rob
We Will Rock You- Queen- One of the most iconic drum beats ever and an amazing song - Danny
Black Dog by Led Zeppelin because it was my favourite song when I was learning to play guitar as a kid and believe it still to this day this song and Led Zeppelin influence and inspire the music I write. - Jonny
Last movie you saw?
In to the wild – Epic movie and Eddie Vedder does the sound track which is brilliant. - Sparks
Wolf of Wall Street – what a film! Jonah Hill played his part so well and De Caprio is just a boss. – Andy
Dark Storm – horrendous. I’ll never get those 2 hours back. – Rob
Wolf of Wall Street- easily one of the best films of the 2014 - Danny
Honestly can’t remember! I don’t think I have the attention span to watch movies. - Jonny
Last book you read?
Haynes Volvo V40 workshop manual 1996–2004 – Sparks
Noami Nokiv – blood of tyrants – Andy
Book? Work related I’m afraid…. ‘Applying Behavioural Economics’… sigh. - Rob
The Remaining- D.J. Molles - Danny
Live sound reinforcement by Hunter Stark… Getting my nerd on. - Jonny
What did you dream about last night?
I can’t remember the last time I had a dream haha :D - Andy
I dreamt my dog and I was walking in a field when she spotted a herd of deer and she began to chase them across a busy road and all I could say was “ Fenton !!!! Fenton!!!! Oh Jesus Christ Fenton!!!!” which is bizarre because my dog is called Megan …. – Sparks
I never remember what I dream. Ever. – Rob
The Russians invading the UK… You heard it here first, I’m predicting the future! - Danny
Escaping from prison… (I was watching prison break before bed…) -Jonny
Last time you cried?
I personally cried at band practice on Sunday cos Andy thought an egg was a vegetable haha – Sparks
That’s a lie! He made that up :/ at least I think he did I can’t be 100%. Last time I cried was when free Willy was on tv, that damn whale gets me every time – Andy
Similar to Sparks… at practice we were rehearsing a gig ready performance… so Andy is really giving it some… doesn’t see the set-list on the floor… right as his opening line for a song starts we see the papers fly into the air and Andy on the floor. Brilliant – Rob
When I watched Andre about a year ago - Danny
I’m going to leave this question out before I make this interview get all depressing! - Jonny
Biggest musical influence?
The biggest musical influence for us can be broken down into albums but this really does depend on which member of LIO you ask. This is a very trimmed list:
Blackbird - Alter Bridge (Andy & Sparks)
Folklore and Superstition - Black Stone Cherry (Sparks, Rob, Danny and Andy)
Ground Dweller - Hands Like Houses (Andy)
Avenged sevenfold – City of evil (Andy)
Piece Of Mind - Iron Maiden (Sparks)
Pornograffitti - Extreme (Rob)
Extreme Behaviour - Hinder (Danny)
American Idiot - Green Day (Danny)
Spiral Shadow - Kylesa (Jonny)
The Action Is Go - Fu Manchu (Jonny)
Adrenaline - Deftones (Jonny)
Best gig you ever played?
360 Club in Leeds for our Single Launch, the vibe was electric and we packed the venue out with Friends, family and fans. We had a bet on that if we sold all the tickets (which we did) our drummer Danny would wear a dress for the gig ….. photo’s can be found on our facebook page – Sparks
Honestly, it has to be the first gig we ever played. Purely because it was the first gig I had played with a band since I was 15 and to be back, with such an awesome bunch of lads having such a great time on stage was an indescribable thrill - Jonny
Best band/artist of 2013?
Alterbridge / Black Stone Cherry – Sparks
Sleeping with sirens – Andy
Heavens Basement – Rob
Black Stone Cherry - Danny
Kylesa/ The bronx - Jonny
Biggest act you have ever played with (supported or on the same bill as)?
The biggest act I have gigged with is probably Jon Gomm from Leeds – Sparks.
The last album/record you bought?
Alterbridge – Fortress Album – Sparks
Naughty Boy – Hotel Cabana – Andy
The 2nd Law – Muse – Rob
It’s really sad but I was craving some old school so I bought Chocolate Star Fish and the Hotdog Flavoured Water by Limp Bizkit. In fact it’s not sad it’s a brilliant album!!! - Danny
Gentleman’s Dub Club – FourtyFour - Jonny
Last time you had a fight?
I’m a lover not a fighter - Sparks
Ha I was in high school, I’m normally waaay too relaxed for fighting – Andy
I try not to abuse this pretty face – Rob
I tried to punch a bee in the face when we were having our photo shoot the other day - Danny
Oh lord. Let’s not get into that. I’m all about peace and love. - Jonny
Tell me one of your guilty pleasures?
I like drinking Baileys – Sparks
Dime bar cake, I think I’d eat myself to death if I was locked in a room full of Dime Bar cake – Andy
I like Savage Garden - Danny
I often find myself jamming out to SOS by ABBA - Jonny
Best advice you ever received and who was it from?
“Take your PRS down to the basement and give it a ding, then you will play it without a care in the world, I make these guitars to be played not to be hung on a wall – Paul Reed Smith” –Sparks
“play the best song in the world or I’ll eat your soul” – a shiny demon – Andy
Try and get signed up with MAS records – Rob
“Listen, smile, agree, and then do whatever the fuck you were gonna do anyway”- Robert Downey Jr - Danny
Not sure really… I tend to make life up as comes along and learn from my own mistakes. My mum often tells me to stop spending all my money on toys though. She’s probably right… - Jonny
Largest amount spent in a single purchase? (excluding houses)
£6995 on the Volvo V40 Band Wagon –Sparks
£1100 on 2 acoustic guitars – Andy
Excluding the car; £3000 on my Mesa Dual Rectifier. BEEEEF. – Rob
Excluding the car; £800 on my PDP X7 drum kit - Danny
£2800 – The pimp mobile aka Cliopatra aka Renault clio - Jonny
We explained to the guys that we hadn't really kidnapped them, it's just that we find it hard to get bands to talk to us and this strong-arm tactic was the only way of achieving results. They relaxed a little after we removed their hoods and handcuffs, enough so to rattle through our quick fire questions….
Coffee or Tea?
Tea – Sparks, Rob, Jonny (two sugars no milk, ta)
Coffee - Andy, Danny
Coke or Pepsi?
Coke –Sparks, Rob, Danny
Lilt – Andy
Fantoke mate. (coke and fanta) – Jonny
Mac or PC?
PC –Sparks, Rob, Danny
Mac – Andy, Jonny
Holidays/Vacations – Beach or Snow?
Beach - Rob
A beach with snow - Sparks
Snow – Andy
Beach- Danny Tempted to say beach but I bloody love skiing…
Hmm… Can I not have both? – Jonny
Carnivore or Vegetarian?
Carnivore –Sparks, Andy, Rob, Danny, Jonny
CD or Vinyl?
CD -Sparks, Andy, Rob, Danny.
I would rather have vinyl over CD but Im not sure I would use either. IF I had Dopethrone by Electric Wizard on vinyl I would listen to it all day though- Jonny
Car or Motorbike?
I drive a car but would love a motor bike – Both –Sparks, Danny.
Motorbike – Andy.
Car – Rob.
Always loved motorbikes but Im going to say Car – Jonny
Cat or Dog?
Dog every time - Sparks
Both – Andy
Cat – Rob
Dog- Danny
Dog for sure! - Jonny
Acoustic or Electric?
Electric –Sparks, Rob, Danny
Acoustic – Andy
BASS! – Jonny
Angelina or Jennifer?
Holly Willoughby –Sparks
Kate beckinsale – Andy
Jennifer – Rob
Angelina- Danny
Jennifer aniston? Yeah definitely jennifer aniston. Or jennifer lopez or Jennifer lawrence. They would all get it. – Jonny
Fry Up (bacon/sausage/mushrooms/egg/toast etc) or Cereal?
Fry up – Hold the mushrooms –Sparks
Fry up – Andy, Rob
Bacon and Sausage sandwich- Danny
Bang it all in son. - Jonny
So there you have it folks, everything you could possibly want to know about the band and more! You've come a long way, please spend a few more minutes exploring the band's social media pages to learn even more about these wonderful people….
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Musicmuso would like to thank the band for taking part in our interview, for legal reasons we would like to add that after the interrogation had ended, each member was untied and delivered safely back to their original meeting place to continue their practise session.
Interview by Steve Muscutt