Treacherous Dogs are an English indie rock band, formed in London in late 2012, consisting of Lewis Parker (lead vocals, lead/rhythm guitar), Dean Meekings (bass guitar, backing vocals) & Liam Sinnott (drums, backing vocals).

We met up with the guys at the X-Factor Live Tour at the 02 Arena in London, Lewis and Liam were getting excited as it was rumoured that Steve Brookstein and Matt Cardle were going to perform a duet of the classic 80's pop hit 'Solid' by Ashford and Simpson, Dean was not looking impressed and had donned his headphones to listen to 'Nevermind' by Nirvana. Whilst we were waiting for Steve and Matt to take to the stage, we asked them some questions, here's how it rolled.....

 

Please introduce the band and your music in one sentence....

We are an Indie Rock trio from London who play scuzzy pop infused with dance beats and foot stomping grooves.

 

You’re called Treacherous dogs how did you come about choosing this name?

The name comes from the film Kill Bill. We are huge fans of Quentin Tarrantino and this film in particular has a scene where the character Pai Mei is fatally poisoned by Darryl Hannah’s character. His last words to her were “Elle, you treacherous dog”. The line resonated with us as our previous project ‘The Jude’ had just recently disbanded after a successful run so it was kind of a nod to the death of our previous venture.

 

How has social media aided your music?

Massively. It has allowed us to distribute our music and grow our fan base extremely fast. The downside of this though is that people are bombarded with so much these days that it’s easy for stuff to become diluted, which means that you have to be increasingly more inventive with your updates and news. 

 

What’s the reason for the split with your previous band ‘The Jude’ and what have you all learned from that experience?

The Jude essentially reached a a point which it couldn’t progress to where we wanted it to be so we decided to call it a day. I had the urge to become a lead singer (having never sung before) and I had a couple of songs bubbling away in the background so I decided that it was the perfect opportunity to start something completely new with a different agenda. Even though there is still pressure to succeed we now have more fun.

 

‘Unless I’m Mistaken’ is a good rock song, what is the story behind it?

It’s about the break up of a relationship. I wrote some of it as the relationship was coming to an end and things were becoming strained. I finished the song a few months after it ended so it’s kind of a time capsule for what I was going through at the time, which is a continuing theme running through most of our songs.

 

In your opinion, what is the BEST album/record ever released?

The White Album without a doubt. We love the eclectic nature of the songs, the way it was recorded and the fact that they all hated each other’s guts whilst they were doing it but still made it sound amazing. I think Paul McCartney played drums on a couple of the songs because Ringo had left the band!

 

Who are your musical influences?

The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys, New Order, Nirvana, The Manics, The Beatles & Muse immediately come to mind but we pick up influence from pretty much anything we hear these days.                          

 

Lewis Parker has his own recording studio, is this to aid other bands too?

It was initially just set up in the flat to record some cheap demos. It’s good that laptops and DAW’s are so inexpensive these days as finances can really hold a band back from showcasing their music to a larger audience.

 

Being an unsigned band how hard is it to get noticed?

It’s extremely difficult to get noticed if you just plod along and expect fans and record labels to come to you. Labels don’t have budgets to develop artists these days so the key is to develop a fresh sound and a decent self-generated fanbase. Our approach is to strike whilst the iron is hot, release material that our fans will buy into and make the live shows exciting enough that punters are happy to follow us from show to show.

 

First gig you ever went to?

Manic Street Preachers – MEN Arena 2002

 

Favourite Joke?

A man walking down the road notices a gentleman with a big stick on his shoulder. The man asks, “Are you a Pole Vaulter?” The other mans turns and says, “No I’m a German, and how did you know my name was Walter?”

 

If Oscar Wilde and Mark Twain had a quote war battle, who would win? and with what quote?

Has to be Mark Twain with this awesome line. “Go to Heaven for the climate, Hell for the company.”

 

If you were on a desert island with a tape deck, which three cassette albums would you wish to have with you?

The White Album – The Beatles (Obvs), Is This It – The Strokes, Nevermid - Nirvana

 

If you could describe your music in the form of a fictional character, who would it be?

I think it has to be Ren from ‘The Ren & Stimpy. Show’. It’s chaotic, explosive, and ridiculous but can be sweet at times.

 

What are your plans for 2014?

We have quite a busy summer planned so far with our UK gig and festival dates. We’ll be in Manchester, Bristol, Shropshire and Oxford as well as playing some really cool venues in London. I think we will then start planning to record and release our first ‘official’ EP towards the back end of the year with a lead song and video that will make it on to 6 Music again.

 

 

Word was spreading like wildfire that 'Little Mix' were about to perform a cover version of 'The Lion Sleeps Tonight' by late 70's powerhouse 'Tight Fit', Dean had even removed his headphones in anticipation of seeing young lithe women in tight fitting lycra, prior to the performance, we unleashed some quick fire questions on the guys....

 

Coffee or Tea?  Tea

Coke or Pepsi?  Coke

Drum machine or the real deal?  Real Deal

Mac or PC?  Mac

Fry up or Sunday roast?  Sunday Roast

Lemmy (Motorhead) or Ozzy (Black Sabbath)?  Ozzy

CD or Vinyl?  CD

Car or Motorbike?  Car

Ultimate Warrior or Hulk Hogan?  Ultimate Warrior (RIP)

Acoustic or electric?  Electric

Shower or Bath?  Shower

Tattoos or Piercings?  Tattoos

Robert de Niro or Al Pacino?  Robert De Nero (Pre Meet The Fockers)

God or Google?  Google provides answers at least....

 

There you have it folks, some interesting information about Treacherous Dogs, if you can spare just a few more minutes, please check out their social media pages. they're listed below for your convenience and they really would appreciate your company.

 

SOCIAL MEDIA

Website

Soundcloud

Twitter

Facebook

 

Musicmuso would like to thank the guys for sparing their time to chat to us, we wish them all the very best in the future and look forward to hearing about future releases, live dates and anything else they deem newsworthy.

 

Interview by Mark Wincott