Meet The Displacements

• 14th Aug 2007

You have to do certain things to earn such titles as 'buzz band', 'one to watch' and a 'breaking act'. These guys have it all at the moment. it seems the music press is eating out of their hands. So what is it about The Displacements that warrants such attention?

Is it the list of influences that spans The Specials to Stevie Wonder and The Beatles to Bruce Springsteen to The Blockheads?

We caught up with the band to find out exactly what makes them tick…we find a series of quickfire question usually works best.

1. Favourite colour? Burgundy
2. One thing you would change about Britain? Traffic wardens, bang bang!
3. Favourite mode of transport? Schwils red 4×4; failing that, the D-Day dolphin!
4. What is music? An artistic form of auditory communication incorporating instrumental or vocal tones in a structured and continuous manner. Or The Beatles.
5. Favourite thing about Great Britain? The cheeky English postcards you get in seaside towns!
6. Do you have a celebrity story? I once met Nick from the Displacements, he wasn’t what I expected, and I saw Morrissey on the telly once.
7. Define sexy? Scarlet Johansson
8. Where did the band name come from? Bored in a science lesson. It was written on the board. I like to think that it means the new pushing out the old, molecular fusion and all that malarkey.
9. What do you think about your local music scene? Leicester’s music scene has been criminally overlooked; there are some top bands around these parts!
10. Who has been the best/worst band you’ve played with? Kasabian, we played onstage with em and Jamie T was top as well. There have been too many lacklustre beat combos along the way, but the screaming Tree Monkeys probably tip it, fackin awful!!
11. If you could play with any band who would it be? The Clash / The Beatles.
12. If you could work with anyone who would it be? Joe Strummer of the Clash, or John Lennon of the Beatles, Schwils pretty good ‘n all.
13. What’s the best thing about being in a band? Touring around the country and meeting people. Finding people in strange clubs far, far away singing along to your tunes is the best.
14. What’s the worst thing about being in a band? The drive to the next gig!
15. What’s the strangest thing you’ve seen on tour, thus far? Two guys dressed as a horse dancing through our whole set, in the last song they jumped onstage and tried to eat me, but I gave them a swift kick to the gut and did a runner! I’ve had trouble sleeping since!
16. What bands are you into at the minute? We’ve been listening to a lot of New Order, Mew, Django Reinhardt. We’ve just got back from Summer Sundae Festival and we saw a band called El Pussycat who were possibly the best thing ever!
17. Who is your favourite robot? Gotta be Optimus Prime!
18. What equipment (amps/guitars/pedals etc.) do you use/recommend? Anythin’ that you can get your hands on that just about works! Saying that, I love my Marshall combo, and Schwill’s Fender Deluxe with his pedals has a tone second to none!
19. What do you believe in? Music, hearts and souls and the love of a beautiful woman.