4 December 2020
THE MOODS are a nine-piece collective of producers, poets and musicians from the Northwest of England. They’re from Manchester, the famous rock city of Happy Mondays, The Stone Roses, and Oasis but with different vibes and different beats. They serve an effervescent cocktail of drum & bass, reggae, hip-hop, and EDM and sing, rap, spit and sneer with raw passion about important issues like war, famine, love, tolerance, equality, life and death.
An outspoken, challenging, and united gang for head, heart and soul. The British Public Enemy. Before sitting down and having a chat with the band’s captain Dave O’Rourke
let’s swing and shake to their brilliant 2020 single about that narcissistic clown in the
White House, yes, about #DonaldDumped…
Hello Dave…
When and how came THE MOODS alive
and what’s the status now?
“The band as we are now was started in 2014. After many years of writing music,
five of us got together and created our own studio – Black Triangle – in Manchester.
We then invited 2 rappers, a violin player and trumpet player, so we could bring a
great live show to the stage. We plan to release our 3rd album, Somebody’s Hero
Nobody’s Soldier in February/March of 2021.”
Which of your songs would you play to introduce
the band to people who never heard about you?
“P.O.P. (Profit Over People). It has great energy, and is one of our mission statements.”
It’s already 3 years since album MISSING PEACE?
Is peace still missing today?
“America, Britain and it’s NATO allies might not be dropping as many bombs as in 2017,
but we certainly seem to still be needing more peace in the world. The main themes
of the album are…
Live free or die by the rules.
Equality is a mission that you choose
Find Joy
Make life a good choice.”
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What’s a THE MOODS gig like?
“It’s a tsunami of heads arms and legs.”
What did you feel the moment the fall of Trump was announced?
“Great to see him rejected by so many people, but a massive number of people endorsed him, which shows the divisions amongst the people, that will need a lot of mental healing to take place.”
‘THE RISE AND FALL OF AMERICA’ single was/is spot-on. Tell us more about it?
“It seems as though the leaders of the free world have lost the plot a little over
the last few decades, culminating in Trump. Britain sometimes feels like the 51st
state of the USA. So we just wanted to comment on how we see the mess we seem
to have created while chasing the American Dream.”
How is life in Manchester after 4 years of Brexit?
“Manchester is defo a melting pot of people, not just from Europe but all the world,
we obviously have to deal with the fallout of the central London government but Mancunians always have and always will be friendly to all comers.”
If you were asked to rewrite and put new music to the British Royal Anthem
‘God Save The Queen’, no restrictions whatsoever, what would be the outcome,
in sound and vision?
“It would probably be God take the queen and both get the fuck outta here. Take the lyrics
in Rise and Fall of America… “dukes and presidents in bed with her majesty. You have probably heard about our dukes, especially the current Duke of York, bring forth the guillotine.”
A lot of musicians came up with a cover of another artist’s song during
these bizarre times. Which one would you pick to cover?
“We are not really a fan of cover songs, but we do have a mash-up set where we do
moods lyrics over some old dance tunes, for instance, the lyrics to Joy, over Robert Miles track Children, it’s a pretty sick after show set.”
What was the best album you heard in 2020?
“RTJ4 by Run The Jewels. I’ve been a fan for a while,
great album, just listen.”
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The video clip that impressed your eyes?
“The 3-year-old girl getting pulled from the rubble after 68 hours trapped in the recent
Turkish earthquake, with only a few scratches, it was a great bit of film for always having hope.”
Prick of the year (easy one I guess) and hero-ine of the year?
“Prick: Boris Johnson for his handling of the covid virus.
Hero: Marcus Rashford, Manchester United footballer who
shamed the government into feeding over a million underprivileged kids.”
Which song will be on your stereo on 31st December at midnight?
“‘Le Freak’ by Chic. The end of this year is a year we should all freak out.”
Turkey or fish and chips on Xmas day?
“Got to be turkey with all trimmings.”
Name three things you really want to see happen in 2021?
“A universal income for all people,
A return to live gigs,
a return to work for small businesses.”
Thank you Dave for this interview
May the road rise with The Moods.
Have a tasty Xmas and a music-charged 2021
We started with music and we’ll end with music.
Let us all be as strong as possible in these diffult times…