Interview: The Proper Ornaments

London-based The Proper Ornaments have a true knack for creating reclined and beautiful pop songs. The good news is that they’ve been busy working on new material since the success of their last album Foxhole which arrived earlier in the year. We met for a chat ahead of their show at The Crofters Rights on October 30.

How does it feel to be fully immersed in The Proper Ornaments at the moment?

It feels good. We didn’t have any plans to make a record and Max had some new songs and played them to me. We made some demos and they sounded really good so on the spur of the moment we decided to suddenly start recording. We made a whole new record really quickly and got really into it. We’re back in The Proper Ornaments mode and we’ve been playing shows where the atmosphere is very strong. It’s very positive.

On the flip-side is it nice touring last album ‘Foxhole’ now it’s had a year to bed in?

Yes it is. We play quite a few new songs off the record. Some of the slower ones are harder to play live but it seemed like the album went down well. Particularly in certain territories like France. I don’t know why it struck a chord there but we ended up doing a load of busy shows there. I guess certain songs work for certain people. It has a melancholy feel that record and the French seem to go for it. Playing ‘Foxhole’ has been a good experience.

You guys are always busy in other projects, is there more freedom with this band?

I think there is more freedom because there’s less pressure. In the other bands we play in maybe there’s more pressure from labels and things that go on and how you’re recording it. For us because we’ve been doing music for a long time together it’s all just been about having fun and making things sound good. We do it because we enjoy doing it and I think that enthusiasm rubs off on the songs and recording I guess. The recordings are always very quickly done in my home studio so it’s very relaxed and organic.

 That does reflect in the listen, it feels unhinged, does that come through in the new material?

Very much so. There’s more guitars on this new one but it’s the same very relaxed listen. There’s some more upbeat songs on there like our earlier stuff. It’s very relaxed though and spur of the moment. We don’t work in a studio spending money and worrying about the clock it makes it more relaxed. Sometimes we’ll do a song in an hour or two and then we’ll go to the pub and have a drink. There’s not that studio pressure where you’re spending five grand. It works with our personalities and temperament because if you’re not feeling it you don’t have to do it.

What was your vision for the band when you started out and has that changed?

We met years ago in London in a weird situation at a clothing shop I worked at. We became friends and were making music for a while before we did any proper recordings. We just hung out and made late night demoes. We amassed a lot of songs so when it comes to recording now we’ve always got material new and old to choose from. The direction of the band has always been the same because we’ve always been into the same stuff. It’s not like we’ve changed with current trends. When we first started releasing records psychedelia was becoming popular but we haven’t changed at all. We’ve always loved sixties music and The Beatles. The direction is always there but we just choose a slightly different path on each record and then it takes shape.

You recently got back from the US, how did the shows over there go?

They went really well. The first show was a nightmare because my amp blew up and everything went wrong. We only went for a few shows but each one got better and more people came. By the end in New York it was really good. The response was very positive. There’s a US fanbase there which is good to know because we’ve never been before as this band. It was actually nice to go for a short tour, making it brief made it nice. It was a positive experience.

I guess that offers a layer of confidence going into these UK dates?

Yeah definitely. We’ve been playing a few shows and we’ve got a new bass player which is going well. It’s been a great atmosphere at every show. We don’t over practice things so when we play it makes it more fun. We’re not labouring over things for hours and that makes the live show more spontaneous I guess. People seem to like that I think.

We’re always excited to have you back playing in Bristol, are you looking forward to it?

Definitely yeah. I’m actually from the West Country. I’m from Devon and I used to go to Bristol a lot with my Dad because he works in art circles and used to put things on at The Arnolfini. So I used to go up to Bristol all the time as a kid and have a connection with the city and know quite a few people there. It’s a very good place and we’re definitely looking forward to coming back in that sense.

The Proper Ornaments play The Crofters Rights October 30th.

8pm, £8 advance, £10 on the door.

Tickets are available through: www.headfirstbristol.co.uk