South-East band Basement League are the pop-punkers fresh off the blocks with debut single ‘Juniper’. New Boots spoke to vocalist Cameron Percival for the story…
Who is in the band, and where are you all based?
The band is all based in and around the South of England. The lineup consists of: myself on vocals, Izaak [rhythm guitar and vocals], James [bass], Nathan [drums], and new blood Ryan on lead guitar.
How/why/what/when did you guys get together?
So James and Nathan used to be in a band called Priests to Pilots, but their vocalist had to move back to Hong Kong – and that’s when they found Izaak and myself via JoinMyBand! We played as Priests to Pilots for about a year but then our lead guitarist left to do a doctorate in clinical psychology. At that time we figured we were due a revamp, and thus Basement League was born.
How would you describe your sound? Who are your main influences?
We’ve got a big emphasis on big sounds. Huge guitar riffs, powerful vocals, big vocal arrangements. We probably sit somewhere between pop-punk and alt-rock. Our biggest influences are probably bands like Neck Deep, Boston Manor, Trophy Eyes and Trash Boat.
‘Juniper’
Tell us everything about this single release.
So “Juniper” is our debut single. We’ve been working on it for the last year now, and we’ve finally released it. We really wanted to hit the ground running with our releases, and ‘Juniper’ was probably our biggest, most in-your-face demo that we were working on and we think it best encapsulates the Basement League sound. We’ve got our second single ‘Youth of Today’ coming out very soon, and we’re heading back to studio as soon as all this crazy virus stuff is over!
What are your live shows like?
High energy. If you come to one of our shows expect to get sweaty. We’re all about movement, and getting the stresses of the week out in the crowd. It’s cathartic, loud and a lot of fun.
Are you part of the scene in Northamptonshire, playing with like-minded bands?
We’re mostly based in London, but I’m from Northampton. We actually played are first show there last summer when we played The Black Prince, which is just the most incredible venue! Wishing Wolf are a band from Kettering we’ve played with in the past, and those guys are sick!
What has been your favourite band moment of the past year?
Probably releasing ‘Juniper’. We’d worked so hard to bring it and record it to where it is now, and we’re incredible proud of it and how it’s been received. It’s our little baby.
What was the last album you bought/streamed?
That’s a toughie because we all listen to loads of different music. We unanimously held a lot of love for the new Four Year Strong record though [Brain Pain].
The Future…
What is your burning desire for the band to do in the future?
We want to hit 2020 as hard as possible. If Coronavirus wasn’t a thing then we were hoping to get on a few festival bills. So I guess now the plan is to demo as much as we can, get in the studio and release our debut EP and take it as far as we can!
Juniper is out now on the usual digital platforms
