Welcome to In Conversation, a special interview column on the site where we sit down with artists and dive deep into everything music. This week, Max sat down with El Moono member Chris Cartwright over Zoom to discuss the band’s recent EP, joining the group, mental health and what’s next.
Max: Are there any specific influences that and the band draw from?
Chris: We all have a broad taste in music; Harry, Jamie and Zack are not narrowed down to one specific genre. They’re all very open minded, and that’s very beneficial in terms of how we want to sound. We all love grunge, Sound Garden, and progressive metal like Tool. All four of us are massive Deftones fans so it’s amazing to see that a band like gets mentioned (in reference to us). In terms of bringing to the table, I love Gojira, I’ve been listening to them for a very long time. Funnily enough, even Miseria (check this??), compared to Gojira at one point. Jamie and I are big Beach Boys fans, a Pet Sounds, a spookier sort of Pet Sounds vibe.
Max: I didn’t pick up on that when I listened to it but I do like that album quite a lot. I can see that on a sort of weird eerie level.
Chris: We just bring to the table what we like to listen to. Zack is the hardcore dude of the group, he loves it. Funnily enough I started in a hardcore band, we do share a lot of passion for different artists and different genres.
Max: With being an up and coming band, what’s it like seeing the reactions to the EP?
Chris: It’s insane man. It wasn’t an easy ride for all of us, we dug deep. Writing the EP and basing it around such a taboo subject in our society today, it’s getting better but it’s nowhere near where it should be, in terms of mental health. We all dug deep and we put our all into this, and to see the reactions has been surreal.
Max: How long has it been bubbling up for, how long have you been crafting the EP?
Chris: We shot the “Forced to Smile” video when COVID just kicking off. We’ve been sat on it quite a while, we mixed it with Sam our producer (from Small Pond) over Zoom. It wasn’t easy and I’m sure if we’d avoid doing it again. Somehow we did it. We’ve been sat on this for quite a lot, we managed to get signed to Lockjaw who’ve been incredible. We managed to get the vinyl done but that was six month backlogged ’cause of COVID. Thankfully we managed to get the five-rule, so it was four of us and Sam. We managed to get in there and track everything before lockdowns began.
We had the foundations of songs before, then we demoed through logic and back and forth. Then we hit the old chapel in Chichester and thankfully we managed to do it.
Max: It came out great. The production sound is so raw and energetic, it’s daunting at times. For a record that was mixed over the internet, it’s an impressive feat. Did it come out as you intended it come out sound-wise?
Chris: Yeah, all four of us are chuffed with it. I’m always proud with all the work I’m a part of. This is particularly special.
Max: You’ve got a performance coming up in a week and a day?
Chris: I had COVID a couple of weeks ago, so we had to postpone it and I was gutted. Sod’s law, 11th day in I was still testing positive and I was having some pretty shitty symptoms.
Max: This crushing atmospheric sound would work so well in intimate environment, I’m sure you’ve been practicing it in a room and know how it sounds. Are you excited for playing these songs live? Have you played any of these songs live?
Chris: We have, yeah.
Max: Did you play some songs last year at a couple of shows?
Chris: We haven’t played it as a collective which we’re planning to do at the launch show. Which is going to be how it should be, if that makes sense. We’re really looking forward to it.
Max: Do you have any fun future tour prospects going?
Chris: We’ve got stuff in the pipeline at the moment, there were talks of some dates in early March but we didn’t hear anything back unfortunately. We’ve got a few bits lined up. Covid is so unpredictable and we’ve all got full time jobs, it’s so difficult to nail down a map. At the drop of a hat we’d do a long tour if we could, it’s just working with what we have. We’ll get there.
Max: Are there any bands you’d like to tour with?
Chris: Mastadon, Deftones, would be bucket list stuff. I’d be like a little fan boy with Abe. We played Death Goals recently, heading towards the end of last year. They’re really really cool. Mother Vulture, they’re really sick, hell of a live band. Their energy is phenomenal, they’re worth checking out. Aspirational……Tool, that’s like a long term one.
Max: That’s one if they tour here, and if you know. I’d also pin you guys with someone like Phoxjaw.
Chris: Since I’ve been with El Moono we’ve played one show with Phoxjaw. Kieran shot both “Forced Smile” and “Requiem” videos, they’re really nice guys. They’re a wicked band.
Max: Given you’ve been sitting on Temple Corrupted, is there anything you’re working on now as a unit? You’re writing new music now, looking towards a full length?
Chris: Album, man. We’ve got loads of ideas, but we’re going to dig deep soon.
Max: Are you getting into the writing process of it?
Chris: It’s still quite early, all three of them have got ideas. We’ve got loads and loads of demos, that we just go through. And go from there.
Max: Any sort of new directions you’re going in with the new material?
Chris: There’s one that Jamie’s done that reminds of Chilli Peppers, I’m a massive Chilli Peppers fans, we’re big Primus fans. It’s going to be even more experimental than Temple, which is only exicting. There’s a lot of different vibes there for sure, Loathe is there for sure, we’re big fans of Loathe.
Max: How long have you been with El Moono?
Chris: We all went to Bim in Brighton, I was in my old band My High and we toured with El Moono. After I graduated I decided to leave and come back to Dorset, about six months in, Alfie who is an amazing drummer decided he wanted to leave. The guys asked me if I wanted to join and it was an offer I couldn’t refuse. It was around 2019, so I’ve been with them for two years. We did the single “Thanks For Nothing” before this but this is our first collective effort. It’s the first EP I’ve ever done, the boys did Tides before I joined. I was a bit worried, as Temple is quite sonically different to Tides. I was worried the old OG fans would be like “hang on here“, but they’ve just embraced it.
Max: Is it nice to be able to play shows again?
Chris: Our first show back, “after COVID“, it was so weird. It was so weird walking on stage, I was shaking like a leaf. So weird seeing people in front of me again it was crazy. It’s a nice feeling to be back and playing again. It took a while to blow away the cobwebs in a live setting for me personally. For me, drums is my outlet, so have have that ripped away was difficult. It’s a way of dealing with my aggression and emotions in a positive way. To not do that for two years was nuts.
Max: Did you not get to practice at all during the pandemic?
Chris: Unfortunately not, I don’t have room in my house. I’m in Dorset, where there’s not any studios based locally. I’m working on it and I’ve got an acoustic kit but I made my neighbour cry, she came round sobbing. So I sold that and bought an electric kit but it didn’t work. Just writing and rehearsing with the boys is my time, and performing obviously. Hopefully one day I’ll have an actual setup working.
Max: It must be nice now to be able to sit in a room with your mates and practice?
Chris: The silver lining is that all four of us have had COVID, so in a way we’ve all built immunity to it. The worst is out the way fingers crossed.
Max: How badly did you get it?
Chris: I had really bad chest pains, I actually had to go to A&E. It was pretty peak.
Max: I’ve had it twice now myself, both times on Christmas day, each respective year. Feels like at this point we have to live with and try and be safe with it so we can do fun music stuff at shows.
Chris: You say that, Temple is around mental health. It’s not going to be more relevant, COVID has exacerbated people’s mental health. Suicides are stupidly high, I even saw Zack post a story that suicides are in the 200s and that Omnicron are in the 50s. That’s not in the news though, COVID is pushing people over the edge. If we can at least make people think “right, I’m not on my own and need to talk to someone. Whether that’s family, friends or a professional.” then it’s just so important.
Many thanks to Chris for sitting down for a chat with us, you can find a review of El Moono’s EP Temple Corrupted here.