interview: tap tap

"He thought you were really tanned.
No.
He must have remembered you as being white.
I wasn’t white.
No, I know.
Such a Pete thing to do.
Classic."


Today my subject matter is Tap Tap, solo project of Thomas Sanders who fronts the aforementioned pirates. I spent a few minutes downstairs in The Lexington after Eugene McGuinness had finished cooing and Pete from Pete and the Pirates getting all confused.


J: When I interviewed you before, Tap Tap was not really that important to you. Don’t even talk about it. What’s changed?

I wouldn’t say it was ever unimportant to me, On a personal level it’s always been just as important to me as any music I do. It’s just songs that I write. I don’t write for Tap Tap or Pete and the Pirates. I wouldn’t say that one is more important than the other.

All that’s changed is that I had this second album finished. The label said you really needed to do some gigs. I naturally wouldn’t have done the gigs, but they kinda, didn’t put pressure on me, but said it would be really great if you did.

I thought that if I’m gonna do them, I might as well do it properly and put a band together.

J: Does it include any members of Pete and the Pirates?

T: No no it’s noone from Pete and the Pirates. It’s different people. It’s like friends really and different bands that I’ve kinda borrowed people from.

J: Any of them worth mentioning?

T: Oh yeah, all of them are worth mentioning. There’s a guy called Koichi on the guitar, he’s from Screaming Tea Party. There’s a guy who’s going to be doing some singing with me called Matthew. He used to be in a band called Morning Runner. Guy playing the drums called Boomer. He’s in a band called Barringtone and another band called Plugs.

J: Oh yeah, I know him. (in my head, I’m thinking best fucking drummer in town)

T: and there’s a guy called Brett , playing the bass for me. He’s from Australia. He’s not in any well-known bands.

J: A lot of your songs tend to be about women. Is that fair? Mainly?
T: Umm. Yes. Mainly. Yeah, definitely. And then the one’s that aren’t , I suppose they still are really in a way. You can always relate it back to relationships and love, girls and yeah, girls and boys.

J: How many girls is it about?
T: Oh. I don’t know. That’s an interesting question.
More than one. But not like in a sleazy way.

J: One thing I remember being interesting from our previous chat, was how you said you were starting to enjoy all the travelling that starting to happen? Are you still enjoying the touring lifestyle?

T: Yeah. We go on tour tomorrow actually. Yeah I do still enjoy it.

J: Does it have an effect on your relationships? Has it meant you haven’t really been able to have one?

T: Yeah well no. I don’t know actually. I suppose it’s hard to know the answer to that question cos I haven’t really tried. I haven’t tried to have a relationship with a girl whilst being in a band. Not that I haven’t tried, it’s just never happened. I imagine, I know from speaking to my friends and bandmates who have to go through not seeing their girlfriends for a few months or however long it is. It’s horrible, really horrible.

J: Listening to On My Way, one girl stands out. Tell me about the gypsy girl. Who’s she?

T: Yeah that was about a specific person. She doesn’t even know I’ve written the song about her. I don’t think I should… So I don’t actually feel that comfortable talking about it. She was the girl that I once went out with for quite a long time.

J: So it’s not about current times?
T: It’s about someone I went out with like 2 years ago.

J: So you’re quite comfortable about writing things in the past?
What influences the way that you write songs?

T: I’ve never really thought about. Yeah, Maybe my writing is quite retrospective. I’ve never thought about that.

J: Do you ever write about things you think will happen?
T: I guess most of it’s in the past. What I write about. I’d have to sit down and read all my lyrics to answer that question. I’ve never actually thought about that. Very good question.

J: What’s your favourite lyrical moment off the new stuff?
T: I quite like the words to El Gusano. Spanish title. They are quite playful. I like them as well cos I wrote them without thinking. They just suddenly all came out, consecutively.

J: I often find your music epitomises the feeling of the morning after. Do you find that alcohol influences a lot of your writing?

T: Yeah I do actually. A lot of the events that the songs talk about tend to come from being drunk. But then, most people are drunk these days aren’t they?

J: Yeah we’ve always been drunk. I read the other day that in the 17th century the average person consumed two pints of gin a week.

T. The doctor would have a real go at you for that.

(Gin was in fact cheaper than milk)

J: What’s your favourite drink?
T: The only drinks I actually drink are beer, cider and wine.

J: No spirits?
T: No I don’t drink spirits, unless it’s in a bloody mary. I like a bloody mary, but that really is the only spirits I drink. It just all gets a bit too much, dangerous. I think spirits are really quite dangerous, get into all kinds of trouble.

J: Any kind of beer or cider?

T: No, no. I drink Strongbow. Any nice lager really. I like Guinness.

J: Favourite musical moment off new album?

T: I think it’s a song called Dirty Sky. I wasn’t even sure if I was going to put it on. Then I recorded it and it turned out so pretty, I couldn’t not put it on.

J: Is it all recorded it home?

T: No no none of it was recorded at home. Except a couple of vocals. It was all done between two or three different studios in East London, little kind of home studios. The guy who produced it, engineered it has a few studios he works in. It was done in a very piecemeal way. The drums and bass were recorded in one place and then the rest of it was recorded all over the place really. I liked doing it like that.

And finally
J:Who would you rather kill Superman or Spiderman?
T: Rather kill?
T: Spiderman.
J:Why?
T: I think he’s generally speaking. Capable of less.
J: Because he’s capable of less?
T: I think Superman is really super.

That makes it 1-1 after Django Django decided to kill Superman.
First superhero with five kills dies. Pony Pony Run Run are next in the hotseat.

Superhero bashing aside, On My Way is perfect music for this time of year when you need warming up. Dirty orange leaves everywhere as you shiver and shuffle your way through the park on the way to the pub. The pub in question should be The Stag's Head. Next Thursday in Dalston. Free entry. Enjoy Dirty Sky below and I'll see you down the front. Codeine is another beauty worth mentioning, but I'm not going to talk about it. Just pick up a copy.

Tap Tap - Dirty Sky



///listen to Queen of Hearts on hypem
///gig review
///visit the stolen shop

I secretly long for the day when Tom discovers gin, different liquors mean different hangovers. Hangovers act as the fuel for his creative output I'd say.