The FINAL Bloodstock Interview – Courtesans

Written by Linzi A
Sunday, 10 September 2017 05:00

I was eager to have a chat with the lovely ladies from Courtesans, after reading so much about them in these very pages. The one thing I was sure of was that there would be no sugar coated bullshit in this interview after being told they just say it how it is – and that’s exactly how things went down.

Singer Sinead La Bella and guitarist Saffire Sanchez – one half of these modern day ‘tank girls’ are not afraid to lay their cards out on the table for everyone to see and challenge the world on democracy and politics. Along with their passion and love for music, they have created some very interesting and powerful tracks which emphasize their beliefs.

We stated by getting their reaction to their debut performance at Bloodstock, where they mesmerized the Sophie Stage on the Sunday afternoon…

Sinead: We are buzzing. We are in a very happy place right now. It’s a dream come true for any band , growing up in the grunge world, playing Bloodstock is just like the ultimate, so yea definitely a dream come true.

Saffire: we have spent our entire live working towards playing a major festival like this, it’s a momentous occasion for us. All the hard work and effort has finally payed off, playing the Sophie tent was just a dream come true for us, and with the Sophie Foundation meaning so much to so many people here today, for bands to be able to stand on there and not just play but to show their support, it meant a lot to us.

Does the Sophie Foundation hold a place in your hearts?

Sinead: As someone who was bullied as a child, it really bring it home for me, when the attack happened to Sophie and her partner it’s something i will always remember as we are quite local to where it happened so it was something which was quite talked about near us, I was a mosher and I was bullied for it, you know it could have been anyone hat night that looked differently, it could have been anyone of us. It’s such a tragic story, but it is something that has always been close to home. The Foundation stands for diversity and equality; they [work to] stamp out prejudice, and that’s something we believe in as a band and as people, so to play the Sophie tent is a massive honour for us.

The work they do going into schools teaching children of a young age, it’s something that needs to be done so they are aware of the goings on in the world, what they do is just amazing.

Saffire: It doesn’t matter what music you listen to, it doesn’t matter how you dress, you [should be] allowed to be who you are and express your individuality, you shouldn’t be afraid to be who you are. People who try to outcast others for the way they dress or the types of music they listen to, it’s those people I feel sorry for. Everyone is unique in their own way and no one should feel bullied or afraid to be or express who they are. We fully support the work the Foundation is doing teaching others and making others understand about subcultures and creating respect and understanding for this.

Getting back to the subject of music: your song ‘Monkey Logic’ seems very political and very angry… is this how you wanted the song to come across?

Sinead: Democracy as it is right now is pretty fucked. And this isn’t something we are afraid to talk about, because we’re not happy with how the current world is; it’s pretty sad as everything seems to be going quite backwards.

I think if everyone just falls and sits back and relaxes… it’s fine… just let everything just fall backwards: but if you do this then nothing will ever change. So, if you don’t believe in what’s happening, speak up and stand up: don’t just sit back and relax and let it happen. You need to make a change otherwise change won’t happen, and change has happened… if you look back to the 1920s when women don’t have any rights: then it all changed because people stood up for what they believed in and they made the change happen. So if there is something political that you don’t believe in, don’t just sit back and watch it happen: you have a voice, use it!

‘Monkey Logic’ is going to be on our new album: it’s a new song we wrote, and we wrote it in about ten minutes, because it came out just like word vomit… it’s just one of those I needed to get out what we felt was right and this is how we feel, and that’s obviously what you hear in the song.

You played Amplified Festival recently: it was wee bit wetter than it’s been here at Bloodstock, wasn’t it?

Sinead: You know what, Amplified was wicked. Don’t get me wrong, there were a lot of bad things written about it across social media because of the weather. Anywhere can get bad weather: the organisers can’t control if it’s going to rain.

Saffire: Exactly, everywhere gets teething problems – and it was their first year.

Sinead: Before we got there we heard this, that and the other – but when we got there the vibe was brilliant; the troopers that stuck out for the weekend – fair play to them. Yeah, it was really bad weather- but ultimately it was a rock festival: you get worse at places like Download, which people now expect year after year. It is important to remember that they are promoting rock, they are promoting the music that you believe in: don’t turn your back and write them off. Keep looking forward and I hope people do support it as the years go on… we certainly will!

You will be supporting the fabulous Wednesday 13 in October: what have you got lined up for this?

Sinead: We are currently in the process of writing our new album, so yea we will certainly be pushing more new tracks out there. ‘Plague’ is a new song we wrote that will be on the new album. We can’t wait to get out there with Wednesday 13: they are a band I used to listen to when I was a teenager.

Saffire: They are really cool people too.

You released a lyric video back in June for the track ‘John Doe’, which tantalises the senses with deep, thought-provoking lyrics. Where do these deep lyrical ideas come from?

Saffire: The monotony of day to day life: working long hours and what do you have to show for it if you have no money? You make enough money to get to work, get home from work and pay the bills.

Sinead: I live in London now. I have a normal job, like the rest of you. As much as I’d love to be playing music full time, I work a normal job like the next person. I get up go to work, I get on the Tube I get there, I do your job and I get back. It’s the same thing day in day out: its non-stop. ‘John Doe’ is talking about just that: it’s something we feel all the time, and it’s something we want to talk about: we feel it may be something other people may want to talk about and understand where we are coming from.

Has music always been a way of life for you guys?

Sinead: Yeah. With music, it’s in your blood; you’re born with it, you feel it from a young age, you’re influenced from music from such an early age: you feel things through music and it helps you get along in life. Music has always been a part of who I am.

If you could describe your music to someone who had never seen your band before, how would you describe it?

Sinead:I would say we are like a rainbow cake. You have all different colours all mixed up, and you never know how it’s going to turn out: you may love it, or you might hate it. It’s a little bit like Marmite. Just don’t be scared to have a little taste anyway.

www.facebook.com/thecourtesans/