Dan Hillier
Composed of Guy Jones (Keys, Bass, Strings, Guitar, Vocals), Joe Caple (Production, Percussion, Synths) and Beth Cannon (Vocals), LibraLibra are a being of flux and energy. Wholeheartedly dedicated to creating musical art that’s driven, passionate, meaningful – and above all else – unshackled by neither conventional norms nor cliched, LibraLibra’s craft epitomizes the inherent freedom of queer joy. As those who have encountered the act previously can attest to, to even attempt to pinpoint the band’s sound is a fools errand. It’s dramatic, fierce, emotional and zealously individual.
But what makes LibraLibra so special and vital? What distances themselves in a city and scene globally renowned for producing some of the most dynamic acts in the UK? Well, such answers lie within their ideology, approach, production, background and disregard for protocol. Ardently DIY, the group’s foundations lie in the realm of post-rock, with the band first meeting whilst each member performed in different respective post-rock projects. Then, as each member moved to Brighton, LibraLibra took shape. Implementing their understanding of dramatics, flow and tension as a core of their sound, the trio took these critical lessons of post-rock theory and applied them to a new sound, one driven by sardonic punk sensibilities and electronic pules.
As found within their first standalone singles ‘Animali’, ‘Tongues’, ‘Loverboy’ and their 2020 EP Hail Mary, the band’s sound is well read in composed musical theory whilst remaining totally unchained. Elements of punk, electronic, artpop all things inspired melt and amalgamate in a way that’s not forcibly fused, yet chemically fluid. In these songs, one can easily found motifs reminiscent of acts such as CLT DRP and AK/DK as much as can find elements of Fugazi and even Bjork. The band’s sound is overwhelmingly broad yet cohesive in a perfect display of freed postmodernism.
Yet, it’s LibraLibra’s upcoming EP CUT that see’s them at their most inspired. As presented in the singles ‘Mothers’ Ruin’ and ‘SADFACE’, the EP channels the entire spectrum of noise found within Brighton, is bounded by a greater emphasis on spacious dynamics and bridges the gap between modern and classical understandings of harmony. Truly, it’s where the band deliver their message with even further artful flair. Addressing trauma, tragedy, sexism through playful poetry bolstered by synths, jazz chords and strings, the EP is a wonderful and broad record full of more substance than most bands would produce in their entire careers. Impossible in scope yet presented cohesively, it’s a testament to the band’s creativity, ethos and freedom.
With CUT releasing March 23rd, we sat down with the band to talk Brighton, their approach and more.
Beth: “Emotionally intense, alternative noise pop. We love the drama.”
Beth: “I have always wanted to escape. Music / artists that have helped me to do this have always been my biggest inspirations. When you can listen to a piece of music and be transported from all the chaos in your day to day reality & create an alternate universe, nothing beats that. That and the songs that tug at your heart strings, that summon the cathartic release and you can’t help but cry. I love to feel.”
Joe: “I’d say something I’ve really wanted to bring across in some of the new songs is the combining of club/dance music and live music and how these two worlds have shaped my tastes musically in such different ways. And now want to live in a place as a project where they both work together harmoniously.”
Guy: “To follow on from what Joe says, I wanted to incorporate a combination of classical forms and harmony with the most modern approaches to harmony. The kind of microtonal or tonally ambiguous harmony that has developed in both the world of electronic and symphonic music in recent decades. Taking the best of tradition and combining it with the modern sounds. I feel that ‘Mother’s Ruin’ is our best attempt at merging these very different and complex ideas into a cohesive whole.”
Beth: “We all moved to Brighton at points in our lives where we needed to escape our lives from before. We had been misunderstood in our previous lives and Brighton felt like the crux for all 3 of us individually finding ourselves over the years. We’ve had many ups and downs, but Brighton has always offered a home and a safe space for us to each explore our own identities, to grow and learn and become the artists we are today.”
“For me personally before coming to Brighton I was always told I could never be in a band, that that sort of world would only accept me if I dated a boy in a band and was a ‘girlfriend’. I certainly could never consider being in the band. Brighton helped me find my voice and break through the hideous old stereotypes and sexism that had been holding me back for so long. And I think the oppression from before certainly comes out in my lyrics. There is a sense of rage & aggression to always being told to be a good little girl and sit down and shut up.”
Beth: “For us Brighton’s whole essence and ethos is what makes it so special, it is the birthplace to so many incredible artists that are different, unique and have something to say. I think the reason for this being so many of us came to Brighton to find ourselves and find that sense of freedom and acceptance that we had been missing elsewhere. It is a home for people that didn’t have a home before maybe, not sure if that makes sense. But I was running away until I came to Brighton, then I felt like my life truly began.”
Beth: “We have always been drawn to creating songs in this style, we all came originally from different post-rock bands, before forming LibraLibra, so have always had a desire for grandiose builds, explosions and that sense of drama. We wanted to escape that initially as we were told it wasn’t very cool and that we should be concentrating on writing 3 minute rock bangers, we were young, dumb and impressionable and since that have grown out of the need to impress people, and to people please. We are who we are and we write what we like and we create what we create.”
Beth: “I am very excited for this release, as I feel this really is the beginning for us, cementing our sound & is the start of us coming into our own, owning our shit and being who we really want to be. I finally feel like I have started being able to really articulate what I want to say and how to say it. With Guy and Joe there is no judgement, we just write. We do everything together, the whole process. From laying the bare bones in the writing stage, to Joe taking hold of the reigns and recording, mixing and producing it. Guy spent lockdown learning the cello, and this has really added another string to our bow (excuse the pun) but we have really wanted to explore string sections and include them in our writing. This EP really encompasses a more worldly and expressive tone.”
“The recording process is always extremely fun, I love watching a song unfold and develop! This time round we initially tracked bass and drums and mapped out the songs at Shaken Oak Farm, it was some of the hottest days of the year and felt very magical. We have finished everything off our own studio, and we were lucky enough to have Miles Splisbury from The Physics House Band add saxophone to the majority of the EP.”
Beth: “We pretty much do everything ourselves! As musicians now more than ever you are never just a musician, you have to do so much more and we really do do that. We collaborate when we can and when we’ve saved up enough money to do so, we would love to be able to spend more money and make high budget videos and promo but we have to carefully delegate our wages amongst bills, rent and our modest band fund! Luckily we have Joe who is an incredible sound engineer & producer and who can really take the reigns in recording, mixing and producing. Miles featured on the EP as a trade off with Joe, for some mixing work. We love a good trade.”
Beth: “Firstly thank you! That is really lovely of you to say. But it’s odd, I honestly don’t know if we ever enter the writing process with that on our minds. I think what may help us achieve a sense of freedom maybe is our eclectic styles and tastes, and our individual journeys as musicians. We have each come from a different musical background and for some reason it works when we come together to write. Again we don’t enter the writing space saying let’s write a specific style of song. One usually has some chords or the start of a song that came to us alone that we present to each-other and everything takes flight from there. We don’t set boundaries on ourselves, we write what we need to write in the moment. Sound certainly triggers my subconscious and through sound, words form to tell a story from within. I tend not to fuck with my inner consciousness and let what needs to flow, flow.”
Beth: “Funnily enough no. I know that will shock some people, I was actually told during my school years I was going to be an opera singer. I had classical singing lessons, was in all the school choirs, and sang arias a lot. But at home I would be listening to more modern music and would spend evenings locked in my bedroom listening to anything different I could get my hands on. It all started with Enya! When I was really young I begged my mum and dad for the Enya album for my birthday – that was my first ever album on CD I think. Then I would steal my dad’s and mum’s CDs from downstairs – albums like Pet Shop Boys, New Order, Tears For Fears. I used to love belting Seal and Cher, and Madonna’s Ray of Light album changed my whole inner being! And when I was 14, I found Radiohead, and honestly Thom Yorke’s vocals changed my whole perspective.”
“As I grew older and found incredible artists like Bjork and Kate Bush, I felt their importance straight away. They truly had a holy impact on the world of music and I will never be on the same level as them! I appreciate them so much, but I didn’t get to experience and appreciate their greatness until a little later on!”
Beth: “We want people to feel, experience & be transported.”