If you ain’t aware, the Squire of Gothos is not a dandyish fopp but a pair of South Yorkshire bass aficionados, whose self-destructive way of enjoying demselves is akin to how their music sounds. Despite being disproportionately matched in physical terms, the pair have an equally large love of getting in a tangle as well as making fast rave music with basslines big, bad and heavy enough to take yer cheeks off.
Described by one internet nerd as “meaner than Arnold Schwarzenegger on LSD“, the pair’s train of thought appears to follow the a nihilistic notion - what’s the point in doing anything by halves when you can drain a bag of strong shit and buy another three while you’re at it. Check the sound of Triple Drop, Pass Dem Poppaz and I Only Wanna Be With Bass. This is hyperactive stooped music which I could be getting too old for.
They describe demselves on their MySpace thusly… - “Free parties in graveyards. Happy hardcore on downers. Electro House’s Evil brother. Speed Garage nights with more violence. Dubstep with less nerds and harder drugs. Hitting a woman copper in the face with a cro-bar.” Lovely.
We met the Squires through throwing the Rough Disko parties in Sheffield. They turned up with their crew and got as wrecked as we did. Subsequently they became regulars at our soiree, and played a mean set to 60 or so fuck heads in November 2008. We drank our own body weight in Stella, Tich donned a Danger Mouse costume and I had to be carried home. We saw them again at Bang Face earlier in the year and the vibe had a similar sordid glow. It was amazing and resulted in me wearing a German army helmet some time around breakfast on the Sunday morning. Messy times fer sure.
The pair have upped the ante during 2009 and are looking at even bigger tings for 2010 - a US trip, more dates in Europe and a tonne of releases coming our way. If you’re looking for reference points, perhaps check the likes of Raffertie, Kanji Kinetic, A1 Bassline - all fellow bass mongers the Squires have shared bills and parties with. This interview was conducted with Al just the other week and here is the whole thing verbatim - It seemed too ridiculous to chop up too much…
Q. How did you two idiots meet?
A. “Al is from Gleadless, Tich is Chesterfield Murdah Squad. We met up at the 2005 Olympic sized bong smoking contest. Tich asked Al if he wanted to play in band that “sounded like negative approach” - We’ve made music together ever since.”
Q. When did you start putting on raves in Sheff? You seem to have come out of nowhere or out of a scene that I wasn’t aware of when I was in the city…
A. “We roll with a bunch of jungle obsessed youngers who’ve been putting on parties for a few years in mostly illegal settings. So much sketchy stuff has been seen and done, it’s untrue. The guys have a bit of crazy rep as parties normally end up proper nutty. I have personally taken a diazepam for epileptic dogs and during the same session watched a good friend take a diazepam suppository. Hold tight Dog Pillz, Plattapussy and Dubplatehoven!”
Q. Music seems to be spilling out of you two at the minute - Kid 606, Kanji Kinetic based business - what have you got on the horizon…
“It’s good to do stuff for people you respect and we’ve got some stuff coming out on various labels. I think our horizon is on some serious Kevin and Perry go Large type shit!”
Q. Anyone you’d cite as influences? Who’s wetting your musical whistle at the minute?
“Tich would probably say 2 Unlimited (no joke). I’d reckon our biggest influence is probably weed but music wise right now i’d have to say DJ Pantha, old jungle, Youngsta or any mid nineties, ignorant east coast gangsta rap. Anything on Hyperdub, Hessle Audio, Gully Gang but mostly old shit to be honest!
Q. Electronic producers get all wet over Sheffield - Warp, birthplace of ‘bleep’, Human League and all that - Do you guys hold any truck with dis vibe? Or is it something you don’t even think about?
“Of course we’ve been buzzing offa Warp for a long time now. I have a few of the old bleepy shits on record while my copy of Sweet Exorcist’s CCEP has the price sticker from the Warp shop still on it! I was talking to some guy at work the other day and we got onto music and it turned out he loves a bit of his hardcore electronic styles. He was amazed that I knew about the Cabs and Sheffield’s pedigree. It’s nice to know we have a cool musical heratige here, the type that can bring generations together. I wonder what the old heads are making of the bassline explosion haha!”
Q. Bangface, Holland and the US - the gigs are getting bigger - is it all through MySpace/Blogs that all this hype is building? And are you excited about Bang Face? I would be…
“Basically we are two scruffy, slack mash heads. Why people want to book us to play their parties I don’t know but while the going’s good, it’s on! The internet has got us where we are today with people checking MySpace and giving us love on blogs/mixes. We have never really much put effort into getting a set which is pretty mad. Bang Face is going to be really real, the lineup for next year is shit hot. We’ve been to both weekenders so far so it’s a privilege to be doing it!”
Q. I checked out the Youtube footage of the Squire - and read a few bits and bobs about the episode - one website said the Squire “is essentially a naughty child who has overstepped his bounds” - almost too true?
A. “Very true indeed, a naughty child who has raided his nan’s medicine cabinet haha!”
Check their thoughts on the Myspace or blog - find them hither and thither
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