ONE ON ONE: AN INTERVIEW WITH MOUTH CULTURE!

I’M DANNI BAKER AND THIS IS HIVE MAGAZINE. I’M HERE TODAY AT SLAM DUNK FESTIVAL WITH MOUTH CULTURE HOW ARE WE DOING TODAY GUYS?

Todd: Very good thank you. How are you Mason?

Mason: Very well thank you

Todd: Jack?

Jack: I’m brilliant, thank you!

PERFECT! SO HOW HAS TODAY BEEN FIRSTLY? HOW HAS YOUR DAY BEEN SO FAR?

Todd: Bit surreal if i’m honest. It was, I dunno, we were expecting a warm welcome. Leeds is like our home away from home, but it kind of blew all my expectations anyway.

Mason: Yeah, I think doing an earlier slot and having the crowd that we had was just mental

Jack: Yeah like Todd said, everytime we come back to Leeds it seems to just get more feisty and better! We’ve got so many friends here playing and in the crowd, in the audience and everything and it’s so nice to see so many familiar faces and stuff.

I THINK IT’S THE SAME WITH ALL OF YOUR SHOWS NOW, THEY ARE JUST GETTING BIGGER AND ROWDIER AND IT IS SO MUCH FUN TO SEE.

Jack: It’s a crazy feeling when you’ve worked on something for so long and dreamt of something, and sometimes when you’re in it, it’s actually hard to see it, believe it or not. We know the shows have got bigger but there’s been points where you’re like- just pinch me moments. That was one today, there was a point during the set I was like “Yo that was mental!”. It’s been really really cool the whole weekend. Yesterday at south it went down really well, the rain held off too thank god. We had a well good day didn’t we? We were all kipping hard in the van on the way home. That’s when you know it’s been a good show!

I MANAGED TO CATCH YOUR SET YESTERDAY AT SOUTH YESTERDAY WHICH WAS ALSO YOUR SLAM DUNK DEBUT. I COULD SEE YOU ALL HAVING A LITTLE MOMENT ON STAGE TAKING IT ALL IN. IT WAS REALLY COOL TO SEE THAT.

Todd: I think sometimes we forget to do that. Recently we have played quite a lot of big shows like when we went out with You Me At Six and stuff. I guess when you are concentrating so much on performing and sort of wanting to have the best show you can, you don’t really take it in a lot.

Jack: It’s still not normal for us is it? Like we’re still panicking about little things and like Todd said, when we walked out yesterday I don’t think it was any secret that we were all gassed and all very much thinking “Yo”. It had been bigged up for such a long time, we had a lot of hype around Slam Dunk and before we’d even performed we’d gained fans just from the exposure which is really cool and a huge benefit of playing festivals and having the opportunity to do stuff like this. So to then have a show where you’re seeing all the people there after and we get to go and meet new fans and stuff it’s really really cool.

YOU GUYS HAVE HAD SUCH A BUSY YEAR ALREADY TOO, YOU’VE BEEN PRETTY MUCH NON STOP TOURING SINCE THE BACK END OF LAST YEAR. YOU HAD KIDS IN GLASS HOUSES, THEN YOU ME AT SIX EUROPE AND UK AND ALL OF IT. HAVE YOU HAD A FAVOURITE TOUR OR FAVOURITE TOURING MOMENT?

Todd: Different tours have different things that you love about them

Jack: I’d say the last headline tour

Todd: Yeah, but then one for me is the Teenage Wrist one that we did

Jack: That was like the switch

Todd: What do you mean? Oh when we’d gone from like-

Jack: That was when it all switched, it all like, it all went-

Todd: It genuinely was like “Oh we’re supporting someone we love”, do you know what I mean? Like, you try and do like stepping stones, not stepping stones, but you know what I mean, in a way you work your way through and stuff

Jack: It wasn’t only that it was members of that band were then, like Marshall bless him, I remember like during their set they were like “Make some noise for Mouth Culture, they’re probably gonna be bigger than us one day” and Teenage Wrist are like one of our favourite bands. When you hear that, and hear them saying that, it’s like “What?!”. Then you get to go on tour with You Me At Six and we thought it was just gonna be like one UK date at first, then it turned into a European tour, and then the UK tour. It’s just pinch me moments. I genuinely feel like when we have a bit of downtime, if we ever get any, I don’t want it at this point ‘cause it all just keeps happening and we’re enjoying it, but I think it will hit us when we’re like “Yo”.

Todd: It’s when you get to quit your job innit?

Jack: Yeah, hopefully we get to quit our jobs soon, that’s the next manifestation of Mouth Culture. We’re manifesting a lot!

Todd: I haven’t got a job!

Jack: Todd’s actually jobless at the minute if anyone has any vacancies and wants to hire Todd!

Todd: I don’t want it

Jack: He doesn’t- yeah. He’s ours!

Todd: Next question anyway!

THE YOU ME AT SIX TOUR WAS YOUR FIRST TIME AROUND EUROPE WASN’T IT? OR WAS IT?

Mason: It was our second time. So we went out with Casey like early 2023, we just did two shows so it wasn’t an extensive tour of Europe.

Jack: It gave us a good taste for it

Mason: I think the Europe tour with You Me (At Six) was our first proper long tour where we had to kind of figure out how to do that, and figure out, even though we lived with each other for five years, living with each other in like, a campervan for that long and figuring that out as well yeah!

IS THERE A BIG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE UK AND THE EUROPE CROWDS AT ALL FOR YOU GUYS, AND WITH HOW YOUR SETS ARE BEING RECEIVED ON THAT TOUR?

All: Yeah

Todd: (to Jack) What’s your take?

Jack: There’s nothing like British culture! I will say that. European culture is different! There’s elements that are the same and there’s elements of each that are better. Europeans, they show up. The first band that’s on, every night whether you’re the support band, I guarantee that when we showed up every night in Europe the room was full. It was like “What?”. They actually wanna see the support band, the opener, it’s mad. Whereas sometimes in the UK that doesn’t happen especially in recent years. It’s one of those things. British people, you need to go and see the support bands. They’re the people you’re gonna be watching in ten years time. Everybody starts somewhere and you could be that person that says “I saw them”. Other than that, and the food’s better.

Todd: Yeah the food is way better! Way better! I think with European fans there’s more, and this isn’t saying UK fans don’t do this ‘cause they definitely do, but they tend to make a lot of stuff for us.

Jack: They love an arts and crafts day!

Todd: It’s sick! It’s great I love that stuff! I think because you’re probably not over there a lot, they’re taking that opportunity to show their appreciation I think. Their like, love language in that sense is making gifts in that way I guess. Is that the right word?

YEAH THAT’S REALLY SWEET!

Jack: Yeah that’s good! I like that!

Todd: Everyone stopped and looked at me like “The fuck has he just said”

DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE GIFT YOU’VE RECEIVED, OR ONE THAT’S STOOD OUT?

Todd: Yeah, someone made a Cluedo game of all of us as characters, and everything was custom made to us. It had everything from our TM to someone who was in crew on a show like four years ago just on an off chance and they’d be snuck in there somewhere.

Jack: A lot of time and dedication. Although, I met a wonderful girl yesterday and she showed me a portrait that she’d done of me. I can’t draw for shit so I really appreciate it, and I was gassed over the portrait and she was like “That’s nothing, that’s shit, you should see the painting I did of you, have you not seen it on TikTok?” and I felt really bad, I don’t use TikTok. She showed me the video and I was like “Yo!”.

Todd: Super talented, it was really good!

Jack: Not to sound vain but she was like “Do you want it?” and I was like “Yeah!”. It’s crazy when anybody makes anything for us, big or small. It’s not a position we probably ever thought our little band would ever get to. We have a really really big duck collection now. On a level it’s getting beyond a joke, my bedroom has fucking way too many yellow ducks in it now so, I do really really appreciate it but-

Todd: You’ve just told them that you put them in your bedroom, they’re gonna give you more now!

I WAS GONNA SAY, YOU’RE BASICALLY ENCOURAGING IT NOW!

Jack: I appreciate it, I’m really trying here! I appreciate it, but please stop buying us ducks. It’s becoming a problem now. I’ve got no more room, I’ve got no more room for the ducks.

JUST WAIT UNTIL THE NEXT TOUR NOW!

Jack: These ducks don’t give a fuck! But yeah. I do love them.

HAVE YOU HAD A FAVOURITE VENUE YOU’VE PLAYED?

Jack: On any tour? For me it’s the Bataclan. It was just somewhere where I thought we’d probably never play and obviously everything that happened there. We actually got to play it three days after the nine year anniversary. It’s all a bit- you can’t ever get that feeling unless you’re there, it was really weird and it’s amazing to see the power music has. You wouldn’t know it ever happened there, well obviously you would but it’s, yeah. It was like a beautiful moment getting to play there.

Todd: Yeah, it was a special one. I think it was a special one for all of us on the tour. Even when Josh (Franceschi) was playing he basically mentioned about it being close to the anniversary and stuff and I think everyone in the crowd like- it just felt like one of those moments you can’t really describe it like a non tangible thing.

Jack: It’s like a life moment, you don’t get many of them.

Todd: A unanimous Bataclan. That’s our answer.

SO YOU GUYS HAVE BASICALLY LAUNCHED A NEW ERA NOW WITH THE RELEASE OF ‘RATBAG’

Jack: We got our toe in ain’t we! It’s not officially announced yet!

YEAH BUT I WON’T LIE THIS SONG IS STUPIDLY HIGH ON MY ‘ON REPEAT’ RIGHT NOW. THE SECOND IT STARTED YESTERDAY I WAS STRAIGHT OVER THE BARRIER!

All: Yeah! Sick!

Jack: I think we felt it. I felt it yesterday and I definitely felt it today. ‘Ratbag’ has took on a new energy! When we were playing it on the last tour, we played half the tour and it wasn’t out and then it dropped mid tour. We had like a few dates where it was out but I think because people have had time to sit with it and, I dunno.

Todd: I think with a song you have to listen to it a lot to love it. You can hear a song once and be like, you like it, but to love a song you have to, I think when we were on that last tour they didn’t have that time to do that. Do you know what I mean? So I think now people know the words have lived with the song.

Jack: There’s no better feeling, even now, than ten people singing the words to your song that you wrote in a little dark dingy room with your mates. So then when you get to do that and there’s like hundreds of them screaming it, it’s like, we still feel a bit- what’s the word?

Mason: Starstruck?

Jack: No, erm, imposter syndrome! Sorry! No I’m not starstruck! No, it’s not that but it is imposter syndrome, it’s a bit like, we’re still getting used to it but we’re enjoying it. That's the most important thing.

I LOVE ALL OF THE MARKETING FOR ‘RATBAG’ AS WELL! ALL OF THE REELS, TIKTOKS, ALL OF IT

Jack: Yeah, we definitely had fun this time around with it.

IT’S SO MUCH FUN SEEING IT ALL NOW, SEEING THIS NEW ERA. I JUST WANTED TO ALSO ASK WHAT’S NEXT REALLY THAT YOU CAN TELL US ABOUT?

Jack: Take over the world!

Todd: Yeah that, but we’ve just come out of the studio. So we’ve just recorded a lot more new music that we’re gonna be putting out this year, consistently until the end of the year until our tour. So all of the new songs we put out will be on that tour, and only on that tour. So if you wanna listen to them you have to come to the tour.

Mason: And it’s also the best music we’ve ever made!

Jack: Ever. Ever!

Todd: So if you like ‘Ratbag’-

Jack: Double it! Triple it!

Todd: Triple that shit!

SO IS IT JUST GONNA BE SAME AS ‘RATBAG’ JUST LOUDER, MORE AGGRESSIVE, THAT WHOLE ENERGY? OR IS THERE A MIX AS WELL?

Todd: A mix!

Jack: Do you know what, as well, it’s been quite therapeutic. We’ve been a very busy bunch of boys lately, there’s been a lot of shit happen and stuff like that, that I wanted to write about and it’s nice when you can put that energy into music and vent a bit and I dunno, it’s like therapy for us and I just can’t wait for it to be out now and share it with everyone and get to do that kind of thing.

WELL I’M REALLY EXCITED FOR IT! HAVE YOU GUYS GOT ANY SMALLER BANDS YOU’VE BEEN LOVING AT THE MOMENT YOU’D LIKE TO SHOUT OUT?

Jack: Beauty School! We’re going out on tour in October, we’ve got a UK headline run and we’re taking our friends in Beauty School out. They’re sick, they just dropped a new tune.

Todd: Heart Sauce

Jack: Yeah, our local, our best friends from Leicester, Heart Sauce. If you wanna chill out, have a little (Pretends to smoke) put Heart Sauce on. I promise you.

Mason: I’m gonna say Unpeople. I’ve mentioned them in like three or four past interviews but I fucking love Unpeople so much.

Jack: And they’re not small but South Arcade.

THEY’RE DOING INCREDIBLE AT THE MOMENT!

Todd: They’re killing it with the social game as well. Like they’ve got the music as well. Having the music and the social game is like.

Jack: Shoutout South Arcade!

YEAH 100%! SOUTH ARCADE ARE ONE OF THOSE BANDS I SAW PLAY AS SUPPORT IN A LITTLE 200 CAP VENUE TWO OR THREE YEARS AGO, AND SEEING IT NOW IT’S CRAZY.

Jack: They deserve it man

Mason: They’re grafters!

Jack: Literally grafters

THEY WERE ON RIGHT AFTER YOU GUYS YESTERDAY, WITH BOTH YOU AND SOUTH ARCADE, SEEING THAT TENT SO PACKED OUT AND SEEING THE ENERGY, EVEN FOR ME WAS SO COOL TO SEE.

Jack: I was talking to Harmony earlier actually, and you never know! South Arcade and Mouth Culture might happen!

YES! I NEED THAT TO HAPPEN!

Jack: Comment below if you want it to happen! We’ll see, we’ll see what they say!

Todd: Jack’s first clickbait!

Jack: Damn!

IT’S OUR FIRST CLICKBAIT OF THE DAY SO I’LL TAKE IT! MY FINAL QUESTION FOR YOU GUYS, WHO IS YOUR SLAM DUNK 2026 HEADLINER? WHO WOULD YOU WANT?

Jack: Can it be anyone?

YEAH!

Jack: I’m trying to think who I’d want to come back. Fucking hell don’t all rush for it boys!

Mason: I’d probably say Good Charlotte. I really wanna see Good Charlotte live and they seem like the kind of band that would do that.

Todd: I’d have Deaf Havana. If they played ‘Fools and Worthless Liars’ or like a lot of that album because it’s one of my favourite albums. Yeah I’d say Deaf Havana.

Jack: I’d say Underoath. I think it’d pop. If you’re free!

I LOVE THAT THERE’S SUCH A NICE RANGE OF ANSWERS THERE AS WELL! TO BE FAIR I’VE BEEN ASKING THAT ONE ALL DAY-

Jack: Or Paramore! Do you think? Do you think it can happen? Shall we do it? Shall we manifest it?

Mason: If they played ‘Riot!’ in full, that would go down well.

Todd: Never say never! (sings part of ‘Never Say Never’ by Justin Bieber)

Jack: As if you just quoted Justin Bieber!

Todd: I didn’t!

Jack: You did! We got proof! Please rewind it and play it again!

Todd: I like Justin Bieber fuck that!

Jack: (Sings the same part of ‘Never Say Never’ by Justin Bieber)

Todd: Not that song, but he has got some bangers!

Jack: Sorry!

Todd: That was the final question wasn’t it, I can’t even say next question! Cut!