INTERVIEW - Twenty Twenty

Twenty Twenty are a passionate new pop-rock trio comprised of brothers Sam and Jack Halliday as well as drummer Sonny Watson-Lang.  Fresh from supporting acts like The Saturdays, Selena Gomez and JLS, they were recently signed to Geffen Records.

So guys, what did it feel like getting signed to a label after all the hard work you had put in?

It was great!  Obviously, for any band when they start up, getting signed is a dream come true.  We can’t wait to start releasing our music.  It’s almost like a new chapter for the band; a fresh start.  A lot of people think that as soon as you’re signed, that’s it - you’ve hit the big-time – but it’s not that simple.  There’s still a lot of hard work to do after that.

Sam and Jack! What is it like being two brothers working together in a band?

It’s alright actually!  We always say we wouldn’t have started the band if we didn’t want to do it together.  We’ve always got on really well together growing up and we both really shared that thirst for playing music.

No friction at all then?

Well there’s always going to be a bit of friction in a group, but not because we’re brothers; it’ll be from little creative differences.  And it’s good to have a mix of ideas like that.  I think that’s part of the reason we’ve done so well; because we’ve taken on everyone’s creative input and added it together.

For a boy-band, you’re a lot more ‘rock’ than anything else out there in that genre – is that the kind of music you’re influenced by?

We grew up listening to rock bands; stuff like My Chemical Romance and Funeral For A Friend. We’re a ‘boy-band’ in the sense that we’re three boys in a band, but we play all our own instruments and we write our own material.  We weren’t put together through auditions or anything, we grew organically and feel independent.  We’re still a pop band but we’ve toured loads in the process and feel very hands on with our music.

And when you get into the studio to record your tracks, what is it like? Relaxing? Quite intense?

A bit of both, I’d say!  It’s relaxing in the sense you’ve got those creative juices flowing, but it’s intense in the fact that you’ve got to make what you’re recording really good.  You’re under a lot of pressure and it’s hard work but the end result is definitely worth it.  It feels really rewarding.

You use social networks like Facebook and Twitter to keep in contact with fans.  Do you think that’s an important thing for fans to do these days?

We like to use them to get information out to the fans, to let them know what’s happening.  They’re also good to give free downloads away to people on; to get our music out there.  There’s the personal interaction aspect of social networks as well and we know we can just keep people really updated and in the know.

Of all the live dates you’ve played, do you have any particular highlights?  Certain cities that are your favourites?

Brighton was really good, the audience there were incredible.  We always get excited about going to cities we’ve never been to before; we went to Carlisle the other day and that was an amazing show too.  It’s been a really great experience for us.

Your album is coming out in April – what kind of stuff can we expect on it?

There’s something on there for everyone.  It’s been two years of work for us and it really captures a sense of what we’re about.   We think we’ve put across a sense of feelings everyone comes across when they’re growing up so people can really relate to the album.  There’s a few up-beat party tracks on there and a real slow track which is more emotional.

You get to meet a lot of fans on tour – what’s it like having all these screaming girls following you around?

It’s cool!  We’ve seen our fanbase really grow and they’re just so dedicated.  They’ll be waiting out in the cold just to say hi so we do our best to go out and see them.

Kerrang! named your song Get Down as their ‘video of the week’ – what’s it like getting all this acclaim from the rock music press?

It was amazing!  Our live DVD got to number 4 in the official charts too, just behind Michael Jackson and U2 – I think that was the biggest thing for us as a band.  It was great to be recognised nationally like that.

So what’s the filming experience like when you’re making a music video?

It’s just another piece of the whole puzzle.  When you’re in the recording studio it’s more of a mental experience – you’ve got to really concentrate.  But a music video is more of a physical thing – you’ve got to do twelve hours straight of recording and jumping around.  You can end up doing night shoots too, and they can be tiring – but it’s a good tired feeling.  When you see the final end-product it feels great.

And is there anything in particular you’d like to achieve by this time next year?

On this tour supporting The Saturdays it’s been amazing playing gigs at venues this big so we’ve always said we’d love to be able to headline a show at some of the places like this.  That’d just be the ultimate achievement for us.

Twenty Twenty release their new single Love To Life on the 3^rd April.