Sticky Wicket: The Noisettes

OK this is no ordinary interview; Gigwise has been stood outside a cricket clubhouse in the freezing cold for far longer than can be healthy desperately calling The Noisettes management trying to find out where the hell they are. Let us explain. The interview was originally scheduled to take place at the Carling Academy ahead of the bands support slot with Babyshambles however one Mr Pete Doherty failed to turn up to the show causing mass confusion and leaving the support acts scrambling for a suitable venue to play. Noisettes lead singer Shinghai arranged for the band to headline a local open mike night in the Liverpool suburb of Aigburth. Gigwise eventually found our way to the correct Cricket Club and was there to witness the whole affair.

We are greeted by The Noisettes lead singer Shinghai amidst a crowd of middle aged men drinking ale and smoking profusely. Gigwise imagines this is the kind of pub Jim Royle would take Rab C Nesbitt for a pint. In most settings Shinghai would stand out but tonight, dressed relatively diminutively in denim shorts, ripped tights accessorised with her dreadlocks and mis-matching ear rings (One of which is a rollerblade) and a shoulder-supporting sling she looks more like a sore thumb than ever. Instantly warm and friendly, Shinghai takes us to a quiet corner of the pub to begin the interview.

Before the Frog tour featuring Babyshambles, The Holloways and The Noisettes was cancelled the trio of bands had played a few dates together in Ireland, London and Birmingham, Shinghai describes the tour as being "A lot of fun, a bit of a workout". The workout aspect of the tour has taken it's toll on Shinghai's shoulder in particular which has been dislocated twice in a week, she describes the events "Originally I did it the day before the tour began, I trained as a gymnast and every so often it does pop out. Normally I just pop it back in, Lethal Weapon 2 style but then I did it again in Birmingham and the ambulance had to come and take me to hospital. It's alright now just a bit creaky".

Any tour featuring the tabloid circus act that is Pete Doherty is bound to be fraught with incident and The Noisettes had their own taste of the mans erratic behaviour when he came onstage as they were preparing their equipment before the gig in Birmingham. Guitarist Dan issued a scathing attack on Doherty via the bands Myspace page (which he later apologised for), however Gigwise was eager to get to the bottom of this and enquired further as to what happened. "I don't know if he was just having a bad day or whatever but the venue was already three quarters full and people just started screaming for him not to leave the stage. I don't think there was any intention to upstage us or put us off but he has apologised and we all hung out last night in the changing room at Brixton." So besides being dragged into inter-band disputes has the tour helped The Noisettes gain any new fans? "A lot of the towns are really small, challenging towns," says Shinghai. "Playing places like Carlisle which is sort of out in the sticks where people have maybe not heard of us before. But people who like Babyshambles still like us as well because even though we are very different we share a rock 'n' roll ethos that people enjoy."

Let's go back to basics, how and why did The Noisettes form? "I didn't see myself destined to be in a band. I was studying theatre and dipping my finger into all these other pies, I met Dan and Jamie years and years ago at that Michael Barrymore show 'My Kind Of People'. We met again years later and decided to start the band. We started doing cover band gigs to make money. That was about 5 years ago when Dan and me were a duo and I was playing kick drum and bass, we had quite a good sound but wanted a 'band' band and Jamie just came along at the right time. It sounds really cheesy but it was all very natural, the only force was actually staying together during the first year when we were just clambering up the ladder and the M6. We got a lot of songs from those early experiences."

So has the experience of performing in different musical genres influenced Shinghai's stage performance? "I think you can't help but be influenced by it, I love all the theatrical elements of playing live. When we first started we would play working mens clubs or really big old fashioned nights and I just think I am really lucky to be in The Noisettes because we can play anywhere". This belief will be tested to the maximum when the band supports Muse on their stadium tour later this year.