Straight Shooting, Straight Talking - The Rifles

It’s a baking hot afternoon. A heat-wave has been predicted for the coming week and if we were on Beachwood Avenue, Vanilla Ice’s classic words “Girls were hot wearing less than bikinis” might apply. But we’re not. Gigwise is in London’s West End, holed up and sweating it out with one of the capitals hottest new bands The Rifles. Hailing from in and around London the band formed off the back of Oasis’ now legendary 1996 Knebworth concert, where Rock n Roll touched Joel (vocals) and Luke (guitarist) and found a place in their hearts, as Joel begins to explain:

“I think its kind of like that whole Oasis thing more so than just that concert. That was just the icing on the cake and it got loads of people that weren’t into bands into bands again.” “That would have been the first time in our lives” continues Luke “That we realised how powerful music can be because it brings all these people together. I remember kids in school that used to be really quiet or this and that and all of a sudden you’d just all be together. It didn’t matter if you were a cool kid or a geek or whatever. It was the first time it hit me, so that just inspired me.”

OK so having established The Gallagher brother’s profound influence on Joel and Luke, then what? Well after much tooing and froing, the pair, alongside bass player Rob, found Grant, a resident DJ at a club in Spitalfields. Luckily for all concerned Grant was a drummer and The Rifles were soon a fully fledged band. Happy to bubble away in each others bedrooms it soon became apparent that the boys had something going. One thing naturally led to another, a record deal beckoned and 2 ½ years after their first gig, the bands debut album ‘No Love Lost’ is set for realise later in July. But the band are under no illusions about overnight success, fame and fortune.

“It seems to be going at a nice steady pace for us. It’s not like we're a buzz band and we’ve got lots of pressure on us. It can build as it needs to really. It just dawned on me the other day like fucking hell we actually done an album.” Enthuses Luke; “It’s actually going to get out to people now. Its not just fucking around in your bedroom and once the albums out, people will be able to go to the gigs and know the tunes.”

The album was recorded throughout 2005 and into 2006. A long drawn out process but one that was overseen by the more than capable Ian Broudie ensuring that the bands debut is one worth waiting for. “I wouldn’t say it was easy” Says Joel “It was just like really broken up because we were touring for some of it, Christmas in the middle of it, Ian Broudie had a real busy schedule and so it wasn’t just like in one big hit. It seemed to take fucking ages.”

“We ended up recording it literally in about ten different places.” Continues Luke “It sounds all pretty much together as an album but it was done in a lot of different places under a lot of different conditions. I think Ian Broudie’s experience was just great for us, obviously because it’s our first album and we’re quite a new band. It’s quite a good summer album Id say. It’s quite uplifting really. It’s a good one just to bang on while you’re just chilling.”

Ever since the band launched themselves onto London’s highly competitive live circuit they’ve been inundated, plagued even, with enough comparisons to last a life time; From Paul Weller to The Streets, The Smiths to Joy Division to name but a few. Hard acts to follow at the best of times. And with more lobe pulling than the Christmas special of ‘Give Us A Clue’ surely quite a pain in their collective arses? Luke explains: “It gets a bit annoying when they just keep on going on about the same bands. But to be fair, on the other side of it, they’re good bands.”

“As long as they don’t say we sound like steps! That would fucking piss me off.” Says Joel. Now there’s an interesting thought. But who would play the part of H if by some strange twist of 1980’s Tom Hanks feel good film fate, Steps and The Rifles swapped bodies for the day… “Don’t go there or I’m straight out that fucking window.” Point taken Luke, we’ll move swiftly on.