Introducing :: Bellwether

Introducing :: Bellwether

Linn Branson


Not to be confused with the Long Island post punk outfit of same name, this Tooting, south London foursome by the name of Bellwether may have a somewhat American-styled vocal, but they are otherwise a world apart - and not just in miles.

Announcing themselves with a first taste in the form of 'Blind Anthem', we caught up with bassist Rory Jones - and briefly, the other guys - for a quick chat.

So, Rory, who and what are Bellwether?

Rory: We formed towards the end of last summer, and 'Blind Anthem' was the first track Chris brought to rehearsal. It was the first song we worked on and within an hour we had the majority of the song down. We then took it to our friend Cherif at Cafe Music Studios in Bow, and with some help from Pat Collier at Perry Vale in Forest Hill in early September - who I know from when I played in The Savage Nomads - and got cracking on recording it.

What's your MO when writing?

Rory: We don't have a clear genre in mind when writing, but generally our sound is definitely alternative. We all come from quite different musical backgrounds with Simon a session player schooled in blues, George taking his drumming from a mixture of rock, heavy metal with a funk/jazz feel, and Chris and myself coming from more indie backgrounds previously. So it's a little bit of a melting pot - which we definitely think is a positive. We love crunching guitars and a sound that blows you away live, making a bit of a riot on stage, so what we all agree on is for us to sound raw and hit you in the face when we play live.

Have you played live yet?

Rory: Our first gig is actually in a couple of weeks, at the Brixton Windmill! We know Tim, the promoter, through previous bands and also seeing a load of mates' bands there such as Dignan Porch, Bengal Lancers, King TV & Misty Miller. We really love the place as a venue: we all reckon it's the coolest venue because it just keeps it totally real and doesn't focus on anything except putting on good live music, without any pretension. It was a no-brainer where to play our first show. There's no 'pay to play' deal, no arsey sound guys, if you play good music Tim books you;  their all-dayers are awesome. We've run some tracks past him and he likes it so it should be real fun, it almost feels like our home turf already.

This track 'Blind Anthem' what are the plans for that? Are you releasing as a single?

Rory: The track's been released on Soundcloud and YouTube with a demo video. At the moment we're not looking for a physical release or looking to charge people. We just want people to like our music and what we're trying to do, and if so they'll come down to a gig and maybe bring some friends.

Can you say what the inspiration was for 'Blind Anthem'?

Chris: The song, like many of our songs deals with themes of control and indoctrination - much like our name: the crowd blindly following the bell.The song's lyrics juxtapose ideas of the capital 'W' in the free and expansive Wild West with the economical, social and religious choke hold the average person may face these days. The song's us trying to understand it, I guess.

What are Bellwether's plans for the immediate future?

George: Nothing's set in stone but we're planning to have an EP out by the end of the summer, with a couple more songs released in the coming months.
Simon: We're still focusing on writing although we've got a couple more songs recorded at Cafe Music Studios up our sleeve that we're excited to get out in due course and also a live video of another track that we'll put out in the next couple of months as well.

Did you know there's a US Bellwether?! Er, confusion could ensue, I think!

Simon: We don't care about the other band name. We mean it - that name is not an arbitrary thing, as it may be for them. Who knows...

Why the name anyway?

Rory: For a couple of reasons. 'Blind Anthem' was originally called 'Bellwether', and the song summed up what we're trying to do as a band, as both our signature song and first song we'd written. But we still couldn't think of a band name. When we sent the track around to some mates to have a listen they kept on saying that they thought Bellwether was the name of the band - and that put the idea in our heads. Simon was fixated on it as the band name, so the more people thought it was our band name, the more he wouldn't shut up! We finally came to the realisation that it was the natural fit for us and felt most right in terms of the stuff and our attitude towards the music we're trying to make. It also finally shut Simon up!

Are you all from Tooting? Name three of your favourite Tooty things?

Rory: Chris lives slap bang in the centre of Tooting, George just up the road at the Tooting Bec end, and I come from South Wimbledon, so a 15-minute walk! Simon's the only non-Tooting resident, meaning he has to trek over from Kingston every time we rehearse - we rehearse in Balham just up the road. We normally head down to the Tooting Tram for a post-rehearsal beer. Our favourite nights are when the open mic night is on - although we've never played at it...maybe we should! Three favourite Tooty things? Where to start...!
Chris: The strong sense of multi-cultural community, the best and most fantastic indoor markets that are sensory punches in the face, greasy chips after a long queue at the lido cafe, the grafitti sign that says 'no more betting shops in Tooting', the Dosas from the many Indian restaurants.
George: It has a 24-hour pool hall, the Gala bingo hall, cheap pints, and finally 'Colin' the only point of view Zombie film ever made - filmed in Tooting for only £45!


Catch Bellwether live on April 26 at the Windmill, Brixton for their inaugural live show.

Bellwether are: Chris Griffin - Rhythm guitar, Vocals; Simon Goudarzi - Lead guitar; George Watson - Drums; Rory Jones - Bass, vocals

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