The former Swoons frontman Luke Duffett launched first a solo career, now followed by a duo formation, Enjoyable Listens. The alt-pop pair have just released their debut EP, 'A Professional Selection'.
Who are you?
So I’m going under the name of Luke Swoon, I play the vocals and Jimbo Savage is on bass and laptop (to keep down living costs and uphold reliability.) and we are from Bucks and Hackney, East London.
Tell us something about yourself and how you came to be where you are today.
We got to where we are today by the motivation that comes from passive aggression. We struggle daily in our walk down the fine line between throwing our feeble bodies against the brick wall of adversity and gladly spunking all our potential down the drain of post modern consumerism.
Give us an idea of your musical style and influences.
My sound is often described as a macabre charade. The integrity of my work is often overlooked by the fact that I anchor it to crude pop beats that generate friction against the soul.
We listen to The Guess Who, Jonathan Richman and The Modern Lovers, Bowie - but I think the essence of our sound comes from trying to generate a sense of grandeur from very modest means (the Yamaha keyboard Jimbo’s nan gave to him the last time he went down to Hastings to see her.)
I did spend a while trying to write great songs, now I just write songs. The same melody could be reiterated a thousand times and only one of those reiterations might actually sound grand.
I work in retail, so when I’m idle on the shop floor I just ask a colleague to give me a few words and list them in a fashion which becomes vivid and has some tenuous narrative. Then I’ll either meet up with Jimbo and bang something out ASAP, or I’ll just go home, place some easy chords underneath and let God do the talking.
Tell us a little about your new EP.
The new EP, 'A Professional Selection', is a confession. We all know the truth, we all self deceive, we all limit ourselves by trying too hard. I’m guilty of this all the time. So I wanted to piece together a few different perspectives that I’ve owned over the past couple of years and see what they look like together. Get them all to line up against a back drop like a school photo and laugh at the ugly kid. After I’m done laughing I always feel worse off as the laughter comes from a bitter place. A place of self loathing. A place I tell myself I’m done with but find myself frequenting far too often under a different disguise. I hate myself but have never loved anything more than myself. God makes everything a paradox. I used to lie awake asking all the big questions. The big questions only get answered when the curiosity dies down like the fretting legs of a spider that’s being washed down the bathroom sink for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Can we catch up with you at any forthcoming live shows?
Here’s a list of the shows me 'n' J have coming up:
6th October - The Gladstone Arms, Borough
9th October - The Horn, St. Albans
14th October - SM Records, deptford
9th November - OTC, Herne Hill
13th November - The Craufurd Arms, Milton Keynes
16th November - Dukes, Aylesbury
17th November - The Edge, Luton
How's the rest of the year looking, plans-wise?
I’m currently working on another EP and it’ll be out nearer the end of the year. Other than that I’m just counting down the days until I meet my creator.
Where can we hear more of your music?
Our music is on both Soundcloud and Bandcamp.
What social media platforms can we find you on?
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