Interview with Idle Noise: ‘It’s very much a lockdown song, it were inspired by someone I’d never met’

Coventry-based indie rock quartet Idle Noise released their single ‘Heart Alarm’ last month, a rousing track designed to be played in big stadiums and which was inspired by a lockdown romance.

The band comprises Ben Brandist (vocals and guitar), Alex Lindon (guitar), Dan Connolly (bass) and Dan Ostrowski (Drums). They don’t really remember where their name comes from: ‘I wish I could tell you,’ Brandist laughed. ‘We needed a name 6-7 years ago but couldn’t think of owt. We were called The Frontiers for a bit after an Adam & The Ants tune but I opened a page in a magazine and saw a two page spread on the band ‘Fronteers’ and thought “Noooooooo!”‘

‘Heart Alarm’ opens with some blisteringly good drumming from Ostrowski and powerful, honest vocals from Brandist which hook you even before you get to the big, singalong chorus and driving harmonies: ‘It’s one of those ones I’ve had a while, I tend not to be very good at writing songs quickly,’ Brandist said. ‘I had this in February last year and sat with it for a bit. The intro wasn’t there at all before. It’s shorter too, our producer cut almost a minute and thought we should change the intro drum beat. We’re not massive (laughs) but it was hard letting go, in my head I was seeing a stadium with a light show. The version you know, the chorus, bridge and ending are the same but the verses are different. I rewrote them in Greggs having a coffee in the space of about an hour before I went into the booth to do the vocal take (laughs). It’s very much a lockdown song, it were inspired by someone I’d never met, a whirlwind romance on Instagram (laughs), when you just click. I’m bad at the hyperfixation thing. Me and the person in question were emotionally unavailable anyway, but it was me saying “Roll with it” and she was like “Nah, I’m not going down that route”.’ He looks a bit dejected at this point and I say that he at least got a fantastic song out of the experience and he agrees: ‘There is that. A lot of the best songs come out of heartbreak, don’t they? It’s the whole “this is how I feel, that’s my heart alarm”.’

As the song goes: So raise the Heart Alarm. And warn yourself it’s about to break. Batten the hatches before it’s too late. So I’m still stuck ignoring the warnings. You’re still changing your mind every morning. I’m still wishing you’re everywhere I go.’

‘I take bits from all over the place’

Next up will be an unnamed track that he describes as ‘synth-led, Blossoms-esque, with a similar guitar line to ‘Heart Alarm”: ‘If we can get on with it and make it sound as good as it can, it’ll be great,’ he said.  ‘I hear comparisons to other songs in things I’ve written a lot and worry about it but my cousin, who’s my best mate, will say “Stop it, it doesn’t sound like that song!” There’s a bit at the end of the chorus in this new one I’m writing that I think sounds like Pete Townshend’s ‘Let My Love Open the Door’. I take bits from all over the place.’

Last year, they released their singles ‘Death to Modern Life’ and ‘All Your Love’. ‘Death To Modern Life’ turns out to have been inspired by The Strokes: ‘I’m bad at starting an idea from scratch but good once I have a starting point,’ Brandist said. ‘For years, I’d misheard their song ‘Ize of the World’, I thought he sang ‘death to modern life’ at one point, but when I realised that wasn’t the lyric I thought “Ooh, I’ll have that”. The story very much came from the title but I only had the ending section for a while! It was like The Strokes but in a different key (laughs), I was trying to build off that.’

It’s an incredibly anthemic track and much like “Heart Alarm’, the upbeat, summery melody is at sharp contrast to the less upbeat lyrics: ‘It’s a guy shouting from the rooftop, a character rather than me. It’s very much aimed at the non-voters, those who say “my vote don’t matter” and is telling them to stop being innocent bystanders in life and to call out the things they don’t agree with rather than ignoring it just because it might not directly affect them,’ he said. ‘It’s not just about the government, it’s about calling out anyone’s wrongdoing really; celebrities, media moguls, corporations, governments etc., but I suppose the political aspect was at the forefront of my mind at the time. With the shamelessly dreadful handling of the Grenfell tragedy, the totally biased media attacks of Jeremy Corbyn throughout his election campaign, the Tories lying about everything, breaking their own lockdown rules and showing more and more every passing day that they believe they’re above the law and untouchable, there was plenty of anger to channel into it,’ he said.

As the track kicks off: ‘Everybody stand in line. Everybody stand in line. ‘Cos you don’t know what is right. All the bodies on the ground. All the people standing round. But the top won’t bat an eye. Or even try.’

Brandist wears his emotions on his sleeve, which is most evident in tracks like ‘All Your Love’, which features him on the acoustic guitar, lamenting in the chorus “If you punch me, kick me, hurt me, I don’t care as long as I’m worthy of all your love”.’

‘I like to write what I listen to’

Interestingly, he says he is not very good at listening to new music: ‘I like to write what I listen to, if I hear a big chorus that gives me goosebumps, that’s it,’ he said. ‘I tend to take a mostly finished song to the band. They get annoyed with it sometimes (laughs) but they all add bits and bobs. ‘Heart Alarm’ is probably the song that is most different to how to started, they added those little flourishes. It was nice to build on that.’

They cite a broad range of musical influences, including The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys, The Vaccines and local rock band The Enemy. With infectious hooks, stomping choruses and a huge stage presence, their performances are designed for big crowds. ‘The Enemy inspired me to want to be in a band,’ he said. ‘But so did My Chemical Romance, I love them!’ I say that I do, too. ‘I cried last time I saw them live, I’m not ashamed,’ he grinned. ‘Me and our drummer sit and jam them sometimes.’ I ask if they ever cover them. ‘We haven’t. I’d love to and have thought about it a lot recently but the other lads aren’t really fans and Gerard [Way] can hit those high notes, I don’t think I can (laughs). When I was learning guitar as a kid,I was very much channeling MCR’s Frank Lero, launching myself all over the show! MCR kind of showed me what it was like to release anger through music and performing, and I think I carry that a lot within my performance as a frontman; people may or may not connect the dots as we’re obviously a very different sound to them.’

The last few years have seen them play alongside Inhaler, The Charlatans and The Wombats, and support a range of other artists on shows across the UK. In 2019, they supported Coventry’s own Tom Clarke (The Enemy) at a sold-out hometown show, followed by the band’s own sold-out headline gig at Manchester’s iconic Deaf Institute in January 2020. They will play their biggest ever headline at Coventry’s HMV Empire on 10 June, as well as a prestigious main support slot to The Libertines at Godiva Festival 2022; a career defining moment for the Midlands four. 

I ask him what his dream line-up would look like. ‘Oooooh, how many can I have?’ he said animatedly. ‘Can I have 5 or 10?! Queen, 1000%. I’d die to see Freddie live. Probably the Strokes, they’re high on my list. The Last Shadow Puppets for my dose of Alex Turner without picking Arctic Monkeys; as much as I adore both, I think Arctic Monkeys and The Strokes on the same dream line-up might feel too noughties indie guitar music overkill. Richard Hawley, I love him. Maybe Wham!, that’s a good shout (laughs) or do I want ABBA instead of Wham? Or maybe My Chemical Romance, I have to put them in there.’

They still can’t quite believe that they’ll be sharing a stage with The Libertines later this year: ‘We found ourselves in hysterical laughter when we got confirmation of playing with The Libertines later this year,’ Brandist said. ‘There was such disbelief and it’s still not sunk in I don’t think, but every time it popped into our heads, we’d just burst out laughing at how ridiculous and absurd it felt that we, an unsigned band of four daft humans, were confirmed to play alongside some of our musical heroes on the biggest stage in our city in front of thousands of people.’

(Photo from left to right: Alex, Dan Connolly, Ben and Dan Ostrowski.)