Late 90's bad boys, Swelter, are back with a couple of singles and an album on the way. So why here? Why now?
Swelter formed as a three piece back in 1995 and after a brief flirt with the Britpop scene shifted gear to become one of the UK’s most controversial post-grunge rock bands. Their lyrics always incendiary, their performances always note-worthy. We caught up with lead singer Paul and drummer Steve at their Cheltenham base.
So why now?
Well we’ve never really gone away. We just transmogrified into something new, something different. Back at the end of the 90’s we had a run in with an American band who were using our name. We’d pinched the name from the cheeky little fecker from the Gormenghast trilogy by Mervin Peake. So, we figured, that as most Americans wouldn’t even be able to say ‘Gormenghast’, we’d be able to claim the rights. But we couldn’t really be bothered with the fight. We did challenge them to an actual duel to claim the name rights, but they weren’t having any of it. At that time we replaced the drummer (as he’d got married and moved to Taunton) and were definitely experimenting with a new direction in sound. By 2005 we changed the name to Kerosene and were joined by an American drummer and guitarist. The sound became much heavier and the lyrics more political.
Didn’t you have a GCHQ spy on bass for a while?
We had a guy called Greg Salt on bass in the original line up who claimed to work for the intelligence service at GCHQ. He told us that he trained armed forces overseas in anti-terrorism techniques and spent quite a bit of time floating between Washington (USA) and St. Petersburg in Russia. We knew that ‘salt’ was the nickname of anyone who is a member of the Royal Navy that worked for the intelligence services, so I guess we never really knew his real name. He disappeared almost as quickly as he’d originally turned up. Like a ghost. Very James Bond. I haven’t seen or hard from him since.
Your videos around the 2000’s certainly caused some uproar and you got yourselves banned from YouTube. What happened there?
Yeah, that was funny, we did two videos that were a little risqué. One of them was made in a gym on the Tewkesbury Road in Cheltenham. I knew a fitness instructor at the time and we’d just remixed one of our old songs called ‘Welcome to my world’. Cathy, the instructor certainly did a raunchy performance with a few members of her class. It was getting quite a lot of views, but equally, quite a lot of complaints. By the time we released the ‘Godhead’ video which featured a Caribbean Doll having date-rape sex with a girl, the censors won and we were banned from YouTube. Another good reason for changing the name, but another case of not grasping our concepts!
Your early influences seem to be from the grunge world. What was the attraction there?
Well by the end of the 80’s rock music was dead. The poodle rock brigade of Def Leppard and Motley Cru and all those other shitty American bands had seen to that. Music needed a change and along came Mudhoney and Soundgarden and Pearl Jam at exactly the right time. It was probably the most important scene since the punk thing in the 70’s. We rode the wave, crashed the concerts and graffitied our guitars. We were, probably, the only band like us in the South West at the time. We definitely had an attitude and our lyrics certainly pushed some boundaries.
Yeah, didn’t you do a song about Thomas Hamilton the Dunblane killer didn’t you?
That was a proper rock song with the chorus of ‘Thomas Hamilton, cocksucker, Thomas Hamilton, evil motherfucker’! It certainly got the message across and seemed to shock people for all the wrong reasons. I thought the lyric was pretty obvious, we weren’t condoning being a fucking serial killer or anything!
You toured what we’d call ‘the underground’ for quite a few years. Was that deliberate?
I wouldn’t say it was deliberate, but it was a good place to be in. We were never about searching for fame or anything. We wrote songs that we liked about topics that we wanted to talk about. That was kind of it. We had the same struggles as any band. Members leaving because their girlfriends were complaining about us being on the road, or getting married and having kids. Usual shit. But no matter who came and went, I always kept on writing. It’s a cliche, but music is definitely in my blood. When I stop doing that, I will cease to exist.
So, you were back with a new single called Smile at the beginning of the year. Nothing to do with Thom Yorkes band I take it?
Christ no. We weren’t having a go because we think he’s miserable or anything. It’s just a bouncy, catchy pop song that’s meant to make you smile. There’s way too much misery in the world at the moment. Everyone’s at war with each other. Whether its Russia with the Ukraine or Israel and Palestine or the civil war in the Sudan that never gets any attention. There’s conflict everywhere. If we’re not careful, we’re not gonna be around for much longer. Funny, this week everyone’s debating if the Ukraine should start to use western missiles to launch at Russia, as if that’s gonna help. Just call it quits guys. Shake hands, smoke some weed and fucking grow up!
Where do you stand on the Spotify debate?
Well, it’s done for music hasn’t it? A million streams equals something like £300 for a band. What the fuck is that all about? No wonder bands don’t last so long anymore. No wonder there’s so many manufactured artists knocking around the charts rather than coke snorting hairy rock bands. This has to change. The fact that venues are closing down, that festivals are closing down. This country isn’t supporting music anymore. The venues that are still open are putting on fucking tribute bands and covers bands all the time and pushing new music off their stages. In a few years time there’ll be fat old covers bands covering other fat old covers bands. That’s where we’re heading. You better start to think that through people! Music is in your hands!
So after Kereosne dissolved, Ocean Breed came into being. How did that happen?
I was texting the old Swelter drummer (Christian) one night and we were thinking of getting a band going again. As we both liked Pearl Jam we were batting names around for hours, all of which had the name Ocean in there. Eventually we chose Ocean Breed. We formed as a three-piece as we’d always found this the most dynamic, the most primal and we got rehearsals going quickly with some new songs. Sadly, Chris’ wife got cancer and he couldn’t carry on. Not quite like losing Keith Moon from The Who, but not far behind. She’s in remission now (I think) so hopefully all is well. After that we changed the line-up a bit, but when I went to work in Stroud about five years ago, I found Stevie there. We’ve worked together ever since. He provides the heavy hitting drums and inspiration, I provide the lyrics and the riffs. Works pretty well.
So you’re now back with the original name Swelter and come full circle?
That’s quite funny. Talking to you it seems like we’ve changed the name every three weeks, but that’s not the case. I think we’re just reclaiming what was always ours. What’s in name? Well, kinda everything. It’s your identity. Your soul. Without it, you’re nothing. This time no Americans are taking it back. No one.
New single, ‘We fight, we fall, we rise’ is a lot heavier. What’s the source here?
Well, we both really like heavy stuff, Steve likes Metallica and Megadeth and I like Bad Brains and Black Flag and the Dead Kennedys, so it’s like a punky, rock-fusion of our musical tastes. I’ve been working on some other projects too and all are ending up with that heavy metal feel. I kinda like it.
The lyrics are pretty thought-provoking?
It’s a song about mental health. It’s a funny thing cos when people talk about mental health they kinda focus in on the ‘mental’ part like it’s a bad thing. A lot of people don’t even realise that everyone has mental health as well as physical health. Anyone can have poor or good mental health. Often in the same day. Since covid, it seems that people have been able to talk about their struggles a little easier which is a good thing. We’ve both been affected by some of the shit that’s happened to us in our lives. Why not write about it? Why not share that emotion? Talking is always the key. I know a ‘problem shared is a problem halved’ sounds like shite, but the truth is that we all feel better when we offload.
Men have always seemed to have a problem talking about their feelings. I feel like women think we just talk about football and tits, and you know, they are probably right most of the time. But that’s why suicide is higher with males. We’re just shite at letting our feelings out. I think we all need to have a good look in the mirror and sort this problem out. Like that Bobby Hoskins bloke used to say ‘it’s good to talk’.
What’s next for Swelter then guys?
We’re recording at the moment and hope to have an album out by the end of November. It’s coming along fine. Some heavy stuff, some bouncy stuff. After that we want to get back out on the road at the end of the year and into 2025.
We Fight, We fall, We rise is available now.
