A quick chat with Al Bairre

Great News! Earlier this week Al Bairre’s mini LP, entitled “Experience The Al Bairre Show With Al Bairre Experience” was released.

This Mini LP is the band’s first collection of work since their inception. They are one of the very few bands in SA who has made a name for themselves and who has received commercial success without an official release up until now.

Al Bairre has been around since 2012. They draw influences from bands like Arcade Fire, The Cure, Fleetwood Mac, Vampire Weekend, Dexy’s Midnight Runners and Ra Ra Riot – their goal being to take an Indie band and turn it into ‘ice cream of orchestral sounds’.

During this time, AL BAIRRE has released their debut EP ‘When I Was Tall’. The independent release was well received not only locally, but also internationally with tracks being play listed by campus and online radio stations across the world, as well as being featured on both Vodafone’s London Fashion Week recap and a commercial featuring Louis Hamilton and Jensen Button.

Their single “We Move On” was also featured in a television advert in the US for Hershey’s Bits, as well as a Belgium Clothing Advertisement and was the soundtrack for a UK Sports App. The last 3 years has seen the band complete several successful tours across South Africa. The band has also performed at all the prestigious local festivals. In 2013, the band were chosen as an opening act for The Hives, Alt–J and Skunk Anansie.

I recently had a chat with Al Bairre about their Mini LP and a few other things. Here’s what they had to say:

You played one hell of a show at Oppikoppi 2015, what are the most memorable moments of that set?

Watching everyone flapping their arms around to ‘Bungalow’. It was our first time playing to the Gauteng crowd since it dropped in March and they went wild. We love that. A lot.

Why did it take you guys so long to release your first album / Mini LP?

When we started the band, recording our songs super well wasn’t on the list of things we were interested in. We were very happy just getting the songs out any way we could.

Only later did we decide we needed to pull our heads out our butts and head into a proper studio. Then when we got in the studio we were super fussy and wanted it to sound perfect no matter how long it took. Also we don’t write songs very quickly.

If you could play at any festival abroad, which ones would be on your shortlist and why?

Glastonbury. When we started the band we all sat down and asked ourselves where we want to play first. We all said Glastonbury.

What was the most memorable moment of 2015 for Al Bairre?

Our tour to the UK and playing The Great Escape Festival was so so radical. We’re definitely gonna try head back overseas next year. Also our postal service is horseshit and someone is gonna have to take our CD’s across.

What can we expect from Al Bairre in 2016?

More shows, more music videos and six packs. We’re all trying to get 1 Direction bodies.

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Al Bairre for taking time to answer my questions and I wish them all of the best with their future musical endeavors.

Watch this space for regular updates in the Music and Interviews categories on Running Wolf’s Rant.

PS: Photo credit to Sam Wells.