Interview with George Gadd by Paul Wade
We finally have a George Gadd full-length album… why did it take so long for you to finally get Too Many Ghosts out? What was the process for writing it?
There was definitely a financial barrier, albums are very expensive, we did a little tour where we covered Weezer’s ‘Blue’ album in full, those shows funded a large portion of the album. At the same time, given how much of myself I was pouring into these songs, I became quite emotionally invested in the outcome. Once it had been released, I did feel a sense of relief but I did take my time.
You recorded TMG with Phil from JT Soar in Nottingham, which is an institution in the scene. But you went away and recorded this as part of his residential, right? What was that like?
I have worked with Phil for about a decade in various guises, he often disappears at the start of the year to the North Wales countryside and he was telling us about it and it just sounded like a dream. He’s dedicated to pulling the best performances out of people while adding his own unique touch. He has a fantastic ear when it comes to punctuating certain elements in the song and bringing them to the forefront. I’d recommend the experience to any band. I essentially lived out the dream of going on holiday with four best mates where we went hiking, won a pub quiz and played Nintendo 64. I guess we also made an album too.
You mentioned on the HTMF podcast how you and Ciaran have this brilliant tag-team writing thing going — one hits a wall, passes to the other. Looking at the tracklist for Too Many Ghosts, which song got the most back-and-forth before it landed, and was there one that came out pretty much fully formed the first time?
The final lap of writing as it were, we went away to Norfolk with some voice note demos I had. There were about 6 ideas with ‘Invisible’ and ‘Optimist’ coming out on top. I had the riff for ‘Invisible’ for about 5 years prior with various iterations, I think exercising that creative muscle helped that song fall out of me in full in 15 minutes. ‘The Optimist’ was quite a similar one, we were lucky to be in quite a remote part of Norfolk so I was able to try out the high end of my vocal range without feeling self conscious.
Where did the title come from? What is it with our scene community and ghosts?
It didn’t have a title for the longest time whilst we were recording it. A while after, I realised it was staring right at me the entire time. It’s taken from the final refrain of ‘Leo’ but I also felt like it was a bit of tongue in cheek dig at myself. I think my aim for album 2 is to not mention the word ‘ghost’ once.
Have you ever had a ghostly experience or any weird supernatural encounter you couldn’t quite explain?
Strangely, for a guy with a record about ghosts, not really. The album was recorded in a grade II listed mill in Erbistock which was claimed to be haunted.
Square One is such an epic opener. Can you tell us the story of the song? Was that always an album opener?
That one dates back to 2017, and it quickly found its place as a set opener. At the time, I’d just come out the other side of an abusive relationship and moved into a new house. I remember sitting there with my life in boxes, it felt like I’d finally drawn a line under a truly bleak chapter of my life and I was giving it the full Chumbawumba of “you’re never gonna kick me down”. When it came to recording, there was really only one place for it I felt. It’s a little summation of the themes and context of the record.
You said before that you’re “your own worst enemy” on mixes and would happily have released this the day you finished it. Having now lived with it through the full rollout, is there anything you’d change, or are you finally allowed to sit with it and enjoy the thing?
‘Better Shape’ was tracked in early 2016 and I didn’t really think anyone was going to hear it; I can hear issues with my pronunciation of certain words and notes I didn’t quite hit. I feel like gigging more taught me how to look after my voice and I became a bit more precious. I’d say that i’m still happy with everything I’ve released since 2020 (from ‘Courtney’ onwards). I won’t skip those tracks when they come on shuffle, and there isn’t a single moment on the album that makes me cringe. I still listen to it and feel we gave it everything. It was a real honour to have more than just the Aftermath involved - my partner, friends who sent in remote gang vocals, and Campfire Social, who really took ‘Invisible’ and ‘Leo’ to another level.
You’ve been alternating between playing shows around the country as a full band and solo. Is it a different beast when you’re doing full band? Do you prefer one over the other?
I’ve always enjoyed how flexible it is. If one of us can’t make a gig, we can just pivot and do it as a solo, duo, or trio set instead. Or, on the flip side, if a venue tells me they don’t have space for an acoustic act, I can just say, “Oh hey, I’ve actually got a full band too.” There are things I love about both setups. Logistically, solo is just so much easier - it’s just one person to look after (two, if Sarah comes along). One car, one place to sleep, and the soundcheck is a breeze. But honestly, nothing beats getting to show people the music exactly how we all intended it to be heard. Plus, it gets a bit lonely when you’re driving to these places on your own and I really value the time we have to hang out as mates. I have a bit of a hard rule that every song has to work solo as well as it does with the full line-up. That being said, there are definitely tracks I rarely touch solo; ‘CVG’ is one I usually completely forget about until we have a band show.
Nottingham has such a great little community when it comes to DIY. Who are the bands you’d recommend folks check out?
There’s quite a few and I know i’ll get in trouble for not mentioning someone, off the top of my head and limiting to Nottingham you’ve got Pillow Fort, Every Face Becomes a Skull, a-tota-so, Fallowed, Cheap Dirty Horse, Shankland, Willow Bay, Molars, Alex Hale and Ben Mark Smith. Those are the ones that spring to mind off the top of my head.
I’ve been asking all bands this question recently. Which bands’ live videos do you watch the most on YouTube and why?
I watch a lot of the Outbreak sets. Particular favourites are The Hotelier, American Football and Thursday. It’s a shame more of the sets from last year weren’t filmed as that was my first time. Chris Farren’s Audiotree is one I go back to a lot. A case of those songs sounding a lot better than the album in that particular instance.
What’s next for George Gadd?
I feel like since the album came out, I have been pushing myself to write more. I was involved in a Song A Day group in January which was helping me exercise that creative muscle and i’ve been a regular at an open mic where I have been able to test these songs in a space where I feel I can make mistakes. We’ve got a show at Bodega later this year as well as a tour. Alongside that, Little Bribes are now all back in the East Midlands so we’ve also been trying to get together once a month and write with some shows later this year to road test that material.
