On Tour With Belle Haven
Belle Haven have released their anthemic emo-rock single I Can’t Find The Words about the loss of a relationship and trying to put the plethora of accompanying emotions into words. Despite the darker theme, the track is a poppy, upbeat offering that shares a new side to Belle Haven, produced with long time collaborator Christopher Vernon (Future Static, Bloom).Belle Haven have taken off on a national tour with Banks Arcade where they have been playing the new track live across the country for the first time. The band also celebrate their addition as main support on RedHook’s ‘Postcard From A Living Hell’ tour in May. The band answer some questions about the new single and the tour so far.
How is it on tour with Banks Arcade and what has been the highlight so far?
It’s great. Banks Arcade have been so kind to us from day one in Brisbane. Not to mention they’re a fantastic live band to get to watch every night. The vibes in Canberra were a highlight for me so far. Every show has been fantastic but there was some special magic in the air in Canberra.
Backing up for a tour with RedHook is there any physical training regime required to keep up with the rigors of touring?
I wouldn’t say there’s anything specific, however the three of us do train a lot, both on and off tour. Honestly I think the thing we should be working on in between tours and in preparation for RedHook is a rock solid sleep regime, that’s probably one of our weaker points.
Lugging gear into Enigma Bar up those stairs in Adelaide must be a challenge?
Don’t even get me started. Although, we played Black Bear Lodge in Brisbane for the first show of the tour and I think that’s worse. It’s a 2-3 story winding and narrow staircase at the back of the venue.
Do you have a favourite spot to go in Adelaide?
Currently, no. Very open to suggestions though. When we were kids our go to was Burp Burrito but I’m pretty sure that’s closed down now. Big sadge.
Are you playing many new songs in the set?
We’ve been playing I Can’t Find the Words on this tour. Traveling to a whole different state and having people sing back songs to us we’ve only just finished and released is a feeling that will absolutely never tire.
Congrats on new single I Can’t Find The Words, what’s the story behind the single?
It really depends how much of a story you want. We actually wrote and demoed quite a few songs prior to ICFTW that just… weren’t quite there, you know? But one day Tom sent us a very rough demo of the intro to ICFTW (which mostly remained exactly the same) with the message “idk if this is Belle Haven… maybe it’s something else” but Mara and I both copped the feels immediately and were like yep, this is the one. Everything just fell so smoothly into place from there. It was ultimately a very easy song to write.
Sonically, how would you compare it to some of your other music?
It’s definitely less heavy than the music we have brought out over the last few years, but we’re more of an emo band now than we’ve ever been, I think.
Are you working towards a new album/ EP?
In short, yes. It’s still very early days but we have indeed been writing a lot of music with zero intentions of slowing that process down.
What are some of the biggest influences amongst the band for the music you are working on now?
Anything emo, we’re vibing it. But I think we’ve collectively been spinning a lot of The Used and Paramore lately. Both incredible bands and very influential for sure.
Beyond the tour, what’s next for Belle Haven?
As you mentioned, we have the RedHook tour in May which we’re very excited about, and we do have a lot of new music planned too. We do have a lot of other cogs outside of the usual touring/new music turning at the moment too, though in standard fashion, there’s only so much I can disclose. You’ll just have to wait and see.
Interview By Rob Lyon
Catch Belle Haven on the following tour dates with Banks Arcade...
On tour with Redhook…
