INTRODUCING....DEATH OF HI FI

Death Of Hi Fi are an trio from Oxford comprising Andy Hill, Dan Clear and Lucy Cropper. Performing a rather tasty mix of electronic, dub and hip hop, the band have been picking up quite a following down and, this weekend, they're playing a huge show at the Truck Festival, sharing a bill with the likes of The Charlatans, Public Service Broadcasting and Peter Hook & The Light. I caught up with Andy Hill, a friend of mine and fellow Liverpool FC sufferer to find out a bit more about the band.

APA: So - who are Death Of Hi Fi? 

AH: It started off as idea I had in my bedroom to make weird, challenging electronic music, very much influence by the L.A. Beat scene (Flying Lotus, Mr Dibiase etc) - short experimental tracks with clipped kicks and snare, filters and off beat rhythms. Things changed when I met Dan at Record Store Day and we decided to work together. Dan brought the opposite; long songs with structure and melody which seemed to work quite well. It was a loose project originally based around working with rappers and singers from all over the world, but that meant it was impossible to play the tracks live so we looked for a permanent vocalist. Luckily, we found Lucy who was looking to work on some new material With her on board, our style evolved with more chord progressions and richer, deeper "proper" songs.

APA: Tell us about your sound

AH: It's basically a compound of all our influences. I come from a Hip Hop production background, but grew up loving electronic music such as Kraftwerk, Gary Numan and Jean Michel Jarre (I was young). (APA - nothing wrong with a bit of JMJ now and again). Dan came from a more metal background but also had a love of dance music. Lucy has very wide tastes and I wouldn't know where to begin describing them. This means that elements of all these influences can be felt in our tracks but we always try to make the music sound natural rather than contrived. It's why our next album will take in several genres because we want to make tracks we feel are natural rather than try and focus on one genre too much.

APA: You're already one album plus numerous live shows into your career following 2012's Anthropocene. How does the first incarnation of Death Of Hi Fi compare to the band that will take to the stage at Truck Festival?

AH: It's a totally different animal. We used to hide behind our stage masks as we felt a bit self conscious about playing in front of people whilst standing behind laptops. That was why we used to make weird videos to distract the crowds from the us seemingly doing nothing. With Lucy on board, not only has the sound evolved, but live we are much more engaging. 

Death Of Hi Fi - (L-R) Dan, Andy, Lucy

APA: Looking at the festival, you've ended up on a high profile bill with the likes of The Charlatans and Peter Hook there. How did it all come about?

AH: We've enjoyed strong support form the guys at BBC Introducing for a few years and we got on the shortlist to play a couple of times but never got picked. This year I think the evolution in our sound maybe convinced them that we belong there. I'm proud that we are an electronic act who more than hold our own in the midst of a more indie focussed city in Oxford.

APA: What can we expect from you at the festival?

AH: It depends on whether or not I'm allowed to drink before we go on! Seriously though, we've been putting together a high energy show that will hopefully satisfy the people that already know us and interest some new folk as well. Either that or I strip naked and run amok. (Not happening!)

APA: What are the band's future plans?

AH: We are releasing an e.p. at the end of August/beginning of September so we're finishing that up just now. We're also going to record the bulk of the album over the Summer. It's all written and demoed but needs putting together. It's hopefully going to tell a story; the first album was a wider look at humanity from a neutral point of view whereas this one is a much more personal look at an individual's world.

Thanks very much to Andy for sparing the time between rehearsals and the studio. The band have given me a free track for you all to download. Go to http://deathofhifi.co.uk/ and grab yourselves Serenity which I know you're going to love

Meantime, if you're going to Truck Festival, make sure you catch Death Of Hi Fi and keep an eye out here, on their website and on their Facebook page for news of the upcoming e.p, album and future live shows.