Hellooooo! I apologize for the hiatus but I'm back now and I've got my very first interview from across the pond!!!!!!! I'm so excited to introduce you guys to Sabatta. They hail from the UK, London to be exact, and I'm more than pleased that frontman, Yinka, agreed to answer some questions for WANLS. Enough from me...I know what you came for, but at the end of the interview, be sure to step into the WANLS listening booth and check out 2 of Sabatta's entire albums.....for FREE, right here on WANLS....yeah, you're welcome:) Now reeeeeead!!!!
WANLS: Tell me the name of your band, how it came about, if you ever went by another name and how you guys formed a band.
YINKA: I formed Sabatta in early 2006 – we had different members – it started off as four piece – 2 guitars. Always was the same name but I’ve been solo before. The idea behind Sabatta is just to do rock n roll – but the Sabatta way – Raw!
WANLS: Introduce me to the band members and whether they play/sing/etc.
YINKA: Yinka - vocals, guitar, Hugo Chaves - bass and backing vocals, Nick Roberts - Drums
WANLS: Throw your sets up! Where do you live and why do you love it?
YINKA: We love living in the fast lane, because if you don't it won't be any better on the other side. (Oops – was I meant to say London?)
WANLS: Do you guys identify with a particular genre?
YINKA: Rock, I guess, but it's hard to say one because we've got such diverse influences – which leads us to your next question ;-)
WANLS: What are your musical influences?
YINKA: So many! I like Rock, metal, hip-Hop, Funk, Soul, Afrobeat, some pop, some grime but not necessarily in that order. Hugo likes Funk, Rock. Nick is in to several types of music and is in a few bands - one is folk, one is electronic, etc.
WANLS: How would you describe your music to someone who has never heard it before?
YINKA: Acid Rock with a Hip-hop bounce, Hip-Rock or maybe just good music.
WANLS: Do you have or are you signed to a record label?
YINKA: Our first two albums have been put out on my label - Blackfriars Entertainment.
WANLS: What are some of your most memorable shows?
YINKA: Shunt and AfroPunk have probably the most memorable for me but I'd say for all of us it'd be the last Shunt how! Shunt is this amazing cavernous in London Bridge station which is on the London Underground system. It's closed down now so it's a piece of history but it was like a club you see in a movie that you wouldn't think existed but it does, it did - it was crazy in there!
WANLS: Who writes your music?
YINKA: I do. Of course Hugo and Nick lend their own inimitable personalities to what they play and we discuss arrangements and jam them out.
WANLS: Tell me about the in-studio/music making process for your band.
YINKA: Well I'll write a tune - I might bring the riffs to the rehearsal room or I might send the guys demo tracks by email (which I've been doing alot lately). We'll then jam it out in rehearsal and try and gig it - see what the response is and then we'll record the tunes once we've got a bunch done. We were in the studio on December 13th and we put down 6 tracks 4 of which were done like that and the other two we hadn't really jammed - I won't tell you which ones are which!
WANLS: What direction do you see the band going in 2010? Any specific plans?
YINKA: Good question. Yeah think the new songs I've written are more diverse and in a sense have a wide appeal. I've concentrated more on making songs than making genre music so it should be interesting to see how it's received!
WANLS: Which do you prefer: studio time/creating new music or touring/live shows?
YINKA: I think we all enjoy both but we'd also all like to do much more of the latter!
WANLS: Your fantasy show or tour line up?
YINKA: Damn! You got the hardest questions ever! Ok for me it's gonna be ACDC/Metallica/Lenny Kravitz/Living Colour/Sabatta.
WANLS: Describe what it’s like to experience your live shows.
YINKA: It's like being at a ritual of some kind and watching the priest/shamen/babalawo being possessed and sending the congregation into a trance as he surfs on the edge of the abyss! You won't forget it in a hurry! ;-)
WANLS: Fill in the blank: If it hadn’t been for ___, we would have ___.
YINKA: If it hadn't been for weed, we would have jumped off a bridge a long time ago.
WANLS: Do you have any new music being released soon?
YINKA: Yes in March we will be releasing Makes Me Feel Alive from the new as yet untitled album.
WANLS: Do you have any upcoming shows?
YINKA: Doing an acoustic show for balcony.tv on Feb 19. Next June we play 100 Club in London.
WANLS: Are there videos to any of your songs?
YINKA: There are a couple of good live videos up at the moment. We're shooting video this month.
WANLS: What's the #1 priority for your band right now?
YINKA: To tour as much as possible...across the country and the world.
WANLS: Plans to tour any time soon?
YINKA: Funny that that was the next question - see above.
WANLS: Where can we find you on the web?
YINKA: E'WHERE!!
Official Website
MySpace
WANLS: How can we buy your music?
YINKA: You can get it on Amazon, iTunes, CD Baby and directly from our website. You can also get it at our gigs.
WANLS: How can we contact you for booking?
YINKA: mail@sabatta.net
WANLS: Fill in the blank: People would never guess that ________________.
YINKA: People would never guess that I like Simon and Garfunkel.
WANLS: Best thing about being in your band?
YINKA: The groupies! Nah really it's just the chance to do something you love and see people enjoy it!
WANLS: Fill in the blank: One day they're probably gonna name a ________ after our band.
YINKA: One day they’re probably gonna name a natural disaster after our band.
WANLS: Last and most importantly, if you were stranded on a desert island with your bandmates, who would go cannibal first?
YINKA: Me, possibly.
Thanks to Sabatta and the good folks over at ReverbNation, you can check out 2 of Sabatta's albums right here for FREE! Just click the play button on the players below and your ears will instantly have the pleasure of rocking to the sounds of Sabatta.
Sierra Says: Sabatta, ROCKS...I look forward to bringing more Sabatta news to WANLS very soon. Thanks guys!
