Southampton guidehall interview

A big band with big tunes... That's Kosheen and the vast surroundings of the Guildhall couldn't have suited them better. With anthem tunes a-plenty, their Southampton gig was hotly anticipated by faithful fans and new alike. But first I was to get an insight into what makes one third of the Bristol-based trio tick. Markee Substance allowed us to delve into the dark recesses of his mind and fill us in on a few home truths about that music biz we're all so fond to hear more about. On the subject of new album Kokopelli, he showed his no-nonsense attitude and that at the end of the day it's all about getting back to the music,
"When we were touring, we were out of the studio for ages. We were really happy to be back there, we weren't thinking we were under pressure or anything. We enjoyed just being back in there and getting on with it."

And it shows as the performance certainly deals out a great deal of new material with tracks like 'Wasting My Time' and 'All In My Head' receiving rapturous applause from the crowd. It is in this capacity as a live act that Kosheen really shine and Markee is keen to elaborate on,


"When we do a show, we've got the tracks and we switch it down to deeper stuff - it's good when you get totally different reactions for a track that was really up and jumpy and then take it down deeper. You see people thinking and feeling the music and lyrics. 'All In My Head' has been going down really well. That's what I like - the different vibes and appreciation's of certain songs."

Coming across as a mysterious quantity, I was keen to get Markee to open up on his past music exploits and their impact on his contributions to Kosheen. It displayed some surprising results as he revealed,

"I appreciate different types of music. Things like The Happy Mondays. The energy and vibe of their earlier stuff was really good. It was a do-it-yourself scally sound. I've always been into stuff that's cutting edge, something that gets a reaction. I love loads of bands. A few years ago I was really into bands like The Smiths, The Cure and Echo and the Bunnymen. I got right into The Stone Roses, stuff like that. Acid house started happening and I got into that, rave and drum n' bass, classical and jazz. Everything really! I go through phases of liking different types of music. I was really into dub for a year and then I'll really get into orchestral jazz. There's so much music out there. I'll go into a little second-hand record shop and just spend hours flicking through all the weird shit!"

Switching to the subject of lead singer Sian Evans, Markee seems happily ambivalent about the amount of attention she gets at gigs,

"Nobody recognises us which is cool. Sian gets all the attention. We just hang out in the corner and have a quiet drink. It's cool, I like it like that."

Her performance was no exception with all eyes focussed firmly on the feisty singer as she confidently proved why she is a voice to be reckoned with. Vamping it up in the most snug of leather trousers she belted out classics 'Catch' and 'Hide U' with conviction and stole all the hearts of the crowd in one breath. But there's more to the thrill of live performances as I found out when Markee chose to shed some light on what really lies at the heart of the industry,


"You get a lot of people talking about percentages and deals but ultimately you've got to get your music out there. A lot of bands mess about and wait for a deal but times change and you've got to get the music out there and that's the only way to really build a name for yourselves. You need to concentrate on your music, first and foremost. Forget about business - some people would say that's not good advice but I think it is!"

It's this forthright, down-to-earth delivery that won me over and as our time draws to a close there's just enough time for a few choice morsels for us to ponder on,

"We want to write music that cuts across boundaries and just lasts. We're trying to create our own space in the music industry because there is so much shit out there. We want people to turn around and notice the Kosheen sound."

Tonight's performance was an exercise in crowd-pleasing and from the smiles on everyone's faces at the end, I'd say they were pretty darn good at it. If this were anything to go by I'd say they would be remembered for a long while yet.

Lucy Freeman