Restarts is one of my absolute favouritebands in
punk. I become really happy when Kieran decided
to answer my questions so here we go….march-2023
It was a while since you started Restarts. How,
when and why did you start Restarts?
K: We all met and formed the band in 1995 in
Hackney, East London. I suppose we were bored
and didn’t want to work.
You are three in the group now if I´m right
Kieran, Jeremy and Robin. How many of you have
been in the group all the time and which other
members have gone through the group?
K: I am an original member since 1995 and have
had 3 drummers and 3 guitarists
1995 – Kieran (Bass/vox) – Darragh (Drums Vox) –
Mik (Guitar Vox)
2002 – Kieran (Bass/vox) – Darragh (Drums Vox) –
Alan Campbell (Guitar Vox)
2003 – Kieran (Bass/vox) – Darragh (Drums Vox) –
Robin (Guitar Vox)
2007 – Kieran (Bass/vox) – Bram (Drums Vox) –
Robin (Guitar Vox)
2017 – Kieran (Bass/vox) – Jérémy (Drums Vox) –
Robin (Guitar Vox)
Groups before for you three or do you have any
groups on the side of Restarts?
Kieran: Armed and Hammered 1991-94 Toronto,
Canada
-
Music in Our Underpants (current)
Robin: Short Bus Window Lickers, London UK
-
Butcher Baby (current)
Jérémy: Shot, London, UK
Your latest record came 2019 and was called
Uprising, any plans for a new record?
K: Yes we just started to tour Uprising and got
shut down by the pandemic. On top of the
pandemic all three of us suffered physical
injuries preventing us from being able to play
up until September 2022. Now that we are back in
action yes we would like to record something
new!
How was the covid-time for you as a band, did
you play streams or was the band not doing
anything?
K: Well at first we were streaming separate
online projects. We did one Restarts online
performance in lieu of Punk Rock Bowling being
cancelled. All bands scheduled to play were
asked to do a live stream performance. It went
okay but is not the same as live face to face
gigs.
You have a done a lot of songs through the years
of course, is there many songs that you have
recorded which isn´t out on records? Can we get
us a big box with all your songs and a lot of
unreleased stuff?
K: Yeah we don’t really have unreleased music or
outtakes unfortunately. I mean we do have a
couple of songs only out on singles which we
could include in a discography rarities. We will
have to think about that one.
Your lyrics is always political I think, which
is your most unpolitical song you have done?
K: I would suggest our early song “Boozin” isn’t
very political. However it was written about a
friend Eamon who used to always joke that “Im
giving up this Boozin lark” as he was opening
another bottle of booze. We would all laugh but
sadly he ended up dying very young from liver
failure so it now contains a very personal
foreboding message.
Please tell me a little about following songs?
First world problems:
This was written by Robin and I feel it came out
of his working in the Calais Jungle (migrant
camp) where he volunteered for months. When you
see that much desperation daily and then return
home and see people losing their shit over some
trivial inconvenience it makes you want to say
‘check your privilege’.
20 years:
This is personal rites of passage story of when
Robin moved to the UK and then his disbelief
when Brexit happened and all EU passport
holder’s eligibility to reside in the UK, came
into question.
Shut doors:
I wrote this as an homage to the classic Demob
song “No room for you” as sadly venues are still
shutting down at an alarming rate. It is soul
crushing when your favourite meeting place shuts
down.
When you do songs, which comes first, the lyrics
or do you do the music first and are you doing
the songs together or how is it when you do a
new song?
K: For myself I always write the music first,
then listen to it over and over until a lyric
comes into my head. I know Robin has done the
opposite on Uprising (where he wrote lyrics
first). We usually write and compose our own
individual songs and then present them to the
rest of the group and they add their input. We
usually divide up the lyrics so both of us (Me
and Robin) can deliver them at full intensity.
But the song Black Dog we all wrote the music
together, which was a first for us. We were very
happy with the results so we hope to do that
again.
To do new songs and only release them digital,
is that something for you. Or can´t you feel
that you have released something if you don´t
get it oput on CD/LP?
K: Yeah I think because we have always released
a physical product I would find it weird to have
it ‘only be digital’. Plus the economic reality
is that it would be impossible to exist from the
streaming payments we get. All bands need to
have merchandise at show to survive. You should
have a word with your fellow countryman, Daniel
Ek, and tell him to pay us artists more!
Please tell me a little about the thought with
the split-single with Subhumans, they have a
song called 99% and you have one called The One
Percent, what was the thought?
K: This was actually a beautiful coincidence.
Our Label, Pirates Press Records, asked us if we
wanted to do a split single, we of course
replied yes. When we had finished recording our
song (the One Percent) I got an email from Dick
Lucas to discuss artwork (as I was illustrating
the EP cover) I mentioned our song title. He
replied straight back in disbelief saying that
their song was called the 99%? So it was really
special that we had randomly picked the same
topic.
Punk is the thing we call your music, what does
punk mean to you, is it only a music style or a
lifestyle? Have your thought on punk changed
through all years you have been playing?
K: For me it has ended up being a life style
choice. I chose to drop out from society as much
as I could when I was younger because I honestly
didn’t want to be a part of all this corrupted
greed. Eventually we find ourselves being
compromised as we get older but I still find
that people who have grown up through the punk
scene tend to have a more compassionate outlook
on life and politics. Basically, I get along
with most people who were invested in the punk
movement (unless of course they turn out to be a
right-wing conspiracy nut jobs).
If you compare when you started as a band and
nowadays, what is the biggest chance when you
play live?
K: So if you mean what was the biggest change? I
think we obviously are bit better at playing our
instruments and like to make sure we do a good
sound check to ensure the live gigs goes well.
Have you ever been in Sweden and played?
K: Yes, we have played a few times in Sweden. We
did the Punk illegal gigs in Stockholm and a
bunch of others that I can’t recall right now.
But we always love it there.
Which countries have you been and played in and
which country is best to play in?
K: We have played most of Europe. Scandinavia
and Canada, USA, Colombia, Brasil, Buenos Aires,
Chile, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia
and New Zealand. Its very hard to say which is
the best to play? I think Germany has one of the
best tour circuits for punk bands but I
personally always love when we play a new
country that we have never played before. I love
that fresh excitement and energy at those gigs.
Have you heard any good swedish bands that you
like?
K: Yes over the years I have loved a lot of
Swedish punk. Anti Cimex probably at the top.
Also No Security, Wolf Brigade, Disfear and
recently Viagra boys. I used to have Really Fast
vol II compilation LP and played the hell out of
that in the 80’s.
When you play live, how does the audience look
like, which ages? Do you miss any type of people
on your concerts?
K: This really depends on which country you
play. In the UK you get a lot of the older crowd
and in places like South America and Indonesia
it is mostly young people. But I’m not fussy,
I’m just happy if ANYONE wants to see us.
Do you play any covers live, if you do, which?
K: Haha, not so much really. We usually do
covers on our albums but they are done tongue in
cheek and not really intended to be played live.
I guess the one that we used to play a lot was
Times Hard (Pioneers) which kind of kick started
us to adding some ska type songs to our set. In
the early days when we were still learning how
to play we used to cover Holocaust – Crisis,
Paranoid – Sabbath, Don’t talk to me – GG Allin,
¾ Dead – Rudimentary Peni, Meanwhile –
Discharge.
How is to live in England right now, with
racists, Brexit and political overall?
K: It is getting tougher all around the world as
we seem to be sliding to the right and anything
left wing is being dismissed as “woke culture”.
Fortunately living in London it is still quite
progressive. The majority of people living in
London voted to remain in EU, it was in the rest
of the country that the UKIP party convinced
people to vote for the Tory party and for
Brexit. This was all built on a racist lie that
migrants will flood the UK and steal all our
jobs and housing.
Do you think that your lyrics can change any
peoples mind? Have you any example on that?
K: It is common to hear feedback from fans who
say our music really helped them through a hard
time in their life, which is always nice to
hear. But yeah I think lyrics can help persuade
people towards a different opinion. I cant
recall any exact examples, but I know from
myself listening to bands changed my outlook on
the world and what I believed in.
Have some of your fans did something really
weird with your logo on it´s body or something
like that? Tattoos or anything else?
K: Yeah one person has his whole back tattooed
with a Restarts theme. And of course I based the
Outsider drawing from a London punk, who now has
to deal with people around the world getting his
face tattooed on their body. I didn’t think that
through when I chose his photo as reference
material.
Is there any good bands around in England today,
both old and new ones that is worth to mention?
K: Caution Elderly People (new young band from
outside London)
Cabeças Cortadas (Brasilian Hardcore formed in
London)
Contract Killer (Cambridge London based band)
Which are the records which you must have in the
tourbus?
K:
usually something NOT punk: Something like AC
DC, sometimes comedy recordings (Doug Stanhope
etc)
Which is the record ...
-Which take you into punk?
K: Never mind the Bollocks- Sex Pistols
-Which made you sound like you do?
K: Death Church - Rudimentary Peni
-Which you have wanted to be part in? (Except
your own ones)
K: Are we not Men - Devo
-Which was the first record you ever bought?
K: Heart of Glass single - Blondie
-You have but you´re a little bit ashamed of but
you like anyway?
K: Jesus Christ Super Star - Andrew Lloyd Webber
If you could choose five bands , both dead and
alive to have a concert with your band, which
five have you been chosen or do you already
played together with all your favourite bands?
K: AC/DC, Devo, Crass, Cramps and Anti Cimex
To play aggressive music like you do, is it a
good way to get out frustration and be a nicer
person?
K: Yes exactly! I read a study recently that
said people who play aggressive angry music are
generally very nice relaxed people!
Is it much interviews? Is it boring?
K: We do maybe a few a year. No I would never
say it is boring if someone is interested in
your band.
Which is the most boring question and which is
the question you want to have but you never get?
K: Most boring (but very common) question is
“tell us about how you started”
Your name is Restarts, have you ever been regret
that you are named so and was it any other names
you thought of back then?
K: No I can’t recall any other suggested names.
There was a debate whether to call it “Restart”
or “The Restarts” but we went with the latter. I
feel that band names lose their meaning once the
band becomes known.
Beer is expensive in Sweden, I do beer myself
and love beer. You haven´t thought of doing a
Restarts-beer. If you do which type would it be
and what have it been called. Or maybe you´re
straight edge?
K: I do like beer and used to make my own back
in Toronto. I made a perfect summer brew using
honey and nice hops to make a flavourful lager.
I also used to make cider which is very easy to
do. We could all that “Restarts OUT-cider”.
Do you buy much records, or is it only Spotify
and those type of things to listen to music? Any
good record store?
K: We end up with a lot of traded music from
gigging and meeting new bands, we discover a lot
of bands this way.
There is a great independent record store in
Camden called All Ages Records! Always check
them out when visiting London.
Which is your own favorite song among your own
songs? And which song is the people choice?
K: I guess Frustration is a lot of fun to play
and it takes me right back to when we started
the band. It is quite popular with the audience.
Outsider is popular with the fans as well and
fun to play, especially when the audience sing
“Coz Im OUT of Cider!” haha
Futureplans for the band?
K: To write some new material and keep touring
Futureplans for yourself?
K: Continue doing Restarts and hopefully get
back the USA and continue gigging with my
husband doing Music in Our Underpants (comedy
punk covers duo) and a new electronic project
called Junkyard Alchemists
Wisdomword?
K: Love what you HAVE, before life teaches you
to love what you’ve lost!
Something more to add?
K:Thank you for the interview, Peter, and please
follow us online, cheers Kieran
https://www.facebook.com/therestarts
https://twitter.com/the_restarts
https://www.youtube.com/@therestartschannel