Swim School | |
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Background information | |
Origin | Edinburgh, Scotland |
Genres | |
Years active | 2020–present |
Labels | LAB Records[1] |
Members |
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Past members |
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Swim School are a Scottish indie rock band from Edinburgh. Formed in 2020, the band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Alice Johnson, bassist Lewis Bunting, and drummer Billy McMahon. All three members share songwriting credits.
Their debut EP, Making Sense of It All, was released in 2021, featuring singles "Outside" and "Anyway".[2] They would then subsequently release singles leading into 2023, including "Delirious" and "Don't Leave Me Behind", which would appear on their 2023 EP, Duality.
History
2018-2021: Formation and Making Sense of It All
Swim School were formed in late 2018;[3] Alice Johnson and Lewis Bunting met through their shared music course in college,[4] on which Johnson was the only woman,[5] while Bunting later introduced Johnson to Matt Mitchell, who knew him from school.[4] Bunting and Mitchell had previously been in bands before Swim School, while Johnson had not.[6] Nairn Milne later joined the band, who knew Bunting and Mitchell through a friend.[7] The band's debut single, "Sway", was released in March 2019.[8]
"When I was on that stage that night, without any real experience performing in a band, I was probably the most nervous and most insecure I had ever been. I had never sung in front of anyone before. And just to add to my nerves and the pressure, there was this incredibly sexist guy right at the front saying these horrible, horrible things and shouting throughout. I was young; I had no idea how to deal with it. I didn't know what to do – do I kick him out or what? In the end I just stayed quiet. I played the whole set but at some points I was holding back the tears. I was proud of myself for that."
Johnson in 2020[5]
Their debut performance was in Galashiels,[5] and was in support of Indigo Velvet, another Edinburgh-based band.[3] Johnson told the Alloa Advertiser in October 2020 that their set had been marred by a "40-something stranger" heckling sexist abuse at Johnson before and during the performance, prompting her to leave the stage in tears.[5] Swim School spent around a year gigging; the COVID-19 pandemic caused the band to concentrate on writing. They met up again after the first lockdown, and invited Indigo Velvet's guitarist Billy McMahon along; after a period of him assisting with livestreams, he was invited to join the band properly in June 2020.[4]
The band released an EP, Volume 1,[9] and then the singles "Let Me Inside Your Head" and "Outside", by which time Milne had left the band.[10] "Outside" was released in May 2021, and was written about cutting toxic people out of lives.[10] The following month, they released "Anyway" and announced their second EP, Making Sense of It All, which comprised tracks about Johnson's mental state over lockdown,[11] and was released in August 2021.[12] After releasing Making Sense of It All, Swim School spent a period gigging,[13] during which Mitchell also left the band.[14]
2022-present: Duality
Swim School released the single "Kill You" in November 2022,[14] which Johnson had written the previous February[13] about being comfortable enough in a relationship to show quirks.[14] In February 2023, they announced their second EP Duality, which had been recorded at Narcissus Studios in London and produced by Iain Berryman, and released "Delirious", which Johnson had written in a fit of rage after suffering from constant misogyny from sound engineers during festival season.[15] A further single, "Don't Leave Me Behind", was released in April 2023,[16] with Duality released in June 2023,[17] two weeks before a re-release of album track "Bored", a more positive derivative of "Delirious".[18]
March 2023 would see the band support Lovejoy on their 2023 Inselaffe Tour,[19] as well as releasing their latest single "Bored" within the same month of Duality's release, June. Two further singles, "Give Me A Reason Why" and "To Grow" would see the band into 2024, along with the announcement of their first headline tour, the "Seeing It Now Tour" with acts including Lizzie Esau in support.[20]
Artistry
The band used a May 2020 interview with Bodega Social Club in Nottingham to cite Jaws, Wolf Alice, Pale Waves, and Palace as influences;[7] asked who their "biggest influences" were by Clout in May 2021, they mentioned Foals, Wolf Alice, The Cure, Slowdive, Ben Howard, Boards of Canada, and Paolo Nutini,[6] and in a January 2024 interview with The Skinny, the band noted that they were inspired by My Bloody Valentine, the Smashing Pumpkins and Slowdive. Johnson used the last of these to state that she had idolised Taylor Swift and Beyoncé growing up, and described the pair as "two very strong and powerful women who never let men hold them back or tell them what to do".[21] The band covered Swift's "Love Story" for a BBC live session in May 2021[22] after deciding to incorporate a cover into the set and rummaging through some Spotify playlists; the following month, Andy Von Pip of Under the Radar noted that their rendition "turned a sweet, romantic optimistic pop song into a heavy dystopian doom rocker".[4]
Johnson additionally noted in a 2021 interview with Dork that Wolf Alice's lead singer Ellie Rowsell was her inspiration for being in a band, with Swim School using the interview to describe themselves as a "Tesco Value" version of that band,[2] and Bunting used an August 2021 interview with Guitar.com to note that he was a big Metallica fan growing up and wanted to be the band's James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett.[23] The band's music style has been described as "a Halsey-fronted version of Nirvana",[24] as well as being compared to My Bloody Valentine[25] and Johnson's vocals have been noted as "Hayley Williams-esque".[26]
Awards and accolades
Lists
Publisher | Listicle | Year[a] | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
Dork | "Hype List 2024" | 2023 | Placed | [27] |
Tours
Headlining
- Seeing It Now Tour (2024)[20]
Supporting
Notes
- ^ Indicates the year of ceremony. Each year is linked to the article about the awards held that year, wherever possible.
References
- ^ Farr, Jacob (10 July 2022). "Edinburgh music map launched to showcase the best venues and hotspots in the capital". Edinburgh Live. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ a b Holden, Finlay (23 August 2021). "Swim School: "BASICALLY, WE'RE TESCO VALUE WOLF ALICE"". Dork.
- ^ a b "Under the Radar: swim school". The Scotsman. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
- ^ a b c d Von Pip, Andy (25 June 2021). "Swim School on Expanding Their Sound During Lockdown and Their Upcoming Debut EP". Under The Radar. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ a b c d "Swim School's Alice Johnson will continue to battle sexism in the music industry". Alloa Advertiser. 9 October 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ a b "Who TF are swim school?". Clout. 10 May 2021. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ a b Keirl, Sam (15 May 2020). "Interview: swim school". The Bodega. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "Edinburgh-native Swim School debut the joyous single 'Sway'". The Student. 13 March 2019. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "In Conversation With: swim school". studentnewspaper.org. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
- ^ a b "Edinburgh's swim school release heavyweight angst-anthem "Outside"". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "swim school thrash out their vulnerable side on "Anyway" | Best Fit". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "Swim School establish themselves as bold, brash, and bright on Making Sense Of It All". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ a b Taylor, Sam (1 February 2023). "Swim School GET ANGRY TO KICK AGAINST THE SEXIST PRICKS WITH THEIR NEW RIGHTEOUS RAGER 'DELIRIOUS': "I'D HAD ENOUGH"". Dork. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ a b c Holden, Finlay (16 November 2022). "Edinburgh indie-rock trio swim school have returned with their vulnerable new single, 'kill you'". Dork. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ Forstneger, Steve (1 February 2023). "Swim School's "Delirious" teaches how to bat lashes and give the finger". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ Taylor, Sam (5 April 2023). "swim school have released a new single, and confirmed a London headline show". Dork. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "Swim School - Duality EP". Dork. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "Swim School | English | Metal Magazine". metalmagazine.eu. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ a b @livejoy (16 February 2023). "ALL SUPPORTS ANNOUNCED for Lovejoy Inselaffe Tour '23!" (Tweet). Retrieved 2 March 2024 – via Twitter.
- ^ a b "Swim School HAVE ANNOUNCED A HEADLINE UK TOUR". Dork. 22 January 2024. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ "The Skinny On... Swim School Q&A". www.theskinny.co.uk. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "BBC Introducing in Scotland, Swim School in Session". BBC Radio Scotland. 21 May 2021. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "Swim School on their debut EP, their love of Strymon pedals and opening up about mental health". Guitar.com | All Things Guitar. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ Mortensa, Mala (29 March 2021). "10 emerging Scottish bands who are innovating alternative music". Alternative Press. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ Pollock, David (29 July 2021). "The Scotsman Sessions #266: Swim School". The Scotsman. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ "Women Rock! Day 2024: Female fronted bands to watch out for in 2024". Skiddle. 4 January 2024. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ "INTRODUCING THE BUMPER END-OF-YEAR DOUBLE ISSUE OF DORK, FEATURING OUR ANNUAL NEW MUSIC EXTRAVAGANZA, THE HYPE LIST". Dork. 5 December 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2024.