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The best bands don’t stick inside the lines, but scribble all over the top in their own unique style. Bright wax crayons at the ready, WELLY – who take to Dot To Dot this May – are one of the most exciting new acts in ages. Check them out with our first DORK x DOT TO DOT festival guide cover feature.
Words: Stephen Ackroyd.
Fresh off the release of their single ‘Shopping’, Southampton outfit Welly are gearing up for a riotous summer that includes a highly anticipated set at this year’s Dot To Dot Festival.
Fronted by the self-proclaimed “ringleader” Welly (Yes, the band is named after him – Ed), the group is a chaotic blend of personalities. At the time of our chat, our eponymous hero is in guitarist Joe’s Honda Jazz, “joyriding around charity shops”. He’s got some Talk Talk CDs; Joe has a sausage roll. Good to know.
“Joe, with the curly hair, plays the guitar,” Welly announces, introducing the band mostly by the universal pop language of haircuts. “Jacob, with the curtains, plays bass; Matt, with the mop, plays the guitars, too; and Hanna, the European, plays synthesisers.”
“Joe, Jacob and I went to school together,” he continues, before verging into what’s either the stuff of pop legend or a bit of TMI. “I met Matt at a sexual health seminar at freshers’ week, and Hanna worked the bar at the indie night we all go to.”
“We have a mutual love of Tears For Fears and Scampi Fries,” explains Welly, summing up the band’s delightfully quirky vibe. Their music, however, tackles weightier themes. “The first album is going to be all about the suburbs,” he reveals. “Jacob, Joe and I all grew up near Southampton in yellow brick utopia. It’s all so fascinating to me – when you and your family and your friends all have the same house, the same telly, the same lawnmower, the same car, the same experiences and holidays and stories to tell, then our differences, as small as they could be, become mountains from molehills.”
Despite their ambition, Welly maintains a refreshingly DIY ethos. Expect small-town gossip, big-town dreams, and a healthy dose of social commentary served up with a side of infectious melodies. Their biggest challenge with ‘Shopping’ wasn’t the music, but the artwork. “I originally wanted to use an old BHS catalogue print of a woman in a trenchcoat, but I couldn’t track down the model,” Welly laments. “The two stickers I went for on the final cover are written on the bag of props from the music video shoot. That’s cost-cutting.”
“It sums up my opinion on Britain quite succinctly,” he explains of the song – a rambunctious introduction for the band to a wider audience. “People moan about the state of this country but do nothing to help their local area; just whine and recline. Middle Britain sits back whilst Rome burns, oblivious to what their apathetic community mindset is doing to the new generation. We want connection, we want community, but they’re shutting it all down.”
Welly draws inspiration from unexpected – but quite excellent – places. “I get more inspiration from old British telly nostalgia than actual music sometimes,” he admits, not quashing rumours there’s at least a small amount of 90s sitcom The Britass Empire at play here (Ask your parents – Ed). The best compliment the band could get, though? “Getting told we remind people of Horrible Histories’ songs. That’s mint.”
“Getting told we remind people of Horrible Histories’ songs. That’s mint.”
Welly
While they haven’t played many festivals yet, Welly has fond memories of their chaotic performance at Victorious Festival in Portsmouth. “We’re a Southampton band, but golly, the Pompey are so welcoming,” he offers. “We moved stages the last two years we’ve played; it’s marvellous to see the same faces, but the crowd grow too.”
“The first year we played it, we didn’t have a drum machine yet, so we loaded the .mp3 files onto Jacob’s phone,” Welly recalls. “He didn’t put it on silent, though, and an aunt rang him during our set, his ringtone booming out over the PA. Fantastic.”
Looking ahead to Dot To Dot, Welly is excited to see Jockstrap and catch up with some new bands. “There are a few new mates on the lineup, hopefully,” he says. “I like what The Dare is doing; I think that’s what my original idea for Welly was, just one bloke and some electroclash tunes. I’m going more out of spite now that I think about it.”
Their ultimate goal? The masterplan is staying secret for now, but they do have one ambition Welly is willing to reveal. “I’d LOVE to play Shepherd’s Bush Empire one day,” he reveals. “It’s where they used to film the Old Grey Whistle Test and loads of old BBC comedy shows. Then, in the nineties, because all the camera equipment was still lying around, bands would use it at the end of their tours to film concert DVDs – The Divine Comedy, The Cardigans, The Beta Band, and later Bjork, Amy Winehouse. I love old, theatre-y venues.”
“One day, I’d love to do a pantomime,” he suggests, unknowingly setting a new most anticipated project we’ll now be asking about in every interview to follow. “A fully Welly show, with a script, costume changes, and ugly sisters.”
“One day, I’d love to do a pantomime”
Welly
But for now, the band is focused on pop on a budget and bringing their brand of suburban angst to the masses. “I’m glad I’m making music in a band that isn’t mopey and pretentious,” Welly admits; Down With Boring and all that. “I hate glum music live. I’ll listen to that in my own free time, thanks. If I’m paying £6 for a pint and £10 for a kebab, I want to laugh, cry, and dance. Not wait for the changeover so I can go out for a rollie. Having people come up to us after a show to tell us it was the most fun they’ve had at a gig is the best.”
It’s easy to see why Welly provoke such a reaction; they really are an antidote to the ‘serious music’ crew. Not that they don’t treat their art with the proper level of care and attention – quite the opposite. More that they know that there are emotional responses more exciting and heart racing than a slow nod from the back of a venue. Exhibit A? Welly’s dissertation project, inspired by Talking Heads’ seminal Stop Making Sense.
This wasn’t your standard dry academic exploration. Welly, ever the innovator, transformed the analysis of David Byrne and co’s artistic brilliance into a multimedia experience through the lens of Capital Letters British Suburban Pop.
“I just wanted to have an excuse to make an album and film on university time,” he admits. “It’s a concert film in a village hall, but also a documentary, a This Country / People Just Do Nothing-esqe look into the band’s inner thoughts about life in Britain’s best budget pop band.”
“It came out surprisingly well,” he continues. “I went to the local film school and put out a casting call for anyone with their own camera who would be willing to work for a meal deal and a free lift. We made a big dinner in the little kitchen of the Village Hall and did the lot in a weekend. I edited and mixed it myself, and we had a big premiere at the same hall a year later. It’s still officially unreleased, apart from one song, and I have since lost the USB the master file is on.”
Not that that’s a problem; all the best pop stars are chaotic. As for what’s next? “There’s stuff coming,” Welly teases, “but you can’t have your pudding until you eat your greens. And these are fantastic greens. Don’t get greedy.” If you need some veg, well, you’re in luck. “Me and Joe work at a veg market; put an order in on Instagram, and we’ll see what we can do.”
With a sound that’s equal parts nostalgia and social commentary, a healthy dose of self-awareness, and a side of vegetable salesmanship, Welly are a band you won’t want to miss. ■
Welly playDot To Dot on Saturday 25th May 2024 in Bristol, and Sunday 26th May 2024 in Nottingham. Get tickets and find out more at dottodotfestival.co.uk now. Follow Dork’s Dot To Dot Festival Guide Spotify playlist here.
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