Introducing | As It Is

As It Is Final2014 has been a pretty good year so far for As It Is.

The pop-punk quartet released their ‘This Mind Of Mine’ EP, toured the UK and Europe and topped the iTunes Rock Chart.

You may even recognise their front man Patty Walters as he has become a known face on YouTube singing a variety of cover songs.

After the success of their fan-funded EP release, we thought it was time to catch up with the band.

Sit back, relax and let them introduce themselves to you…

Can you tell us more about how the band got together?

Well Andy and Patty met first through joinmyband.com and although nothing immediately materialised they still kept in contact so when Patty met Ben at university the three came together to start writing for a pop-punk band. I met Andy, Patty and Ben also through Join My Band when they advertised for a drummer. I auditioned and although it may sound cliche, as soon as we began playing music together we clicked. Ali joined most recently through knowing Andy at university and that makes up As It Is to date.

Which track should our readers check out if they haven’t stumbled across your music yet?

Personally, my favourite track on our latest EP, ‘This Mind of Mind’, is the opening track ‘Bitter, Broken, Me’ which we currently have a lyric video out for. In my opinion, it is pace, energy and fun all wrapped up in one song which makes it great to play live!

You fan-funded the album release, did you expect to receive the response you did?

The response from the fan funded kick starter blew each and everyone of us away! We were so grateful to be placed in such a fortunate position to record a great sounding EP by those that made pledges. Thank you all!

How did you work through the album process from writing to release?

The writing process for ‘This Mind of Mine’ was completely different from anything we had tried as a band before. All four of us (Andy, Ben, Foley and Patty) locked ourselves away in Patty’s attic with nothing but a drum kit and a guitar each and began trialling all sorts of ideas. The process was refreshing and organic as we felt no pressure on the direction of our writing and we were also confident enough to trial each other’s ideas. I remember finishing writing the four songs that are now on the EP and feeling so proud of them. As previously mentioned, we were then able to head into Stakeout Studios with the money raised from Kickstarter and work on recording the four songs to get them sounding as great as they could.

Once we were all happy with the final sound, the real work began where we had to make the EP available to fans. We opted to make some of the tracks available for online streaming, created a lyric video for ‘Bitter, Broken Me’ and a music video for ‘Can’t Save Myself’. A lot of work then went into releasing the full EP online and in particular ITunes where we made it to number 9 in the iTunes Album Rock Chart two days after it’s release, something we were very proud of. Now, all of our time is going into touring the UK and Europe to promote the EP.

Have you found it’s now easier to write songs as the band progresses?

The simple answer is yes. When we wrote ‘<Blenheim Place' we were all still getting to know each other and our capabilities as musicians/ songwriters. Looking back on hindsight I think we could say that we weren't too sure on what direction to take as a band so we felt that there had to be an element of justification to the songs we wrote. This time round, with 'This Mind of Mine' it felt like the pressure was off as we trusted each other as we were all confident in our capabilities as musicians and as a band. So when we locked ourselves away the creativity flowed and everyone had an equal say in what they felt worked and what didn't. The result was an EP that we are all so dead proud of.

You’re currently on a UK tour, have any gigs stood out in particular?

It sounds like I am sitting on the fence when I say that every city we have played has been great but I do genuinely mean it. The support that has been expressed over this tour thus far has surpassed any expectation that myself or any of us in the band has had, everyone in every city have just been great. However, no one likes a fence sitter so if I was to pick a date so far it would have to be playing in Norwich as after all I do hail from those parts and it was great going back. But more importantly, the venue was packed with people showing so much support for us as a band – it was phenomenal.

Speaking of live sets, which of your shows has been your favourite gig to-date?

That’s a tough question. I really enjoyed opening up for Alistair at the Haunt in Brighton but I think I would have to say starting our last UK tour in Glasgow was special. Having never played anywhere north of St. Albans prior to the tour, it was difficult to comprehend having people queuing outside of a venue miles away from home to see As It Is. It was a surreal experience to walk onto a stage in Glasgow where well over 100 people are calling your name and belting the lyrics to songs we wrote in an attic back at you. Crazy.

Which venue in the UK would be your dream headline venue?

I have always been a believer in optimism so I am inclined to say Wembley Stadium haha! Although I would love that to happen, I think it would be more apt for me to say somewhere like the Brixton Academy as I remember seeing Blink there when I was like 15 and thinking to myself I want to be where Travis is right now!

What have you guys got planned for the rest of 2014?

2014 is going to be busy for us with lots of new and exciting things taking place. However in essence, a lot of our time is going to be taken up with touring and writing new material.

Anything else you wish to add?

I would like to add something funny but I am not funny enough so instead I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported this band from listening to us online, downloading our EP, buying merch or coming to shows. I can speak for all us when I say that it is you guys who makes our hard work worthwhile. Thanks!

Keep up-to-date with the band:
Twitter
Facebook