Maddog recently interviewed the literate and idiosyncratic emerging talent that is Jeremy Warmsley. Without further ado here it is in his own very funny words…

MD: Hi Jeremy, what’s going on?

Jeremy: Not much! First day off in a month and a half. I say ‘day off’ but actually I'm as busy as a bee on its only day off in a month and a half and it has to organise loads of things.

MD: Have you ever been in a band that is not your own?

Jeremy: Yes. In fact right now I'm playing guitar in a band called Fanfarlo - great tunes, good fun. And of course when I was a youngling I was in loads of bands rocking out, playing guitar and such, before I matured into the wise, mature singer-songwriter sitting here now. Ha!

MD: What do you think the difference in approach is between being in a band and being a solo artist, and which do you prefer?

Jeremy: Well, being a solo artist, I get complete creative control over my music. I never have to compromise anything to accommodate another's wishes. Which is nice, although also it means the pressure is on to come up with something completely good all over. However, this is made easier by working with some extremely talented musicians, who frequently come up with stuff way better than what I would have thought of myself. When that happens, the day is cake.

MD: How do you go about writing – do you write lyrics or music first? 
What inspires you?

Jeremy: If only I was in a black Metal band. Then I could come up with an interesting answer to this question like "I only write my lyrics in blood, and I compose my music on a drum made from human skin and bone. I am inspired by death and degradation." Or if I was in an Indie Pop band, I could talk about my hair a lot.  The sad truth is that like all creative people, there is no particular or specific method or inspiration to my writing, bar constant, hard work and as much widespread cultural assimilation as I can fit into my day.

MD: Your music has been described by many as Folktronica. What do you think of this?

Jeremy: I not only approve of it, I condone its use in breakfast cereals. It's just a word. It helps people understand what music sounds like without having to actually listen to it.
(Is that a good thing?)

MD: You studied at Cambridge University – what did you study? What was that experience like? Did it effect your writing style?

Jeremy: I studied philosophy. It was OK but I expended way more effort on music than on studying. I think it did affect my writing style, in the sense that who I am is the product of my experiences and the way I write is down to the person that I am. I wouldn't want anyone to describe my music as phil-rock or anything like that. Ha. phil-rock. I think dance-rock goon Mylo is a philosophy graduate, too, so I guess any similarities between myself and Mylo that you find in my music must be due to the philosophy. Ha ha.

MD: I saw you perform at several open mic nights, including Songs in the Dark – if you could watch yourself perform now, what advice would you give the younger Jeremy Warmsley?

Jeremy: I would advise the young JW not to dabble in time travel, as otherwise he would end up advising himself not to dabble in time travel. Lol!

MD: What are your favourite venues to play?

Jeremy: I played a beautiful venue in Wolverhampton called the Newhampton Arts Centre. A very fine evening it was - it's basically a local community theatre, so they have lots of lights and such to make it look beautiful, and a battered old upright too. Lovely. I love arts centres, basically.

MD: How do you think your first album The Art of Fiction (2006) compares with your second, How We Became (2008), and even the newer stuff like your 5 versions ep?

Jeremy: They're different. When people ask me at merch stands which album they should buy, I tell them to base their decision on the album art. That's not so facetious, actually, because the difference in the art is very representative of the difference in the music. The Art of Fiction is more naive, a much younger-sounding record to me, concerned with the trivialities of youth; it's also very egocentric - I really believed people would care about the little world I'd built myself. It's also a little twee (signified by the little bird). The second album is more mature, darker, but maybe less idiosyncratic, too. The 5 Versions EP is just a joke, really. It has an Abba cover in the style of the Beach Boys.

MD: You toured with Regina Spektor – what was she like?

Jeremy: She's amazing! It was incredible to watch her play every night and just totally pull out an amazing performance, every night. Very professional and slick (in the good way; that is to say, she didn't fuck up and she had her shit together), but still bright and engaging.

MD: You're part French – have you played any gigs abroad? Do you speak fluent French?

Jeremy: I understand French fluently but don't speak it so well. It's nice to be a little foreign; people find my accent and idiosyncratic use of words "cute", apparently, which is odd as I would expect it would make me want to claw peoples eyes out with a fork. I've played Paris three or four times, toured Germany, toured Japan, and played in USA and Belgium, and Austria. It was very exciting at the time, but now I struggle to remember many salient details. Apologies!

MD: You're signed to Transgressive Records – how did you initially get signed to them? What do you think of the other artists on their roster?

Jeremy: I met them in a sex bar. Tim and Toby were rimming each other and were initially very annoyed with me for interrupting them with my demo. They soon changed their tune when they heard the music though!!! I am well into most of the acts on Transgressive. I've toured with most of them and most of them are really nice. Transgressive is good.

MD: You feature on the Songs for Survival charity album for Survival International – how did you get involved in that? Do you support any other charities? What was it like recording with Mystery Jets and Adem?

Jeremy: A friend of a friend was putting the album together and asked me to contribute. I think charities are great, obviously. I don't, at present, do any regular charity work. I pay a small subscription to Amnesty International, since you ask, and I recently played at a fundraiser for Barnados. Charities, if you're listening, I'm up for it. Mystery Jets are old pals and Adem was working with my then-girlfriend, so I roped 'em in as they were more famous than me, in the hope that that would act as an incentive for people to go out and buy the album, seeing as my presence on the album was pretty unlikely to garner huge sales... actually it was a real pleasure working with Mystery Jets; they're all very talented and inventive musicians and I hope to work with them again. I've supported them at least once per year every year since 2005. They're good 'uns.

MD: You ran a short story competition where the winner had his story adapted into a track – what inspired you to do this? What type of stories do you like best? What's your favourite book?

Jeremy: I like stories. I like putting them in songs. I thought it'd be nice to turn someone else's story into a song. I didn't expect all the controversy (there wasn't actually any controversy, I'm just trying to make this seem a bit more interesting). Oh gawd! My favorite book this week is What Is The What by Dave Eggers, the extremely sad story of a young boy's life as a refugee in Sudan. It made me cry on the train.

MD: Which bands/artists are you watching out for in 2009?

Jeremy: Gossamer Albatross, A Classic Education, Tawny Owl, Stricken City, Paul Dixon, Kit Richardson & Three Trapped Tigers.

MD: What's on the cards for you in 2009?

Jeremy: Lots of production work, lots of gigging & eventually album number 3. Dig it!

Questions > Anna Dobbie
Photos > Franc Botha and Rhian Brighton