“Do It Yourself”, according to Wikipedia, is a term “used by various communities that focus on people creating things for themselves without the aid of paid professionals”. In Kubichek!’s case this definition is about as close to everything they stand for as a band as you can get. “You want a sandwich mate?” asks singer Al McDonald before the Geordie newcomers take to the stage in a Surrey nightclub. “Grab a roll and make it yourself then.” See what I mean? But then that’s the beauty of Kubichek!. They wear their DIY hearts on their sleeves and expect nothing in return.
Ever since the Newcastle four-piece formed three years ago in their current line-up, which also includes Mark Nelson (guitar), Frog (bass) and Chris McGreevy (drums), they’ve been slogging their bollocks off criss-crossing the country in their tour van, in between recording a blinding debut with Manics producer Dave Eringa. “We do our best on the budget we’ve got,” shrugs McGreevy, as we retreat to a comfy backstage sofa. “I’ve seen budgets for tours where bands have been spending upwards of £2,000 a night and they’ve been getting about £200 back. With us, we just get paid a fee and that’s what we’ve gotta work with.”
“I think every song has got an element of frustration to it,”
Spitting with explosive guitar-hooks like a Rick Witter fronted Editors turned up to 10, Kubichek!’s tunes reek of inner city aggression. Songs like their ear splitting, spiky new single ‘Nightjoy’ or the heart tugging, moody despair of ‘Hope’s Impossible’ are just two stand-out tracks from what is easily one of the most exciting debut albums in years. “I think every song has got an element of frustration to it,” Al admits. “‘Hope’s Impossible’ for instance is about keeping your head above water. I got the idea for it when I heard this girl on her mobile going on about her dad’s television. It had broke down and she was like panicking going, “What’s me dad gonna do tonight when he gets in from work? He’s gonna be really stuffed cos he hasn’t got his channels”. I thought it was quite laughable and it just made me stop being a miserable bastard.”
Although everyone from fellow Geordie indie stars The Futureheads and Maximo Park to Radio 1 and MTV 2, are bigging up Newcastle’s latest export, both Al and Frog are still having to take up regular day jobs to get by. This is something that clearly “batters” the excitable frontman’s “head in”. “I’m going to the cafe for me fucking dinner and the girl there goes, “Oh aye your video’s great”,” says Al angrily. “But I can’t say anything back cos I’m going upstairs to design a website. It’s headfucking! People see us in the press, on MTV and think, ‘Fucking hell that Kubichek! are on it, they’re doing it now, that whole made it thing’. But if you go to work the next day with the kid who has bought your fucking single, he can’t take it seriously anymore can he?”
Once ‘Not Enough Night’ drops on March 12, hopefully Al’s day job frustrations will be a dark and distant memory especially as the festival season draws in. “To me playing Glastonbury would be the icing on the cake, that would be amazing,” smiles Frog. “I remember seeing new bands tents at festivals last year and they were all really established bands. (Laughs) So we’ll probably get to do the Harry Krishna stage or something like that.”
