This Feeling Band Of The Month: The Blinders

Visceral political punk rock with psych overtones...

Way back when – the early 70s, to be exact – a stagnant music scene faced a new obstacle.

Kids in slums, in squats right across London were forming new bands, and their highly politicised, scuzzed up take on psychedelia's tattered final chapter proved to be a blunt instrument against the mainstream.

Well, it looks like history is about to repeat itself, but in the faded industrial towns of northern England. The Blinders lead the charge, with the band moving to Manchester to pursue their carnage-laden assault in the moribund state of popular culture.

The taste-makers at This Feeling have long been entranced by the band's fetid charms and by their outlandish live shows and pointed political statements.

With each member in their teens, The Blinders are the voice of youth: raw, untutored, and telling it like it is. Here's a quick intro…

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Introduce yourselves, The Blinders…
Thomas (vox, guitar), Charlie (bass), Matt (drums).

Describe your sound in five words…
A spellbinding punkadelic-esque Roman orgy.

What inspired you to start a band?
The will to break free from the day shift, to do something and say something. Music makes us glad to be alive.

Influences…
Beat/punk poets, music that isn’t awful, and any literature or experience which connects with us and excites us.

Highlight of The Blinders' career so far…
Leeds Festival was a marvel, great vibes, great people, vague memories.

Ambitions…
Corbyn government! And Donald Fart/Hillary Clinton ‘Hell in a Cell’ wrestling match.

Best three new tunes…
The Strawberries – 'Laburnum House' (Thomas)
Kate Tempest – 'Europe Is Lost' (Charlie)
Any CABBAGE tune, but they’ve had enough smoke blown up their arse for the year I think (Matt)

Favourite live show…
Favourite we’ve played would be sell out at Deaf Institute – real buzz and felt a part of something. Favourite we’ve seen would be Moonlandingz at White Hotel, talk about Zone Fuck Me.

Heroes
It depends what you mean by a hero. To play the game, it’d be Kerouac, Cave, Cobain. But we shouldn’t really put our faith and undying love in fellow mortals, “Even the President of the United States must sometimes have to stand naked” and all that. Be your own fucking hero.

– – –

Watch: The Blinders 'Swine'

Catch The Blinders at the following shows:

November
11 Birmingham Rainbow
16 Leeds Lending Room(This Feeling w/ Fronteers)
17 Hull Fruit (This Feeling)
19 Sheffield Rocking Chair (This Feeling w/ Fronteers)

December
2 Nottingham Rough Trade (Strummerville)
20 Doncaster Social
31 Manchester Living Room (New Years Eve Mega Party)

January
14 London Nambucca (This Feeling Big in 2017 show)
21 Manchester Night And Day (This Feeling Big in 2017 show)

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