Rowdy Irish punk rockers Otherkin are hitting the road again in April for their first UK headline tour of 2018 – if their current track record is anything to go by, then it’s going to be carnage.
You’re hitting the UK again next month, are you looking forward to it?
Yeah, we can’t wait. It’s been a good few months since we’ve been on a longer tour and it’s our favourite thing so we’re itching to get back on the road.
What’s the maddest thing that’s happened on tour so far?
Where to start? Almost getting run off the road by a demented van driver in Leicester, bribing border guards to get into Serbia, broken bones; everyday is an adventure.
Luke you seem to enjoy getting amongst the crowd, when did you first jump in the crowd and play?
I can’t remember the first time but it just made sense to it. Our music is fast and fun and best experienced communally so why keep a barrier between band and audience? Otherkin is for everyone.
Do the crowd always react well to it?
Sometimes a little too enthusiastically, so far we’ve seen cracked ribs, a broken ankle and a broken nose, shared again between band and audience.
Which city has had the craziest crowd so far?
I’ll never forget our gig in Paris, that was just pure unbridled madness. One monitor cable actually got ripped apart and the other one blew in the second song; pretty much went the entire show without hearing a thing. Can’t wait to go back there!
You’re playing some smaller venues on the tour, do you prefer intimate gigs to larger shows?
They both have their pros and cons. Intimate shows tend to have a more manic energy to them whereas larger shows can be such a buzz if you get the entire audience on board, I couldn’t choose between the two really.
Do you have any pre-show rituals before you go on stage?
Two beers. Is that a ritual? Probably not but that’s what’s we do.
We caught you for the first time supporting The Dead Kennedys last year, who would be your dream band to tour with?
It’d be so cool to tour with Queens of the Stone Age. They’re just the ultimate live band aren’t they? We got to see them play a secret set at Leeds last summer and they were just top drawer.
After the tour what does the rest of 2018 hold for you?
We’re gonna be announcing some festivals real soon and we’ll probably do some more touring towards the end of the year. Aside from that, we’ll be writing, writing and then some. Stay tuned for more songs!
Written by Johnathan Ramsay
RIDE MUSIC 