INTERVIEW: The Parlotones
- Posted on January 29, 2008 3:08 PM
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All the world's a pineapple when you're in The Parlotones
Interview by Katie Spain
I have to strain my ears when I chat to Kahn Morbee, lead singer of South African band, The Parlotones. The phone line is a bad one, but you get that a lot when a band is on tour. Despite the crackle and his strong South African accent, Kahn’s enthusiasm is infectious. And deservedly so; this is a frontman refreshingly free of ego, and willing to admit that when they started out, the foursome weren’t actually all that good. It’s enough to give a vocally-inept journo a glimmer of hope.
Not that Kahn didn’t enjoy the odd sing-along as a child. “I liked to sing but I wasn’t very good. When we started the band, none of us could really play anything. We learnt together and evolved together.”
And evolve they have. After meeting drummer Neil Pauw, the two decided to start a band. Morbee then met guitarist Paul Hodgson at university. Hodgson's younger brother Glenn later joined on bass and the rest is history in the making. “We had the same interests in music and tried to recreate that.”
Since this humble beginning, the band became huge back in their homeland. Number one hits, gold albums, packed out festivals, and an invitation to play the South African leg of Live Aid in front of Nelson Mandela are highlights. They recently signed to Universal and wheeled their sound straight off the plane and onto UK soil. Fugi Film’s use of their track ‘Beautiful’ in an Irish advertisement had a lot to do with their relocation. “We’d gone as far as we could possibly go in South Africa. We’re really trying to break another territory.”
And the best way to do that? Gig your internal stuffing out of course. When I chat to Kahn, The Parlotones are on the tail end of a series of UK gigs. The venues are small but the vibe is a good one. Their recent London Barfly instalment received a double thumbs up. “It was quite late but it was great! There was a full crowd and we had a blast.” Sleep however, is not an option.
“After a gig, you have so much adrenaline rushing through you that you actually want to go and keep partying. It’s a good stage to be at… I mean, it must be terrible to be a Gallagher or something where you can’t move and you’re swamped by media. It’s great to be able to go out and party with the crowd – lots of free drinks!”
When pushed further, Kahn reveals that the tour also involved a lot of... erm, pineapple! "We had a ryder from South Africa that ended up with us here in the UK and it said that we’d like a bowl of fruit wherever we play. For the Newcastle gig, the guy bought us a pineapple. I think he was taking the p***. We left it behind but when we saw people at the gig eating it, we realised we’d left the boot open!"
Pineapples aside, success and recognition is so much better when you’ve experienced life as it could have been. “I’ve been a waiter… I think the worst job was when I taught at a high school for a term. That was horrible. It’s a tough job!” If music hadn’t come into play, Kahn’s not sure what he’d be doing now “I don’t know… I probably would have studied something like law. Yeah, I’d be a lawyer.”
But law, it seems will have to wait. International achievements are racking up – and their latest album ‘RADIOCONTROLLEDROBOT’ is out now. The name speaks for itself really. “Generally, as a society we are controlled by the media. It dictates what’s fashionable, what’s cool, who you should listen to, who the cool people are. Radio doesn’t necessarily mean radio as a format… just media really and how it controls our lives.”
The band’s ‘Dragonflies and Astronauts’ EP is also out. Again, songwriter Kahn delves deep. “It plays on fantasy and how, as humans, we’re often subjected to a mundane life where you get a proper job, you go to uni and study… anything but living the dream. It’s really touching on that. Maybe you should live the dream.”
It is exactly this attitude that will see this band go far. Kahn remains grounded. “Last year we were part of the Live Earth concert… a journalist wrote a list of ten bands to look out for on the MSN site. We were one of the bands (around the world) and that was cool. It was one of those moments you that gives you goose bumps.”
One thing’s for sure, these lads are doing their home country proud. Whether you come across them in person, or observe them from the front row, The Parlotones are worth hunting down. Oh, and Natalie Portman, in case you’re reading this, Kahn cited you as his celebrity crush. If Rockers are your thing, you’d best get in touch. These guys may not quite be The Gallaghers, but that South African twang sure has a certain ring to it.
Related links:
Concert tickets.
The Parlotones MySpace
The Parlotones official site
‘The Parlotones’ single ‘Beautiful’ is out 11th Feb.
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