{"id":68661,"date":"2020-10-25T08:39:08","date_gmt":"2020-10-25T13:39:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=68661"},"modified":"2020-10-25T08:52:57","modified_gmt":"2020-10-25T13:52:57","slug":"interview-with-tyla-campbell-phil-campbell-and-the-bastard-sons-the-people-the-poet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2020\/interview-with-tyla-campbell-phil-campbell-and-the-bastard-sons-the-people-the-poet\/","title":{"rendered":"Tyla Campbell"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

by Alexandra Mrozowska
\u2014 Senior Columnist \u2014<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA family in harmony will prosper in everything\u201d, goes the old Chinese proverb, and in the world of rock \u2019n\u2019 roll no one\u2019s even going to argue. Obviously, one could say that every band is a bit like a family \u2013 although many of them dysfunctional \u2013 but from the Young brothers to the Wilson sisters to multigenerational incarnation of Van Halen, it seems that there\u2019s no business like family business. It also works in the case of Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons, a band founded by the longtime Mot\u00f6rhead guitarist Phil Campbell after Lemmy Kilmister\u2019s death and comprised in three fifths of his own sons (and Neil Starr on vocals). But obviously, the Campbell brothers also hone their musical craft elsewhere. Todd and Dane play together in Straight Lines, whereas the youngest of the three, Tyla, is a guitarist for the Alt Rock band The People The Poet for quite a few years now. And as 2020 brings not only a new full-length album by Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons, \u201cWe\u2019re The Bastards\u201d,\u00a0 but also a collection of demos and b-sides by The People The Poet entitled \u201cThe Light Of Day\u201d, we chatted with Tyla about both \u2013 as well as his rock \u2019n\u2019 roll upbringing in the Spice Girls era…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Hardrock Haven: Being Phil Campbell\u2019s son and playing in a band with him and your brothers, are you sick and tired of the press asking about this aspect of your musical career?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: (laughs) I don\u2019t think so. I think we\u2019re always gonna be asked that question. It\u2019s such a strange combination \u2013 you don\u2019t see many Rock bands with the father and the three of his sons, so it\u2019s a very strange dynamic, but I think we work well together. I\u2019d say that being in a band with anyone is always gonna be like being in a family anyway, so actually it isn\u2019t that much different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: But let\u2019s start from a different angle anyway \u2013 your father obviously taught you a lot, but what do you think you taught him or how did you influence him \u2013 and the same with your brothers?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I think it works well in a band because we\u2019re all cover different generations and we\u2019re all different ages, so when it comes to songwriting, we have different influences. So, it\u2019s kind of a nice melting pot. My dad has his more Classic Rock influences from the \u201860s, \u201870s and \u201880s, whereas my older brother Todd and the singer Neil Starr were brought up in the Grunge era, so they have more \u201890s influence. It\u2019s a bit of everything. But what could I have taught my dad…? Maybe it shows in how different he is these days than he was when he was in Mot\u00f6rhead \u2013 he\u2019s a lot more low-key and I think he\u2019s got used to that. But I think he prefers playing live more now, \u2018cause he\u2019s up close and personal with the crowd and he gets to see reactions on the [people\u2019s] faces… It\u2019s good to be a part of a nice, old-fashioned, sweaty gig (laughs).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Absolutely! There\u2019s certain premise about the Bastard Sons to kind of carry the torch left behind by Mot\u00f6rhead. What\u2019s your approach to that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: We wouldn\u2019t start if Mot\u00f6rhead was still going. So I think it\u2019s natural thing for people to think we\u2019re carrying on the torch. And also, a lot of Mot\u00f6rhead fans are going to naturally progress into our fans. When we\u2019re writing songs, we don\u2019t actually try to sound like Mot\u00f6rhead, but as my dad played the guitar there for over thirty years, naturally some songs may sound a bit like Mot\u00f6rhead. I guess a lot of people are expecting a Lemmy soundalike, but actually there\u2019s only one Lemmy… Even if people hear a slightly Mot\u00f6rhead vibe in a song, it\u2019s still not like Lemmy, it\u2019s Neil who\u2019s a completely different singer and frontman \u2013 and I think it\u2019s hard for them to accept it. But a lot of old fans have come and joined us and we\u2019re really grateful for that. We\u2019ve also gained a lot of fans that are not necessarily Mot\u00f6rhead fans. When we got played in Planet Rock radio which is the main radio station for Rock music in the UK, we gained a lot of fans from people hearing us for the first time and not realizing the Mot\u00f6rhead connection. So it kinda works both ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: So, now let\u2019s focus on the Bastard Sons\u2019 new album. Just recently you\u2019ve released a very special video for \u201cWe\u2019re The Bastards\u201d with footage sent by your friends and fans put together. What kind of message does it convey in terms of Rock\/Metal community?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: Well, the song \u201cWe\u2019re The Bastards\u201d is basically all about our fans anyway. First, we wrote the riff and then, as we were in the studio, somebody tweeted us and they wrote something like, \u201cWe can\u2019t wait to watch you again! #WereTheBastards\u201d. Todd saw it and he was like, \u201cThat\u2019s a pretty cool name for an album.\u201d So we decided on the name of the album before the song was written. And then as the lyrics were written, we just felt it made a perfect sense. Especially in this day and age when everyone\u2019s quarantined and we\u2019re all in lockdown, we thought we\u2019re gonna do a fan video and this has to be to this song. So it just made perfect sense. I think we put a sample of the chorus on our Soundcloud and then had our fans sending their footage in \u2013 and for our super fans and friends, we sent them an entire song so they could \u201csing\u201d on the verses as well. I think it\u2019s a great video. It\u2019s like we\u2019re all in this together and we\u2019re happy to contribute and have fun \u2013 this is a good party tune at the end of the day. We\u2019d like to thank our fans for their contribution to the video and making it worthwhile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: So with this strong statement in the title and also the cover artwork following this concept of community, is the album itself a band manifesto in any way?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I think with the album artwork, the artist just came up with the Medieval theme. It\u2019s the same artwork guy \u2013 Matt Riste \u2013 who did the album artwork to our first album The Age Of Absurdity<\/em>, so it made perfect sense to get him on the board again. And he sent a project of the shield, which we thought was cool, then a portrait of us all gathered at the table in a bar in a Medieval theme… I think we kind of like the idea \u2018cause it reminded us of the film The Monty Python And The Holy Grail<\/em>, \u2018cause we\u2019re all big fans of that and that\u2019s obviously set in Medieval times. So once we saw that, we decided to crack on with the theme as I think it\u2019s good to have one for the album. It gives ideas for lyrics and songs \u2013 like for our first album, when it was all based in an old-school circus and that was a really cool theme to have. And this theme is a Medieval one, so who knows what theme we\u2019re gonna go with for an album number three…?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Only time will tell, I guess! You\u2019ve just mentioned the previous Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons\u2019 album The Age Of Absurdity<\/em>. Do you think we live in the \u201cage of absurdity\u201d indeed?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I think so, especially now more than ever unfortunately… I think the idea for that album title was Todd\u2019s as he read it in Frank Zappa\u2019s book or an interview him and again, we saw this as a cool title for an album and also a theme, so that Neil could come up with lyric ideas… Unfortunately, at the moment, with no live concerts going on in a foreseeable future \u2013 or very limited live concerts \u2013 I think we\u2019re really living at the age of absurdity. Before we came up with the …Bastards<\/em>, I actually thought why don\u2019t we just call it The Age Of Absurdity II<\/em>…? It\u2019s more than appropriate than ever, but I\u2019m glad we\u2019ve settled for the …Bastards.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Was there any difference in the songwriting and recording process of both albums?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: When it comes to songwriting, I wouldn\u2019t say there was much difference. I think we all just get together in our rehearsal space and then just bash out our ideas. Sometimes Todd has like a half of a song and one of us would finish it off… We all play guitars, even Neil and Dane, so it\u2019s all like five people swapping ideas. Regarding recording, it was slightly different because Todd produced it this time, and we were about to record it when the serious lockdown happened in the UK so social distancing was very serious. So instead of all going into the studio at the same time, it was just Todd recording it in one room and then somebody in the live room recording their part. So there was no more than two people in the studio at the same time, just to make sure of all the safety protocols. But I don\u2019t think it affected us too much. I think we were all very happy with the final product, with how the album turned out, so it was slightly different process, but I think it was also good fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: We\u2019ve already discussed how the album artwork was conceptualized, and in general, the Bastards\u2019 visual side, like merch items for example, are all quite vivid aesthetically. How important do you think it is for the fans to identify with certain symbols for example?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I think it\u2019s always been there \u2013 like a mascot, you could say, the guy with the beard (laughs). It\u2019s actually based on my beard apparently. Having to come up with the band logo, the artist who designs a lot of our stuff for t-shirts etc. just saw my beard and based it on it, so that\u2019s pretty fun actually. But I think it\u2019s always good, especially for us as a lot of our fans are Mot\u00f6rhead fans and all that generation… I think when you buy CDs or vinyls it\u2019s good to have really nice artwork to go with it, to make it worthwhile…  \u2018Cause a lot of people are just streaming the album now or download it, but I know a lot of our fans still buy a physical copy. It\u2019s especially different with older and younger generation \u2013 I used to buy albums for years and years, but for the last year or two, unfortunately I became a Spotify listener (laughs) and I listen to most bands on Spotify. With less and less time it gets easy to just press \u201cplay\u201d and go. But if I can tell there\u2019s a lot of effort put into the artwork and the physical side of the product, I\u2019d buy that album and support them. So it\u2019s always worth to come up with the new merch ideas just to make things more interesting, and we really do try to think hard about merch ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: You showed acute political and social consciousness in the first single of the new album \u201cSon Of A Gun\u201d. What was the inspiration behind it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: This question would be best answered by Neil. I think a lot of his songs are kind of going towards the topics of hatred or things he doesn\u2019t like in people… and he writes about them. I honestly can\u2019t help you much on that question \u2018cause when it comes to writing songs, Neil is one hundred percent in charge of the lyrics and the content of them. We write the music and he writes the lyrics. I should probably ask him the next time I see him and I\u2019ll let you know (laughs).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Deal! You worked with Soren Anderson in terms of mixing and mastering the new album. What\u2019s prompted this collaboration and what kind of influence did he have on We\u2019re The Bastards<\/em>?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: We\u2019ve known Soren for a while since me and my dad did Marshall Amps 50th<\/sup> Anniversary in 2012, I think \u2013 Soren was there and I guess my dad\u2019s met him a few times previously. We stayed in touch and stayed friends. He\u2019s a great guitar player \u2013 he plays for Glenn Hughes… Then Phil released a solo album last year [Old Lions Still Roar <\/em>via Nuclear Blast] which Todd also recorded, but Todd wanted someone to mix the album, like a fresh new set of ears on it… He [Soren] has got a studio in Copenhagen and he\u2019s worked with some great bands, like The Dead Daisies and The Answer, and also does Glenn Hughes\u2019 stuff as well… So they did Phil\u2019s first solo album and the outcome is great. When it came to this album, it made sense again to just go with this similar formula with Todd recording it and then giving it to Soren to mix. I think after we got the first mixes back, we were all blown away by how we sounded \u2013 amazing and so big… Obviously, there\u2019s always a couple of changes, like you always want something slightly louder… But it\u2019s really great. We were lucky enough to play with Glenn Hughes last year in Belgium, so we got to hang out a bit with Soren as well. It\u2019s a shame this year\u2019s festivals have been postponed to next one, but fingers crossed we can hang out with Glenn and Soren again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Definitely. You\u2019re also a guitarist in The People The Poet. Does it allow you to explore a different and maybe sensitive side of your artistry?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: Yes. I\u2019ve been a founder of this band since 2008-2009… We changed our band name to The People The Poet in 2012 [previously, the band was named Tiger Please]. It\u2019s definitely a different style of music, it\u2019s more like a Bruce Springsteen\/Tom Petty kind of Rock. Also, I play guitar in that band whereas I play bass in this one [Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons], so it\u2019s funny how I keep changing… I gotta rock out with Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons and then… well, with The People The Poet I rock out as well, but unfortunately we haven\u2019t played that much lately… even though Phil Campbell and the Bastard Songs didn\u2019t play any shows this year as well. Anyway, it is fun to go between two different bands as I like all types and sorts of music and I like to broaden my horizons and just get into new bands and new sounds… so it\u2019s nice to experiment with both bands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: With The People The Poet, you released The Light Of Day <\/em>which is a collection of b-sides and demos this year. Where did the idea of searching your vaults for unreleased songs and releasing them actually come from?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: It\u2019s a collection of songs we recorded over the last five or seven years \u2013 really rough demos. I think it was at the start of lockdown when our singer, Leon Stanford, who also sings the opening song\u2019s on Phil\u2019s solo album \u201cRocking Chair\u201d, came up with the idea of calling the album The Light Of Day<\/em>. It was a kind of a play on an unfortunate idea that we\u2019re kind of stuck inside and we can\u2019t wait to see the light of day. We never thought these demos were going to see the light of day \u2013 they were just demos in our eyes \u2013 but as it was months of no music and nothing to release, we just thought it was good time to release some. We\u2019re only a small band really, but there was great response we got from that collection of songs \u2013 like some people saying it was our best work to date… We\u2019ve got three new songs we recorded before lockdown, so I hope that before the end of the year \u2013 around Christmas time \u2013 we\u2019ll get to release some of those songs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Will it be a follow-up to 2018\u2019s A Short Obsession With Time<\/em>, like a full-length album, or just a couple of singles?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I think it might just be singles for now. There are three songs, so I don\u2019t know whether we\u2019re gonna release a mini-EP or we\u2019d release a single every month or two months to keep things going. But our singer, Leon Stanford, actually released his first solo single [\u201cBy Your Side\u201d] on October the 16th<\/sup> so make sure to check it out. I also play the bass and the guitar in that song; it\u2019s more like Bill Withers, Soul, \u201860s Motown style. So again, I enjoy getting my hands on these different types of music and it\u2019s a lot of fun. So it\u2019s keeping me busy in this lockdown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: So these three potential singles that you\u2019ve mentioned \u2013 the new songs \u2013 are they more like the continuation of the previous album, or something very different sound-wise?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I think the last two singles were already different \u2013 \u201cCome To Meet Me In The Rain\u201d is probably the heaviest Hard Rock song we\u2019ve released, so the next collection [of songs] will be a bit more… relaxed, I\u2019d say. It\u2019s hard to describe, but I think it\u2019s like an embrace of everything that band is… with a Snow Patrol kind of vibe. One of the songs we wrote eight years ago and it would\u2019ve been a demo on the b-side album, but we re-recorded it at the start of the year \u2013 it\u2019d be nice to finally release that song since it\u2019s laying around for eight years. So, I\u2019m gonna release the Bastards\u2019 album on November 13th<\/sup>, and hopefully The People The Poet\u2019s new songs in December, and I just can\u2019t wait for the people\u2019s ears to listen to them (laughs).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Is it difficult to juggle both bands in organizational terms?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: With The People The Poet, I think we were busier before the Bastard Sons started \u2013 between 2012 and 2014, we were doing four tours with bands like Charlie Simpson and Deaf Havana and we were pretty busy. But since then, we slowed down. Children came into the picture for some of us and everyone\u2019s got full-time jobs, so it\u2019s just fun to play a few shows every year and maybe do one tour and release some new songs. But I don\u2019t think there\u2019s any problem with that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: You\u2019ve mentioned different gigs being postponed due to obvious reasons, so what\u2019s the current situation of both bands as far as rescheduling gigs is concerned?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: 2020 changed into 2021, mostly. We can\u2019t really tell when we\u2019re gonna play next. We\u2019ve got a German tour in April, but whether that can happen I don\u2019t know. And we were supposed to play some festivals this year, but they rescheduled it to the next year \u2018cause they lost so much money… It\u2019s a shame really. It\u2019s just fingers crossed and hope we can find a vaccine or that virus just dies out by the middle of the next year and then we\u2019re just gonna play by ear. We won\u2019t be back on the road until it\u2019s really safe to do so, so just fingers crossed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: How do you plan to promote the Bastards\u2019 album in current circumstances and no tour at least in the next few months?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: We\u2019re just gonna do lots of interviews like this and release a few music videos… another one\u2019s coming on the release day… on that day we might also do something like a live Q&A on our Facebook page with the whole band… I don\u2019t think we\u2019ve got the facilities to do something like a livestream, especially that we\u2019re in local lockdown at the moment and we can\u2019t travel anyway. We\u2019d love to play a gig or at least a livestream, but unfortunately it\u2019s just we do lots of interviews and  I\u2019m sure that the album will get out there and just can\u2019t wait for November the 13th<\/sup> now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: You\u2019ve mentioned a possible live Q&A session with the band in the pipeline. Do you think this kind of direct exchange between fans and artists will eventually replace the traditional interviews like the one we are doing at the moment?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I don\u2019t think so. I think there\u2019s always be a need for online press, printed prass, radio… Over the years everyone\u2019s adapting and changing their ways, but I know there\u2019s always be a need for that type of media. Instagram and Facebook lives etc. are getting more popular now, I think mainly just \u2018cause there\u2019s a lot of bands that are doing nothing and they do Instagram or Facebook lives to keep things interesting and keep their fans on board \u2013 like reminding them, \u201cWe\u2019re still here!\u201d \u2018Cause obviously there\u2019s so much demand for bands and you\u2019ve only got so much you can grab your fans\u2019 attention with. So I think every type of media has its pros and cons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: So for the interview to come full circle, let\u2019s go back to what we\u2019ve started from. Obviously, your childhood and your upbringing was quite special comparing to others, so what\u2019s the most distinctive music memory or important aspect related to it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: My first concert was probably Mot\u00f6rhead when I was four or five years old. I always say I found it really weird when I was in primary school and I was eight or even years old and we\u2019d have a school disco and everyone\u2019s listening to Spice Girls or the Backstreet Boys and I was listening to Metallica or Joe Satriani… And I always asked my friends if they heard this or that band and they didn\u2019t have a clue who these bands were \u2013 it always kind of blew my mind (laughs). But I think there was one good thing about it \u2013 when Nu-Metal bands came, like Limp Bizkit and Korn, that was kind of my era… I was about ten or eleven then and the kids my age started to turn to this new type of Rock music. That\u2019s the thing I could be thankful to my dad for \u2013 he put me into a right direction of Rock music. Otherwise, I could be a Spice Girls super fan right now (laughs).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: In our generation, it\u2019s actually possible (laughs). Anything you\u2019d like to add in the end?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: Thanks very much! Thank all of you for reading, and check out our new music videos. We hope you\u2019ll enjoy We\u2019re The Bastards <\/em>coming out on November 13th<\/sup>. I can\u2019t wait for the people to hear it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Interview with Tyla Campbell of Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons & The People The Poet<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

by Alexandra Mrozowska<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA family in harmony will prosper in everything\u201d, goes the old Chinese proverb, and in the world of rock\u2019n\u2019roll no one\u2019s even going to argue. Obviously, one could say that every band is a bit like a family \u2013 although many of them dysfunctional \u2013 but from the Young brothers to the Wilson sisters to multigenerational incarnation of Van Halen, it seems that there\u2019s no business like family business. It also works in the case of Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons, a band founded by the longtime Mot\u00f6rhead guitarist Phil Campbell after Lemmy Kilmister\u2019s death and comprised in three fifths of his own sons (and Neil Starr on vocals). But obviously, the Campbell brothers also hone their musical craft elsewhere. Todd and Dane play together in Straight Lines, whereas the youngest of the three, Tyla, is a guitarist for the Alt Rock band The People The Poet for quite a few years now. And as 2020 brings not only a new full-length album by Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons, \u201cWe\u2019re The Bastards\u201d,  but also a collection of demos and b-sides by The People The Poet entitled \u201cThe Light Of Day\u201d, we chatted with Tyla about both \u2013 as well as his rock\u2019n\u2019roll upbringing in the Spice Girls era…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Being Phil Campbell\u2019s son and playing in a band with him and your brothers, are you sick and tired of the press asking about this aspect of your musical career?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: (laughs) I don\u2019t think so. I think we\u2019re always gonna be asked that question. It\u2019s such a strange combination \u2013 you don\u2019t see many Rock bands with the father and the three of his sons, so it\u2019s a very strange dynamic, but I think we work well together. I\u2019d say that being in a band with anyone is always gonna be like being in a family anyway, so actually it isn\u2019t that much different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: But let\u2019s start from a different angle anyway \u2013 your father obviously taught you a lot, but what do you think you taught him or how did you influence him \u2013 and the same with your brothers?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I think it works well in a band because we\u2019re all cover different generations and we\u2019re all different ages, so when it comes to songwriting, we have different influences. So, it\u2019s kind of a nice melting pot. My dad has his more Classic Rock influences from the \u201860s, \u201870s and \u201880s, whereas my older brother Todd and the singer Neil Starr were brought up in the Grunge era, so they have more \u201890s influence. It\u2019s a bit of everything. But what could I have taught my dad…? Maybe it shows in how different he is these days than he was when he was in Mot\u00f6rhead \u2013 he\u2019s a lot more low-key and I think he\u2019s got used to that. But I think he prefers playing live more now, \u2018cause he\u2019s up close and personal with the crowd and he gets to see reactions on the [people\u2019s] faces… It\u2019s good to be a part of a nice, old-fashioned, sweaty gig (laughs).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Absolutely! There\u2019s certain premise about the Bastard Sons to kind of carry the torch left behind by Mot\u00f6rhead. What\u2019s your approach to that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: We wouldn\u2019t start if Mot\u00f6rhead was still going. So I think it\u2019s natural thing for people to think we\u2019re carrying on the torch. And also, a lot of Mot\u00f6rhead fans are going to naturally progress into our fans. When we\u2019re writing songs, we don\u2019t actually try to sound like Mot\u00f6rhead, but as my dad played the guitar there for over thirty years, naturally some songs may sound a bit like Mot\u00f6rhead. I guess a lot of people are expecting a Lemmy soundalike, but actually there\u2019s only one Lemmy… Even if people hear a slightly Mot\u00f6rhead vibe in a song, it\u2019s still not like Lemmy, it\u2019s Neil who\u2019s a completely different singer and frontman \u2013 and I think it\u2019s hard for them to accept it. But a lot of old fans have come and joined us and we\u2019re really grateful for that. We\u2019ve also gained a lot of fans that are not necessarily Mot\u00f6rhead fans. When we got played in Planet Rock radio which is the main radio station for Rock music in the UK, we gained a lot of fans from people hearing us for the first time and not realizing the Mot\u00f6rhead connection. So it kinda works both ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: So, now let\u2019s focus on the Bastard Sons\u2019 new album. Just recently you\u2019ve released a very special video for \u201cWe\u2019re The Bastards\u201d with footage sent by your friends and fans put together. What kind of message does it convey in terms of Rock\/Metal community?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: Well, the song \u201cWe\u2019re The Bastards\u201d is basically all about our fans anyway. First, we wrote the riff and then, as we were in the studio, somebody tweeted us and they wrote something like, \u201cWe can\u2019t wait to watch you again! #WereTheBastards\u201d. Todd saw it and he was like, \u201cThat\u2019s a pretty cool name for an album.\u201d So we decided on the name of the album before the song was written. And then as the lyrics were written, we just felt it made a perfect sense. Especially in this day and age when everyone\u2019s quarantined and we\u2019re all in lockdown, we thought we\u2019re gonna do a fan video and this has to be to this song. So it just made perfect sense. I think we put a sample of the chorus on our Soundcloud and then had our fans sending their footage in \u2013 and for our super fans and friends, we sent them an entire song so they could \u201csing\u201d on the verses as well. I think it\u2019s a great video. It\u2019s like we\u2019re all in this together and we\u2019re happy to contribute and have fun \u2013 this is a good party tune at the end of the day. We\u2019d like to thank our fans for their contribution to the video and making it worthwhile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: So with this strong statement in the title and also the cover artwork following this concept of community, is the album itself a band manifesto in any way?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I think with the album artwork, the artist just came up with the Medieval theme. It\u2019s the same artwork guy \u2013 Matt Riste \u2013 who did the album artwork to our first album The Age Of Absurdity<\/em>, so it made perfect sense to get him on the board again. And he sent a project of the shield, which we thought was cool, then a portrait of us all gathered at the table in a bar in a Medieval theme… I think we kind of like the idea \u2018cause it reminded us of the film The Monty Python And The Holy Grail<\/em>, \u2018cause we\u2019re all big fans of that and that\u2019s obviously set in Medieval times. So once we saw that, we decided to crack on with the theme as I think it\u2019s good to have one for the album. It gives ideas for lyrics and songs \u2013 like for our first album, when it was all based in an old-school circus and that was a really cool theme to have. And this theme is a Medieval one, so who knows what theme we\u2019re gonna go with for an album number three…?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Only time will tell, I guess! You\u2019ve just mentioned the previous Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons\u2019 album The Age Of Absurdity<\/em>. Do you think we live in the \u201cage of absurdity\u201d indeed?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I think so, especially now more than ever unfortunately… I think the idea for that album title was Todd\u2019s as he read it in Frank Zappa\u2019s book or an interview him and again, we saw this as a cool title for an album and also a theme, so that Neil could come up with lyric ideas… Unfortunately, at the moment, with no live concerts going on in a foreseeable future \u2013 or very limited live concerts \u2013 I think we\u2019re really living at the age of absurdity. Before we came up with the …Bastards<\/em>, I actually thought why don\u2019t we just call it The Age Of Absurdity II<\/em>…? It\u2019s more than appropriate than ever, but I\u2019m glad we\u2019ve settled for the …Bastards.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Was there any difference in the songwriting and recording process of both albums?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: When it comes to songwriting, I wouldn\u2019t say there was much difference. I think we all just get together in our rehearsal space and then just bash out our ideas. Sometimes Todd has like a half of a song and one of us would finish it off… We all play guitars, even Neil and Dane, so it\u2019s all like five people swapping ideas. Regarding recording, it was slightly different because Todd produced it this time, and we were about to record it when the serious lockdown happened in the UK so social distancing was very serious. So instead of all going into the studio at the same time, it was just Todd recording it in one room and then somebody in the live room recording their part. So there was no more than two people in the studio at the same time, just to make sure of all the safety protocols. But I don\u2019t think it affected us too much. I think we were all very happy with the final product, with how the album turned out, so it was slightly different process, but I think it was also good fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: We\u2019ve already discussed how the album artwork was conceptualized, and in general, the Bastards\u2019 visual side, like merch items for example, are all quite vivid aesthetically. How important do you think it is for the fans to identify with certain symbols for example?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I think it\u2019s always been there \u2013 like a mascot, you could say, the guy with the beard (laughs). It\u2019s actually based on my beard apparently. Having to come up with the band logo, the artist who designs a lot of our stuff for t-shirts etc. just saw my beard and based it on it, so that\u2019s pretty fun actually. But I think it\u2019s always good, especially for us as a lot of our fans are Mot\u00f6rhead fans and all that generation… I think when you buy CDs or vinyls it\u2019s good to have really nice artwork to go with it, to make it worthwhile…  \u2018Cause a lot of people are just streaming the album now or download it, but I know a lot of our fans still buy a physical copy. It\u2019s especially different with older and younger generation \u2013 I used to buy albums for years and years, but for the last year or two, unfortunately I became a Spotify listener (laughs) and I listen to most bands on Spotify. With less and less time it gets easy to just press \u201cplay\u201d and go. But if I can tell there\u2019s a lot of effort put into the artwork and the physical side of the product, I\u2019d buy that album and support them. So it\u2019s always worth to come up with the new merch ideas just to make things more interesting, and we really do try to think hard about merch ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: You showed acute political and social consciousness in the first single of the new album \u201cSon Of A Gun\u201d. What was the inspiration behind it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: This question would be best answered by Neil. I think a lot of his songs are kind of going towards the topics of hatred or things he doesn\u2019t like in people… and he writes about them. I honestly can\u2019t help you much on that question \u2018cause when it comes to writing songs, Neil is one hundred percent in charge of the lyrics and the content of them. We write the music and he writes the lyrics. I should probably ask him the next time I see him and I\u2019ll let you know (laughs).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Deal! You worked with Soren Anderson in terms of mixing and mastering the new album. What\u2019s prompted this collaboration and what kind of influence did he have on We\u2019re The Bastards<\/em>?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: We\u2019ve known Soren for a while since me and my dad did Marshall Amps 50th<\/sup> Anniversary in 2012, I think \u2013 Soren was there and I guess my dad\u2019s met him a few times previously. We stayed in touch and stayed friends. He\u2019s a great guitar player \u2013 he plays for Glenn Hughes… Then Phil released a solo album last year [Old Lions Still Roar <\/em>via Nuclear Blast] which Todd also recorded, but Todd wanted someone to mix the album, like a fresh new set of ears on it… He [Soren] has got a studio in Copenhagen and he\u2019s worked with some great bands, like The Dead Daisies and The Answer, and also does Glenn Hughes\u2019 stuff as well… So they did Phil\u2019s first solo album and the outcome is great. When it came to this album, it made sense again to just go with this similar formula with Todd recording it and then giving it to Soren to mix. I think after we got the first mixes back, we were all blown away by how we sounded \u2013 amazing and so big… Obviously, there\u2019s always a couple of changes, like you always want something slightly louder… But it\u2019s really great. We were lucky enough to play with Glenn Hughes last year in Belgium, so we got to hang out a bit with Soren as well. It\u2019s a shame this year\u2019s festivals have been postponed to next one, but fingers crossed we can hang out with Glenn and Soren again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Definitely. You\u2019re also a guitarist in The People The Poet. Does it allow you to explore a different and maybe sensitive side of your artistry?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: Yes. I\u2019ve been a founder of this band since 2008-2009… We changed our band name to The People The Poet in 2012 [previously, the band was named Tiger Please]. It\u2019s definitely a different style of music, it\u2019s more like a Bruce Springsteen\/Tom Petty kind of Rock. Also, I play guitar in that band whereas I play bass in this one [Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons], so it\u2019s funny how I keep changing… I gotta rock out with Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons and then… well, with The People The Poet I rock out as well, but unfortunately we haven\u2019t played that much lately… even though Phil Campbell and the Bastard Songs didn\u2019t play any shows this year as well. Anyway, it is fun to go between two different bands as I like all types and sorts of music and I like to broaden my horizons and just get into new bands and new sounds… so it\u2019s nice to experiment with both bands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: With The People The Poet, you released The Light Of Day <\/em>which is a collection of b-sides and demos this year. Where did the idea of searching your vaults for unreleased songs and releasing them actually come from?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: It\u2019s a collection of songs we recorded over the last five or seven years \u2013 really rough demos. I think it was at the start of lockdown when our singer, Leon Stanford, who also sings the opening song\u2019s on Phil\u2019s solo album \u201cRocking Chair\u201d, came up with the idea of calling the album The Light Of Day<\/em>. It was a kind of a play on an unfortunate idea that we\u2019re kind of stuck inside and we can\u2019t wait to see the light of day. We never thought these demos were going to see the light of day \u2013 they were just demos in our eyes \u2013 but as it was months of no music and nothing to release, we just thought it was good time to release some. We\u2019re only a small band really, but there was great response we got from that collection of songs \u2013 like some people saying it was our best work to date… We\u2019ve got three new songs we recorded before lockdown, so I hope that before the end of the year \u2013 around Christmas time \u2013 we\u2019ll get to release some of those songs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Will it be a follow-up to 2018\u2019s A Short Obsession With Time<\/em>, like a full-length album, or just a couple of singles?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I think it might just be singles for now. There are three songs, so I don\u2019t know whether we\u2019re gonna release a mini-EP or we\u2019d release a single every month or two months to keep things going. But our singer, Leon Stanford, actually released his first solo single [\u201cBy Your Side\u201d] on October the 16th<\/sup> so make sure to check it out. I also play the bass and the guitar in that song; it\u2019s more like Bill Withers, Soul, \u201860s Motown style. So again, I enjoy getting my hands on these different types of music and it\u2019s a lot of fun. So it\u2019s keeping me busy in this lockdown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: So these three potential singles that you\u2019ve mentioned \u2013 the new songs \u2013 are they more like the continuation of the previous album, or something very different sound-wise?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I think the last two singles were already different \u2013 \u201cCome To Meet Me In The Rain\u201d is probably the heaviest Hard Rock song we\u2019ve released, so the next collection [of songs] will be a bit more… relaxed, I\u2019d say. It\u2019s hard to describe, but I think it\u2019s like an embrace of everything that band is… with a Snow Patrol kind of vibe. One of the songs we wrote eight years ago and it would\u2019ve been a demo on the b-side album, but we re-recorded it at the start of the year \u2013 it\u2019d be nice to finally release that song since it\u2019s laying around for eight years. So, I\u2019m gonna release the Bastards\u2019 album on November 13th<\/sup>, and hopefully The People The Poet\u2019s new songs in December, and I just can\u2019t wait for the people\u2019s ears to listen to them (laughs).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: Is it difficult to juggle both bands in organizational terms?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: With The People The Poet, I think we were busier before the Bastard Sons started \u2013 between 2012 and 2014, we were doing four tours with bands like Charlie Simpson and Deaf Havana and we were pretty busy. But since then, we slowed down. Children came into the picture for some of us and everyone\u2019s got full-time jobs, so it\u2019s just fun to play a few shows every year and maybe do one tour and release some new songs. But I don\u2019t think there\u2019s any problem with that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: You\u2019ve mentioned different gigs being postponed due to obvious reasons, so what\u2019s the current situation of both bands as far as rescheduling gigs is concerned?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: 2020 changed into 2021, mostly. We can\u2019t really tell when we\u2019re gonna play next. We\u2019ve got a German tour in April, but whether that can happen I don\u2019t know. And we were supposed to play some festivals this year, but they rescheduled it to the next year \u2018cause they lost so much money… It\u2019s a shame really. It\u2019s just fingers crossed and hope we can find a vaccine or that virus just dies out by the middle of the next year and then we\u2019re just gonna play by ear. We won\u2019t be back on the road until it\u2019s really safe to do so, so just fingers crossed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: How do you plan to promote the Bastards\u2019 album in current circumstances and no tour at least in the next few months?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: We\u2019re just gonna do lots of interviews like this and release a few music videos… another one\u2019s coming on the release day… on that day we might also do something like a live Q&A on our Facebook page with the whole band… I don\u2019t think we\u2019ve got the facilities to do something like a livestream, especially that we\u2019re in local lockdown at the moment and we can\u2019t travel anyway. We\u2019d love to play a gig or at least a livestream, but unfortunately it\u2019s just we do lots of interviews and  I\u2019m sure that the album will get out there and just can\u2019t wait for November the 13th<\/sup> now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: You\u2019ve mentioned a possible live Q&A session with the band in the pipeline. Do you think this kind of direct exchange between fans and artists will eventually replace the traditional interviews like the one we are doing at the moment?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: I don\u2019t think so. I think there\u2019s always be a need for online press, printed prass, radio… Over the years everyone\u2019s adapting and changing their ways, but I know there\u2019s always be a need for that type of media. Instagram and Facebook lives etc. are getting more popular now, I think mainly just \u2018cause there\u2019s a lot of bands that are doing nothing and they do Instagram or Facebook lives to keep things interesting and keep their fans on board \u2013 like reminding them, \u201cWe\u2019re still here!\u201d \u2018Cause obviously there\u2019s so much demand for bands and you\u2019ve only got so much you can grab your fans\u2019 attention with. So I think every type of media has its pros and cons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: So for the interview to come full circle, let\u2019s go back to what we\u2019ve started from. Obviously, your childhood and your upbringing was quite special comparing to others, so what\u2019s the most distinctive music memory or important aspect related to it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: My first concert was probably Mot\u00f6rhead when I was four or five years old. I always say I found it really weird when I was in primary school and I was eight or even years old and we\u2019d have a school disco and everyone\u2019s listening to Spice Girls or the Backstreet Boys and I was listening to Metallica or Joe Satriani… And I always asked my friends if they heard this or that band and they didn\u2019t have a clue who these bands were \u2013 it always kind of blew my mind (laughs). But I think there was one good thing about it \u2013 when Nu-Metal bands came, like Limp Bizkit and Korn, that was kind of my era… I was about ten or eleven then and the kids my age started to turn to this new type of Rock music. That\u2019s the thing I could be thankful to my dad for \u2013 he put me into a right direction of Rock music. Otherwise, I could be a Spice Girls super fan right now (laughs).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardrock Haven: In our generation, it\u2019s actually possible (laughs). Anything you\u2019d like to add in the end?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyla Campbell: Thanks very much! Thank all of you for reading, and check out our new music videos. We hope you\u2019ll enjoy We\u2019re The Bastards <\/em>coming out on November 13th<\/sup>. I can\u2019t wait for the people to hear it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Visit Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons & The People The Poet online: http:\/\/www.philcampbell.net\/<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ThePeopleThePoet\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Alexandra Mrozowska\u2014 Senior Columnist \u2014 \u201cA family in harmony will prosper in everything\u201d, goes the old Chinese proverb, and in the world of rock \u2019n\u2019 roll no one\u2019s even going to argue. Obviously, one […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":68663,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[15150,203,11640,15151,15148],"class_list":{"0":"post-68661","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-interviews-recent","8":"tag-bastard-sons","9":"tag-interview","10":"tag-phil-campbell","11":"tag-the-people-the-poet","12":"tag-tyla-campbell"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68661","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=68661"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68661\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/68663"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=68661"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=68661"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=68661"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}