Interview with UK Rock Band Mayfire

MuzicNotez: First off, it’s an honor to be doing this interview with you, thanks for taking the time to sit down with us. Introduce yourselves, what are your names and roles in the band?

Mayfire: We’re a four piece indie rock band from York. We have Joe Hildreth on the drums, David Porter on the bass, Hamish Hunter on the guitar and Bailey Furman on the vocals and guitar.

How did you meet and form up? How long have you been together?

Mayfire: We originally started with me (Bailey) and Hamish writing on songs together at his house. We wanted to make a band so we quickly realized we were going to have to get a bass and drum player. I asked my best mate David who I knew played bass which he said he was totally up for and we actually met Joe in a bar in York in the early hours of the morning where he mentioned he was looking to join another band, we had seen him perform in other bands and promptly showed him the songs we had and asked if he wanted in. Thank god they both said yes because us four are literally the best of friends and I can’t imagine Mayfire being anybody else!

How did you come up with the name Mayfire?

Mayfire: The name Mayfire actually came from a song that I (Bailey) wrote. I was writing a song about the experience that people have in around may time when they’ve been in a relationship through the winter because it’s cold and cozy but come summer time they want to go out and be single, which ultimately has caused a lot of friends and people I know to have relationships end in this time, so when I was writing this song I just called the experience ‘the mayfire’. Me and Hamish always referred to this song as ‘mayfire’ and when it came to coming up with band name ideas Mayfire felt like the perfect name since we thought it was a cool word and it has a little story behind it. We actually had no idea there was already a big band around called Memphis May Fire.

Who were your musical influences, idols, or bands growing up that have helped mold you into the band you are today? Or helped mold the music that you create?

Mayfire: All of us listen to different artists but we definitely overlap somewhere in the middle. I tend to listen to a lot of Indie/Indie Rock such as The Wombats, Sam Fender, Catfish and the bottlemen and Coldplay. David listened to a lot more Indie/Country like pinegrove, the backseat lovers, the 1975 and all that. Hamish is much more into old/heavy rock such as black sabbath, U2, Alice in chains and that kind of thing. Joe’s probably the most out there compared to us and likes more sort of prog rock? Like pineapple thief and Tool. I think all of these influences have definitely inspired the band that we currently are today, we have all looked up to these bands and the tidal waves that they’ve made in their music scenes and really strive to do the same.

What’s the greatest concert you’ve ever been to or performed?

Mayfire: I remember me and David went to this Wombats concert in Manchester back in 2019 and that was absolute carnage! There were people being lifted over the railing security going mad but it was absolutely amazing, the crowd were going nuts and I don’t think me and David will ever forget it. As for gigs that we’ve played, we’re still a fresh band so our best gig is definitely our local venue the Fulford arms. We sold it out one night and it was brilliant, everyone had their phone torches on!

What’s the ultimate goal you want your music to achieve, or for you to achieve in your career as a band? Any particular message you wish to send?

Mayfire: We want to do two things really. We want to become an amazing live band and play to as many people as possible. But an important part of that is making sure that our gigs are always going to be the most affordable gigs around. We feel as though live shows have a massive paywall behind them, especially at the minute and we want to be the band that you and your mates can afford to go and see and actually want to go and see!

Your latest release is the track ‘Faker’, how would you describe this track? What inspired it?

Mayfire: Yeah our latest release is definitely one of our heaviest tracks. We just absolutely love how it drives all the way through and you just don’t get a break. I started with some lyrics I had that I liked and I was trying to find something that worked on an acoustic guitar when I had the idea to make the song just power all the way through to fit the never ending work grind feeling that the lyrics give the track, so we just through lets hammer down single notes all the way through the verses. The chorus actually came to me whilst I was layed in bed, I still have the voice not of me singing the melody in the band group chat!

You are still earlier on in your bands career yet and already breaking on to the scene so successfully. What advice would you give to other bands just starting out to help them get started properly?

Mayfire: I think honestly we’re just very dedicated to what we are doing. We want to make the best songs we possibly can and alongside that we are willing to put in whatever it takes to get to where we need to get to. So we’re thinking every single day about what we can do to get our music out there and get people loving it. It still feels like we’re starting out to be honest, but I would just tell other people to make sure you’re passionate about what you’re doing, because if you’re not passionate about it, how can you expect other people to be?

What else are you working on? What can we expect to see and hear from you in the future?

Mayfire: We’re just writing, writing and writing. Our current goal is to grow our fan base, get a recording deal and get working on an album. But until then we are just going to be releasing singles every other month. We’re just trying to perfect our writing process!

Anything else you wish to say about yourself or your music? Any message for your fans?

Mayfire: If you really like our music, please do share it around, we just want people to hear it because we think people are going to love it. Thank you!

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