1. Double page spread free flowingarticle
Today,I am interviewingthe mostsuccessful girl rockbandat the moment- The slams. Outside it’sa
gloomy,rainyTuesdaymorningoff one of London’s highstreetsandIamsittingina cafe where a
slightdraftlingers- it’sclearthisplace isindire needof refurbishment.Inside,it’sarun-down,small
café where the waiterisso underworkedshe happilyserves all Englishbreakfastandteatothe only
table occupied.Softrockclassicsgentlyplay inthe backgroundof the clattercomingfrom behind
the till andin the kitchen. The three come stumblingintothe shop15minuteslate makinga
complete scene tothe verysmall audience inthe café. Itake intheirappearance andfindmyself not
at all surprised,theirdarkandedgylooka staple part of theirimage.
Lottie,the leadsinger, Ispotfirstrushinginabruptlyhurryingherbandmateswho saunterin behind
her- it’sclearwho the leaderis.She sports a blackleatherjacketalongwith blackrippedjeans and
quicklymakesherpresence knowntothe waiterandbothexchange friendlynods. The drummer,
Laura, has herheadphonesinandhereyesgluedtoheriPhone screen- she hasn’tlookeduponce
yet-herheadslightlybopstohermusic. Hereyelinersmearedacrosshereyesmakingme slightly
intimidatedbyherharshappearance.Imogenisthe lastto sitdown and drags the chair fromunder
the table makingthe worstscreechingnoise andcarelesslydumpsherselfintothe chairwearingall
blackcomplete withvansshoes.“Fourfryupsand teas,Mil!” Lottie shoutsfromacross the small
room to the waiterinsteadof agreetingandsuddenlyIhave a massive plate of grease infrontof me
and worriedlyanticipatingthe interviewtocome.
We firstheardof the bandfromtheirrelease of theirsingle ‘Heartless’ fromtheirdebutalbum
‘Fallen‘thattookoverthe rock charts and theyhave beendominatingthe rockscene since,andare
becomingthe mostsuccessful girl rockbandof thisgeneration.“We hada lot to prove”Lottie says
“After‘Heartless‘we neededtoprove thatwe were more than justthree pretty faces.People gave
2. us hate justcuz we were girlsmakingloudmusic.” Laura continuesbefore slammingherfisttothe
table “itwas bloodyridiculous,people justassumedwe couldn’tpickupan instrument!““A girl rock
bandon the scene outsellingtheirfavourite male bandsfreakedpeopleoutbutwe didn’treally
care”. Imogencarriesonrollinghereyes.It’sclearI’ve hitanerve as theyall continue to ramble
aboutthe negativity.
Weirdlyenough the more time Ispend beingaroundThe Slams,the more Ifindit’sextremely
comfortable withtheirlaidbackmannerisms. Youwouldthinkabandas bigas them, theywould
have learntto keepthemselvesinline andkeepupagoodreputation,butsomethingtellsme they
aren’tthat fussed.Lauraslouchesinherchairwhilstkickingherfeetupthe chairopposite making
herself completelyathome.We brieflydiscusstourlife andhow they’vebeenmanagingit,“it’sbeen
nonstop”Lottie exasperates,“Icanadmitat one pointwe have all beenmore thana few days
withoutshowering.”ImogenandLauraburstout laughingbangingthe tablescausingthe saucesand
cutleryto shake.“Time zonesmessyouupman”Laura exclaimswhilstflickingthroughherphone
again.
As faras whotheirinfluencedby,they’re verymuchtakenabackbythe majormusical hero’saswe
all are. “AC/DCwill alwaysbe the godsof rock. My dad alwaysplayedtheirmusicall the time when I
was growingupso theywere alwaysplayinginthe house andIalwaysgeta bignostalgicfeeling
wheneverIlistentotheirmusic.”Imogensayssoftly. “DavidBowieandThe Beatles are majortoo
and I alwaysjamout to theirsongs.”Laura passionatelystateswhilstshovingaforkfull of baconinto
hermouth. “I’ma massive fanof GreenDay, theirmusicisalwayssick.Nirvanaandtheirsuccess is
inspirationalandtheirmusicwascool too.I definitely wantThe Slamstoachieve the successthey
didone day.” Lottie says,excitedly.
As we dive intothe deeperstuff of fame,Iimmediatelynotice how The Slamsweartheirfame lightly
despite receivingall the attentioninsuchlittletime.Lauraexplainsseriously“it’sneverbeenabout
the fame and celebritystatus,youknow?It’sall aboutthe music,alwayswill be.Iwannabe the
3. biggestgirl rockband everinthe worldso I’mafraidwere stickingaroundforquite awhile”Lottie
goeson “yeah,I wannahave a numberone worldwide,notbe onthe coverof ‘OK!’.“Playingata
stadiumwoulddoitfor me,afterthat I’mnot sure anythingwouldtopit”Imogensays. For the first
time duringthe interview,it’sthe mostseriousthey’ve beenhoweverit’snot surprisingastheirlove
and passionforrock musicis somethingyou can’tdeny.
Forminginschool at the age of 14, The Slamsreminisce overthe start togetherandschool life.
“Yeah,I startedlearningguitarat 11 and pickeditupquite quickandhad the guitar gluedtome ever
since.Musicwas mylife and I wantedto be ina bandso badly,sowhenI meetthese guysandfound
out abouttheirlove forrock musicI practicallyshovedthemintobandpracticeseveryweek.”
Imogenrecallsfondly.Lottie continues,“Aswe gotolderwe tookitmore seriouslyandrealisedthat
we couldactuallydo musicforever.We were desperate togetourselvesoutthere andawayfrom
Solihull.Whenwe were 16we startedpractisingall the time and skippingcollege mostdays.” “When
we got signedat18 it was the mostimportantday of my life.Itwasabsolutelymental thatwe had
alreadyachievedamajorgoal at such a youngage.We partiedfor daysstraightit wascrazy!”
Imogensays.“Afterthatwe playedourfirstgig ina crap bar. That wasprobablythe mostimportant
day of my life sofar- I’dneverexperiencedsuchanadrenaline rushbefore,Ijustwantedtoplayall
night”Laura adds whilsttappingherfingerstoabeaton the table.
The waitercomesback pilingthe platesupasLottie quicklyreachesforherbag before handinghera
£20 note andslippingonherleatherjacket.Andwiththat,Laura’sheadphonesare backinand
Imogenabruptlyleapsoutof herchair and theydisappearthroughthe door. Isitand ponderfor a
minute whilstItryto process The Slamsand feel quite overwhelmed. It’ssafe tosaythey definitely
live upto theirreputation.
