As media double page spread article

1. Standfirst
John Albert is the newest rising star in the rock music circuit. Backed by his band the
“Squirrels” his combination of Rock and Indie music is a force to be reckoned with on the
charts.
Article
John Albert and the Squirrels are the newest rising stars in the Indie Rock Genre. I had the
honour of interviewing them this past weekend and I am able to share it with our loyal
readers.
The first question I asked the group was ‘What had inspired them to get into music?’ The
frontman John Albert replied that he had always loved music and that one of his first
memories was with his Granddad listening to the record players and bands such as Status
Quo and the Rolling Stones. Drummer Alex Bertrum, more commonly known as Ginger, said
that he too had always loved music and he was honoured to be able to share his passion
with others. Guitarist Jack White however joked he was only in it for the fame and fortune.
The second question asked was “How had they got the band together” to which Bass
guitarist Danny Simmons told us that him and Ginger were childhood friends and had always
wanted to start a band, so when they found Jack through an ad they posted in the paper all
they had to do was find a singer. It was a few weeks later when they were about to practice
in Jack’s flat when they heard his neighbour singing to music next door. Jack went over and
asked him to turn it down so they could focus on practice. It was at that point the neighbour
asked if they needed a new member. Turns out the neighbour was called John Albert and
the rest as they say, is history.
The third question I asked was “Why they had decided to play Indie rock and not just regular
Rock?” John said that they decided to merge the Indie into their work as it let them have
more freedom and they could experiment more with their sound and style. They decided
that they could be more unique if they went into Indie music but still wanted to stick to the
genre of music they loved so they merged the two so they could play Indie Rock.
I followed up this question by asking them “Who their favourite rock artist was?” Jack White
jumped in and said that Jimi Hendrix was his favourite as he had a broad range of songs and
that his skill on the guitar was unrivalled by anyone. To which Ginger interrupted saying that
Eric Clapton was a better guitarist and that he captured the essence of Rock better than
Hendrix ever could. Danny and John both sighed at this point implying that this argument
has happened several times previously. So Danny intercepted them saying that he like the
more blues and blues rock style of the Heavy and that he liked that they also had their own
style and that they weren't scared to experiment. John said that he didn't really have a
favourite and that it changed for him depending on his mood and preferences at the time.
The fifth and final question I asked them was what advice they would give to anybody who

2. wanted to get into the music business. John was the first to answer saying that the best
thing to do was to be passionate about their work. It wouldn't work if you was only in it for
the money. Ginger jumped in and said that he would say to keep trying. Join different
bands, play at different venues. If you get a job as an opening act take it no matter whether
or not you like that specific band, treat every venue like it is Wembley and take all the gigs
that you can. The two remaining members chipped in and said to just keep persevering and
stay hopeful.
Unfortunately that’s all the time I had to spend with them. Hopefully I’ve managed to show
you a great up and coming band. Their new album ‘Radiance’ drops March 5th.