Dippers – Interview by Dean Giagni

Dippers interview by Dean Giagni

Talk about the differences in making this record with just the two of you versus the four members in Thigh Master:

Matt Ford: The way that we’ve approached making the music is different. It used to be four people in a room kind of learning the songs on the spot, having very minimal practice with them and the song structures were quite simple.

Innez Tulloch:  We had four members in Thigh Master so things were quite different when recording this record (COVID) lock down with just Matthew and I, we were treating the songs a little bit differently and exploring the songwriting a little bit differently in that it was just the two of us doing all the instrumentation and kind of demoing as we were recording. It made this project a different entity.

Recording in lockdown in an intimate, small situation was not a new thing for you:

Matt Ford: So, we’ve always done kind of bedroom recording or home studio recording. We’ve never done an album in a proper studio; it’s always been makeshift. Whether we’re recording it ourselves or when we’ve had other people record us. But definitely the last few years it’s just been ourselves.

Expand on “demoing as you go”:

Innez Tulloch: I feel like Matt was writing in various different areas just using a voice memo recorder, like a sort of situation in different bedrooms in the house and what not. We’d have to start with the drums, then he’d be doing a guide track and then I’d be figuring out what I’m going to do with it and during that process it would be suddenly “Oh, this part doesn’t feel right” so we’d go back and re-do things.

Were there times where you working independently on pieces of songs and then brought those pieces back to each other? Were their surprises?

Innez Tulloch: Matt had a pretty clear idea of what he was picturing with the songs because I had only heard them on electric guitar not even plugged in for such a long time the final outcome was like – Wow I didn’t see this coming at all. And then my parts in the song structures were challenging at times because I was pushing a different style of playing I hadn’t done in the records before for Thigh Master. So there was certainly tears of frustration at times (laughing). But I think it was really great because you push yourself to try new things, I think that’s kind of exciting. The progression of the live performance is pushing those elements into new areas as well. It’s been a good project to kind of open up, even though we were closed in recording it.

Matt Ford: I think the new M.O. with Dippers that’s different from Thigh Master is subtle complexities. The writing, the time signature changes throughout, but it’s hard to notice because they’re still pop songs. Spending more time thinking about how things are arranged. Projecting a different energy. With Thigh Master was about playing loud and abrasive and don’t leave room for anything else whereas Dippers is bit more dynamic.

Most satisfying moment in the process?

Innez Tulloch: I feel like when the records arrived and we could hold them in our hands. Our friend Georgia who did the artwork did such a beautiful job and our friend Nicki helped with it as well. I think that was the moment like, “Here it is, we did it!”

Matt Ford: I think for me it was when I finished mixing it. I was like, “Alright, it’s complete and I don’t have to spend several hours a day in this room for a little while!” Hearing the songs finally how I had heard them in my head was really cool.