In anticipation of their upcoming EP release ‘Smile and Wave’, we chew over influences, optimism, and which piece of cutlery might have the most marriage potential.

“I don’t know what it is. Probably all the sewage they’re dumping in the water.” Just one of many theories as to why tides of exciting new acts seem to be lapping out of Brighton right now, resident outfit Hutch are certainly no exception to this trend. Cultivating a sound that glistens with wide-eyed wonderment, the four piece have been making waves in the local scene and beyond, placing upon our tongues an oxytocin and strawberry jam laced psychotropic cocktail of soft jangle psych delight. Hutch continue to hone and polish their sound, and with foundations rooted in a surreal, Mighty Boosh-inspired cartoon created during lockdown, at its core, it is silliness, fun and escapism that anchors and enlivens their output. Gearing up for their most substantial release to date, the EP ‘Smile and Wave’, and a lengthy UK tour to follow, the next few months are set to be a hectic but exciting time for the group.

On what began as a rather gloomy, cold, January Sunday, I sat down for a video chat with JP, Charlie, Owen and Dan, quickly learning that there really is no room for gloom in the suntrap world of Hutch.

Hazel: If you had to compare your new EP to a food, what would you compare it to? What would you say is the closest?

Charlie: “Maybe like, a really good almond pastry. It’s not giving you just eternal sweetness.”

Owen: “It’s a trifle – it’s lighter on top and then the further in you get it’s spongier and the flavours become richer.”

JP: “I was thinking more like a packet of jam tarts because they all are similar in lots of ways, but each one has its own little flavour in it, and you go back to it later and decide which one is your favourite.”

Dan: “What about like, um, crepes.”

H: What sort of music were you listening to when you were creating ‘Smile and Wave’? Did you have any key influences in mind?

Owen: “We’re always listening unironically to very lame dad rock stuff, like Wings and The Grateful Dead and stuff like that.“

Dan: “Yeah that worms it’s way in, but kind of subtly I think?”

Charlie: “We all listen to different styles of music but then, we also listen to a lot of similar stuff, so I think everybody has a unifying influence of bands and artists that we really enjoy.”

JP: “It’s like a tablecloth over a big table. Everyone is pulling on all the corners in their own way and it kind of just flattens itself out.”

Owen: “Nice.”

JP: “Thanks man, I just came up with that.” [Laughs]

H: The themes of your music are all so light and imbued with a sort of awestruck childlike wonder. Would you say that you use your music as a vessel for escapism?

JP: “Yeah, we’re like children really.”

D: “Yeah, I think it’s just fun to do that stuff, you know. I think there’s a lot of aspects of reality that are just monotonous.”

H: Yeah, so much music is like all about pain and suffering, but with you guys it’s all ‘rainbows, woohoo!!’

D: “That is the idea, but only because we had all been that [writing about ‘pain and suffering’ etc.] for a time. We would all write those sorts of tunes. You end up going to a lot of shows like that and you come away like, ‘urgh’.”

JP: “I actually remember the day that happened to me. I started getting obsessed with Andy Shauf through these guys, and then I wrote a bunch of sad songs and played them. I used to get really nervous before shows, and I remember this one show, I threw up right before. I’d always be sick. I walked straight out onto the stage with tears streaming down my eyes, and my throat was raw. Then I played like half an hour of really bleak, sad songs, and I just remember people being like ‘yeah, no, it was alright, but it was just really bleak’. So, at that point I was looking for something almost the same but the opposite, to get away from it rather than falling into it.”

H: You wanted to bring the good vibes instead!

D: “Yeah, spread a bit of positivity instead.”

C: “It gives you an opportunity to focus on something fun. I find sometimes even with myself, if I’ve been feeling bad or something, if you try and think like ‘okay, let’s be silly and fun’, it’s a good escape.”

D: “We’re just silly goofy little guys.”

H: Brighton is a really exciting place for music at the moment. It’s almost like it’s got a magical spell cast over it. As a Brighton band, do you have any theories as to why?

C: “I don’t know what it is. Probably all the sewage they’re dumping in the water.”

O: “It’s the post-lockdown community.”

D: “Yeah, everyone was just really buzzed to be out playing shows again. Obviously there’s a lot of great venues in Brighton as well. So it’s that, coupled with people coming out of lockdown and being like ‘Lets just go to shows, see bands, be in bands, support the bands that you’re in, support the bands that you’re not in’.”

C: “Yeah, I think it’s definitely that. We’re very blessed to be in Brighton and be surrounded by all of these people. You have all of these great bands that have helped each other – shared promoters, shared music and stuff – and now they’re kind of slowly branching outside of Brighton. Then you also have, underneath them, all of these great new bands that are also coming.”

JP: “There’s these people that just come to the shows all the time. They’re working on the bars, they’re booking the shows, making posters, taking photos, making videos, recording it. Also, the quality is so high. There’s so much competition. It’s very friendly competition – no one’s against each other, and everyone’s doing something different as well, we’re not all making the same kind of stuff.”

H: Do you guys have a favourite show that you’ve ever played? If so, where was it and what made it so great?

JP: “Green Door Store sometimes do these really late night shows. We started at midnight. I remember it was like half past 10 and we were sitting on the sofa in our pyjamas.”

O: “We were watching Homes Under The Hammer under a blanket.” [Laughs]

JP: “We were like, ‘God, who’s gonna be there?’”

C: “I’d gone on a work night out and then come round to these guys at like half 10, and I’d already had like a couple of beers. They were just so sleepy, and I was like ‘guys come on, we’re playing a show!’”

JP: “We were like okay, psyched ourselves up at midnight. Then it was just packed. Someone started a mosh pit, which is the only time we’ve ever had a mosh pit to our soft psych music. Charlie’s boss was just standing in the corner like ‘see you on Monday’.”

D: “I think my favourite one was in Berlin. We did a tour with this band Gitkin and did a show at Berghain Canteen in Berlin. All day I was in such a bad mood. But then I just woke up on stage. The fog lifted and I was like ‘Oh shit, I’m doing a show at Berghain, this is sick as fuck!’”

J: “That was a surreal day, because Berghain Canteen is right next to the club. It’s basically the same building, but we couldn’t find the entrance. It was like 3pm on a Sunday, and there were people dressed in leather looking like zombies outside the club that had been in there for 3 days or something. We went up to the bouncer and were like ‘Excuse me! Do you know where the venue is?’ and he was like ‘You’re not coming in’ and just shook his head. We were like ‘No! We don’t want to go inside.’”

H: Have you ever played Fuck, Marry, Kill? Fuck Marry Kill – Fork, Knife or Spoon?

[A lot of thinking and quiet]

H: It’s hard, I know.

J: “I mean, marry spoon right? Because best cuddler.”

D: “And also, it doesn’t have the gaps.”

…

D: “So, we’re gonna marry the spoon.”

O: “I think fuck the knife, because it’s dangerous, and exciting.”

C: “That’s what they say about us.”

[Laughs]

O: “But the fork is the most useful of all the utensils. It’s got everything.”

J: “You wouldn’t wanna be apart from the fork for a long time. You’d wanna stay with it.”

O: “Maybe we’d fuck the fork and -”

D: “Kill the knife.”

All: “Yeah.”

D: “I think that’s our final answer.”

J: “Wait, wait, wait. We can’t fuck a fork guys, that’s horrifying.”

O: “Well would you rather fuck the knife?”

J: “No! I don’t know what I want!”

C: “Okay, let’s move on.”

D: “Final answer – marry the spoon, fuck the fork, kill the knife.”

H: So my final question is: How do you guys plan to celebrate your release?

J: “Maybe we’ll just have a cup of tea and chill out.”

C: “We’ll just sit down with a cup of tea and go ‘Well that’s nice’”

J: “I dunno, I think you’ve gotta celebrate every day. I’m just glad we’re here.”

C: “Maybe have a beer. We’ll have a few beers.”

J: “And some wine, perhaps.”

D: “Yeah, so no big plans – maybe a party after the show.”

Hutch’s debut EP ‘Smile and Wave’ releases on Friday 23rd February.