“We decided to lead the release with something that isn't really a fully-fledged song.”
Fronted by siblings Poppy and Finn Billingham, Sunken arrived on the South London scene in 2017. Formed after a conversation about “reverb on bass”, the five-piece are, ironically, yet to use reverb on bass. The hauntingly beautiful ‘Sorry For Everything’, released on the 24th of July, follows previous single ‘Somewhere Not Real’. FUZZY caught up with Poppy and Finn to discuss working together as siblings, Joy Division and gigging around the capital city.
FUZZY: 'Somewhere Not Real', the first single since ‘Swoon’ (2018), was released back in June. How was this received?
Finn: Everyone was really sweet about it. We decided to lead the release with something that isn't really a fully-fledged song. I think more just something that hopefully makes you feel a certain kinda way. I think it felt like some people that we've spoken to did really feel that and that's all we needed.
FUZZY: An EP is coming later on this year, is that right? What's the process been like for that?
Poppy: Yeah! It's been exciting, we've been working on our sound for some time and it feels like it's coming together.
Finn: We've been back and forth on different ideas and now it's a lot clearer on how we want to approach things. We collaborate a lot amongst the band and we're really lucky to have some very talented musicians and people to count as part of the project.
FUZZY: You're from South London! How do you find the music scene?
Poppy: It's cool! It feels inclusive, and you're always meeting other musicians which is super nice. Gigging around London a lot helped us to connect with other artists which is so important. We met Jacob (Puma Blue) at Bermondsey Social Club a few years back and later on gave us the opportunity to support him on his tour. He's an amazing musician and has always been a huge inspiration.
FUZZY: The band was born as a "need for a peace treaty to end sibling arguing." How do you find the dynamic working together as siblings?
Finn: Poppy always had so much direction as a songwriter and I have so much admiration for that. She knows what she wants, so along the way when we couldn't quite get there it was sometimes frustrating. But at the end of the day, it was always going to be worth it for what we have now. Even if it means nothing to anyone else, we will have this memory now and for that I'm grateful.
FUZZY: What is your earliest memory of music? How did you get into it?
Poppy: I think picking up the guitar and finding an escape in music was what really got me into it.
FUZZY: Finally: if you had to take three albums to an island, Desert Island Disc style, what would your picks be?
Poppy: Minnie Ripperton - Perfect Angel, Dorothy Ashby - Afro Harping, The Pharcyde - Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde.
Finn: Joy Division – Closer, Broadcast - Tender Buttons, Captain Beefheart - Safe As Milk.
Catch Sunken's EP on the 18th of September!
Words by Eleanor Noyce.
4th August 2020.
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