Spotlight On... Humour
Following the release of their debut EP pure misery, we catch up with Andreas Christodoulidis to shine a spotlight on new Glasgow band Humour
It's rare that a song catches our attention and piques our interest the way that pure misery by Glasgow outfit Humour did when we first heard it at the end of September. There's something so deliciously thrilling about it, from its discordant guitars strums and singer Andreas Christodoulidis's quivering, unhinged and nonensical vocals to its abrupt ending.
More of these enticing sounds can be heard across their debut EP of the same name, rreleased on 25 November. Following that release and ahead of a headline performance at Sneaky Pete's this Saturday (3 December), we shine a spotlight on the band and catch up with Andreas Christodoulidis to find out more.
Can you tell us a bit about the band, how did you meet and what inspired you to come together as a band?
We’ve all played in various projects for years and have lived together for a long time. But it was lockdown that really gave us the time to work out what kind of music we wanted to make. We spent the whole time writing songs and learning how to record them ourselves. We weren’t really ever thinking about releasing or playing them. I think it was this freedom that allowed us to push the songs to more interesting places.
What was the reason behind calling the band Humour?
We just really like the word. It’s used in a lot of different contexts and we hope it captures the quite diverse feelings we try to create. Also it was Katie from Theo Bleak’s idea not ours.
I love your debut EP, please tell us a bit more about the themes explored across the record?
Thank you! I think the common thread throughout the EP is just a sense of uneasiness or dread, which we’ve tried to couple with a slightly absurd delivery that could be considered quite comical, maybe. The individual songs have their own themes, like the fear of dying, or the fear of not being taken seriously. Most of the songs are from the point of view of a certain character. Some of these characters are inspired by books or real life events, and others are just invented.
There’s something so supremely intoxicating about your unhinged vocal delivery across the record, found at its most extreme on pure misery. Can you tell us more about your exasperated singing style, and what other musicians have maybe inspired you?
Thanks very much. I think I struggled for quite a while to find the right vocal style, even after we had some of the songs on the EP more or less in their final form. I was happy with the lyrics, but the ways I was delivering them didn’t feel very authentic. I was going for a kind of spoken word style initially, but it felt a bit forced and cringey. Then while we were writing pure misery, Jack [Lyall, guitar] suggested I shout the lines as loudly as I could, and I could feel instantly that that worked way better. There is something about the silliness of it that strangely makes it feel easier to do. And the American accent that I often put on is a nice remove – it feels like playing a character and feels authentic at the same time.
Image: pure misery artwork by Andreas Christodoulidis
You’re also an artist and have done all the artwork to accompany each of the releases so far – can you tell us a bit more about your art practice? Did you always hope to combine your art and music practices?
I moved to Glasgow to study painting and printmaking at GSA in 2013 and have been printmaking since. I had considered combining the visual art and the music, but the kind of stuff I was making didn’t feel very in-keeping with our musical style. I think we were exploring some different possibilities for the cover artwork when the label came across one of my prints and suggested I put together some ideas for the singles and EP art. It was unexpectedly easy coming up with imagery in response to the songs, as I was able to just explore the same visual motifs and themes that the lyrics had. Inspiration for the prints often comes from film stills, National Geographic magazines and Pinterest rabbit holes.
What are your ambitions for the EP and what do you hope 2023 has in store for Humour?
We don’t have any expectations really. It’s all very new to us and has been quite mad over the last few months, playing shows all over the place. In 2023 we’re going to tour the EP as much as we can. Maybe there will be some new music too…
pure misery is out now via So Young Records; Humour play Sneaky Pete's, Edinburgh, 3 Dec
humour1.bandcamp.com
instagram.com/humour_music