You’ve had a long and varied career in music, from your time with Minorplanet and This Morning Call to your more recent solo acoustic work. How does releasing “The Girl from the Gardening Club” feel in the context of your journey?
I think the word career might be pushing it a bit – but it’s certainly been an entertaining ride initially in the early days of the 2000’s with the first incarnation of Minorplanet, then a five year run as This Morning Call (the results of which are still on my You Tube channel) and more recently with my solo work and the second incarnation of Minorplanet. The current crop of songs feels like a moment of later-life clarity and the best work I’ve done to date.
After selling much of your gear and simplifying your approach to “just me and a guitar,” what drew you back into full-band collaboration with Minorplanet for this single?
Simply because I love collaboration and I think it’s much better from a performance point of view to have a full band because it rocks. But I don’t want to go down the path of having a small home studio again because it’s harder to tear yourself away from a laptop. I want to be projecting outwards, not inwards.
“The Girl from the Gardening Club” has such a warm, whimsical, and horticulture-inspired vibe—described as a summer banger for lazy Sundays. What sparked the idea for this song?
Having completed a few songs last year, I wanted to respond creatively to them, and lean into what worked well. This is a song that has a clear narrative about a character that reflects certain people that I know in life (with a bit of creative licence) and I think has allowed for much more interesting and colourful lyrics which I think is more likely to speak to people. I’m trying harder to place the audience at the centre of the song rather than constantly singing about myself, although the authors voice still cuts through too.
The track blends indie folk with soft rock energy, vintage organ synths, 60s-inspired harmonies, and a cinematic feel. How did the arrangement evolve in the studio with producer Gary Hadfield at Blueprint Studios?
Indie folk with a soft rock energy is exactly the vibe I am going for. I want people to be singing along to this one in their kitchens and living rooms. Again, we are trying to tell a story and hence the cinematic vibe, like a little four-minute movie. The arrangement was actually done by myself and Minorplanet in the rehearsal room – on other occasions we have used WhatsApp to bounce ideas around - and Gary added lots of little suggestions to enhance the track and and make it pop, such as the synth line you’ll hear over the bridge section.
There’s a playful, slightly psychedelic quality to the song. Were there any specific influences—musical, literary, or even from real-life gardening clubs—that shaped its character?
You’ll hear the phrase “salad days” in the chorus – that’s actually from Shakespeare – and I’m digging into classic literature on more than one occasion in some of these new songs. Obviously with this song that fits well because of the horticultural connotations, and there are plenty more plant references throughout. We’ve also got a slightly sexual undertone with the ‘patio pyjamas’ and the main characters various desires that get mentioned, and again that’s something that you’ll hear cropping up a lot across the songs. We hit upon the idea of sounding a bit like a “funky Beatles” and I think we’ve achieved that with this song. If anyone was to ask what this project is supposed to be, that’s how I’d describe it. And with the graphic design and video, we are totally leaning into the psychedelic vibe. I think it really stands out and it could appeal to lots of listeners.
Compared to the stripped-back intimacy of your Creatures EP, this single has more layers and energy. How intentional was that shift in sound?
Completely intentional because as I’ve already mentioned this was never supposed to be just an acoustic project. I don’t like to stay in the same style across an album, there’s usually a little bit of genre hoping. Compare this song to a track like “Sleepwalker” for example, which has a much more 80’s vibe and has been compared to Depeche Mode. And we also recently had the track “Bridezilla Caterpillar” which was a country rock song. But the vocals, lyrics and melodic style is the glue that keeps things hanging together.
The song has been out for just a short time and is already getting attention for its timeless charm and botanical celebration. What kind of early feedback or fan reactions have surprised you most?
Amazing reaction to this one so far, I think people have been really digging it. When you’re an unknown artist, you mustn’t worry too much about what happens on the day of release, you’ve got to give people a chance to discover the song, so usually it takes a few weeks for playlists to start supporting it and some press to come out. But the early reaction has been extremely encouraging and suggests that we are moving in the right direction.
What’s next for you and Minorplanet? Are we looking at more singles, a full project, live shows, or perhaps another acoustic turn after this horticultural adventure?
Minorplanet has a few songs that we are currently mixing that might make it into the world soon, which should be exciting. And for myself, I’ve got another track ready to go called “Electric Boyfriend” which we recorded in Grand Chapel Studios in Milton Keynes with the Alina Orchestra brass section a couple of weeks ago. This is a three-minute banger that again leans into the “funky Beatles” idea with a big, bold brassy sound and heavier guitars. The lyrics are just as daft as “Gardening Club” and it’s upbeat and catchy. By this time next year, the whole album will be finished and released, which I’m calling “The Giant Tomato”. Listeners should follow me on Spotify and You Tube if they want to get involved. Exciting times ahead.
'The Girl From The Gardening Club' is out now and you can stream it below.
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