Life after Glastonbury festival

How's My Pop celebrate the launch of their album On the Hop

After taking to the BBC Introducing stage at Glastonbury 2007, we find out what Lancaster band How's My Pop has been up to since the mudfest.

What was the BBC Introducing experience at Glastonbury like?

Tom: It was a great opportunity. We got to stay the whole weekend at Glastonbury and play on a huge stage in front of so many people. It taught us an important lesson, too, that cars and mud don't mix. A tractor towed us out at 4am on the Monday morning!

Was it your big break?

Tom: Not for us; the Ting Tings did very well from it but they were far more prepared for the aftermath. We could look back and say we should have done it differently but then we would never have created our album On the Hop.

Has the band changed much since Glastonbury?

Tom: You naturally mature as a band when you play together for a few years. We haven't consciously changed direction and still write the songs in the same way, however, we experiment more with other musicians and arrangements now whilst maintaining the How's My Pop accessibility.

The songs are all individual pieces, they were all written and recorded at different times. When you listen to them you will get the gist of what the songs are about e.g. people, places, situations or anything you want them to be about.

Tell us about On the Hop…

Andy: We started recording On The Hop last year. To start with it was just four demos. We got a friend of ours called Paul Walmsley to mix them. We liked how they sounded so recorded some more. It wasn't a conscious decision to make a record; it's just a collection of recordings.

All the songs sound different because they were recorded in different places, on different days and in different moods. It's not like a normal record where you just start and keep recording until it's finished. It makes for a good listen, anyway.

All the songs sound different because they were recorded in different places, on different days and in different moods Andy Raven on On The Hop

We drafted in a few others to help with the album. Paul Walmsley was a real help; it was really because we knew he could mix it so well that we made it. Also, Mikey Kenny of Ottersgear helped us with strings, Adam Khomsi was great with the woodwind and Matthew Woodhouse was on the trombone.

We had the master before Christmas. Tom was away in Australia for a few months so we decided to sit on it until he got back. Since he got back we re-grouped and got the release organised.

Where do you get your inspiration from?

Chris: We practise in Matt's kitchen accompanied by brews and occasionally Matt's mum making tea. The songs are never written in the same way; someone brings an idea to the table and we all see how far we can take it.

What's the How's My Pop ethos?

Tom: To us it's fun. I don't think we'd do it otherwise. Its great to go from practising in a kitchen, to recording in a number of locations, to having a record you can show other people.

Are you all full-time musicians?

Tom: We all have jobs and University courses. We probably put in as many hours as a full-time job on top of commitments. We use our skills as much as we can in as many settings as we can. For example, Andy and I are playing some music for a theatre company at the moment.

What's next?

Chris: Getting the record out there. We are proud of our work and naturally want to take it as far as we can take it. After that, we'll make another one. We will keep making records we - and others - can enjoy.