AN INTRODUCTION TO AND AN INTERVIEW WITH THE THEME

A Band who’s name I keep hearing mentioned at a lot at the moment are The Theme. So, who exactly are The Theme and what are they all about?

Well by way of background,  The Theme are a five piece band who formed in late 2011 and who hail from South East London. The Band is comprised of Chris Daley on Vocals and Guitar, Paul Bassom on Guitars and Song-writing, Peter Sim on Guitar and Harmonica, Bill Snowden on Drums and Ben Rutherford on Bass

I recently caught up with the bands lead singer Chris Daley to find out more………

So, Chris, tell me, who are The Theme and what are you guys about?

“What are we about? Well, we’re essentially a working class lads band doing our own sound but bringing back the vibe of the good old days to scene!”

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When I asked the Band who they attributed their musical influences to they told me that they consider themselves to be influenced by as variance of genres ranging from Ska and Punk to Rock and Blues. A bit of something for everyone, some might say!

Chris further added:-

“For me personally, I’d have to say the alternative 90’s sound with the likes of Ocean Colour Scene as would Paul, but as a band we all have different influences which we then collate to produce The Theme’s sound. Pete and Bill are Blues lovers and Ben, our bassist, well if its got a banging base line, then he’s all over it”

The Theme released their first debut EP “Hits the Sky” in February 2014 to huge critical acclaim. It also won the coveted title of “Best EP of 2014” from Galaxy Entertainment.

 A further EP was released in October 2015 called “In A Daze” which received outstanding reviews.

Chris joined the Band in 2016 and “Changes” was released.

2017 saw the release of the Band’s “LIQUID” album and in 2018 they released their “Hits the Sky Deluxe EP” and “Unplugged” album.

The Years 2012/13 saw The Theme gigging extensively all over London and further afield with sell-out gigs at The 100 Club and The Clapham Grand.

The Theme were also the Band who were hailed as performing at the “Gig of the Year” when they supported Ocean Colour Scene and Weller Guitarist, Steve Craddock in Canning Town.

When I asked Chris where his hopes lie for the band in this coming year, he replied: –

“The dream is the same as all musicians I think, for people to hear and love our music. We want to be played out on the terraces to the masses and to be signed to a label that can show the world what The Theme are all about”.

The Theme’s single “Hold Me” was released in February 2019 and the Band have very recently released a brand new single called “Distance” .

So, what of this brand new single from The Theme  …….Well, in my opinion, it’s an absolute  belter of a tune reminiscent of everything that was good and great about the 90’s britpop era. Its melodic guitar rifts, coupled with a great drum beat carrying the tune through and lead singer Chris’ lyrics and singing really pull the whole thing together very nicely indeed. I’m sat here listening to the track whilst typing, yet in my heart and head I’m sat in a field at a festival somewhere on a hot, carefree, lazy summer day…….

In summary, The Theme are a band that us girls at The Songbird are very excited about and we can’t wait to see and hear more from the lads in the future.

So, what is in store for The Theme in the near future? The Band have already lined up numerous gigs up and down the country to include the following dates:-

25th May – Dublin Castle Camden London

26th May – The Saints in Southampton

31st May – The Penny Theatre Canterbury

13th July – Brentwood Festival

21st September – The Night Owl in Birmingham

11th October – The Water Rats in London as support to the Alan McGee Tour

There is sure to be many more dates added so make sure you keep up to date with all things The Theme on their social media channels.

http://www.facebook.com/TheThemeLive

http://www.twitter.com/@TheThemeLive

http://www.instgram.com/@We_Are_The_Theme

Interview by Sally Newman

pictures by Officially Pete