I first became aware of Deaf Devils entirely by chance. I went to The Bird’s Nest pub in Deptford as a friends’ band were playing, along with a Spanish band whom I had never heard about. That all changed when they hit the stage. A four piece band, all dressed in a droog-like style, playing Hi-energy rock’n’roll (think of MC5, early Damned, Dead Boys and Turbonegro) whilst totally throwing themselves into their performance. Halfway through their set, singer Lucy disappears for a song and then returns in a whole new costume, this time black in contrast to the rest of the band. She then continues to prowl the stage, clamber on top of tables and chairs and even throws herself to the floor of the venue which, trust me, isn’t something any of the locals would risk! I was blown-away, both by their songs and their commitment to the performance, even though playing in front of a pretty small (but enthusiastic) audience. Afterwards I spoke to the band members (Lucyfer on vocals, Pipe on guitar, Kuba on bass and Eric on drums) and they told me they had come to London to play, but also to attend the Iggy Pop concert at Crystal Palace the next day. Sure enough, the following afternoon, I bumped into them again at the festival, in between sets by Generation Sex and Blondie… Their taste can not be faulted!
Their next visit to London came six months later and saw them supporting the Dead Boys at Camden Underworld. Again, not many knew then before the gig, but playing in front of a sold-out crowd, they certainly won a lot of new fans that night. Adding a new trick to their set, they even dismantled their drum set at the end of their set, hastily re-assembled it in the middle of the dance floor and then ended the gig (including a great version of ‘Kick Out the Jams’ in tribute to Wayne Kramer) in the middle of the audience! They returned to London several more times over the next year or so, impressing more people each time, so I decided that I needed to do an interview. The first attempt, at the Hope & Anchor, was a bit scrappy as it was also my birthday and various friends had been forcing me to drink beer all evening. Fortunately, they’re good people and I was able to speak to them again when they played at Signature Brew in Haggerston. There may have been beer involved again that night, but not too much to prevent me completing the task. So, what follows is a kind of introductory-interview, getting the lowdown on a great new band that has the potential to really make a mark for themselves.
Their next visit to London came six months later and saw them supporting the Dead Boys at Camden Underworld. Again, not many knew then before the gig, but playing in front of a sold-out crowd, they certainly won a lot of new fans that night. Adding a new trick to their set, they even dismantled their drum set at the end of their set, hastily re-assembled it in the middle of the dance floor and then ended the gig (including a great version of ‘Kick Out the Jams’ in tribute to Wayne Kramer) in the middle of the audience! They returned to London several more times over the next year or so, impressing more people each time, so I decided that I needed to do an interview. The first attempt, at the Hope & Anchor, was a bit scrappy as it was also my birthday and various friends had been forcing me to drink beer all evening. Fortunately, they’re good people and I was able to speak to them again when they played at Signature Brew in Haggerston. There may have been beer involved again that night, but not too much to prevent me completing the task. So, what follows is a kind of introductory-interview, getting the lowdown on a great new band that has the potential to really make a mark for themselves.
Anyway, in my usual hard-hitting. No nonsense style, I started with a typically hard-boiled enquiry… How did you all meet up and start the band?
Lucy; Well, Eric’s my brother, so we’ve known each other for a long time, haha! Eric had wanted to start a band since he was eight years old, or something like that. Our uncle knew Pipe’s father, so they got to know each other and decided to start a band. They began looking for a bass player and found Kuba, and at first started a band called Burnout. They released one EP and Eric was actually playing guitar in that band…
Eric; Then, Pipe and Kuba started another band with Lucy singing and a different drummer. I didn’t join them until a bit later on, in 2022…
Lucy; Oh, yeah. I think we had all been in several bands before this. Eric, Pipe and Kuba had all played together for some time. There was another band where I sang and played guitar, while Pipe played drums and Eric played bass.
Pipe; We were mostly writing our own songs. That was actually where we started to play ‘Boom’, which we still play in this band, and another one called ‘Rock’n’Roll’ which we will sometimes play now. But really those older bands were just things we did locally, because we didn’t have the time or the money to make any records or stuff like that.
Lucy; We were all still in school so we didn’t have any jobs or money…
What kind of music did you listen to that made you want to play as a band?
Pipe; I think all of us love The Damned and The Boys…
Kuba; And we all love Turbonegro.
Pipe; Yeah, I’d love to play with them! Actually, a few years ago, Hank’s new band were going to play in Valencia and we were asked if we wanted to play with them. But sadly he died before the tour could happen… I think Turbonegro were a big part of the soundtrack while I was growing up. They were the voice of my childhood!
Lucy; More recently, we really liked a band called Private Function from Australia. I think they really motivated us.
Pipe; But for me, right now, they still can’t compete with The Hives. I love them! But, yeah, when we saw Private Function they completely blew our minds.
Lucy; We saw them three times in a row, and each time they were even better!
Pipe; We played with them, supporting them, right? We were actually playing some new songs that night and, at the end of our set, we came offstage and looked at each other, saying, wow, we played pretty great! But then we came back to watch Private Function and as soon as they played their first chord, and we were blown away!
Lucy; Well, Eric’s my brother, so we’ve known each other for a long time, haha! Eric had wanted to start a band since he was eight years old, or something like that. Our uncle knew Pipe’s father, so they got to know each other and decided to start a band. They began looking for a bass player and found Kuba, and at first started a band called Burnout. They released one EP and Eric was actually playing guitar in that band…
Eric; Then, Pipe and Kuba started another band with Lucy singing and a different drummer. I didn’t join them until a bit later on, in 2022…
Lucy; Oh, yeah. I think we had all been in several bands before this. Eric, Pipe and Kuba had all played together for some time. There was another band where I sang and played guitar, while Pipe played drums and Eric played bass.
Pipe; We were mostly writing our own songs. That was actually where we started to play ‘Boom’, which we still play in this band, and another one called ‘Rock’n’Roll’ which we will sometimes play now. But really those older bands were just things we did locally, because we didn’t have the time or the money to make any records or stuff like that.
Lucy; We were all still in school so we didn’t have any jobs or money…
What kind of music did you listen to that made you want to play as a band?
Pipe; I think all of us love The Damned and The Boys…
Kuba; And we all love Turbonegro.
Pipe; Yeah, I’d love to play with them! Actually, a few years ago, Hank’s new band were going to play in Valencia and we were asked if we wanted to play with them. But sadly he died before the tour could happen… I think Turbonegro were a big part of the soundtrack while I was growing up. They were the voice of my childhood!
Lucy; More recently, we really liked a band called Private Function from Australia. I think they really motivated us.
Pipe; But for me, right now, they still can’t compete with The Hives. I love them! But, yeah, when we saw Private Function they completely blew our minds.
Lucy; We saw them three times in a row, and each time they were even better!
Pipe; We played with them, supporting them, right? We were actually playing some new songs that night and, at the end of our set, we came offstage and looked at each other, saying, wow, we played pretty great! But then we came back to watch Private Function and as soon as they played their first chord, and we were blown away!
Deaf Devils have certainly been a lot more busy than your earlier bands. Was that a particular aim when you started this band?
Lucy; At first, we started the band just because we wanted to have fun and play rock’n’roll.
Pipe; But sometimes, having fun and playing rock’n’roll gets other people upset
Eric; Which is why we want to burn all the venues that don’t like rock’n’roll!
You seem to be touring a lot… since you first came to London in 2023, you’ve been back here four times. Is this something you particularly wanted to do with this band?
Lucy; I think it was around that time, two or three years ago, that we met Cheno and he told us that he wanted to be our manager. We listened to what he was saying and decided to work with him. Straightaway, he started booking dates for us outside of Spain… In fact, the first time we played outside of Spain was when we came to London in the Summer of 2023.
Eric; Even though I don’t think anyone over here had even heard of us that time!
Pipe; But that was okay. We don’t care if there’s only two or three people, or if there’s 100 or 200 people, we will always play the best show we can.
Lucy; Like I said just now, we do this because it’s fun, so if anyone else wants to join in, that’s great!
On that occasion, you also had the bonus of going to see the Iggy Pop concert at Crystal Palace the following day. I bumped into you guys at the gig and I remember thinking… they came all the way from Spain to play their first gig in London and then went to see Iggy Pop… that deserves respect!
Pipe; Oh yeah, although we were also there to see Paul Cook and Jonesy (playing as part of ‘Generation Sex’.) We all love Iggy, Jonesy, Stiff Little Fingers and the Buzzcocks, so that was a great afternoon…
Do you think it’s particularly difficult for Spanish bands to get heard outside of Spain?
Lucy; It’s difficult for young Spanish bands to get heard even in Spain!
Pipe; It’s difficult because in most of Spain, the people don’t really like rock’n’roll. And then outside of Spain, there can be other problems because of the language. What you have to do is sing your songs in English and Spanish. It’s sad because there are a lot of really great bands in Spain but most of them aren’t going to do anything because people aren’t even bothered to listen to them.
Lucy; At first, we started the band just because we wanted to have fun and play rock’n’roll.
Pipe; But sometimes, having fun and playing rock’n’roll gets other people upset
Eric; Which is why we want to burn all the venues that don’t like rock’n’roll!
You seem to be touring a lot… since you first came to London in 2023, you’ve been back here four times. Is this something you particularly wanted to do with this band?
Lucy; I think it was around that time, two or three years ago, that we met Cheno and he told us that he wanted to be our manager. We listened to what he was saying and decided to work with him. Straightaway, he started booking dates for us outside of Spain… In fact, the first time we played outside of Spain was when we came to London in the Summer of 2023.
Eric; Even though I don’t think anyone over here had even heard of us that time!
Pipe; But that was okay. We don’t care if there’s only two or three people, or if there’s 100 or 200 people, we will always play the best show we can.
Lucy; Like I said just now, we do this because it’s fun, so if anyone else wants to join in, that’s great!
On that occasion, you also had the bonus of going to see the Iggy Pop concert at Crystal Palace the following day. I bumped into you guys at the gig and I remember thinking… they came all the way from Spain to play their first gig in London and then went to see Iggy Pop… that deserves respect!
Pipe; Oh yeah, although we were also there to see Paul Cook and Jonesy (playing as part of ‘Generation Sex’.) We all love Iggy, Jonesy, Stiff Little Fingers and the Buzzcocks, so that was a great afternoon…
Do you think it’s particularly difficult for Spanish bands to get heard outside of Spain?
Lucy; It’s difficult for young Spanish bands to get heard even in Spain!
Pipe; It’s difficult because in most of Spain, the people don’t really like rock’n’roll. And then outside of Spain, there can be other problems because of the language. What you have to do is sing your songs in English and Spanish. It’s sad because there are a lot of really great bands in Spain but most of them aren’t going to do anything because people aren’t even bothered to listen to them.
The first music you released was a series of tracks available on Bandcamp. Do you think that’s a good way to get your music out to other people?
Pipe; Well, we had to do it that way. I recorded the songs and we just tried to get the best sound we could. We didn’t care too much if it wasn’t so great, we just wanted to get it done because, when I go to see a band, if I like them I will want a way to hear them when I get home. We just had to get something out there. It’s not like we were recording an album or something, it was just some tracks so people could hear us if they were interested.
Lucy; I don’t know how many people listened to those tracks but at least if anyone wanted to hear us, they could.
You also released a CD, ‘Demos and Demons’, which compiled those tracks and included some extra stuff. I assume you released that yourselves to sell at gigs. But since then you also released your first EP, ‘Boom’, on the Ghost Highway label…
Pipe; Yeah, we made the CD ourselves, just a compilation of the demo tracks and the EP to sell while we were on tour, but the single came out on Ghost Highway which is a label in Madrid. I hope we can do some more with them…
Do you write songs together as a band or is it usually just one person who comes in with the ideas?
Pipe – We all work on them together. Normally, I might come in with the basic idea but then Eric and Kuba will tell me, ‘That’s fucking shit!’ and we’ll all work on it together, like, this bit should go like this and that bit should sound like that. Once we’ve sorted out the instrumental parts, Lucy will come along and work on the lyrics.
The gig you played in Camden, supporting The Dead Boys, was the first time a lot of people in London had seen you and you got a really good response. Do you think it’s a good idea to support other bands, so you can play in front of bigger audiences?
Lucy; Oh, yeah, of course…
Pipe; We have done some touring with a band from South Korea, called Rum Kicks. That was good fun because when you’re touring on your own it can get kind of boring… just because we already know each other so well.
Pipe; Well, we had to do it that way. I recorded the songs and we just tried to get the best sound we could. We didn’t care too much if it wasn’t so great, we just wanted to get it done because, when I go to see a band, if I like them I will want a way to hear them when I get home. We just had to get something out there. It’s not like we were recording an album or something, it was just some tracks so people could hear us if they were interested.
Lucy; I don’t know how many people listened to those tracks but at least if anyone wanted to hear us, they could.
You also released a CD, ‘Demos and Demons’, which compiled those tracks and included some extra stuff. I assume you released that yourselves to sell at gigs. But since then you also released your first EP, ‘Boom’, on the Ghost Highway label…
Pipe; Yeah, we made the CD ourselves, just a compilation of the demo tracks and the EP to sell while we were on tour, but the single came out on Ghost Highway which is a label in Madrid. I hope we can do some more with them…
Do you write songs together as a band or is it usually just one person who comes in with the ideas?
Pipe – We all work on them together. Normally, I might come in with the basic idea but then Eric and Kuba will tell me, ‘That’s fucking shit!’ and we’ll all work on it together, like, this bit should go like this and that bit should sound like that. Once we’ve sorted out the instrumental parts, Lucy will come along and work on the lyrics.
The gig you played in Camden, supporting The Dead Boys, was the first time a lot of people in London had seen you and you got a really good response. Do you think it’s a good idea to support other bands, so you can play in front of bigger audiences?
Lucy; Oh, yeah, of course…
Pipe; We have done some touring with a band from South Korea, called Rum Kicks. That was good fun because when you’re touring on your own it can get kind of boring… just because we already know each other so well.
The best thing you can take from this, is that after all these years, you’re the first Punk band that have been too Punk for Rebellion!
Lucy; Yeeaaahhh! Thank you!
Pipe: But the thing is, I don’t blame Rebellion because it was more down to the security staff. We’ve never had any feedback, good or bad, from the Rebellion people themselves.
Lucy; We haven’t been told we can’t play there again, so hopefully we’ll get another opportunity.
Do you have plans for an album?
Lucy; Yeah. We’re hoping to release it by the end of this year and also want to release another single before that, along with a video. Hopefully it’ll all be ready to go by September.
Pipe; I think the first single. ‘Boom’, will also be on the LP, but it’ll be a different version… The rest of it will be all-new recordings.
Final question… what is a ‘Deaf Devil’ ? Does it refer to anything in particular? It sounds like it could be some kind of cryptid, like the Jersey Devil or the Chupacabra…
Lucy; No…it’s just that we are all going deaf and we all like Satan! It’s us! We are the Devils and we are completely deaf! But that’s fine, we’re happy with it that way!
Lucy; Yeeaaahhh! Thank you!
Pipe: But the thing is, I don’t blame Rebellion because it was more down to the security staff. We’ve never had any feedback, good or bad, from the Rebellion people themselves.
Lucy; We haven’t been told we can’t play there again, so hopefully we’ll get another opportunity.
Do you have plans for an album?
Lucy; Yeah. We’re hoping to release it by the end of this year and also want to release another single before that, along with a video. Hopefully it’ll all be ready to go by September.
Pipe; I think the first single. ‘Boom’, will also be on the LP, but it’ll be a different version… The rest of it will be all-new recordings.
Final question… what is a ‘Deaf Devil’ ? Does it refer to anything in particular? It sounds like it could be some kind of cryptid, like the Jersey Devil or the Chupacabra…
Lucy; No…it’s just that we are all going deaf and we all like Satan! It’s us! We are the Devils and we are completely deaf! But that’s fine, we’re happy with it that way!
Okay, we ran out of time again so that’s all the interview you’re going to get. But importantly, since this was completed their self-titled debut album has been released on the Katabomb label and let me tell you, it sounds really great! (You can see a full review elsewhere...) They’re putting a lot of hard work into their touring and recordings and it seems to be paying off, with more people coming along and paying attention every time they play live and the album all-set to blast your ear-plugs to Hell! Seriously, if you haven’t already done so, you need to hear this band soon. See them live or buy the album – just make sure it’s loud!
For further information, checkout the websites...
deafdevils.bandcamp.com
or
www.facebook.com/deafdevilsband
deafdevils.bandcamp.com
or
www.facebook.com/deafdevilsband
