Milk Teeth: "We've never wanted to be the same as everyone else"

Milk Teeth have released a greatest hits, and it's their ‘Be Nice' EP. Everything the band have ever done is condensed, streamlined, polished, amplified...

Milk Teeth have released a greatest hits, and it's their ‘Be Nice' EP. Everything the band have ever done is condensed, streamlined, polished, amplified, expanded and celebrated across those four tracks. It's a bold answer to the broad question, ‘Well, what sort of music do Milk Teeth make?' "We didn't just want to do an EP that was four straight tracks. It's never been us," starts Becky. "That's why the previous record was so varied; we're not just one style. We have so many different influences; there's not room to channel that into one avenue or one song. We need to have the freedom to have a bit of everything, some people get that, and some people don't. It's nice for us to experiment and see what we come up with." She says this while setting up a makeshift bar in their dressing room behind the Main Stage at 2000trees. She hands out a gin and tonic filled a water bottle and continues. DIY ‘till they die. The band have grown from shades of grunge, through the orange fire of ‘Vile Child' and out the other side embracing something a whole lot more colourful. Watching them onstage, there's a rainbow of emotions. On record, the same vibrant confetti rains down. "With the new EP, we purposefully chose a super bright cover. We wanted it to be a new era because everything's kinda been done. We've never wanted to be the same as everyone else. We wanted to come back, super colourful and super bright. We have our moments where we have our serious, and that's super important to me, but we are a fun band. We want to be a fun band that people will have a good time to. That brightness represents that."

"It's nice to experiment and see what we come up with."

‘Be Nice' takes the sparks of Becky's everyday and uses it to light a raging inferno that everyone can stand for. Sure, the songs might have started off as vents about shitty boyfriends, being stabbed in the back at work, being mistreated by a driver on tour and the constant fear of failure, but they're twisted into something bigger than her. That vulnerable heart is still present; the emotions are real. This record takes the demons of Milk Teeth's past and puts them on the table. Then stomps on ‘em, smasher after smasher. "Get it gone," grins Becky. "I've always written from experience. If something's happened, rather than have a big blow-up ‘cos I'm not big on drama, it usually comes out in a song. I can say my piece, and it's done then. People are probably going to think I'm super angry," she laughs. "As a rule, I'm only angry when I'm passionate about something." But that's not the only flavour. "There's a good mix on the record. It covers a broad spectrum of what people go through, emotionally. I hope that people do connect with that in some way. It's a really good showcase of what we do, but at a new level. These four songs are ‘Vile Child' but better." For three-quarters of ‘Be Nice', Milk Teeth rage. They pop about the place. Fierce, furious and with gumdrops in their mouth, it's all delivered with a wicked grin. It's a whirlwind that's impossible to refuse. Closing track ‘Hibernate' takes a second to breathe. "It's about me," Becky explains, before asking: "Is that self-indulgent to write a song about yourself? I was sat in my room; there was an argument going on in my house at the time which is fitting. I'd had the lyrics written in my diary for a really long time but had no idea about the music. I just sat with my acoustic guitar, and it just clicked. Some days a song can take weeks, others it can come straight away. ‘Hibernate' is about fear of failing. For me, it was my fear of failing within the band or career-wise. I put a lot of pressure on myself, and that pressure still exists. Even if people can't relate to it in the context of a band, people do struggle with pressure in their own jobs, or with money or in relationships. People fear not being good enough. That's what that song is about." "We can do both sides," reasons Becky. "We are musicians. I write, and we're talented at what we do. I've always had pride in my work, but now I've got a little more self-belief. Since we signed to Roadrunner, I consider myself a musician whereas before I didn't. I didn't ever think I was good enough. Now I tell myself, ‘No, you are a songwriter. You write good songs and some people like them'. It's given me a real confidence boost. A kick up the arse."

"People are probably going to think I'm super angry."

Between releasing ‘Be Nice', a headline tour, festival appearances, readying the second EP that's coming later this year, and planning for album number two, Becky is keeping busy. "It's tricky," she offers. "My life often feels like a balancing act. I'm in a long distance relationship; I have the band, I have a social life, I work three different places, money is always bollocks and all that. I like the busyness of it all. Before I was practising because I felt like I had to, or writing felt slightly more forced. Now I actually want to sit down and spend a whole day writing music, which is why I think I've written a lot of songs recently. I got the excitement back." And there's plenty to fuel that excitement. "We have a tour booked, but I can't tell you any more than that," she teases. "It's very big, and it's very exciting. It'll be the biggest shows we've ever played, and that's all I'll say. We'll be doing nervous poos before every show. It's terrifying but exciting." Alongside the big secret tour (which isn't that catchy a name), the band have more new music to release. "We've just had the mixes come through this week for the second EP. It's finally getting to a point where we're all happy. I'm excited for people to hear it. ‘Be Nice' was very focused on specific stuff that had happened, this one is more situations and tongue in cheek. It's slightly more punk and more carefree. "One of the songs I wrote when we were on tour with Citizen in the States, and I must have been inspired by watching them. On a couple of them, I was inspired by ‘Coral Fang' by The Distillers, it's always been one of my favourite records, and I love Brody's attitude. I wanted to take my own spin on that. One of the songs I cover the topic of mental health but also poke fun at myself. I think that it's important to have a sense of humour about yourself, even on serious topics. It's more upbeat than ‘Be Nice', a little more fun, and a little more cheeky. It's still a good mix," she promises. "It's a continuation of ‘Be Nice'. It's what we've done previously but at a better level. We've honed in on what we do and what our strengths are. It's not like we did it intentionally when I write, I just write, and I don't think about everyone else until afterwards. Weirdly we took more time with these eight tracks than we did with the whole of ‘Vile Child'. There was a lot more thought and care. Is this the best it could be?" It's hard to imagine Milk Teeth any better. Taken from the September issue of Upset - order a copy below. Milk Teeth's EP 'Be Nice' is out now.

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