Creeper: "The dream would be for Jim Steinman to write a musical using our music"

In Dork’s December/January issue (feat. The 1975, out now), we tackled a bunch of our favourite new bands - the ones whose gigs buzz with excitement, who inspire more devotion in their fans than Emmerdale does from our grans, and who will undoubtedly make 2017 special. Including Creeper, whose guitarist Ian has popped in for some Qs.

How have you found 2016 so far? What was the most exciting thing that happened for Creeper?

2016 has been wild, it’s hard to fully comprehend everything that has happened because it’s all happened so quickly. I imagine over Christmas it will all settle in. Winning actual awards was bizarre, I never imagined that happening to us.

What do you think has been the biggest music-related news story of 2016?

The death of David Bowie was huge blow to us. He was a huge influence on us in many ways and the world is a lot less exciting without his genius.

What song would you crown banger of the year?

Twenty one pilots - Blurry Face. We listen to the record all the time in the van on tour. We are stoked for those guys. They have somehow managed to create a unique record in 2016 and THOSE CHORUSES!

What’s your favourite thing about being in Creeper right now?

My favourite thing about being in Creeper right now is the community that has formed around us. We get messages from kids that are into our band saying thank you because they have met a whole new group of friends through our band. I am humbled that this has happened, when I was younger I found a great bunch of friends through a similar experience i had with the “Youtube Community” I can really relate.

Your debut is wrapped up in a super theatrical, complex story - what sparked the idea to give fans more than ‘just’ an album?

For a while the alternative music scene seems to have thrived on a stripped back/no frills approach to music, which, to us seems strange to simplify such a creative area. Punk has always been about expressing yourself so we wanted Creeper to be a bit more bombastic and theatrical similar to the likes of T.S.O.L, the Misfits, The Nerve Agents but at the same time have a nod to the glam of Bowie. We want people to listen to our records and get lost in it all. Life is tough and music has always been the best vehicle for escapism.

Is having a larger narrative something you plan to continue for future albums? It must be a lot of work to keep up.

The main thing I enjoy about creeper is being able to work on it as a giant art project. It’s never just about the music; it’s about the narrative, it’s about the aesthetic, it’s about creating another world. We could never just focus on one thing, I fear it wouldn’t keep us creatively satisfied. We seem to be quite creatively thirsty, so it is hard work but we thrive on that. I guess what I’m saying is no matter what we are working on we will end up putting this much work into because it’s quite compulsive for us.

Are there any other elements you’d like to bring in down the line? A few albums have been turned into musicals, for example…

I know for a fact Will would love to be involved in making a musical, in fact he was working on a musical involving aliens before we got back together for Creeper. The dream would be for Jim Steinman to write a musical using our narrative and music, haha.

What’s top of your bucket list for 2017?

We have always dreamt of playing Warped tour! That would be a dream come true, also getting out to Japan would be incredible. I’ve been obsessed with Japanese culture since i was a teenager. [sc name="stopper" ]