Shelf Lives

Name, where are you from?
Shelf Lives. Sabrina (Toronto, Canada) and Jonny (Northampton, England).

Describe your style in three words?
Grunge, street, vintage.

What’s the best gig you’ve ever been to?
J: Death Grips at Primavera in 2017. It was scary but thrilling.
S: Such a tough question but definitely one I'll never forget is at Glastonbury 2017, I was basically at the front for Anderson .Paak and it was wild. His energy is infectious AF.

If you could be on the line up with any two artists in history?
J: Led Zeppelin because they're Led Zeppelin.
S: Soundgarden because Chris Cornell.

Which subcultures have influenced you?
J: To be honest, I can't say there has been one subculture that has influenced me. I've never been the type to get immersed in any one subculture, it's been really fluid for me.
S: That's an easy one for me, grunge for sure. Many came after but that was the first subculture when I was a kid in the '90s that I became obsessed with. I was young so I could only go so far with it but music-wise and aesthetic wise I was all in and there was no room for anything else... well, maybe Hanson.

If you could spend an hour with anyone from history?
J: Any of the engineers from Ancient Egypt. That would be interesting, wouldn't it?
S: Scott Weiland. So I could ask him why he was an hour and a half late on stage at Edge Fest 2008. It had been raining all day. They ended up being worth the wait but still.

Of all the venues you’ve been to or played, which is your favourite?
J: Unfortunately it's not around anymore but there was this underground tiny venue called Power Lunches in Dalston that was just really inexplicably cool.
S: O2 Brixton, I don't know why. Maybe because it was the first venue I had ever been to in London when I moved to the UK and I still love it. It's not too big and not too small, the sound is usually great... and it's sloped.

Your greatest unsung hero or heroine in music?
J: Chilly Gonzales. He's a musical genius. He's mixed classical piano and pop... and it's just genius.
S: M.I.A. She's amazing. That was actually the first gig I saw at O2 it was the tour of her 'MAYA' album. She started a revolution... her music, her aesthetic, her message, her performances. She's authentic in her creations and gives zero f*cks about how she's perceived, it's admirable, to say the least.

Shelf Lives are currently on tour supporting Skunk Anansie around Europe and the UK. They recently released their EP 'Yes, Offence'. Listen, purchase or stream it via msha.ke/shelflives.