TV Priest

Name, where are you from?
Charlie Drinkwater - from London.

Describe your style in three words?
Military smart casual.

What’s the best gig you’ve ever been to?
King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard - The Crows Nest secret set, Glastonbury 2017. It was about 1am and I'd abandoned my friends to the night to hike up the hill. As it began they turned all the lights off and played continuously for an hour; lots of back catalogue, and fan favourites. People went absolutely wild, literally crawling up the ceiling and hanging from the rafters. It felt frenzied, communal and genuinely dangerous.

If you could be on the line up with any two artists in history?
That's a very hard one! I would go for 'The Coming' era Busta Rhymes (around 1996). Such an interesting point in his career, showing off his super rapid delivery and technical prowess that was present from the start but the tracks are branching off into a more commercial space with these great little hooks. I wish I could have seen him then. I'd pair that up with The New York Dolls (original '72/'73 line up), Johnny Thunders with his big wild riffs, lots of swagger and sex from David Johansen. Absolutely perfect. A proper New York line-up.

Which subcultures have influenced you?
Punk, post-punk, and new wave are obviously all high on the list, but we've all experienced quite an eclectic selection of subcultures growing up. Hardcore and post-hardcore have an inclusive 'scene' atmosphere and DIY spirit that I think our younger selves also gravitated towards. Some of the members spent a long time at raves back when we were younger, and that spirit of communion and togetherness is something I think we all look for in music and the subcultures that surround it.

If you could spend an hour with anyone from history?
I'd love to take my grandad for lunch again. He was a larger than life South London character, part hustler, part gentleman. Always propping up the bar and standing people drinks. He had a wild and varied life, growing up in wartime South London, leaving school at 12 and eventually becoming a war correspondent and photographer travelling the world. It should be a film really! We'd be at his favourite pub, listening to Frank Sinatra on the jukebox.

Of all the venues you’ve been to or played, which is your favourite?
We've only played one gig believe it or not! I'd love to play Traena Music Festival in the north of Norway - a tiny island only accessible by boat and 24hr sunlight.

Your greatest unsung hero or heroine in music?
Barbara Dane. A truly radical voice and activist from the folk 'explosion' of the late '60s, and someone that did not compromise her morals or values for the promise of a 'gilded' future.

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TV Priest will release their debut album 'Uppers' on 13th Nov 2020. Pre-order via orcd.co/pre-order-uppers.