01Profile
A Civil Partnership Photo
Civil Partnership
Musicians — London
03Interview
Name, where are you from?
Greetings. We are CIVIL PARTNERSHIP. We’re from SW9, London.
JS: Jack George Smith (Bass / Vocals / Film / Design).
WL: William J Lovell (Vocals / Guitar).
JT: Jake Thomas (Production / Additional Instrumentation).
JM: Josh T Matheson (Drums).
JK: Julia Kobak (Design / Photography / Vocals).
JB: Jaime Wai-Hung Bravo (Guitar).
Describe your style in three words?
Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous.
What’s the best gig you’ve ever been to?
JS: The Drums at MELT! Festival in 2011. None of us were actually in attendance but we have watched this set on YouTube literally hundreds of times and are convinced this is the creative pinnacle of The Drums’ career and, to a considerable degree, the peak of pop music in general. The Drums wrote some of the best pop songs of the last decade and people don’t give them credit for that.
If you could be on the line up with any two artists in history?
It would be pretty special playing a show with Slowdive and My Bloody Valentine. We aren’t the first to say this but they’re probably our two favourite shoegaze bands. We love how they structure their tunes as pop songs but keep the really innovative, creative stylistics. That has definitely inspired our approach. Jack saw Slowdive live at Field Day back in 2017 and it was a totally transcendent experience. A rainstorm started during 'Souvlaki Space Station', with the thunderclaps starting during the delay repeats during the intro. It was incredible. Will found this KEXP version of 'Slomo' which is a little bit longer than the album version and foregrounds this gorgeous melody Rachel Goswell sings at the end of the tune. It’s massively gorgeous – her voice is amazing. They both have a pretty formidable sound live but we reckon we could hold our own – people are always telling us that CIVIL PARTNERSHIP sounds loud live.
Which subcultures have influenced you?
Anything where creative people are keeping it DIY and being as prolific as possible. We’ve pulled a lot from post-war filmmakers like Agnès Varda or Stan Brakhage, or Andy Warhol and The Factory artists. We think you can hear that in how our B-sides have been composed so far. The early years of Factory Records has definitely influenced our workflow as a collective. It is important to us to keep things focused and in-house. We all try and be as involved as possible in the process. We all bring different creative skills and perspectives when making CIVIL PARTNERSHIP stuff which we feel leads to more interesting ideas and work. We also try and tap into that urgency in how '70s zines like Ripped and Torn or '90s skate videos got made. The same goes for hardworking bands like Parquet Courts. We have a lot of time for how that band has extended their voice beyond music into their visuals through Andrew Savage’s painting. His use of colour is incredible and really enhances their art through its interaction with their tunes.
If you could spend an hour with anyone from history?
Jesus Christ. We’d love to know what he was like. There is certainly a lot to ask him. We hope he’d like our music. There might be a bit of a language barrier but we’d make it work.
Of all the venues you’ve been to or played, which is your favourite?
Nowadays we’d choose Paper Dress Vintage in Hackney. PDV has a great-sounding room with a brilliant system and immaculate vibes. They do a club night after too which is always good fun. Josh played his first CIVIL PARTNERSHIP gig there. Before the pandemic, we’d undoubtedly say the old Sister Midnight Records in Deptford. It was such a small space and seeing bands there was always a visceral experience. They had tons of gorgeous LPs for sale upstairs too, plus this lovely black cat cutting about as well. We played our first sold-out show there back in 2019 or 2020.
Your greatest unsung hero or heroine in music?
WL: I think Post War Glamour Girls are massively underrated. Their album ‘Feeling Strange’ is one of my favourites, and they did two other brilliant LPs as well. I don’t think they ever got the success they deserved. Maybe if they had come about in a different time and place then they might have been really successful. I guess the stars never aligned and it wasn’t meant to be.
CIVIL PARTNERSHIP recently released their new single Saltaire. Listen, purchase or stream it here. The short film accompanying Saltaire is due for release later in August.
02Playlist
04Playlist Notes
The first track you played on repeat?
JK: 'No Scrubs' by TLC. I remember dancing around the house when this came on MTV back in Poland. I would have only been a toddler back then. I still remember when my Dad told me that Left Eye had been killed in a tragic road accident. It’s quite a traumatic memory for me.
A song that defines the teenage you?
JS: 'Androgynous' by The Replacements. It felt like such a relief discovering this tune as a teenager back in Wiltshire in the early 2010s. It sounds funny saying this now, but hearing those lyrics made me feel far more OK about understanding my own gender and sexuality as a more fluid or pluralistic thing. That was the era of chauvinistic LADBible Facebook posts and homophobic schoolyard ‘banter’ so discovering this tune from 1984 [!!!] was very encouraging and self-affirming.
WL: 'Best of Friends' by Palma Violets. I listened to this track almost every day at one point. I was so self-assured as a teenager. I really thought I knew how the world worked and that I was right about everything. This song – and the rest of the album it is on, to be honest – always brings me back and reminds me of what it was like to feel that.
One record you would keep forever?
JB: 'Lost & Found: Hip Hop Underground Soul Classics' by Pete Rock and InI. There is so much to say about this album. I first heard it in a coffee shop in Bordeaux with my best friend James. It was the first holiday that I took my skateboard with me and the vibe was fresh as hell. I was really feeling some chill old-school hip-hop. Anyway, this album comes on and I asked the DJ what was playing. He pulled this worn-ass LP out from behind the decks and – in this super heavy French accent – explained who Pete Rock was and his significance within the history of hip-hop. I took a photo and ordered a copy as soon as I got back to England. I didn’t have a turntable at the time and I think my copy is a fake but I don’t care – it was so exciting to have my first Pete Rock LP, even if I was always heading back to timestamped YouTube videos to actually hear it. Whenever I see or hear that record these memories flash through my mind.
A song lyric that has inspired you?
JS: "I do believe / You are what you perceive / What comes is better than what came before"
From 'I Found A Reason' by The Velvet Underground. I’ve had plenty of low moments during the past few years. Pandemics are shit and London can be a pretty difficult place to live at the best of times. Those lyrics always lend perspective when I’m out in the doldrums and remind me to keep optimistic and keep going. Cheers Lou.
The song that would get you straight on the dance floor?
Jaime thinks anything will get him on a dancefloor after a drink. The rest of us could be persuaded by 'Let’s Dance' by David Bowie, but only the seven-minute version with the immaculate bongo solo.
A song you wished you had written?
JS: 'Just For Loving You I Pay The Price' by Cindy Lee. The synths on this track are absolutely crushing. It sounds like sitting in the middle of a massive underwater orchestra in a spaceship from '2001: A Space Odyssey' orbiting Neptune looking at all the icecaps sliding about on the surface. The guitar tone is sharp like fresh-cut glass. Unbeatable and untouchable.
Best song to turn up loud?
WL: 'Backseat Freestyle' by Kendrick Lamar. When Josh and I first passed our driving tests we would drive around provincial towns in Yorkshire blasting this with the windows down. It was childish and obnoxious but also a lot of fun.
A song people wouldn’t expect you to like?
JS: 'There’s a Turtle in my Soup' by Ivor Cutler. Something about this tune always hits deep and totally ruins me. Ivor Cutler is massively underappreciated and I’m not happy about it. I remember Yak did an incredible cover version of this track on that EP they released around the time that they broke up. The production and arrangement on that sound absolutely massive – it’s so bombastic and totally unpredictable. I have a lot of time for guitar bands getting weird at the mixing desk. I wish it happened more often. That song always brings me back to that autumn right before the pandemic where everything seemed to be moving at a million miles per hour. I’m not sure whether it actually was – maybe the stasis that followed is just recolouring my memory. It’s wild how context and perspective changes the feel of things.
Best song to end an all-nighter on?
'Glad You Came' by The Wanted. We all sincerely love this song at face value and regret that Cameron-Clegg austerity era chart-toppers like this are often dismissed as crass or unsophisticated. Our money is on this track and others like it becoming newly aesthetic within the next eight years and we can’t wait.
Any new music you are listening to right now?
'My God' by Tapir!
'Talk Over Town' by Katie J Pearson.
'21st Century Classical Music' by Gag Salon.
'Water Table' by Cola.
03Interview
Name, where are you from?
Greetings. We are CIVIL PARTNERSHIP. We’re from SW9, London.
JS: Jack George Smith (Bass / Vocals / Film / Design).
WL: William J Lovell (Vocals / Guitar).
JT: Jake Thomas (Production / Additional Instrumentation).
JM: Josh T Matheson (Drums).
JK: Julia Kobak (Design / Photography / Vocals).
JB: Jaime Wai-Hung Bravo (Guitar).
Describe your style in three words?
Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous.
What’s the best gig you’ve ever been to?
JS: The Drums at MELT! Festival in 2011. None of us were actually in attendance but we have watched this set on YouTube literally hundreds of times and are convinced this is the creative pinnacle of The Drums’ career and, to a considerable degree, the peak of pop music in general. The Drums wrote some of the best pop songs of the last decade and people don’t give them credit for that.
If you could be on the line up with any two artists in history?
It would be pretty special playing a show with Slowdive and My Bloody Valentine. We aren’t the first to say this but they’re probably our two favourite shoegaze bands. We love how they structure their tunes as pop songs but keep the really innovative, creative stylistics. That has definitely inspired our approach. Jack saw Slowdive live at Field Day back in 2017 and it was a totally transcendent experience. A rainstorm started during 'Souvlaki Space Station', with the thunderclaps starting during the delay repeats during the intro. It was incredible. Will found this KEXP version of 'Slomo' which is a little bit longer than the album version and foregrounds this gorgeous melody Rachel Goswell sings at the end of the tune. It’s massively gorgeous – her voice is amazing. They both have a pretty formidable sound live but we reckon we could hold our own – people are always telling us that CIVIL PARTNERSHIP sounds loud live.
Which subcultures have influenced you?
Anything where creative people are keeping it DIY and being as prolific as possible. We’ve pulled a lot from post-war filmmakers like Agnès Varda or Stan Brakhage, or Andy Warhol and The Factory artists. We think you can hear that in how our B-sides have been composed so far. The early years of Factory Records has definitely influenced our workflow as a collective. It is important to us to keep things focused and in-house. We all try and be as involved as possible in the process. We all bring different creative skills and perspectives when making CIVIL PARTNERSHIP stuff which we feel leads to more interesting ideas and work. We also try and tap into that urgency in how '70s zines like Ripped and Torn or '90s skate videos got made. The same goes for hardworking bands like Parquet Courts. We have a lot of time for how that band has extended their voice beyond music into their visuals through Andrew Savage’s painting. His use of colour is incredible and really enhances their art through its interaction with their tunes.
If you could spend an hour with anyone from history?
Jesus Christ. We’d love to know what he was like. There is certainly a lot to ask him. We hope he’d like our music. There might be a bit of a language barrier but we’d make it work.
Of all the venues you’ve been to or played, which is your favourite?
Nowadays we’d choose Paper Dress Vintage in Hackney. PDV has a great-sounding room with a brilliant system and immaculate vibes. They do a club night after too which is always good fun. Josh played his first CIVIL PARTNERSHIP gig there. Before the pandemic, we’d undoubtedly say the old Sister Midnight Records in Deptford. It was such a small space and seeing bands there was always a visceral experience. They had tons of gorgeous LPs for sale upstairs too, plus this lovely black cat cutting about as well. We played our first sold-out show there back in 2019 or 2020.
Your greatest unsung hero or heroine in music?
WL: I think Post War Glamour Girls are massively underrated. Their album ‘Feeling Strange’ is one of my favourites, and they did two other brilliant LPs as well. I don’t think they ever got the success they deserved. Maybe if they had come about in a different time and place then they might have been really successful. I guess the stars never aligned and it wasn’t meant to be.
CIVIL PARTNERSHIP recently released their new single Saltaire. Listen, purchase or stream it here. The short film accompanying Saltaire is due for release later in August.
04Playlist Notes
The first track you played on repeat?
JK: 'No Scrubs' by TLC. I remember dancing around the house when this came on MTV back in Poland. I would have only been a toddler back then. I still remember when my Dad told me that Left Eye had been killed in a tragic road accident. It’s quite a traumatic memory for me.
A song that defines the teenage you?
JS: 'Androgynous' by The Replacements. It felt like such a relief discovering this tune as a teenager back in Wiltshire in the early 2010s. It sounds funny saying this now, but hearing those lyrics made me feel far more OK about understanding my own gender and sexuality as a more fluid or pluralistic thing. That was the era of chauvinistic LADBible Facebook posts and homophobic schoolyard ‘banter’ so discovering this tune from 1984 [!!!] was very encouraging and self-affirming.
WL: 'Best of Friends' by Palma Violets. I listened to this track almost every day at one point. I was so self-assured as a teenager. I really thought I knew how the world worked and that I was right about everything. This song – and the rest of the album it is on, to be honest – always brings me back and reminds me of what it was like to feel that.
One record you would keep forever?
JB: 'Lost & Found: Hip Hop Underground Soul Classics' by Pete Rock and InI. There is so much to say about this album. I first heard it in a coffee shop in Bordeaux with my best friend James. It was the first holiday that I took my skateboard with me and the vibe was fresh as hell. I was really feeling some chill old-school hip-hop. Anyway, this album comes on and I asked the DJ what was playing. He pulled this worn-ass LP out from behind the decks and – in this super heavy French accent – explained who Pete Rock was and his significance within the history of hip-hop. I took a photo and ordered a copy as soon as I got back to England. I didn’t have a turntable at the time and I think my copy is a fake but I don’t care – it was so exciting to have my first Pete Rock LP, even if I was always heading back to timestamped YouTube videos to actually hear it. Whenever I see or hear that record these memories flash through my mind.
A song lyric that has inspired you?
JS: "I do believe / You are what you perceive / What comes is better than what came before"
From 'I Found A Reason' by The Velvet Underground. I’ve had plenty of low moments during the past few years. Pandemics are shit and London can be a pretty difficult place to live at the best of times. Those lyrics always lend perspective when I’m out in the doldrums and remind me to keep optimistic and keep going. Cheers Lou.
The song that would get you straight on the dance floor?
Jaime thinks anything will get him on a dancefloor after a drink. The rest of us could be persuaded by 'Let’s Dance' by David Bowie, but only the seven-minute version with the immaculate bongo solo.
A song you wished you had written?
JS: 'Just For Loving You I Pay The Price' by Cindy Lee. The synths on this track are absolutely crushing. It sounds like sitting in the middle of a massive underwater orchestra in a spaceship from '2001: A Space Odyssey' orbiting Neptune looking at all the icecaps sliding about on the surface. The guitar tone is sharp like fresh-cut glass. Unbeatable and untouchable.
Best song to turn up loud?
WL: 'Backseat Freestyle' by Kendrick Lamar. When Josh and I first passed our driving tests we would drive around provincial towns in Yorkshire blasting this with the windows down. It was childish and obnoxious but also a lot of fun.
A song people wouldn’t expect you to like?
JS: 'There’s a Turtle in my Soup' by Ivor Cutler. Something about this tune always hits deep and totally ruins me. Ivor Cutler is massively underappreciated and I’m not happy about it. I remember Yak did an incredible cover version of this track on that EP they released around the time that they broke up. The production and arrangement on that sound absolutely massive – it’s so bombastic and totally unpredictable. I have a lot of time for guitar bands getting weird at the mixing desk. I wish it happened more often. That song always brings me back to that autumn right before the pandemic where everything seemed to be moving at a million miles per hour. I’m not sure whether it actually was – maybe the stasis that followed is just recolouring my memory. It’s wild how context and perspective changes the feel of things.
Best song to end an all-nighter on?
'Glad You Came' by The Wanted. We all sincerely love this song at face value and regret that Cameron-Clegg austerity era chart-toppers like this are often dismissed as crass or unsophisticated. Our money is on this track and others like it becoming newly aesthetic within the next eight years and we can’t wait.
Any new music you are listening to right now?
'My God' by Tapir!
'Talk Over Town' by Katie J Pearson.
'21st Century Classical Music' by Gag Salon.
'Water Table' by Cola.