Adult Leisure took Amplify the Noise’s world by storm in 2022.
With David Woolford on guitars, James Laing on bass, Neil Scott on vocals, and Nathan Searle on drums the foursome secured spots on our Songs We Loved, EPs We Loved, and Artists We Loved for 2022.
To say Adult Leisure lives in my head rent free is an understatement. Their EP, The Weekend Ritual, is bold, thunderous, and perfect and I still can’t get enough of it a month after its release.
And I am pleased as punch to kick off our 2023 A Conversation with… series with front man and lyricist, Neil Scott.
ATN: What about the 2020 UK lockdown made you guys decide to create together?
NEIL: A combination of things really, I think lockdown gave everyone a chance to really take stock and consider those passions of theirs for example, that weren’t really being followed for whatever reason. Certainly myself, I was chomping at the bit to work on something again after years of putting music aside, and I put a story up on my Instagram (I know, how very edgy) essentially saying “SOS, SEND ME MUSIC AND LETS MAKE SOMETHING MEGA”.
It was Dave who now plays guitar in the band and is an all round f’n wizard, who slid on in with a few demos he’d been working on in; I’ve known Dave (along with the rest of the band) for nearly 10 years now from playing together at different shows over the years in Bristol.
What followed then was a beer and a big ‘ol ‘take over the world’ chat with him and James followed by a bat signal to our Nath on Facebook essentially saying “need a drummer, fancy it”?
Then yeah, here we are – working with your mates and 3 of the most talented musicians I’ve ever met, it’s an easy decision really!
ATN: When you decided to create together, did you know at that time, you would be forming Adult Leisure? If not, when was the eureka moment that was more than a creative outlet during a pandemic?
NEIL: I think we’ve all been in bands before and f’sure, it’s certainly an outlet which we all appreciate having in our lives as that ‘creative outlet’ alongside our day jobs which pay the rent but, I think once our jamming sessions became writing sessions, and our demos turned into our first single and then the first one gets put out and people begin to dig the shit out of it, I think that’s the piece where we were probably like “boys, here we f’n go, we are onto something here”.
ATN: How do you as a band (or individually) approach writing music?
NEIL: We have a process now which although every now and then changes, pretty much is what we’ve found to work well for us; Dave is like I said, a wizard, he’ll have a riff or a bit of an intro/verse/chorus idea which will find its way to our band whatsapp and we’ll chime in with our ideas on it before taking it to rehearsal and crafting it into what it becomes.
ATN: The Weekend Ritual topped our EPs of 2022 and we got musical vibes like that of Peter Gabriel, Big Country, Tears for Fears, and OMD to name a few. Which artists(s) inspired you growing up?
NEIL: That’s real kind and lovely to hear, so thank you for that! I think you’re probably along the right lines; certainly a lot of 80s new wave and post punk bands like The Smiths and The Cure, they probably played a big part don’t get me wrong, but artists like Prince, Peter Gabriel and maybe even Simply Red weren’t far behind – long live Mick Hucknall and long car journeys with me Mum and Dad!
ATN: Who or what inspires you to continue creating?
NEIL: Ourselves – we know we have something good here and we’re just getting started. I think after seeing everything we’ve achieved as well since March when we put out “Things You Don’t Know Yet”, we know we have barely scratched the surface of what we’re capable of.
ATN: With your debut single “Things You Don’t Know Yet” being championed by BBC Upload and God Is in the TV and your debut hometown show selling out, some may deem Adult Leisure to be an overnight success or incredibly lucky. How did being recognised for your hard work and your craft make you/the band feel?
NEIL: It’s all very surreal and has had us at a loss for words at times – we appreciate all of the support so much and to have achieved everything we have so far in the last 9 months including our first spin on BBC Radio One has been a dream come true.
We work our asses off and these are the first milestones of hopefully many more to come!
ATN: Let me be honest, The Weekend Ritual was just too short. We need more! Is there a full length album coming this year?
NEIL: Hahaha, are you gonna pay for it? Nah, I joke, that’s sweet of ya to say and we’re glad you enjoyed the record. I think it’s definitely something we want to tick off in the future, but I guess you’ll just have to wait and see.
…ooh, the suspense, THE DRAMA.
ATN: What can fans like ourselves expect from Adult Leisure in 2023?
NEIL: More gigs, more songs and more Adult Leisure, 2023 PACKED TO THE RAFTERS WITH THE STUFF.
ATN: What is your or the band’s “weekend ritual”?
NEIL: More often than not, gearing up for and then nursing a hangover, followed by binge watching trash TV like Married at First Sight – honestly, it’s shit and I love it.
SAME 3 QUESTIONS WE ALWAYS ASK
ATN: Artist / band that you feel is the most underrated and why?
NEIL: Getdown Services – probably the best live band in Bristol at the moment (alongside from Saloon Dion) and once you’ve seen them, you’ll never forget them.
ATN: Artist / band that you would like to collaborate with and why?
NEIL: Probably the boys I’ve just mentioned but if we’re gonna go EVER, probs Prince man, different level genius.
ATN: Artist / band that you would like to tour with and why?
NEIL: Sam Fender – that bloody sax man, jheeeeeze!
One last thing though from the boys and I, thanks for all of your support of late, we’ve loved reading your pieces on our tunes and we really appreciate it. Big love Shelia.
Consider myself officially swooning and blushing from Neil’s words. We cannot thank Neil enough for his time, the band for their craft, and if we were rolling in the deep with dough, we would absolutely finance a full length album.
Grab The Weekend Ritual and if you’re in Liverpool, see the band on 3-February at The Jacaranda Club
Watch “Control” below
Watch “Modern Son” below
Watch “Things You Don’t Know Yet” below
