The Meffs: If You Can’t See It, You Can’t Be It
Following the release of their excellent second album; Business, THE MEFFS have stepped into a new chapter of their lives. A new chapter that is heavier, more frenetic yet still packed with the raw energy that has defined them so far. Business sees Lily Hopkins and Lewis Copsey push their sound without sacrificing any of their DIY spirit that lies at the heart of the duo. We were able to catch up with Lily in between practising at their rehearsal studio to chat all things Business.
For frontwoman Lily, the change was deliberate. Rather than immediately following up debut album What A Life (also fucking awesome), she wanted to give herself time to find this new direction rather than forcing it. “We started writing it probably six to nine months before we recorded it, and I made a conscious decision not to write anything while we were touring What A Life. I didn’t want it to sound like the same record. I wanted it to be fresh and different, and I think having that time away from writing while we were touring helped us work out what we actually wanted this album to be.” That freedom opened the door to a heavier side of THE MEFFS. Working with producer Dan (Weller), whose background leans further into heavier music, helped bring those influences to the forefront. “We’ve always listened to a lot of heavy music. We grew up with nu-metal, then got into metal, hardcore and grunge, so those influences have always been there. It just felt like, why are we not letting ourselves sound like that? With this record, we just thought, actually, let’s sound how we want to sound. We weren’t worrying about whether it sounded like what people expected from THE MEFFS.”
For the pair, the title track proved to be the very moment where the album fell into place. “Business was probably the first song where we thought, ‘right, this is what the album is going to sound like.’ Once we’d written that, it just made sense. We knew what direction we wanted to go in, and then we could really go for it with the rest of the record.” Alongside the heavier sound, the duo retained their DIY approach. Much of the album was recorded at their local rehearsal studio where vocals and additional work was completed with Weller. “We wanted to keep that punkness about it. Obviously we want the records to sound as good as they possibly can, but we don’t want to lose that feeling of being a DIY band and doing things ourselves. That’s still a really important part of who we are.”
For Lily, one of the most important aspects of the band is the community that surrounds them. We are of course talking about their wonderful group of fans; The Meff Army, a proud group of punks who elicit kindness and truly encapsulate the true spirit of what it means to be punk. “The Meff Army is a massive part of what we’re about. You see people wearing MEFFS shirts and you meet people who have followed you for years, and that’s amazing. You can’t really put a number on that. Obviously we’d love the album to do really well, but having that community around us and knowing that people actually connect with what we’re doing is so much more important.” The connection comes through in their lyrics. Previous material by the duo has often looked outward at social and political issues that continue to grip the world. Business brings a more personal touch with blistering tracks such as Gravity, God Complex and Love To Lose, turning the focus back the focus back towards Lily herself as they bring a more vulnerable side to the band which is refreshing to see and allows listeners take note and also have conduit to express their feelings also. “A lot of the older stuff was very socio-politically driven. It was about what was happening around us and what was happening in the world. This album was more about asking, ‘what about me? How am I affected? How am I feeling?’. That’s something I hadn’t really explored before. It was difficult because you’re putting yourself out there more, but there has to be that balance of vulnerability and fact.”
That vulnerability only bolsters the quality THE MEFFS bring and whilst it features heavily on Business, their sense of humour isn’t abandoned. Instead, the duo expertly moves between serious subject matters and their trademark cheekiness. “We didn’t want to make a comedy album, but we didn’t want to make an album where every single song was really serious either. That’s the balance of who we are. Even when you’re talking about something serious, you can still have fun with it musically. That’s what we like about punk.”
The live environment was another major consideration when it came to Business. Each song on the record was written with the stage in mind, which ensured that the album could translate directly into the band’s famously wonderful and energetic shows. “We wanted every song to be playable live. We’ve always been a live band, so when we’re writing songs we’re thinking about what it’s going to be like in a room full of people. We want people singing along, jumping around and getting involved. That’s probably one of the most exciting things about this record.” Promoting the album sees a first for Lily and Lewis as they will be put to the test of doing their first in-store promotional tour, with some days including multiple shows. Lily jokes they are attempting to “do a Frank”, referencing Frank Turner’s famously relentless touring schedule. “We thought, why not do two shows in a day in different cities? It’s going to be a lot, but we’re really excited about it. We’re literally going to be playing full band, full backline, in some of the tiniest rooms we’ve ever played in our lives.”
When it comes to THE MEFFS, punk isn’t about conforming to a particular sound or style. It’s attitude, messages and connection. Lily sees the pair as part of the new wave of punk that has emerged over the last ten years such as IDLES and LAMBRINI GIRLS whilst also being exposed to audiences outside of their usual scene on their recent shows with punk legends, THE LEVELLERS. “We’ve had people come up to us saying, ‘I don’t like heavy music, I don’t really like guitar music when it’s really heavy, but I absolutely loved THE MEFFS.’ I think that says a lot about our music being more about our message. It’s more about the attitude rather than sounding a certain way.” And after everything they’ve poured into Business, Lily has one simple hope for anyone who reaches the final track. “They want to put it on again. It’s short and sweet: play it twice.”
Business is out now via FLG. View this interview, alongside dozens of other killer bands, in glorious print magazine fashion in DS132 here.
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