GETRZ: Raw Energy, Big Riffs & Catchy Lyrics

In case you weren't already aware of the masses of local talent, meet GETRZ, an energetic 4-piece from Swindon really starting to make a name for themselves. We had the chance to chat with the boys to chat about their upcoming tour, musical influences and the Swindon music scene:

Photo courtesy of Niall Yarwood

Firstly, let's get to know you – introduce yourselves, who does what in the band?

Declan Casey: lead guitarist/vocalist, Joshua Heather: rhythm guitarist/vocalist, Toby Politt: bass guitar/backing vocals & Dan Geary: drummer.

At what age did you know you wanted to be in a band and how did you form GETRZ?

Toby was the youngest when he realised he wanted to be in a band at 8 years old, Dec at 10, Josh at 11 and Geary at 13.

Josh was out at a local pub and messaged Declan and arranged to meet, have a pint & a catch up. This is where I (Josh) then forwarded the idea to him of which Dan then joined. With Josh being on another night out he then bumped into a college friend Toby and then it grew from there.

What’s the inspiration behind the name?

We thought it sounded catchy, as much as it gets confused for a lot of different pronunciations (it is pronounced gett-ers)

You’re touring in September, is there a city you’re particularly excited to play in?

We are very excited to play in certain venues because of the location etc, but we are most excited to be playing in Camden & Brighton. I think it means a lot to be given the opportunity to finish the tour in our hometown also!

Your debut album is out on the 25th of August, what can we expect from it?

Raw energy, big riffs & catchy lyrics. We have put so much effort into making these tunes as big and as individual as possible.

Which bands are you enjoying listening to at the moment?

Dec is enjoying listening to The Amazons & Jaws, Toby Brand New, Geary KORN & Rage against the machine and Josh Ratboy & We are Parka’s.

Are there any musicians that have directly influenced your sound?

There are very many musicians and bands that influence our music from Catfish and The Bottlemen all the way through to Skepta & Jaws.

When making music where do you draw your inspiration from?

We write about real life situations that we have been in as individuals or our friends have been in. We also write a lot about the younger culture and what experiences are to be had now in these days.

What’s the songwriting process usually like?

We tend to share ideas over Facebook etc. We just sit at home write stuff and then jam it all together at practices.

What would be the dream venue/festival to headline?

Reading & Glastonbury would be the complete dream & the dream venue would have to be the O2 in Brixton.

What’s the Swindon music scene like?

There are a lot of hard core, metal core, indie, shoe gaze bands around in Swindon at the moment. There is a lot of diversity which is really interesting to see.

Finally, what are the plans for the rest of 2017?

We are extremely excited to get this tour underway so we want to conquer that first! But for everyone we have something very special lined up for October!

Keep up to date with GETRZ here, and make sure to catch them on their September tour!!

Twitter: @GETRZBAND

Instagram: @getrzband

Facebook: www.facebook.com/GETRZBAND/