JAMES caught up with Capdown Bassist Robin Goold on their nice (self-paid for) tour bus before their recent show in Birmingham.

Now Capdown have been around for 11 years or so, you’ve released 3 albums and have toured all over the place, you split back in 2007 but are now back, what made you decide to reunite and go back on the road?
Robin: I had my 30th birthday party a couple of years ago and some friends bands played. Another friend bought with them a saxophone without telling anyone; we were all drunk as hell and thought sod it we’ve got everything here that we need to play a couple of songs and it was just good fun. Before that point I don’t think we could have imagined playing together again. After doing that a friend of ours who runs Slamdunk asked us if we’d like to go back and headline one of the stages so we did that and then our old agent started getting loads of offers. We thought why not just book some holiday and go out on the road and we’ve been pretty privileged to do stuff like Reading and Leeds. I think we thought why deny ourselves something that we enjoy.

What is it about being in a band that you love?
Robin: I love the comradery of it, I love the collectiveness, and I love being on a mission. I love making music, I love hanging out with my friends and I love seeing people and friends that we don’t really get to see anymore. There’s a lot of stuff that I don’t miss as well and that’s the nice thing about doing this again because we’re not doing the stuff that we don’t like. We’ve got no interest in the music industry, no interest in selling stuff and it’s really nice and refreshing. We don’t give a shit (laughter)

What can someone who has never seen you before expect from your live show?
Robin: A quick thrash punk rock ska band with a lot of energy I hope. It was my birthday yesterday so I don’t know how much energy will be left in me because we got pretty hammered last night (laughter). I think we were always known for being a live band, I don’t think we truly did it on record and I think that’s where we’re most comfortable.

What can you tell us about the band that people might not already know?
Robin: We’re four kids that grew up together in a small town near Milton Keynes. We went to school together and just started writing music. None of us really consider ourselves to be from Milton Keynes, I think we’re from that generation that didn’t like to say that they came from there. I come from a Scottish family and I was born in Glasgow. I think we just wanted to get out of that rut of middle England. We went out on tour and it didn’t really stop for a long time. We’ve been to so many places and met so many great people and we’ve done it all very independently. We’ve always made the decisions and been involved with what happens with the band. We loved going out in a van and we worked bloody hard at it. I think a lot of kids now start bands because it’s trendy and fashionable and make music that they think people want to hear. They wonder why they’re not sat on a big bus and it’s because they haven’t done the fucking work. When they do sit on a massive bus they don’t realise that someone else is paying for it and they’re getting into debt. I think for a lot of kids these days it’s not about being punk rock but being a rock star and I don’t give a fuck about that (laughter)

Throughout the 11 years of being in the band what would you say your main highs and lows have been?
Robin: Going to Japan with your best mates and meeting new people because they like your music is fucking brilliant. Playing Reading and Leeds have also been highlights for us but we’ve also had some pretty big low points, some of which is a bit personal so I won’t go into it. We’ve had some shit recently in our personal lives and we just thought right let’s go out and cleanse, be together and play some music. This band is for life even if we don’t play another show.

You’ve played allot of gigs and festivals this year what has been your main highlight?
Robin: My birthday yesterday was absolutely amazing, we were behind the bar pouring shots and it just got so messy (laughter). I was an awesome birthday, had a nice dinner with friends and had an awesome show. Reading and Leeds was brilliant as well. We got a good billing and beforehand we were sitting there just hoping that people would show up and both days were absolutely full. It was absolutely brilliant, we really appreciate it. Hevy festival was a lot of fun as well; everything has been a lot of fun which is why we’re doing this. This is the closest we’re felt to each other for a long time as well. The highlight this year has been being together and carrying it on.

What does the future hold for Capdown?
Robin: God knows. Maybe nothing, maybe some bits, I don’t know. If people want to make us some offers they can and then we’ll decide if we can be arsed to play or not (laughter). There has been some talk of doing something next year but we just don’t know. I hope people don’t think that we’re taking the piss because we keep saying goodbye and then doing a bit more (laughter). We’re playing like every day is our last gig. Some festivals have asked us to do something but we’re telling them if they can wait 6 months for us to give them an answer then great but if they want to withdraw their offer then they can, it’s up to them.

What’s your take on the digital revelation killing off the music business?
Robin: I think we just missed the digital revolution; we didn’t exploit a lot of these tools that are available to bands these days. The music industry has fucked itself up because they’ve been using the same business models that they’ve been using for the last fifteen years. They still send out idiots to sign as many bands that they can that sound like Coldplay on the hope that one of them will pay off all of their debt. I more I find out about it the more I think that they have nothing to blame but themselves, they should have been a lot quicker to do some of the things that they’re doing now. They don’t take punts on little bands and they seem to think that one size fits all and it doesn’t work. Boohoo (laughter)

One last question that we ask every band, if you could be an animal out of a zebra and a giraffe which would you be and why?
Robin: A giraffe, they’re fucking cool (laughter). They can get the good shit off the top of the trees, I’d be happy with that.

Thanks for your time; do you have a message for your fans reading this?
Robin: Just thanks. We’re so grateful for everything that we’ve had over the last few years. We’re so lucky that we can come out and drop into being a band again and see people. Everything has come from a label, nobody has given us this shit, we built it up together with you and we’re eternally grateful.

Interview by James Daly