Blazin’ Squad Interview
Blazin’ Squad are back, new and improved.
The boys are exploding back onto the scene with their new single Let’s Start Again after a five year break. Lee, James, Mus, Marcel and Kenzie are back.
We were lucky enough to have a chat with James, Mus and Kenzie to find out what’s going on in Blazin’ world.
Boys! You’re back, but where’s the rest of you?
Yeah! It’s been a while! The rest of the lads are fine, they’re all doing their own thing. We all see each other quite regularly and they’re really supportive of what we’re doing.
Less is more right?
Yeah you could say that, it’s a lot more manageable now.
I should say men shouldn’t I? You’ve all grown up! How old are you all now?
We’re all 23 now apart from Lee who’s 22.
Is this a complete fresh start or will you be keeping some of the old songs?
This is a fresh start for us. We’re in the process of writing our new album. We have around nine songs which we’re happy with at the moment but we’re looking to do about twenty more and then put together maybe twelve of the best.
Who writes the songs?
We all write the songs together. It normally starts with the music over at James and Mus’ studio in Ealing and we just all throw ideas and see what comes out. I think because we have written together for so long we’re good at taking constructive criticism from each other which is very important in getting the best body of work.
Have your personal music tastes changed much over the past few years?
I think more than anything it’s grown but no more then anyone’s would. So many cool artists have emerged over the last few years it’s hard not to get into things you wouldn’t normally like. But we’re all open to good music of any genre.
So what have you been doing since we saw you last?
We’ve all been busy over the last few years working on different projects. Marcel worked for a royalty collecting agency as well as writing and recording tracks. He also featured on the TV show ‘The Games’ on ITV, which he came second in.
Lee was in America writing and recording material and touring the UK doing live shows.
Mus, Kenz and James formed a band called Friday Hill and reached number five in the UK charts with a track called Baby Goodbye, but after formed a production company called Mojam Music.
Kenzie you never really left the public eye, what made you want to go back to Blazin Squad?
I never left Blazin’ Squad, none of us did. It just feels like the right time.
Everyone is making a comeback these days, from Blue to Boyzone, did this inspire you guys to get back together or has this always been the plan?
It kind of happened naturally. We’ve never really felt that we had the material for ourselves that we wanted to push.
Over the last eight months we’ve had a lot more time together and managed to come up with some great tracks.
We’re still young and not really looking at this as a short term thing, the comeback thing didn’t really inspire us, we just felt the time was right.
The new single Let’s Start Again is great, what kind of feedback are you getting?
Thank you. We’ve been really happy with the response. All the fans love it and I think we might have nicked a few more a as well. We’ve had a lot of “I didn’t used to like them before but I quite like this.”
Are the old fans sticking by you?
The old fans are there, as always. I think we have the most loyal fans in the world. They are a big factor in us getting back together. They had petitions all over the Internet trying to get us to reform.
Are you attracting new fans?
Definitely, we’ve noticed an increase in male fans as well. We always had a predominately female fan base.
Any plans to release an album?
Yeah, we’re in studio mode now so we’re trying to get as much done as we can. We’re hoping to get something out there for the end of the year if not early next year.
Are you planning on touring or playing any summer shows?
We have a lot of Party In the Park shows booked in over the summer along with our own gigs across the UK. We’re planning to tour at the start of next year.
Who would you love to tour with?
There’s a lot of artists that we’d love to tour with for many different reasons, but it’s got to be Tim Westwood ’cause he’s a funny dude.
First time around you didn’t have things like MySpace and Twitter playing a huge part in things, although now you don’t have shows like CDUK and Top Of The Pops. Do you think it’s harder or easier now?
I think it’s easier to communicate with fans and expose your music now due to sites like MySpace, Youtube, Twitter etc,
but it’s a shame that those kind of TV shows are not around any more because they we’re great fun, and supported us a lot.
We love following you on Twitter! Are any of you addicted yet?
Nice one, thanks. I think Lee is the top Twitterer out of us lot, but we all drop something whenever we can to keep everyone updated.
You’re all very snappily dressed in the new video – who’s the most stylish?
I don’t know who’s the most stylish, I think we’ve all got different styles. So who knows? It depends what you like.
Do you all have to spend ages getting ready or does it just happen?
It just happens.
What’s next for the band?
I think the next step is our new single Hold on – you’ve got an exclusive there. We’re going to shoot a video and get out there, interviews, shows, and overcome any obstacles to continue the legacy of the Squad.
Describe the new Blazin’ Squad in 3 words!
New and improved.