Interview with the Fods

The Fods are a very interesting and diverse band from the UK, and we will discuss them so that you can get to know the band. Their music is sometimes even funny. Not only funny and interesting.
Alan – Hi guys, where are you from?
Rob - Originally from Warrington, which is in between Liverpool & Manchester in the North West of England. We all still have routes there, ol, the other Fod lives in the area, and several of the other guys who step in and out of the Fods collective are also still around the North West of England. 

Alan – As I wrote in the title of this interview. You play a mixture of different genres, where everyone can find their own. So how is it?
Rob - We do, and that’s how we want it. We started off as Indie Punk Rock, and we still revert to type every now and then, but we write whatever comes to mind, songs develop as we go and a lot of the sound depends on which Vocalist gets to express themselves. 

Alan – Let's stay within that context, some songs. For example, you start in alternative and go to indie, the next song is heavy rock, where you suddenly start to switch up to punk and return to heavy rock again, etc.
Rob - We do, and we think we do a good job of it. Each song has its own life. It also depends on the mood we are in, and how the lyrics come across. There is no real formula, they take shape as the process progresses. 

Alan – We mentioned heavy rock, indie, punk, and alternative rock. What else do you have there?
Rob - There is a blues song, some classic rock and we have had one song remixed to a trip hop sound. That’s not really our doing, but we love it. We also have another one of our songs being remixed by a EDM producer. Hopefully more on that one later in the year!

Alan – I think you take your work seriously, but at the same time funny. Just funny and interesting. Draw us into your work.
Rob - We do take it seriously, we want to produce good music, but it’s a hobby. If your hobby isn’t fun, then there is no real point in doing it. We hope that comes through in our sound. We certainly do not take ourselves particularly seriously as people, but we are proud of what The Fods have put out so far. 

Alan – Who is in the band? What do they play?
Rob - the band, is basically ol. If he needs to do everything musically, he will, and he has. He will get musical assistance from people who we rely on at different stages. Alan, Ez & Ben have all appeared on several Fods songs. We also try and enlist different vocalists depending on the sound of the song. So far, seems to be working out OK. 

Alan – Do the band members play, or have they played in something else?
Rob - We use contacts we have known and made acquaintance with over the years. Ez was an original member of Don’t Argue from when we were at school. Ben replaced our original drummer, and as Don’t Argue folded, it morphed into Flawed and Alan was integral in Flawed. Everyone else, we pick up on this journey, and we are glad to have them aboard. 

Alan – What do you rely on in your lyrics?
Rob - Imagination. I write very little about real life situations. I prefer to keep a sense of make belief in our words. Obviously there is reference to situations, but these are normally from a position of juxtaposition, so are likely to be from situations I have observed, rather than personal experience. 

Alan – Similar question. Who do you rely on in your music? Who do you base your work on?
Rob - The music comes from the heart, and from the brain. If something sounds good, we use it. For instance, for “A Matter of Time”, ol was using bongo’s and he was unsure about the direction, but as we filled it out, played more heavily with the bass it became the track that exists now. We always question it, and try and make sure that even though we are trying to diversify a bit, its still got a sound that works for us. 

Alan – Let's talk about your albums. How are you doing on them? Some have been released physically, some only digitally. And where can our readers possibly get your music?
Rob - All our music can be found on our Bandcamp. We try and give people options, as having physical vinyl is still very much something music aficionado’s relate too. On the flip side, for independent artists, its very expensive to do a run of vinyl. They are loss leaders, with the hope that they lead people to buy other merch. Personally, I love the vinyl we produce, and ol does a great job sourcing the best materials, the best deals and then the best companies to cut it for us. 

Alan – How are you doing with touring? Where have you played?
Rob - We talk about it, but logistics, especially with the amount of vocalists we have would make it very tough to do. We haven’t ruled it out totally, and it would be a major milestone for us, but at the moment at least, its some way off. 

Alan – What about abroad? Have you been there?
Rob - we haven’t but if we ever do manage it, UK & US would probably happen.

Alan – Speaking of abroad, do you know the Czech Republic and Slovakia? And do you know any groups or singers from these two countries? For example, Miro Žbirka?
Rob - I will check them out, always looking to find new music. We also have a radio show, so finding new and interesting artists is high on our agenda. As a side note, Bratislava is one of my favorite cities. When I lived in London, we went several times and always had a great time. 

Alan – If you had to compare "the Fods" to any bands, which ones would they be?
Rob - Personally, the band I think of when I am asked this question is The Clash. They made diverse music, had some absolute classics, had some that people were a little confused over. Their sound was unique, pioneering and iconic. It’s hard to be a pioneer now, I love that about them and we certainly take a modicum of inspiration from them. 

Alan – Let’s discuss the name. Why did you call yourself the Fods? It already suggests that you are some sort of pranksters.
Rob - The district of Warrington that ol is from is called Orford. With a Warringtonian accent, it is pronounced “Orfod”. So, he dropped the “Or” and he became a “Fod”. 

Alan – You release songs gradually, which is fine, so I won’t even ask about that. What’s new for 2026, I mean, a tour of Europe, or some music videos. I haven’t come across a mini movie. How are you?
Rob - We do indeed release songs as and when they are finished. We have released 8 songs from what we anticipate as a 10 track album, so we have 2 to complete. We have around 5 or 6 songs at various stages of completeness, so for 2026, we anticipate releasing 2 more songs from this album, release the album, make some vinyl to celebrate and commemorate for everyone who has been involved with it in an small way, and then move on to releasing the songs that will form album Two. We also may, or may not release a Christmas tune. More on that later in the year (if it happens)!

Alan – I like to laugh too. Do you have any funny experiences with the band while recording songs? From playing at concerts or festivals? From traveling to a concert?
Rob - Not having played gigs in many years, and recording remotely, we don’t often end up in the same room anymore. The gig which sticks in my memory, although very hazy, is when we played The Buttery in Nottingham University. Must have been 1994 or so. We had won the previous battle, so we were defending our title, meaning we were the headline act. We sound checked at 11am and didn’t go on stage until 10pm, so we spent the intervening time drinking. By the time we went on stage, we were struggling to plug instruments in the correct amps. We certainly forgot the words of our own songs. 11 hours drinking before a show is not advisable!

Alan – Which concert do you remember most and why?
Rob - Probably the first gig Don’t Argue ever played. Was at our old high school. We ripped through three originals and two covers. Those originals now make up nearly half of the Don’t Argue EP.  

Alan – From your work, which song do you like the most and why? And your fans? I think almost all of them are good, but I like My Fine Derangement the most.
Rob - My Fine Derangement is a good choice. It’s a good song, and appeals to a wide range of people. I think off Don’t Argue, my favorite is Volumes of Silence, just because of the vibe, and the way it all came together, and I think the ending is spectacular. My favorite recent one is probably I Get Blamed. I think the words are great, very tongue in cheek and humorous, and the end result was brilliant. I would love to be there for a live version of I Get Blamed.

Alan – How are you doing with the operation, the recording of your radio? Any more information and a link?
Rob - Radio is going really well. We are in a privileged position where indiemusicfans.com give us a platform to share some amazing independent music, and we get to discover fabulous bands from right across the globe. Hopefully, in the near future it will be syndicated, and we have had interest from other stations to air it. Repeat shows can be found on Mixcloud, and there is one below for you to enjoy.  

Alan – Thanks a lot for the nice conversation. Hopefully, it won't be the last. We'll see each other, we'll hear each other. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
Rob - Absolutely, we appreciate you giving us a platform and we are always grateful to the radio stations who air our music. It’s absolutely not taken for granted. 
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