Thanks to Coldplayer Nattatouille, Coldplaying have been lucky enough to get Max McEllingott (the lead singer - pictured) of Coldplay support act, Wolf Gang (check out their website!), to agree to an exclusive Q&A with the site. The questions were sent in over the last few days and the answers have come back. Here they are - enjoy!
How did you come up with the name Wolf Gang? Would you change it if you could?
My sister came up with the name actually, and for a while it caused a bit of confusion with Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All fans which made me sometimes think of changing it even though we were the first to use it, but that problem has sort of died out since and I'm happy that we are rolling with it. It wouldn't feel right changing it.
Who/what inspires you to make music?
I've always been inspired by my parents record collection, that mixture of songs from the 70's and 80's that had real melody,verve and personality to it. I grew up in a musical family as well so there was inspiration and encouragement all around me.
Where has been your favourite place to play so far (both as a support and as your own headliner)?
Well we've just come off the Coldplay tour and that is definitely the best and most fun support we've done, in terms of headline shows, we had an amazing one in Vienna last December which was brilliant, the crowd has so much enthusiasm it made the whole night so much fun.
Is it really true that ‘Suego Faults’ came to you in a dream? Have you been anywhere else in your dreams?
Yes it is, and yes I do, as I'm sure most people do, surely everyone is well travelled when it comes to the realm of dreams?!
What is your favourite and least favourite track on ‘Suego Faults’?
I don't have favourites actually, retrospectively I think that there are powerful moments and weak moments in each song.
Do you have any pre/post gig rituals?
We do a vocal warm up about 40 minutes before we go on, then we just sort of dance around and get ourselves geared up.
Can you give us any updates on how the second album is coming along? Will this tour with Coldplay influence you in any way?
Yeh the writing is going well, we've got a good few songs under our belt and it doesn't seem to be slowing down so that's encouraging. We watched Coldplay's set almost every night and it was interesting to start paying more attention to how the songs are structured and propped up instrumentally, who knows maybe some of what we learned will subconsciously drift into our own songwriting...
Do you plan on touring the USA extensively to support your second album (if so, can you come to Pawtucket, RI)?
Actually we are still playing to support the first record as releases in Britain and the US are delayed. The radio stations out there are still playing singles from the first album so we'll be headed back out in October to do our own headline tour of the east and west coasts, and the bulk of our set will be primarily derived from Suego Faults.
In a typically difficult American market to crack, what are the advantages and disadvantages of opening for a massively popular act in front of an audience largely unfamiliar with your work? How do you approach this differently to your festival sets (such as your captivating set at Coachella) or your own shows in terms of audience engagement and setlist choices?
Opening for Coldplay has been massively advantageous in spreading our music in the US, I think radio stations used it as a reason to play our music, Coldplay fans who weren't aware of us left the show and got in touch on twitter and Facebook, our album downloads spiked during the tour. I don't want to jinx anything but hopefully our shows where we supported them will be quite busy because of that exposure the band allowed us, so I couldn't stress enough how positive for us that tour was! In terms of our setlist, we kept it short and punchy like the Coachella show, I think when you're playing to a largely unfamiliar audience it's better to leave them wanting more rather than to overexpose yourself.
When you moved from London to Berlin, did it change your attitude and approach to music?
It didn't really change my attitude, it was quite simply a pragmatic move to go somewhere where I could be in an empty room with a piano every day and not have distractions around me! What was great though was the band came and joined me, and we really hit upon a sound that we have since followed up on, it did seem to set a precedent for the songwriting for the second album out there…
How is it you came to open for Coldplay?
I think it came through Guy Berryman the bass player who had heard and liked the album.
What is your favourite Coldplay song? And why did you choose to cover ‘Life is for Living’ before going on tour with them?
There are so many songs I love it's hard to choose a favourite but 'Amsterdam' does something special for me. Covering 'Life Is For Living' was just a spur of the moment thing, it's a nice and short number too...
What is your favourite memory of the tour so far?
There are so many, playing the first night was really adrenaline filled, meeting the band was awesome, the long drives through beautiful stretches of land, meeting our fans out there, there were loads of really nice moments.
How has watching Coldplay perform changed the way you view your own shows? Do you want to get to stadium tours one day?
Oh absolutely! It's very inspirational watching the performance. As a frontman it's great to watch Chris, he moves around so much and genuinely seems to be really enjoying himself up there, which is so infectious.
What is it like to tour with Coldplay? Would you do it again?
We would hands down love to do it again some time, the whole experience was amazing, and their crew were the nicest people to work with ever.
How did you prepare yourself for a tour like this?
We didn't smoke and we didn't drink…
Do you spend any time with the members of the band? Do you find that strange?
We bumped into them a few times backstage which was nice, it was great to be able to thank them in person for having us. They all seem really chilled out and down to earth. But it was nice to shake the hand of someone who you genuinely really respect.
What are your plans once you have finished touring with Coldplay?
We're back to writing more songs, we have a couple of European dates, then the American tour in October! [Article ends]
New photos of Coldplay performing at the Verizon Center, Washington, DC (8-9 July 2012):
Photos by SBrooks540
Don't forget to check out your tour discussion thread if you are getting Coldplay tickets or just getting excited for the European & North American 2012 shows and other forthcoming appearances:
FEBRUARY 2012
8 Los Angeles, CA @ Club Nokia (iHeartRadio) [discussion]
9 Los Angeles, CA @ Jimmy Kimmel Live [discussion]
10 Los Angeles, CA @ GRAMMY Week MusiCares Person of the Year tribute [discussion]
12 Los Angeles, CA @ 54th Grammy Awards, Staples Center [discussion]
16 Sydney, Australia @ 2DayFM, Mobile Live Set (intimate show) [discussion] [CANCELLED]
17 Sydney, Australia @ Sunrise (intimate show) [discussion] [CANCELLED]
21 London @ Brit Awards 2012, O2 Arena [discussion]
MARCH 2012
2 New York, NY @ Good Morning America [discussion]
4 New York, NY @ The Secret Policeman's Ball, Radio City Music Hall (Amnesty International) [discussion]
APRIL 2012
17 Edmonton, AB @ Rexall Place [discussion]
18 Calgary, AB @ Scotiabank Saddledome [discussion]
20 Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena [discussion]
21 Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena [discussion]
24 Portland, OR @ Rose Garden Arena [discussion]
25 Seattle, WA @ KeyArena [discussion]
27 San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion At San Jose [discussion]
28 San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion At San Jose [discussion]
MAY 2012
1 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]
2 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]
3 Los Angeles, CA @ American Idol show [discussion] [NEW!]
4 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]
5 Los Angeles, CA @ KROQ's Weenie Roast y Fiesta [discussion] [NEW!]
18 Porto, Portugal @ Dragao Stadium [discussion]
20 Madrid, Spain @ Estadio Vicente Calderón [discussion]
22 Nice, France @ Stade Charles Herman / Nikaia [discussion]
24 Turin, Italy @ Olympic Stadium [discussion]
26 Zurich, Switzerland @ Letzigrund [discussion]
29 Coventry, UK @ Ricoh Stadium [discussion]
JUNE 2012
1 London, UK @ the Emirates Stadium [discussion]
2 London, UK @ the Emirates Stadium [discussion]
4 London, UK @ the Emirates Stadium [discussion]
7 Sunderland, UK @ the Stadium of Light [discussion]
9 London, UK @ Wembley Stadium (Capital FM's Summertime Ball 2012) [discussion] [NEW!]
9 Manchester, UK @ the Etihad Stadium [discussion]
10 Manchester, UK @ the Etihad Stadium [discussion]
22 Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center [discussion]
23 Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center [discussion]
25 Houston, TX @ Toyota Center [discussion]
26 Houston, TX @ Toyota Center [discussion]
28 Tampa, FL @ St. Pete Times Forum [discussion]
29 Miami, FL @ American Airlines Arena [discussion]
JULY 2012
2 Atlanta, GA @ Philips Arena [discussion]
3 Charlotte, NC @ Time Warner Cable Arena [discussion]
5 Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center [discussion]
6 Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center [discussion]
8 Washington, DC @ Verizon Center [discussion]
9 Washington, DC @ Verizon Center [discussion]
23 Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre [discussion]
24 Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre [discussion]
26 Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre [discussion]
27 Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre [discussion]
29 Boston, MA @ TD Garden [discussion]
30 Boston, MA @ TD Garden [discussion]
AUGUST 2012
1 Auburn Hills, MI @ Palace of Auburn Hills [discussion]
3 East Rutherford, NJ @ Izod Center [discussion]
4 East Rutherford, NJ @ Izod Center [discussion]
7 Chicago, IL @ United Center [discussion]
8 Chicago, IL @ United Center [discussion]
10 St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center [discussion]
11 St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center [discussion]
28 Copenhagen, Denmark @ Parken Stadium [discussion]
30 Stockholm, Sweden @ Olympic Stadium [discussion]
SEPTEMBER 2012
2 Paris, France @ Stade de France [discussion]
4 Cologne, Germany @ Rheinenergie Stadium [discussion]
6 The Hague, Netherlands @ Malieveld [discussion]
9 London, UK @ Paralympics Closing Ceremony [discussion]
12 Munich, Germany @ Olympiastadion [discussion]
14 Leipzig, Germany @ Red Bull Stadium [discussion]
16 Prague, Czech Republic @ Slavia Eden Stadium [discussion]
19 Warsaw, Poland @ National Stadium [discussion]
22 Hannover, Germany @ AWD Arena [discussion]
NOVEMBER 2012
10 Auckland, New Zealand @ Mt Smart Stadium [discussion]
13 Melbourne, Australia @ Etihad Stadium [discussion]
17 Sydney, Australia @ Allianz Stadium [discussion]
18 Sydney, Australia @ Allianz Stadium [discussion] [NEW!]
21 Brisbane, Australia @ Suncorp Stadium [discussion]
Read also: European Stadium Tour announced! (general discussion thread for the Europe tour)
Read also: North America Tour announced! (general discussion thread for the US/Canada tour)
Read also: 2012: Live Appearances - Easy Thread Finder (last updated - 12th January 2012)
Read also: 2012 tour date rumours (please post dates for ALL countries in here)
Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]
The new range of Coldplaying merchanise (unofficial of course to the official shop) has hit our stores, with our biggest range of goods so far. Prices are as low as they can be for a Cafepress shop so more people will be able to afford them. We don't take any profits for the sale of the merchandise as a result. Take a browse in one of the online stores nearest to you: UK | US | Canada | Australia | European (shipping is worldwide, but you can choose what currency to pay in) - simply alter the country dropdown menu at the top of the shop page. [thanks to TracieMorgan and zzz]
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