INTERVIEW: Yourcodenameis:milo

"We played frantic and fast just to keep warm"

INTERVIEW: Yourcodenameis:milo

By James Lillywhite

Jul 7, 2020 14:51

Paul Mullen should be on stage in a sweaty venue somewhere in the US right now. Instead, the former yourcodenameis:milo singer is stuck out in the California desert, locked down by the coronavirus. He is keeping himself busy online, writing a new song each week and performing them on Instagram Live. But Mullen wants to get back playing in front of an audience.

And soon, he’ll hopefully get to do it. In September, YCNI:M are playing their first shows since they went on ‘indefinite hiatus’ in 2007. With a global pandemic, a pending financial crash, and post-Brexit uncertainty, it seems like a strange time for a comeback – but this is for a good cause.

The band members want to help out The Cluny, a venue in Newcastle that’s ‘front and centre’ to their history. And at a time when music venues across the UK are struggling to get by, YCNI:M are playing two shows to raise money for one of their favourite places.

“It really just feels like the right thing to do”, said Mullen. ‘This is a horrible time for bands, venues, the whole industry.”

The band also staged a mini-comeback of sorts earlier in the year, marking the 16th anniversary of their ‘All Roads To Fault’ record with a Twitter listening party. The Steve Albini produced EP has gained something of a cult status these days – and Mullen said he loved revisiting it.

“I’m immensely proud [of All Roads To Fault]. I think that record stands up, even after all these years.”

“[That time] was such a whirlwind. The tours, the Albini session, playing crazy golf every morning on the south coast of the UK during the Million Dead tour.”

“[I remember] the cold, cold winters in our studio under Byker Bridge in Newcastle – and I mean like really cold. It probably had a big influence on our sound. We played that frantic and fast just to keep warm!”

After ‘All Roads To Fault’, YCNI:M went on to release two critically acclaimed studio albums, ‘Ignoto’ and ‘They Came From The Sun’, as well as the mixtape ‘Print Is Dead Vol 1’. They called it a day in 2007 – but the fans still hold the band close to their heart.

“Musically I have no regrets’ reflects Mullen. ‘We threw everything at it. Left it all in there, warts and all.”

“Of course there are things that you’d change knowing the outcomes – but that’s life. We could have made better decisions, but could have made a lot worse. I carry a lot from that time into my work now – that it’s OK to be weird, make batshit crazy music and not fit in.”

For now, these two shows are all the YCNI:M are coming back for. But many are still craving a more permanent return.

“We crammed quite a bit into those four or five years we were active”, said Mullen. ‘That band meant a lot to some. It meant a hell of a lot to me – it still does.”

 

It has been a long time since YCNI:M split, but Paul Mullen has been a busy man. Since 2007, he has played in bands like The Automatic, Young Legionnaires and Losers, and is working on more new music during lockdown.

“It’s very hard to make any solid plans right now, so I’m writing a lot. Young Legionnaire have a lockdown video pretty much ready to go, Losers have a new ep ready for release, and I have another brand new project which has a record completed. But I can’t tell you anything about that one.”

“Oh and I’ve got to relearn the YCNI:M tracks!”

But it might be a while before we get to hear any of these new projects in a live environment. With coronavirus restrictions, playing shows and touring is going to be really tough. And Mullen thinks getting people to come back to live venues in the first place could be a challenge too.

“It’s going to be interesting to see how people react to venues being open. Some will be desperate to fill those spaces and get to see their favourite artists. But others might have changed their attitude. There is so much uncertainty.”

“We’re up against it, no doubt. The UK has always produced great, great bands and will continue to do so.”

“I just hope the new ones are able to spread their wings and be able to travel more freely in the future, because right now it all seems suffocated.”

All of this means Mullen’s plans have been put on hold for the time being. It was meant to be a busy year, topped off by the YCNI:M shows in September.

At the time of writing, the gigs are still going ahead, although it isn’t clear whether live music will even have returned by mid-September. But Mullen remains hopeful.

“As of now they go ahead, but lets see what happens. One thing I can guarantee is that these shows will happen at some point. When it’s safe to lose your shit!”

yourcodenameis:milo are playing The Cluny on September 17 and 18. Click here for tickets.