At first glance, London hardcore 4-piece Lay It On The Line’s story is overflowing with morbidity – not due to their history, but rather their choice of subject matter underpinning every release in their relatively short existence.
Their debut EP, ‘A Lesson In Personal Finance’, paved the road for things to come. Telling the true story of an old headteacher from band members, and brothers, Mike and Matt Scott’s school who succumbed to the murderous rage of a rent boy, the four tracks consist of raw and eerily impassioned vocals over minimally produced instrumentation. ‘Pay Your Rent, Boy’ in particular provides a valuable life lesson, and an intensely terrifying listening experience.
The follow-up records tread similar water. ‘Crowhurst’ talks of the death of Donald Crowhurst whose mental state steadily deteriorated during a solo around the world voyage. It continues the unlikely combination of hardcore and folk inspired story telling.
Released in late October, the newest record ‘Vigilante’ is the most polished to date. With the concept surrounding the testimony of George Hutchinson – a witness to the death of Mary Jane Kelly, the final Jack The Ripper victim – it tightens the musical elements that found initial outings on previous records into a consistently (and suitably) brutal sound.
“All music tells a story on some level,” bassist Tristan Chate begins when asked about their penchant for storytelling, “that’s what enables people to relate to it.” For some, relating to the murderous tendencies of historic figures may seem farfetched, yet Chate is quick to counter the argument. “Let’s face it; there are more interesting things to write about than what happens to 4 guys in London on a daily basis.”
Rather than rely on the sound to overshadow incomprehensible lyrics, Lay It On The Line manage to develop a distinctive personality through these lyrics. With the majority available to read in full over at the band’s BandCamp page, it is evidently something they want audiences to engage with. For that reason the concept precedes the writing process.
“Generally we will have a concept before writing a record and that in itself has an effect on the overall mood of the songs,” Chate explains. “Once the bones of the songs are there we can stretch the skin around and lyrically explore the theme in greater depth,” he expands, somewhat gruesomely.
It’s not all about blood and gore for the Lay It On The Line bunch – it’s also about making a mark while retaining their own direction and integrity. “We started this band, as most bands probably do, just to have fun,” Chate reveals, matter-of-factly. “The important thing is not to forget that.”
The Londoners attitude towards identity is based around creativity rather than individuality. There is less of a focus on marking their own unique territory and more on being good at what they do, within the scene they are placed. With a market increasingly filled with a wealth of hardcore bands, being at the top of their game and enjoying themselves at the same time is paramount.
“It’s difficult to have an individual identity when there are so many bands out there. The important thing is just to focus on the music and never stop the creative process,” Chate muses.
In their case the creative process is upbeat with deliberately contradictory results. Their music does little to encourage thoughts of sprightly dispositions. “We’re actually quite a cheery bunch of guys,” Chate parries “it’s just the most compelling stories usually have the most tragic endings.”
Tragic endings should be far from Lay It On The Line’s worries at this stage. With twelve months which have seen them record with Neil Kennedy (Polar., More Than Life) and a stretch across Europe which saw them play to “the drunkest room of people I have ever seen” in Hamburg, Lay It On The Line are making waves in the underground hardcore circuit.
Their commitment to play alongside a variety of bands in order to encourage variation has seen them on many bills, with many more to come. “The more diversity within a scene, the healthier it is,” Chate continues. “There really are only 2 types of genre: good music and bad music. Bands and promoters just need to be open and not discriminate, otherwise the scene becomes too insular and before you know it you’re at a show, bored out of your mind, watching four bands that sound exactly the same. No one wants that.”
With a split scheduled with a yet-to-be-named Russian grindcore band, Lay It On The Line are taking their own advice. By associating themselves with various musical styles, and their continued focus on engaging lyrical concepts, Lay It On The Line are likely to be on our radars for some time to come.
BEN TIPPLE