Traits

Traits are a synth-based Indie Band from Liverpool.

Their debut single ‘Holding On’ is a real accomplished piece. It is light and clean and evokes thoughts of having a beer as the sun goes down on a summer’s night. The single is well produced and sounds more like an established band than a newbie. I predict we will hear a lot more from these guys.

Line up:
Kieran: Lead vocal/rhythm guitar
Matty: Lead Guitar
Dan: Synth
Josh: Bass
Ben: Drums/Backing Vocal

How did you meet?
A few of us were friends from school but we were really struggling to find a bass player until our singer Kieran, met Josh on a night out in Liverpool. We had a Jam with Josh the next week and we finally got to the 5-piece setup that we have now.

Has the line-up changed since the beginning?
No, TRAITS has existed as a band since January 2022 when we added Josh to the line-up.

Who is/are the songwriter/s? 
Typically, Dan comes up with the chords, Matty fills in the lead melodies and then Kieran writes the lyrics. Josh and Ben then add their respective bass and drum parts.

Who wrote the single?
This tune started with the keyboard part which Dan and Matty wrote together, then Kieran added his lyrics later. The bass and drum parts came last. We ended up making a few changes in the studio, but it was very close to our original demo.

How long did it take to record?
We recorded the track over two days with our producer Rob Whiteley. The first day was spent recording the instruments, with the second day spent recording the vocals and then mixing and mastering.

Who was the most pedantic in the recording process?
Our vocalist Kieran was the most pedantic, he definitely had a sound in mind, and it took a while to get it nailed.

Where was the single recorded? 
Whitewood studios In the Baltic Triangle. It’s a fantastic studio with loads of great equipment and we feel that Rob’s engineering/production skills are really well suited for our style of music.

Who are your musical influences? 
Some of our influences include early Coldplay, Blossoms and Rex Orange County.

Who would you most like to support? 
We would love to support OMD as they are one of our biggest inspirations.

Which song past or present would you like to have written/performed? 
We all really like the track Abracadabra by Steve Miller Band, it’s a classic 80s tune with fantastic synth and vocals. We recently wrote a song that takes a lot of inspiration from it.

What are you currently listening to? 
After raiding everyone’s phones, these are our most recent tracks according to Spotify
Dan – Metronomy: The look
Kieran – Harry Styles: Daydreaming
Ben – Peach Pit: Techno Show
Josh –  Hookworms: Negative Space
Matty – Inhaler:  Who’s your money on?

What was the first and last concert you attended?
Dan – Tinie Tempah – The Blossoms
Kieran – The Wombats – Coldplay
Ben – The Night Cafe – Peach Pit
Josh – Kasabian – Rammstein
Matty – Gorillaz – Elton John

Who is your guilty music pleasure?  
Kieran – “I secretly love Rizzle Kicks, I own every single one of their albums on picture vinyl”
Matty – George Michael

Any festivals/gigs on the horizon? 
We have a few coming up, our next one is a support slot for The Cheap Thrills at Hanger 34 in the Baltic Triangle this Saturday (6/08/22)

Any plans for another single/album? 
We’ve recently recorded our second single: Spellbound, we don’t have a set release date for it currently, but you can catch it if you come to a gig!