Palm Reader: “2020 has made us more hopeful”

Necessity is the mother of invention. That has certainly been the case as far as most musicians are concerned during the course of 2020, when the global pandemic has challenged their very livelihoods.

Nottingham heavyweights Palm Reader have met that challenge head-on, releasing their acclaimed fourth album Sleepless into an uncertain world. Unable to play shows, the five-piece also embraced livestreaming in an ambitious manner, hiring St Edmunds Church, Rochdale, for a special performance to launch the record in late November.

“Initially, we were offered a few venues in order to play a show but, after seeing a few streams a traditional venues, that didn’t seem right. It just felt that we’d end up making a bad music video rather than creating anything special,” says guitar player Andy Gillan, underlining the ‘stream fatigue’ experienced by both musicians and audience alike in the last nine months.

Andy admits that watching Behemoth’s “fire show” livestream In Absentia Dei in September proved to be a game-changer. Further inspiration came from watching Glasgow metal outfit Bleed From Within’s high-tech stream almost a month later.

“All of a sudden, everyone upped their game and we realised that streaming a live set could be a genuinely creative, alternative way to reach people,” says Andy. “We decided that as a baseline we needed to find somewhere that looked good and that had a vibe – although I hate that word! We looked at theatres but they didn’t want to open their doors to us, and then we looked at churches. Most of them were too big, meaning that the acoustics would be terrible.”

The quintet’s search eventually led them to the aforementioned St Edmunds Church. “It was perfect as a location,” continues Andy. “The church was financed and designed completely by the Freemasons and everything in there is how it’s supposed to be. It’s like that final church in the Da Vinci Code, the Rosslyn Chapel. The whole Freemason and secret society element added to the whole event. The Masonic set square and compass on the altar was pretty rad too!”

The success of the band’s first livestream has led to them explore further options. “There’s definitely ways where you can be creative with live streams if you approach them in the right way and I think we’ll see more of that from bands,” nods Andy.

With their appetite for cinematic endeavours awakened, Palm Reader are the latest band to play our raucous live series, The K! Pit – hosted in association with Nordic Spirit.

As with the other K! Pit shows that we’ve streamed over the last four weeks, Palm Reader’s set was filmed at Blondies, our favourite small-but-perfectly-formed East London dive bar, and with no audience in attendance. So what was it like for the band playing a venue that size?

“It was great, actually. We haven’t played a place that small since 2012 and since then we’ve acquired more gear and filled out physically, so it was a bit of a challenge in terms of ergonomics,” deadpans Andy. “But it was cool playing live again and not in a rehearsal space. It was a good reminder of why we do this after all this time of not being able to play properly.”

As well as playing The K! Pit and contemplating a further livestream of their own, Palm Reader have also started to look ahead to the time when shows resume. In doing so, they’ve announced two shows at The Garage in London and the Rescue Rooms Nottingham on November 25 and December 14, 2021, where they’ll be playing Sleepless in its entirety.

“We want to present the album as a whole so people can experience what it feels like in front of them because that’s what been missing for us this year – playing those new songs to people,” says Andy “We’ve done that before with [2018’s] Braille and when you play a full album it feels like much more of an event rather than just a gig. We’re doing bigger venues this time, and there will be proper production so we’ll give fans a real reason to come out.

“As far touring goes in the wider sense, who knows what’s really going to happen?” he continues. “I suppose we could tour Australia and Taiwan right now, because live shows have returned there. That would be cool. But, as I said, it’s more realistic that we’ll be doing another livestream soon rather than a show. What’s clear right now, is that the standard models are irrelevant as far as the music industry is concerned.”

Alongside any such potential live activity, Andy is keen to begin writing the follow-up to Sleepless. “It’s difficult when you’ve just released an album because if you start writing too soon, you emulate what you’ve already done,” he reflects. “You need new life experiences to draw on and write from. We’ve done Sleepless and I don’t want to do Sleepless Part 2. I’d rather do Sleepless On Crack! Music with some extra seasoning!”

So, when all is said and done, what have the experiences of 2020 taught Andy as an individual, and Palm Reader as a whole?

“Patience! A lot of patience because there’s been so much of nothing going on!” he smiles. “There’s been days of crippling depression from boredom and repetition but, basically, I’ve got to a point where I can put up with anything now. I spent the first six months of lockdown with my girlfriend, and that is the longest time we’ve actually ever spent solidly together without going to work and doing normal things. A lot of people have experienced that too. Overall, it’s not been bad at all, and you realise that you spend a lot of time complaining about nothing. 2020 has actually made me more hopeful about what we can establish when all of this is over, and I think we all feel that way.”

Palm Reader’s K! Pit set will premiere tonight at 6pm (GMT), 1pm (EST) and 10am (PST) on our Facebook and YouTube.

The band will also be joining us to hang out and to chat during the stream itself. In the meantime, be sure to check out Sleepless and some rather awesome Palm Reader merch.

There’s also the chance for you to win one of 20 exclusive signed Palm Reader posters. But that’s not all! Thanks to Nordic Spirit – the UK’s No 1 Nicotine Pouch* - you get the opportunity to win a hoodie and a rucksack full of swag which contains a beanie, a mug, a wireless phone charger and headphones.

Nordic Spirit are also partnering with Download festival, which means that over the course of the next few weeks, one person will get the chance to win a ‘golden ticket’ to attend Download in 2021. That ‘golden ticket’ will allow you and three friends to enjoy VIP access to the festival – camping included!

To enter the competition, you need to answer the following question:
What is the opening track on Palm Reader's Sleepless?

Know the answer? Then fill in the form below! If you can’t see the form, head over here to enter the competition.

Nordic Spirit is a 100% tobacco-free nicotine pouch perfect for when smoking or vaping is not possible. You must be over 18 to enter this competition. Nordic Spirit products contain nicotine. Nicotine is an addictive substance.

Existing adult nicotine users can visit the Nordic Spirit site to claim a free sample.

*IRi Market Place, volume Share, Nicotine Pouch Category, Total UK, YTD to w/e 04/10/2020 - For more information or to verify, contact nordicspirit.co.uk/contact.

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