The Globe, Cardiff.

Wed 30 Mar

words: MICHAEL BROWN

Despite her youth, a 2008 Brit Award for best female artist and a massively popular debut, Kate Nash has had a difficult time of late. Her sophomore album, My Best Friend Is You failed to reach the meteoric success of 2007’s Made Of Bricks and received remarkably mixed reviews in the process. Whether these critical and commercial struggles were down to the more mature, Motown-esque approach Nash has recently adopted isn’t clear but it is nonetheless reassuring to see her put some artistic distance between Lily Allen and her ilk.

Still, the sprightly Laaandaner won’t let any of that silly criticism bring her down as she returns to Cardiff, albeit in a smaller venue than before. Indeed, the Globe’s 350-person capacity will result in a more “intimate” experience for Nash and her eager audience, serving as a complement to the oft-relatable lyrical vignettes which pepper the singer-songwriter’s indie-pop broth. So, prepare for a mass singalong of “You’ve gone and got sick on my trainers / I only got these yesterday” if you know what’s good for you, but try to refrain from over-doing the mockney accent.

Tickets: £12.50. Info: 029 2045 2151

It’s been over a year since My Best Friend Is You was completed. What are your views on that album now?

I’m really pleased and proud of it and I’ve been enjoying touring it for the past year. It’s a really nice way to end the campaign doing this UK tour, going to towns that I haven’t been to in four years. I’m loving playing it live and I’m really fond of the album.

Do you feel like there was a progression from Made of Bricks to My Best Friend Is You in terms of lyrical content or songwriting?

Yeah, lyrically and sonically. I think that’s what you should do as an artist: progress and develop and try new things and get better. It helps to keep me inspired and that’s what I wanted to do; I didn’t want to make Made of Bricks 2 ‘cause there’s no point and that wouldn’t be interesting.

What are your views on the current wave of female singer-songwriters, such as Eliza Doolittle and her contemporaries? Do you feel that the success of your sound has opened doors for other aspiring artists?

I’m working on a project at the moment that relates to that. I’m starting an after-school music club across the UK in girl’s schools; a lot of female songwriters that are presented to us as songwriters and artists aren’t actually writing their own material. I did a panel talk last summer with Miranda Sawyer from the Observer about the gender gap in music and the fact that only 14% of PRS [the copyright collection society which controls the amount songwriters get paid] goes to women in the UK, which is drastically low. It feels like we’re back in the sixties, with girls being sold to us as artists and not really writing their own material. I’m really interested in that subject matter at the moment and I’m trying to change it in the future: I think it’s very important to encourage and support young girls and other women and I’m really a big fan of other female artists. My favourite at the moment is Brigitte Aphrodite: she’s a female singer-songwriter from London. I’ve started a small record label called Have 10p records so I’m releasing her first single and she’s going to be playing the tour as well.

Considering the impressive range of instruments you play in the studio, do you have any favourites and which will you break out on tour?

On this record I played a lot more electric guitar and I love playing that but I’m actually a really big fan of playing the bass. I’m in another band, a punk band, called The Receeders and I play with them. I don’t really know how to play bass but ‘cause we started the band and that’s what I was playing, I just learned as I went along and it’s really fun; it’s my favourite thing to play.

So will you be playing bass on tour, for your own material?

I do play bass on a b-side called Gorilla Munch so I might be playing that, yeah.

How did American, Canadian and Mexican audiences handle your distinctive accent during singalong moments?

Good, although sometimes people do impressions of me which is funny. People always used to say to me “oh, aren’t you worried that they won’t understand what you’re talking about” and I said “well, I don’t think so”. It’s not like you can’t understand what I’m saying and also I’m talking about things that relate to everybody like relationships, frustration, happiness and hunger. It’s more about the content really, I reckon.

And lastly, since this is an interview for a South Wales-based magazine, any favourite places to visit in Cardiff?

I haven’t been to Cardiff for about four years so I’m going to be really rubbish at being able to say anything! I played the Barfly which was really fun. I have got a story about Cardiff though: our van broke down on the way to the gig and we were really late for sound-check and really worried about playing the show. The sound guy in the band texted into Scott Mills [Radio 1 DJ], saying “Kate Nash has broken down on the motorway. Can someone help and save the gig, otherwise Cardiff won’t be able to have a show tonight!” Because he announced it on the radio, loads of people were honking their horns as they drove past us and they ended up stopping and giving us a lift! That’s how we got to play the show; it was really funny.

Human kindness, eh?

I know! It gives you faith, it gives you faith.