Five-piece alt-punk outfit Babe Punch have been making waves in Nottingham and beyond, having tirelessly performed around the city over the past couple of years.
Their releases on Soundcloud – ‘Fixation’ and ‘Snake Tongue’ – have attracted praise from NME, as well as fellow grungy, fuzz-heavy bands like Drenge and The Wytches. Having supported the likes of Hinds, Allusondrugs and Crosa Rosa, Babe Punch are now set to perform at The Bodega (9th May) with the provocative American punk favourites, Chastity Belt. Ahead of the gig, we asked the group about how they came together, the scene in Nottingham, and their activism in the city.
Impact: Babe Punch are a pretty busy band. Of the many Notts gigs you’ve played so far, which has been your favourite?
Babe Punch: We’ve loved so many of the gigs that we’ve played so we can’t just pick one, but our top favourites have to be the first gig we ever played at JT Soar, supporting Hinds at Rescue Rooms in February this year and a gig we played at The Lofthouse last Friday with Arrows of Love, Ming City Rockers and Unqualified Nurse Band.
“Activism is important to all of us individually and we think it’s a really great thing if you can express your views and try to make a change”
I: What do you think of the current Nottingham music scene?
BP: It’s a really exciting thing to be part of because there’s loads of great musicians coming out of Nottingham at the moment and there’s loads of cool opportunities. Some bands we love are Kagoule, The Mithered, Cheshire and the Cat, Mannequin and Unqualified Nurse Band.
I: How did Babe Punch come together?
BP: Molly, Carys and Abbie met at school and Molly and Carys used to play acoustic stuff together when they were younger but always wanted to be in a band. Abbie told Molly about a gig opportunity and wanted to get a band together and they decided she’d sing for her and asked Carys to play guitar. We’ve had a line up change in the last few months so we have Adam playing drums and Miles is standing in as rhythm guitarist.
I: Your music has prompted comparisons to the Riot Grrrl movement of the early ’90s and you recently played ‘Femstival: Punks Against Patriarchy’ at The Maze. As a band, is activism important to you?
BP: Activism is important to all of us individually and we think it’s a really great thing if you can express your views and try to make a change. We loved being involved in things like the Rape Crisis fundraiser we played at Rough Trade!
“It’s a really exciting thing to be part of because there’s loads of great musicians coming out of Nottingham at the moment”
I: Who are your biggest musical influences?
BP: Courtney Love and Hole, Stevie Nicks, The Beatles, PJ Harvey, Savages and POND.
I: What does the rest of 2016 hold for Babe Punch?
BP: Definitely a new release and loads more exciting gigs!
Find the band on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/babe-punch-1
Maddy Hay and James Noble
Images: Babe Punch
