CULTED SOUNDS: PUSH BABY TALK CHAOTIC FIRST ALBUMS & BEING ‘ICONIC SAVAGES’
Dreamy indie-pop production from the 00s, updated, spun, and filtered through an iconic duo from Manchester? Meet push baby – the musical duo cutting through the noise. AKA Jake Roche and Charley Bagnall, push baby is not their first rodeo. The two were previously dubbed ‘Rixton’, and reached the top spot in the charts with ‘Me and My Broken Heart’ – but the lack of creative freedom saw them move on to pastures new.
One newly formed record label and band later, and push baby are taking on the industry again – this time, on their terms. With their latest project, Circles, just released to the world, we caught up with them to discuss all things breakdown to breakthrough, and when to put the choccy digestives down.
Can you give us a rundown of your journey – birth to pop sensation music duo – in 3 sentences?
Had a breakdown. Got back to basics. Voila!
You have a large TikTok presence and following – how important do you think the app is for emerging artists today?
In terms of marketing – sure. For us personally we try and not let it dictate how we create. But rather how we ‘market’ our creativity. It’s just a modern Top of the pops. It’s a great tool if you just see it as that.
How has it changed the way you work, if at all?
We try and not let it, but subconsciously it may have an effect. There’s this idea now that songs are getting shorter and shorter and they have to start with the ‘hook’ to get the listener in like it’s a bad thing. The Beatles were doing that back in the day to play into the radio game. I think now we know, ‘ok this one is for us, and this one if for them’. Either way though we won’t put out anything we don’t love.
If you could give one piece of advice to your 15-year-old-selves, what would it be?
Put the chocolate digestives down you dickhead!
What are your creative influences – musical and otherwise?
Musically it’s right across the board. A huge spectrum of artists seem to leak into our creativity. Not necessarily the artist themselves but the tools they use. A string section, or the distortion on the vocal. We try and just be one at all times, from start to finish. We’ve finally come to accept that we don’t know what we’re doing.
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Can you talk us through the process of creating WHAT YA GONNA DO?
Sure. We were just listening to a lot of early 2000’s late 90’s pop. There was an amazing production duo called Max Martin and Denniz Pop that were sonically the blueprint and backbone to artists like Britney and N’sync and Backstreet boys – we just fell in love with them and tried to see push baby through their eyes.
Do you have a favourite project you’ve worked on, and if so, why?
The first album ‘wow, big legend’ was rather chaotic. We were actually signed right at the beginning of it and the day the contractual release came in we dropped ‘Holding on is holding you back’ as indie artists like the fucking iconic savages we are.
Lastly, name 5 tracks on heavy rotation now, and why?
Bored again! – Buddy ross/Gabriel Delicious
Feels like the ending of a movie.
Youngest child – Gabriel Sayer/Bambina
Just slaps…
Billions – Caroline Polachek
Fave artist on earth right now
Palaces – Flume
Mad bastard with a proper ear for it. Chaz is in love with him.
Water of March – Art Garfunkel
This is a life song. If I have a kid, they won’t know what that song ‘means’ until they know what it ‘means’ – do you know what I mean?
