Wille & The Bandits return in 2020 with a brand-new line up, further increasing their immense and immersive sound by moving from a trio to a four piece. The band will now feature screaming Hammond organ and second guitar as well as 3-way vocal harmonies.

Wille will be joined by Finn McAuley (drums & percussion), Harry Mackaill (bass, ukulele & vocals) and Matthew Gallagher (keyboards, guitars, percussion & vocals). All three are impressive musicians who have honed their craft with dedication and have been selected for their enthusiasm and songwriting sensibilities.

The band are on their UK February/March/April UK tour, with special guest Troy Redfern.

The band will be touring the latest album Paths, which encapsulates the excitement and gusto of rock and roll. The album is a breath of fresh air for music lovers trapped in Spotify’s spoon-feeding algorithms and radio’s set menu playlists; challenging the listener, while embracing the technology and instrumental possibilities that are afforded to musicians in current times. Special guest on the tour will be Troy Redfern.

Wille, on his new Bandits: “I’m very excited by the new line up; our music was starting to have layers in it which were impossible to perform as a trio. Now, with a band of multi-instrumentalists, we can take the music even further and make it even more interesting. It’s like having a set of 5 colours to paint with instead of 3, creative times ahead.”

Watch “Make Love Live” by Wille & The Bandits

 
It is that Wille & The Bandits manage to encompass musical diversity, which makes their music so appealing. They adopt the musical essence, nostalgia and discovery of the late 60’s and 70’s and mix rock and roll with a contemporary approach, combining elements of world music and dance music, all of which creates something unique.

WATB have toured with the likes of Deep Purple, Status Quo, Joe Bonamassa, the John Butler Trio and Warren Haynes. In 2014 they were voted in the Top Ten bands to see at Glastonbury. They play festivals across Europe, crossing genres from the pop scene (Isle of Wight), rock scene (Steelhouse), Blues (Peer Blues), surf (Boardmasters) and other sport (the London Olympics – picked to play by being voted one of UK’s best live acts).

Wille & The Bandits
Q&A
2020 UK Tour

1. This is the first time you are touring with the new line-up. How excited are you?
I am incredibly excited about the change; new energy, new ideas and a level of professionalism that I find amazing considering how short our prep time has been. Most exciting for me is how well we all get on with each other. There is a real buzz. It’s been very strange for me as the band has always just evolved, we changed bass players a couple of times, but the sound just changed as a result of us changing in our ideas about music, our development as musicians and because of what we were listening to and into at the time. I feel that the situation of Andy and Matt choosing to take time out of music at the same time gave me the opportunity to select musicians according to a vision I had for how the sound could be.

2. Tell us a bit more about the new band members. How did you meet etc…
The music scene in the UK is such that most people are connected in some way or another and you kind of know who is about, what level they play at and if you could work together. Harry Mackaill was the first to be brought in on Bass to perform with WATB with Andy and I for the Kris Barras support, so he had the most intense audition. I knew him to be one of the top bass players in Cornwall and I have always been a fan of his. Harry is from Newquay and I often see him in the surf so it’s nice to finish a jam and then jump in the sea and share some waves.

We auditioned quite a few drummers, but when my sound engineer recommended Finn McAuley, from Croyde, North Devon, and we gave him a try and he blew us away. From the moment he came in the room he had the Bandit vibe and after just 2 snare hits Harry and I looked at each other and just knew he was the one. The infectious groove, which the band is known for, but so much tighter, such energy; Finn is an exceptional drummer.

Now Matthew Gallagher, I had met in New York when we were touring over there and he was on his own solo tour of the USA. We hit it off right away and went for a few beers and he told me that he ran an analogue studio which sounded amazing with all these vintage Hammond organ and guitar amps etc. I knew the amount of different instruments Matthew could play and also what a great singer and songwriter he is, so if we were ever going to get a fourth member, even with the old line up it was gonna be him. The only issue, he lived in Preston, but for the Bandits gig he was willing to relocate, Geddon Boy! Matthew is currently playing Hammond organ, guitar and percussion in the band, but that list could get a lot longer.

3. You went from a three-piece band to a four-piece band; what was the reason for the “increase” in band members?
After making Paths we knew that we needed another member. We used a lot of keys on the album and were trying to recreate that live with Matt Brooks playing keys samples with pedals and with Andy adding extra percussion, but it wasn’t quite having the effect of an actual Keys player or percussionist. Additionally, my writing was starting to incorporate Keys lines and three way vocal harmonies so either way I think we would have ended up with a fourth Bandit.

Having another melodic instrument in the band frees me up a lot on the guitar. I find I’m not having to have such a big aggressive sound and control all the melodic parts of the songs. Now I can sit back more, rather than driving the sound. With writing it gives me so many more possibilities as there is another melodic instrument to play off, which I think will only make the music more interesting moving forward.

4. How does the extra band member impact the sound when playing live?
It makes a huge difference as it makes the dynamic of the band much bigger, the sound with the organ is huge, but then when you drop it down just to three vocals the contrast is just fantastic.

5. Are you planning to record/release new music this year?
We are recording all the live shows to release as a live album this year, as well as working on a new studio album which will be out at some point next year.

Wille & The Bandits UK Tour Dates Here

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