The Florentinas, best 'buds' [Interview]

"The whole journey has been the perfect balance of talent and luck!"

The Florentinas on film


The Florentinas, best 'buds'.

Florentina. Italian for 'flowering'.  Also, a band that’s come into bloom only recently. The Florentinas are from Bangor and say they are distanced from the conflict of Belfast. "We're not political. We write about stuff that is actually meaningful and real to us." 

Formerly known as Xiola Blue, they have achieved a lot ahead of their 18th birthdays. That includes Soundcloud interest in ‘Plastic Love’ and its anxious tones, plus their Spotify debut with a performance of ‘Stay', recorded live at Start Together Studios in Belfast. They have recorded at BBC’s famous Maida Value studios and have become a radio feature within a year of their first gig. Next up, support slots with The Maine and Brand New Friend.



They have industry support from Third Bar, the artist development company set up by Gary Lightbody and Davy Matchett. The Florentinas reveal a tale of serendipity on a train ride from Bangor to Belfast. They met Davy, took up a conversation about the Oh Yeah Music Centre and the band's next gig there on a Volume Control bill. Frontman Paddy reflects on this chance happening. "It was just so random how Davy happened to be getting the same train as me at the same time and was sitting in the same carriage. And that I was sitting beside someone who knew who Davy was. If it wasn't for that really bizarre circumstance, I don't think we would be where we are." Bassist Jacob agrees. "The whole journey has been the perfect balance of talent and luck!" 

For now, they must manage their schoolwork between signings and London trips. But age is just a number, baby. "We're definitely not getting treated differently or any lesser than anyone else. We've got management and stuff behind us now, and it's not like we're just getting booked for all-ages gigs. We're getting the same gig opportunities and other opportunities that people would be getting." 

Oh, the privilege of youth. 

"I think it's quite an advantage because people find it impressive we're doing what we're doing at our age. When we recorded the first 'Stay' demo, Luke was 14. We've got a bit of a head start."

So who or what made you start making music in the first place?

Jakob: "We all have been for a long time, doing music in school and primary school. We played traditional instruments - saxophone, clarinet, piano. Eventually, we picked up guitars and drums and came together."

Paddy: "I would say a lot of it is down to our education. Our school is really good at pushing forward music and arts and all that whereas a lot of schools wouldn't. They would be quite reserved about it. I know it was Jakob who came to our music teacher and he sort of put all the rest of us together. And if it wasn't for him, I don't think we would've actually come together as a group in the first place." 

Jacob: "I grew up surrounded by music from a very young age, my parents were always showing me albums, showing me their music and there were always instruments in the house. I used to play my mum's old Casio keyboard from the 90s - that's my first musical memory - and then I asked them if they could get me a drum kit and they got me a drum kit and then a few years ago I was like, can you get me a bass, and taught myself bass. But yeah, all my favourite bands have been introduced to me by my parents and that really inspired me to start writing."

Paddy: "Would be the same here, my dad played trumpet, my mum played piano for a bit. I was sort of the same as Jacob when I was a toddler, I had a sort of keyboard-microphone setup thing that I would just play all the time, not very well obviously." 


(l-r) Jakob Swann (drums), Paddy Boyd (vocals/guitar), Luke Swann (lead guitar), Jacob Kane (bass)

They reflect on their first memories of being impressed by music. For Paddy, it was two songs he would always listen to when he was 5 years old, Welcome to the Black Parade by My Chemical Romance and You're Beautiful by James Blunt. "Probably not the best songs, but I loved them at the time and would constantly sing them." And more recent encounters such as The Arctic Monkeys performing at the 2012 Olympics and the band Catfish and The Bottlemen. Other names tossed about are Green Day and Nothing But Thieves and bassist Jacob reflects on a time in school when he heard a Radiohead song for the first time:

"I think the first time I was really really taken by something was when I was in first year in music, our teacher put on Pyramid Song by Radiohead. I had never heard such strange time signatures and something that was so Avant Guard like that. It really blew me away and I had the strangest feeling - it actually felt like the world was ending. It was so good I thought the world was ending. I was like this cannot be made by human beings, it must be the end of the world."





Belfast has a history for creating great musicians, does this inspire you or is there a kind of pressure?

Paddy: "I wouldn't say there's any real pressure. We're really lucky in the sense that so much has happened at the age of 16/17. In some sense, there's almost less pressure 'cause we've got more time to do certain things but it's really inspiring to see all the people coming up through even outside Belfast - the Northern Irish music scene, even in Bangor where we're from, you've got the likes of Snow Patrol, Two Door Cinema Club, Foy Vance. I went to see Ryan McMullan last year so it is really inspiring. It makes you think if they're able to do it then we can totally push for it, especially being so young, we've got all that time to be able to make it happen." 

Jacob: "And everyone we've played with from around the Northern Ireland area has been so nice and so supportive."

Jakob: "Everyone pushes everyone on. I feel like if we were somewhere else, there would be more competition between bands whereas here it's very - everyone wants to help you." 

Paddy: "Having those sorts of people around you inspires you as well. You're not put off by any negativity from the industry." 

Jacob: "Brand New Friend, Volume Control, Third Bar, have all been super kind to us. I don't think it would've happened if not for all that. BBC as well."

And what's the biggest challenge you've been faced with?

Jacob: "Changing the name! That took 2 months."

Paddy: "This is a grey area. With the new year and stuff, the name was kind of hard to spell and people were getting confused so we just wanted something that was a bit easier for people to remember. And with management."

Jakob: "When we first heard, we were like 'no, we really like the name', But then we heard that all of our favourite bands started off with different names as well - it's like tradition. Just because it's your first name doesn't mean it's the best one. And then we came up with The Florentinas."

Jacob: "The name change - it was some process but by the end of it, it really breathed a real sense of life into us. We could start over. A fresh start. We got back on our feet and were writing again. After that hiatus."




How have you managed to juggle getting started in the music scene with your studies?

Jakob: "Headmistress! Been really supportive. If there are days we need... for instance, we were going to Maida Vale and we needed a Friday off. With a different headteacher, they may have been like no you can't, this counts as a sick day off." 

Luke: "She gave us an exceptional leave for that one. And Third Bar who are looking after us now are really supportive of education, they want that first. They really realise how important that is for us."

Paddy: "Everyone's very aware of the age that we're at and they understand that there's a lot going on in school and having to balance that outside the scene so the fact that everyone's so wary of that means that they're able to fit our music for us around our education so it allowed us to really easily balance things out." 

Jacob: "Our schedule is always tailored to that balance."


Are any of your school mates jealous of you?

Paddy: "Some of them said they have been. It only stopped recently but people used to rip the piss out of us. People still do. We hate boasting about it in school so we take ourselves and remove ourselves from our friends and go to a group room.  It's hard but everyone's become more accepting of it which is cool."

Jacob: "I think people are threatened by other people breaking the mold, you know. Stepping out. Or trying to do what you want to do. So many people are afraid to do that." 

Luke: "When people would rip into you for that kind of stuff it makes you want to do better. It makes you want to show them. And then when people are supportive as well it gives you that extra boost so you're not really missing out."

What made you release 'Stay' as your first proper single on Spotify?

Paddy: "Everyone loved it. We released 'Plastic Love' first on SoundCloud and 'Stay' after but 'Stay' probably received a lot more attention than the first one. It just seemed like the right song to release if that was the stuff that was gonna get you the attention so if you could properly put it on a major streaming platform and people are already enjoying it then you're gonna get a wider audience to enjoy it as well. It sort of introduces them to us nicely and allows them to see what else we've got up our sleeve."



How was Maida Vale?

Paddy: "It was just like mental." 

Jakob: "As cringe-y as it sounds, I don't really remember it." 

Jacob: "It's a blur!"

Paddy: "We were expecting to walk into the Maida Vale studios and go into this wee side room and do a wee recording in there but we went into studio 3 or 4 and it has a big balcony in it and I watched years back all my favourite bands playing in that room. When we walked in I didn't think we were actually there. It was the weirdest thing."

Jacob: "It was an out of body experience. It was really strange. And then every now and then you'd click back in and you're like 'oh my god I'm here' and my hands were shaking between takes, I was freaking out." 

Paddy: "It was the strangest thing because you knew you were standing in a room where so many legends had recorded but then at the same time, it's just another recording session so we just sort of got on with it. And did it. And as Jacob said, now and again you'd realise 'I'm actually at Maida Vale here'. And then when you were leaving, packing all the stuff up and you took a final look at the studio, and realise... 'I've recorded at one of the most famous studios'." 

Jacob: "The producers couldn't have been nicer as well. It was really cool hearing the English voice coming through the headphones - 'Hello chaps! This is take 3.' It was really professional." 

Paddy: "And then the red light would go on, and you're like 'gotta get this right, now'. It's live so there's a bit of pressure."

What are your plans for 2020?

Paddy: "Loads of gigs." 

Jakob: "Take it as it comes. Don't set massive expectations." 

Jacob: "And keep writing. That's the most important thing we can be doing. Writing, writing, writing, writing."

Paddy: "Just write and play. Maybe at some point record an EP along the line."



Catch the Florentinas supporting Brand New Friend in Voodoo on the 14th March.


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