Sleeper’s Louise Wener talks ‘The It Girl’ ahead of the 25th Anniversary Tour

Benjamin Forrest on 21 April 2022

Formed in London in 1992, Sleeper quickly became one of the biggest British bands of the nineties – with eight top 40 singles in the UK and three top 10 albums across the decade. After reforming in 2017, the group are now set to tour their 1996 platinum-selling album The It Girl, including a date at the O2 Academy here in Leeds on the 22nd of April. Ahead of the tour, I spoke to songwriter, vocalist and guitarist Louise Wener to get more of an insight into the history of the group and their current tour.

The tour is primarily to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the groups most successful album The It Girl, the follow-up to the incredibly successful debut Smart. Louise described how The It Girl differed to their debut, saying, “We’d had success with Smart and we loved that, but I think we felt like this the one that was really gonna break us through to a different level”. The album certainly did break the band through to the mainstream, achieving four Top 20 singles in ‘Statuesque’, ‘Sale of the Century’, ‘Nice Guy Eddie’ and ‘What Do I Do Now?’. The band, though, were seemingly unaware of the extent of their success at the time; Louise recalled, “We were very much living in the moment in those days, but it was great! When you get asked to go on Top of the Pops and stuff like that, that’s when your parents go ‘my kids doing something proper’, but even when you’re in the middle of it you’re always looking over your shoulder to see what everyone else is doing – it was a very hypercompetitive environment”. 

It is easy to see why that would have been the case, the mid-90s is viewed as a sort of golden age in British rock and indie music – with incredible bands like Pulp, Elastica, Oasis, Blur and Suede rising to prominence (among countless others). Asked about what that period in musical history was like to be a part of, Louise explained, “You have a much broader sense of that retrospectively but what was present was that feeling of…it felt very celebratory, like it was an explosion of guitar music and indie music – there was a feeling that anything could happen at that point – it was very joyful, I suppose”. Many music historians cite the rise of British guitar music, or what has been divisively referred to as ‘Britpop’, as a reaction to the grunge scene of the early 90s.  “The demographic had shifted, people getting played on the radio that hadn’t previously”, Louise said of the rise in indie bands at the time, “Radio 1, specifically, opened up to guitar music. It’s the same with all movements, it’s just something that grows and catches and divides and becomes something”. 

Due to the fact that Sleeper had supported Blur on their Parklife tour, as well as the fact they were making predominantly guitar music in the mid-90s, Sleeper have always been tagged with the Britpop label. The term ‘Britpop’ has divided opinions, with bands like Suede being quick to distance themselves from the term, “I couldn’t give a shit about it, it’s just something some journalist came up with”, said Louise of the ‘Britpop’ label, “I don’t know if like new romantic bands get asked the same question – how does it feel being new romantic? or how did it feel being grunge? It seems so specific to Britpop, it’s very strange to me. I don’t think any of us really care”. 

One of the singles from The It Girl, ‘Statuesque’, in addition to a cover of Blondie’s ‘Atomic’ featured on the soundtrack to the iconic film Trainspotting (1996). The soundtrack is often hailed as a gold standard for indie film soundtracks – featuring the likes of Lou Reed, New Order, Iggy Pop, Pulp and, of course, Sleeper. According to Louise, though, it didn’t feel like such a momentous occasion at the time: “It was just a bit of fun and then obviously became this sort of cultural moment, I guess”. The film undoubtedly brough more attention to the band, and the track ‘Statuesque’ peaked at number 17 in the UK singles chart in 1996.

Now, 26 years later, Sleeper are back performing tracks from The It Girl to audiences across the country, “They take on a new life and a different kind of meaning because of the intervening years – the interval has made it something different so that’s what makes it feel wonderful to play them again”, explained Louise. 

Sleeper are set to perform at the O2 Academy in Leeds on the 22nd April, tickets are available for purchase here.

“More of the Universe, more time with you”: Doctor Who’s same-sex storyline and seeing myself in fiction

Willow Arlett on 29 March 2022

This year, during the New Year’s special of Doctor Who, companion Yasmin Khan (Mandip Gill), or ‘Yaz’ to her friends, came out as gay. This gave the first female iteration of ‘The Doctor’ (Jodie Whittaker) a female love interest, the first time in the show’s history of the iconic character .

There are six versions of Willow Arlett that sit down to watch the events of ‘Eve of the Daleks’ unfold on New Year’s Day: six versions of Willow Arlett that are overwhelmed with enough emotion to fill an entire TARDIS.

The first curls up in the same position on the sofa as she does in 2018. She is three episodes into Jodie Whittaker’s first series as the elusive timelord when Yaz and The Doctor are asked: “Are you two seeing each other?” and something inside her shifts. When The Doctor herself is confused by the question and must clarify it with her companion, who panickedly denies anything of the sort, Willow’s hit with a wave of curiosity. Are the writers making a passing joke or is this a hint at something more? She’s not sure if there’s a point in rooting for this pairing yet, but nevertheless, she’s hopeful. When Yaz is asked by Dan (John Bishop) this episode “Have you told her? […] How you feel about her?” and Yaz’s first response is “Is it that obvious?”, she smiles. In this instance, curiosity didn’t kill the cat.

The second Willow walks into the viewing party exhausted, collapsing into her seat with a heart that’s sunken 10ft underground. She joins us after a study period that, instead of working, has been spent in the sixth form common area, stringing together stolen moments from the past two series of Doctor Who – that could be interpreted as romantic, if her friends could just see what she’s seeing – only for the discussion to fall on deaf ears. “Don’t get your hopes up” and “it’s probably just the actresses’ chemistry you’re seeing” are ringing in her mind and she’s fed up. The spark of hope glows a little less bright, but she refuses to convince herself she’s delusional; especially when Aisling Bea, the special’s guest star, mentions “good-hearted weirdos are always the keepers” and Yaz looks over at the Thirteenth Doctor as if she’s hung the moon and the stars. She almost yells “I told you so!” into thin air when 10 minutes later she’s met with a confessional.

The third Willow emerges from the height of the 2020 lockdown and sits quietly in the corner. After spending so much time alone the past few months, she’s come to the realisation that she’s bisexual. She’s come from such a loving and accepting family, she’d never even thought about labels or her identity before the world stopped. She doesn’t know how to feel. When Mandip Gill, with the most grace and sensitivity, acts out the words “I haven’t told anyone, not even myself”, this version of Willow breaks down with tears of relief. One of her favourite characters also took a while to realise her identity and is still figuring it out, she feels much less alone.

Jodie Whittaker and Mandip Gill as The Doctor and Yaz (Image Credit: Radiotimes/BBC)

The fourth Willow, halfway through her first year of university, sits in the middle, feeling quite lost. She’s grown up in a world of linear thinkers, and it makes her feel out of place. The people around her all dress the same way, all listen to the same style of music, all seem to follow the zeitgeist of being a ‘typical Leeds student’. Her confidence has been knocked down by half, but she’s determined to step back into her little flat and battle this monotonous crowd. She nods as the Doctor says “come on you brilliant humans! We go again until we win.” The embers of self-assurance she once had before the pandemic rekindling.

The fifth Willow swings her legs into the latter’s lap to get more comfortable. This variant is slowly realising that it’s important to stand up for what you believe in and challenge the opinions of others. She may not always have the confidence for big strides, but she’s trying damn well hard to make second year the year of being her true authentic self: petticoats, DM boots and all. The main reason she loves Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor is that she’s unapologetically quirky, clever, and kind. After four years of saying that she’ll channel this energy, the past semester is proof that,  this time, those truly aren’t just empty words, even if she does still doubt herself occasionally.

The sixth, and final, Willow is the one writing this article. She’s the one who got to witness the first female doctor look at a woman with all the love and loss in the universe. Happiness and love fizz away inside of her, filling her up from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. As her phone buzzes away, racking up excited texts from close friends, she sits with the widest smile on her face. She’s so glad she sat up a little straighter when Yaz proclaimed: “I want more. More of the universe, more time with you” on the TARDIS all those years ago. She’s so proud of how far she’s come.   

Image Credit: BBC

Leeds alumni Alt-J change up their eclectic sound on new album ‘The Dream’

George Bolger on 28 February 2022

From Crypto to COVID, our own University of Leeds alumni Alt-j released their latest album ‘The Dream’ last week with yet another changeup to their eclectic sound.

With a divergence from the more uncouth and messy sound of 2017’s ‘Relaxer’, The opening track ‘Bane’ sets a great tone for the themes of vice and memory found within the album with its dark, ominous instrumentation alongside Newman’s thundering choral vocals describing a boy’s strange fixation for drinking cola. Also including a lovely flute sample towards the end of the song from their track ‘3WW’ found on their third album. Following this comes the pre-released single ‘U&ME’ which features the familiar bluesy verses found on their older works which could be argued to sound monotonous after a while however this is contrasted with a catchy chorus that would make it very difficult to forget the name of the song but avoids the same monotony one might expect. Following on with the moody tone of the album created by ‘Bane’, ‘U&ME’ continues this rhetoric whilst juxtaposing its sound with Newman’s lyrics about a fun summer holiday which works well for the overall theme of the album.

Other standout tracks include the aptly named ‘Hard Drive Gold’ detailing how a teenager is able to become a crypto millionaire in the 21st century we live in. Including adlibs from both Joe and Gus’ mums. The rise of the chorus and use of the school choir blends very well with the melodic drive found in the verses. The tracks ‘Happier When You’re Gone’ and ‘Get Better’ return to the morbid focus on death and loss with the former offering a serious, intimate look at struggle in the times of a pandemic with lyrics such as ‘I still pretend you’re only out of sight in another room’ and ‘staff smuggled in the card I meant’ gives listeners a vulnerable insight into how the pandemic affected many of us with an acoustic sound.

The second half of the album offers more interesting moments including the quirky Barbershop quarter intro on the song ‘Walk a Mile’ leading into a drawn-out bluesy record along with the dreary guitar in the latter half of ‘Losing My Mind which take the song to an abrupt but ominous ending.

Finally, the album ends with a more uplifting note in the song ‘Powders’ which offers a dreamy, laid back take on teenage romance within Newman’s vocals and a mid song talking script recorded by Thom and his partner. Overall, The Dream’’s strengths lie packing not just alt-J’s typical futuristic, eclectic edge , but a darker side remeniscing of nostalgia too which as a combo comes across fantasically and avoids the pomp and pretentiousness found in other artists work nowadays.

You can catch alt-J on the May tour of the UK and Ireland, they visit the O2 Academy in Leeds on the 9th May.