INTERVIEW WITH SARAH AND LEWIS OF NANA DIY
Hey guys! Here's an interview with our good friends Sarah Hammond and Lewis Defrates of NANA DIY (check out their tumblr here!), a gig promotion duo (and super lovely couple!) based in the West Midlands of England. We hope you enjoy!
Hey pals! Why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourselves and what you do at NANA DIY? How did you come up with the name?
SH: Hiya! I’m Sarah, I do sociology at the University of Birmingham, and I like animals and food a lot (not animals AS food tho). The NANA thing is short for banana, which came from a lil toy monkey I have called Stuart who bloody luvs ‘nanas and we put on DIY punk shows!!
LD: I’m Lewis, I do history at the university of Warwick. I love movies, long walks on the beach, and holding hands. We put on shows at NANA DIY, and are trying to do other stuff too. Originally, we put on shows just under our own names, but we noticed a lot of people were only thanking me or assuming that Sarah didn’t really have much to do with the technical/practical side of putting shows on, which was totally untrue and kind of fucked up. Giving it a name like NANA DIY really emphasizes the collective aspect of it, and I guess lets people identify the name with what we’re about in general.
Down to the nitty gritty: what does DIY mean to you?
LD: Obviously on the base of it, DIY means Doing It Yourself, but it’s a bit more specific in the way we do stuff and try to utilize DIY as a whole. I used to be a lot more puritanical about it- as in, if a band were putting their records out and they didn’t help to put them out with or whatever, I’d turn my nose up at it. That’s sort of bullshit though really, now I think that it means at least having the power to do what you want (especially as a band), whether that’s in the creative process, the booking aspect of it or the way you sort your own merch out. For us, DIY is especially about inclusivity; It’s about making people feel as welcome and as safe as possible, whether that means making shows all ages, trying to put on things outside of places like bars (which can sometimes feel kind of excluding for lots of people) making things as cheap as possible, and when it’s needed, making sure that fuckheads don’t come and make other people feel unsafe. It also means re-evaluating the way you consider your own place in the world and considering people around you- something that’s been brought to our attention recently is that lots of the venues we use aren’t wheelchair accessible, which is something we want to address in future. Sorry, I’ve gone on a bit here.
SH: For me it comes down to just doing as much of what you wanna do as you can!! Whether it’s by yourself or with a group of pals DIY is about getting involved and sharing skills and having a gr8 time doing so. and not being a shithead.
How did you get involved with the DIY scene? And more specifically, the gig promotion aspect?
SH: I think one day we were like ‘there’s not many good shows on at the moment we should do something about that’ and then somehow ended up doing it!! we were pretty lucky to have met the guys @ Wolf Town DIY who helped us out a lot to start with and showed us the ropes. We both had a bit of previous experience but we’d have definitely struggled if it wasn’t for them I think. Thanx wolf town.
LD: I grew up in Gravesend, Kent (with Ant!!) and there wasn’t that much going on, and I was a bit too internet-based/shy to really do anything. I went to a lot of punk shows, but they were mainly in London and I felt like I was world away from being actually involved in anything. I got into Plan-It-X Records and some hardcore punk (online, of course) when I was about 15 and told myself I’d start a scene like the one they have in Bloomington, but in Gravesend. Obviously, that didn’t happen. Then, when I went to University, me and Sarah started going to DIY shows in the West Midlands, and were made to feel really welcome by the people involved (especially the babes at WOLF TOWN DIY) and decided we wanted to do something similar. We saw a band we really liked (Crywank) were trying to sort out a tour, so we thought ‘fuck it’ and went from there.
What do you think of the potential of the DIY ethic as a movement? Has it changed must since you first got involved?
LD: My knee-jerk reaction is to say that whilst DIY is great, it can only take you so far. That’s bullshit though, really, and says a lot about the way we’re socialized to think that you can’t just do stuff yourself. Whilst a lot of people and bands grow out of DIY or only use it to an extent (which I feel like I should emphasize is totally fine), if you’re willing to put in the time and effort then the potential of DIY is pretty much limitless. One thing I’ve noticed since I first got involved is how the use of the Internet (and especially discussion based Facebook groups) has become more and more integral to the community. Whilst that’s obviously great as access to the scene becomes a lot easier, it also sucks seeing clique-ness and scene-politics play out on an ever-increasing scale online. I don’t know if that’s a hindrance to the potential of growth in DIY, but it’s certainly not helping. There also seems to have been a bit of an internet-based backlash against perceived ‘political correctness’ in certain circles in the last couple of months especially, which is shitty and unnecessary.
SH: I think basic DIY ethics can really go a long way. Obviously it’s not always possible or desirable for some people/bands, but say [as an example] with the ever-growing internet networks of DIY communities booking tours yourself or putting out music has never been easier. Although the internet can be really detrimental sometimes it really has changed the way DIY ethics can be implemented and reproduced without changing the roots too much.
 As a couple (like us!) how do you find your relationship helps with what you do at NANA DIY?
SH: It’s great!! We live together which it makes it really easy to sort out the logistics of gigs etc cos we’re both in the same place, but also because we both know each other so well we can always balance out the work between us to what we’re best at. And it’s super nice being able to share all the cool stuff together.
LD: It’s well nice putting on shows with my best mate and partner, we’re both on the same wavelength with the stuff we want to put on and how we want to do it, and living together makes getting stuff done a lot easier. Like I mentioned above, it can be frustrating when bands or people at gigs only remember to thank me when we’ve put on stuff, and it’s sad both because of the ingrained sexism but also because I see how hard Sarah works on the shows we do, and she deserves (at the very least least) half the credit for it. Â
What are your best and worst experiences as active members of the UK DIY community?
SH: Best – how lovely and willing to help most people are!! and feeling like you are genuinely doing something cool, like when people say one of our shows was really fun & they really appreciate what we’re doing it – it makes all the stress and hardships of putting on a show worth it. A couple of people made us a thank you card for one of our recent shows which was so so cool. Worst – the amount of shitty attitudes and behaviours that are still prevalent in a lot of the scene. I feel like a lot of people have this idealistic punk utopia in their head so they never take the time to think about how they/their friends are actually acting and making other people feel (good example - what Lewis said about people assuming he’s the one who does everything). I could talk about this for days (and do a lot) but it’s something that really makes me uncomfortable being a part of the scene a lot of the time
LD: I think there’s a lot that needs to be said about the positive and negatives of the DIY scene, especially as far as politics go, but what sticks out in my mind are the two mental states I always go through on the day we put on a show. Most the shows we do in Leamington are at a DIY gallery called Althorpe Studios, which is amazing and full of beautiful art but also doesn’t have a PA or any musical equipment, and is also at the top of a flight of stairs. My worst experience with DIY is lugging a PA, speakers and all (as well as drum shells and a couple of guitar amps) around Leamington Spa and on buses to get them to the venue on a Sunday morning. My best experience with DIY is the feeling I get at every show around midway through the second-to-last band, where I feel super proud and happy about everything and stupidly tell myself I want to go through all of this again next time.
What are your current favourite artists/releases? Any shows/releases you’re particularly looking forward to?
LD: I’ve just moved back to Coventry so I’ve been rediscovering all of that 2-Tone Records stuff- The Specials, the Selecter, and some other less known stuff they put out. It’s really great hearing this music that is basically an amalgamation of loads of different musical and cultural influences, but is ultimately politically charged and (initially, at least) comes from a very grassroots perspective. In terms of more current stuff, I’ve been listening to Martha, the #1s and the new Eric Ayotte album. Looking forward to the Static Shock Weekender in November a lot, and it’ll be nice to see RVIVR play next month.Â
SH: My faves at the moment are probably Martha, No Ditching, Laura Stevenson, P.S. Eliot and Good Luck, but that changes a lot. I’m looking forward a lot to putting Ginger from Good Luck on and also seeing Against Me in a couple months (although mainly in the hope they play a lot of older stuff). and About Time #3! loads of great UK bands and if it’s anything like last year it’ll be a lot of fun. I’m sort of out the loop with who has releases coming up but I am definitely pretty excited to hear the new Rvivr EP.
What’s the best show you’ve been to? And what’s the best show you’ve put on yourselves? (Two different answers if possible!)
LD: Best show I’ve ever been to was Plan-It-X fest in Indiana this summer, it was amazing to get the opportunity to go and really inspiring to see the scale of what DIY can achieve on a financial, artistic and practical level. I should also put in a UK show- the Discount Horse New Years Party in Durham last year was class and had so many of my favourite people at it. I’ve loved every show we’ve done, but Human Hands and Kinky at Althorpe this April really stands out for me, because it played out pretty much much stress-free, had a really good turn-out, and I had a little cry while watching one of the bands. Lovely. Â
SH: If I can say a festival, then Plan It X fest in Indiana this summer was amazing, so many of my favourite bands, people and tasty vegan food. Also the NYE bash at Empty Shop in Durham was loads of fun. I think my favourite show that we’ve put on has been Midwest West Midlands II which we did with Wolf Town DIY and Birmingjams. It was really heart-warming to be able to put on loads of cool bands with our pals and have so many people come out and have a class day. Or when Chris Clavin (who runs PIX records and does Ghost Mice etc) played at our house, he’s such an inspiring guy and it was an honour to have him eat beans on one of our shitty little denim sofas.
THANKS SO MUCH FOR INTERVIEWING US! YOUR SITE IS GREAT!
Many thanks to both of you guys, you're absolute stars! If you can get to and around Leamington Spa over the next month, NANA DIY are putting on some awesome shows, get down and check them out!
NANA DIY Upcoming shows
10/10 (our 10th show!)- Ginger Alford (Good Luck, Traveling and One Reason), The Tuts, Richard Wehrenberg Jr. and audience participation (bring some old writing/artefacts to share!). All ages show @ Althorpe Gallery, Leamington Spa - facebook event here
21/10- Marc Ruvolo (Fur Coats, Das Kapital, No Empathy), Perkie, Mixtape Saints, Sarah Carey + vegan potluck. House show @ Coventry (message NANA DIY page for address!) - facebook event here
More TBA Soon.
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