aaamusic | On 26, Jul 2011

In 2009, Deep Cut’s debut album, ‘My Thoughts Light Fires’ was released to little fanfare but went on to make quite an impression in Japan. Today, Deep Cut’s leader, songwriter and guitarist, Mat Flint, is sanguine about the record, the first time he had put pen to paper as a songwriter since the break up of his first band, Revolver, over a decade previously.

‘The end of Revolver was difficult for me. We were signed when we were very young and fell into that trap of believing the hype. So, when it all fell apart after only one album it put me off writing songs for a long time’.
It didn’t, however, put Mat off music. In the intervening period between the end of his first band and the beginnings of his second in 2006, Mat played across the world with Death In Vegas and started an alternative career as a DJ at London’s legendary Social and later the Heavenly Jukebox, indulging his love of mid 90’s East Coast hip hop in his regular 9-11pm slot.

Deep Cut’s genesis was long and its final line-up was the opposite of that Mat expected when he first decided to return to songwriting in the middle of the last decade.
‘I wanted to be the head guy again after playing with Death In Vegas for so long but originally Deep Cut was a much more electronic approach. At first I wasn’t thinking of forming a band but I did know I wanted a vocalist and lyricist. We tried out various people over two years but none of them seemed to work. Then my wife, Emma, said she wanted a go- I knew she could sing but…..’

Thankfully, Emma’s lyrics were as impressive as her vocal prowess and the nucleus of Deep Cut formed around Mat on guitars, his brother Simon on bass, Emma on vocals and fellow DiV-er Ian Button on drums with Pad Bailey completing the set on guitars.
‘Somehow I ended up in a band with my brother and my wife but it works so…’
These experiences filtered through to the formation of the sound of Deep Cut and penetrate their second, and much more ambitious album project, ‘Disorientation’, set for release on 5th September of 2011. Across the 12 tracks the ghosts of classic songwriters like The Byrds and Love collide with the noise sensibilities of The Jesus and Mary Chain and Sonic Youth with room remaining for the wildcard likes of Augustus Pablo, Husker Du, Neu, classic East Coast hip hop, late 60’s American psych and floor shaking dub to make their presence felt. Trainspotters will be impressed to hear that ‘Out Of Nothing’ is built around a beat taken from (and credited to) cult NYC producer Godfather Don.

As with their debut, Deep Cut produced ‘Disorientation’ within the band, recordings taking place in their rehearsal space with overdubs happening in Mat and Emma’s front room. They also create all the visuals that will accompany the album with a little help from Mat’s father, once a designer for the likes of Smash Hits and Zigzag magazine and perhaps the reason why the young Mat Flint became so obsessed with music.
‘I grew up with music magazines around the house so at eight or nine I was reading Smash Hits and Number One but also NME, Melody Maker, Sounds and Record Mirror. So I was exposed to all these artists at a young age and that led me into what I have done ever since’.

If that makes Deep Cut seem like a family affair then you wouldn’t be far wide of the mark. Alongside the presence of the Flints, both of Mat’s children have been, as it were, in process during the making of the albums, Emma being pregnant with their first and second children during the respective recording sessions. But this is no cosy family band, one listen to the sheer rush of ‘Makes Me Wanna’ will disabuse any notion of contentment within the Deep Cut ranks. Having been away from songwriting for so long and taken a low key approach to coming back, Mat is now in a place where he is clear what he wants for himself and Deep Cut.
‘This is all about being creative and making music that resonates with us and others rather than chasing some elusive notion of fame. It’s about making music that we are proud of rather than something that fits into a scene.’

For now, Deep Cut will not be a touring band. Those arrivals during recording are still a little young for life on the road but the band will play selected shows starting with a performance at Glastonbury Festival.