Fat White Family bombard the music industry like they do live shows––open-minded, wildly uninhibited and with a strong sense of go-with-the-flow bravado. And that’s exactly how these U.K. rockers continue growing their fanbase: playing hard and audaciously, both in and out of the studio.
The band released their first few singles through Trashmouth Records with no huge expectations or prospects during recording. According to lead vocalist Lias Saoudi, “loose connections” eventually formed after headlining some gigs around London with another local garage band. “We were just kind of getting along with our lives,” Saoudi explains. “[It] worked out quite well because there was no pressure.”
The guys have since been pegged by Q magazine as the “most important band in Britain right now” and just launched Without Consent, an independent record label in partnership with PIAS Cooperative. This transnational marketing group will provide worldwide distribution and publicity to guide and launch the Family’s latest indie venture.
“We don’t go about it with a lot of preparation. We have a kind of
scaffolding of ideas to go along with.”
Little money means sparse budget, which motivated FWF to pursue artistic visions uniquely their own. Taking full advantage of free marketing and promotion, thanks to popular online platforms like Facebook and Bandcamp, helped propel the cause. Saoudi believes that such unrestricted incentives and opportunities eventually led to further “room for creativity and passion” to flourish.
And now the band is ready to embark on a North American tour and re-release their debut album Champagne Holocaust with the support of their new partnership with Fat Possum, an independent label based in Oxford, MS. All this, while still maintaining a strong sense of artistic freedom and innovation.
“We don’t go about it with a lot of preparation,” Saoudi says. “We have a kind of scaffolding of ideas to go along with.”
If things ever get too complicated, the band’s manager Stuart Green is always there to coordinate and assist. Everything seems to fall together in the end, although somewhat haphazardly. Sometimes, chaos manages to inspire true aesthetic flair.
Fat White Family will release new artist collaborations and music under Without Consent sometime next year. – Danica Bellini
