MC: The Internet sometimes feels like a necessary evil––how do you avoid such negative social media “drama” that many young artists get consumed by nowadays?
Rowsell: I find it so unattractive. People feel like they can just be so horrible online––it’s one thing to be that in person, but online there’s something deeply unattractive about it. I’m not going to pretend I don’t read things about me on that medium.
It’s still interesting to see what people are saying about us, and it’s sort of working for us. We don’t have too many negative comments or trolls after us or anything. But if a person’s just being nasty, it’s not a reflection of us, it’s a reflection of them. I can take constructive criticism and I appreciate it, but trolls and all that kind of sh*t is just a shame that speaks on our generation. It’s embarrassing.
MC: You guys killed it at the NME Awards show. Theo expressed how he couldn’t believe snagging an award when “nominated against some of our favorite people.” How does that make the win even more satisfying?
Rowsell: I don’t think too much about award ceremonies—I think it’s really nice to be nominated and it’s nice to have a recognized celebration and to have people say good things at the end of the year. But I don’t necessarily think there should be a winner. I think it should just stay at the nominations. That recognition of success is enough, rather than being like “and then there’s a winner.” It’s kind of embarrassing.
Still, I always think about what were my favorite albums of the year, and it’s nice to celebrate that, but I believe there shouldn’t be a winner because there will always be people that like or dislike you for that. It’s subjective and impossible to say.
MC: Even so, the band was also nominated for a Grammy this year. How did that feel?
Rowsell: Of course it was gratifying––it puts things into perspective, that people think you’re good. But at this stage, I don’t really know what to think about it. I was just happy to enjoy the ceremony and get drunk.
MC: I know you get asked a lot about the name “Wolf Alice”––how it was inspired by Angela Carter’s short story––but now that you’re growing as a band, how have you come to really embody this persona and do you think it’s still a good fit?
Rowsell: We get so much sh*t for that now, I kind of wish we had a different name because I’m sick of people being like, “Oh, you should have made it wolf dicks.” You know? Or they’ll be like, “I thought you said Move Alice or Wolf Harris.” Or something like that. Like, great, shut up! So, I’m kind of sick of it.
But I know deep down why I chose it. The imagery that comes up, regardless if you know the concept of the actual story, I’m interested and passionate about that. I’m really into that fantasy and mystical, sort of dark stuff. And that’s what it kind of conjured up for me.
MC: Do you feel there’s more pressure on you as a female musician? Does being surrounded by so much masculinity influence your creativity?
Rowsell: I think being a female, surrounded by such energy does help. I get asked questions about this all the time, and I never really thought about it before. I guess I just go along with it, I’m not sure.
MC: Any quick advice for up-and-coming artists out there?
Rowsell: Yeah, I would say you ought to do what comes natural to you. Don’t be overly influenced by what other people are doing. It’s all about being different.
Contact Michelle Nemeroff - RCA Records
For more information, visit wolfalice.co.uk.
