Words: Darci Jackson
Photos: Izzi Glover
The last few droplets of summer sun shone through the rafters at Castlefield Bowl, as we sat sprawled across the stone steps with Mirfield’s own The Slates. There’s no way to describe them other than positively positive, radiating a laidback and witty spirit, and constantly up for a laugh. Despite getting minimal sleep after having played in London the night before our chat, the band were bundles of energy, describing the gig as ‘Some do.’
The Slates are Louis Barnes (guitar, vocals), Joe Briggs (lead guitar), Jude Wales (bass) and Zak Oldroyd (drums), and are straight off the back of some huge shows at This Feeling By The Sea and Truck Festival. And, they’ve been added to Spotify playlists titled ‘New UK Indie’ and ‘boy band babes.’ Talk about making a name for yourself!
If you’ve done the rounds at some UK festivals in the past couple of years, you may have noticed stickers plastered around with The Slates’ logo on them. Well, it’s all part of the masterplan, as Oldroyd explains: ‘Truck [was] probably the biggest gig where people have come to just watch you in that tent.
‘We had these massive ones and there were the actual Truck Fest signs what people get the photos in front of, [I stuck one] right in the middle of the ‘K’ so on everyone’s photos that they were posting, you could just see ‘The Slates.’’
Wales added, ‘It was the first year we’d done big ones, so I think next year we’re going to do even bigger ones.’
‘They were already as big as your head!’
The four-piece are already mingling with some of the biggest names in the industry, having met Mike Skinner, Sea Girls, and Ross MacDonald at Truck Festival. But, there’s one man in particular who Moves In His Own Way.
‘Luke Pritchard. I had a nice drink with him, had a chat, he [was] dead nice,’ says Wales, who met The Kooks frontman minutes before their headline slot. He tried to go and speak to Pritchard again after their show, but was stopped by security, and after saying ‘just trust me, I’m not going to blow owt up,’ he managed to get backstage and have a pint with him.
‘He followed us on Instagram a bit after - pretty nuts really.’
But it didn’t stop there.
‘Next thing you know, it’s 6am and we’re having an afters at our tent and John Kennedy’s there.’
The Slates aren’t short of stories and tales, and explain that ‘no matter what we do, wherever we go we try and make a day or a weekend of it.’
During their time in Bridlington for This Feeling By The Sea, they tell us that ‘on Saturday morning we were running down the beach, jumping in [the] sea, lifeguards came over and were like ‘yeah the water’s polluted, you need to get out,’ which [was] a bit crazy!’
Having shared the stage with The Kairos, Seb Lowe, and The Clause at By The Sea, they’re already following in the footsteps of artists such as The K’s who’ve gone on to great successes after support from This Feeling.
‘I feel like we’re part of the This Feeling family,’ mentioned Briggs.
‘It gives you that bit of fire inside you like ‘you know what, we can actually do it.’ At the end of the day, we’re just four mates aren’t we,’ added Oldroyd, with the band all being friends since they were kids.
Towards the end of 2023, they fled the nest and settled in Manchester, with Oldroyd saying it’s ‘the best thing I’ve ever done.’
Even though they haven’t even entered their 20s yet, they all carry a level of maturity that makes you understand how serious they are about their dreams.
‘We’re practicing so much more, we’re writing so much more. It’s being an adult as well and having to have that responsibility.’
But they’re still proud to call Mirfield home.
‘Although we say we’re from Leeds, we’re actually from Mirfield. It’s sick, but it’s a bit quiet.
‘There’s a long way to go still in Leeds definitely, like we want to be doing Elland Road don’t we, that’s when you’re big in Leeds!’
The Slates recently provided the score to a Sam Teale production about knife crime amongst young people, with their track Young Souls; a touching track with poignant lyrics which made for an extremely moving piece.
‘It’s an honour really, to be a part of it and help people in need’ remarked Barnes, when asked what it meant to help spread awareness.
The production depicts how easily influenced youngsters can be when it comes to knife crime, and had the message ‘the hand holding the knife never predicts whose heart it will break.’
‘Even if it’s relatable for one person, it’s one more person that it’s helped. It’s just a bit shit how the world’s going at the moment but you’ve just got to take what’s positive about it and just crack on and hopefully we can put a smile on as many people’s faces as we can,’ added Oldroyd.
In terms of what’s laying ahead for the band, it’s looking very promising, and The Slates are ready for what’s coming!
‘We’ve got some massive tunes that are ready to go,’ starts Wales, with Barnes agreeing.
‘Some proper groovy tunes, some ones that are a bit slower as well, some heartfelt ones.
‘We’re going to have a massive year next year.’
They’re set to play Leeds Beckett SU in November, supporting The Sheratons, and already have plans for Leeds and Manchester in the works. Having played their first festival in 2022 when they were just 17, The Slates are already moving on to bigger and better things, and it’s about time we all hopped aboard to see what they’re really about.