We caught up with vocalist Sam Carter and guitarist Ali Dean of Architects just before they embarked on a weekend full of Slam Dunk fun. The band were a few hours off headlining the Monster Stage (Leeds O2 Academy), and after bemoaning the fact that PVRIS were playing a few metres away but we couldn’t watch, we talked about the band’s upcoming tour in South America, new material, and never getting a day off.
Hey guys! How are you looking forward to headlining a stage at Slam Dunk?
Sam: Good, yeah. We did it two or three years ago, but the festivalâs bigger now and our stage is sick. All the stages are sick and the line upâs sick.
What can we expect from your set later on?
Sam: Well, weâve had to change it up, because weâve done the headline tour. Weâve moved some songs around to make it interesting and weâre gonna play a couple that we havenât played in a long time, so weâre really looking forward to it.
The last time I saw you play was at Motion in Bristol.
Sam: Oh yeah, that was crazy!
Ali: Interesting venue. It was like a rave club.
Sam: When we turned up we couldnât imagine playing a show there.
Ali: It turned out to be one of the best shows.
Sam: Yeah, it was amazing. We hope tonightâs gonna be the same.
Ali: Yeah, something similar.
Sam: We brought all our production with us so hopefully itâll be as good as it can be.
So you’ve got some South American shows coming up right?
Sam: Yep, weâve got a day off after this..
Ali: Not even that, is it?
Sam: We drive back from Wolverhampton and we get back whatever time in the morning, go home, do laundry, say farewell to friends and family, and then we leave the next day.
How long are you in South America for?
Ali: 11 days. We did a tour there a few years ago with Whitechapel and The Devil Wears Prada.
Sam: Itâs sick playing out there. We went down really well last time we were there and we werenât really anybody at all. We didnât know of anyone who would remotely know us. We had an album on a small label that didnât have any distribution out there, so now going back off âLost Forever…â with Epitaph putting it out â theyâve done so much for us in places like that â weâre really excited to see what the response is.
You always did well, but with the release of ‘Lost Forever…’ last year it really seemed to blow up for you, and deservedly so.
Sam: Yeah, it was really weird. Because it wasnât like we did anything different. We put everything we could into it, and it was kind of make or break. It was like, if itâs just gonna be our sixth record then weâre fucked, but if we make it our best record then itâs a talking point. So I think people wanted that record, and we just gave it to them.
[While She Sleeps walk past, prompting a bit of a bromance moment]
Sam: Love is in the air!
Ali: They smell great, so you can look forward to that in your interview with them.
Sam: âThe boys said you smell greatâŚâ
Ali: âThey said you smell AND look amazing.â
You just got back from Russia. How was that?
Ali: Exhausting, but very fun. Lots of flying.
Sam: It was great.
Ali: Itâs like thereâs a grey filter all the time. If Instagram had a filter like that, theyâd call it the Soviet filter. But the people there are very lovely, despite the grey filter and the grey outlook on life.
Sam: The kids are crazy. The shows were mental!
Ali: It was really good. Really fun.
Sam: Now let us come home and enjoy the houses that we rent!
What’s the plan after South America?
Ali: We have a couple of European weekenders and a little ten day stint at some point. Apart from that weâre gonna be re-fuelling and writing for the next record.
It’s so wild because in my head ‘Lost Forever…’ is your new album.
Sam: Thatâs what it feels like. Onstage I keep saying, âWhoâs heard our new record?â And then you think about how many times weâve played the fucking songs. I mean, we usually have another record out the year after, so this is lazy by our standards.
Ali: So lazy! All this time at homeâŚ
That’s half a day at home when you could be out there!
Ali: Yeah, we should be out there pushing it.
Sam: We could be in Ukraine!
Anything extra you want to add?
Sam: I just want to say thanks for being nice and buying our album. Weâll be back!
Ali: We look Slam Dunk, especially North. We love Leeds. Hatfield and Wolverhampton are a waste of time [laughs].
LAIS MW