Slaves: Just call us primal

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By ( Louder ) published

Exclusive: Two-piece happy enough with being branded a punk act – but they'd rather invent their own genre

Slaves guitarist Laurie Vincent says the band have invented their own genre – which they call “primal.”

The Kent two-piece are frequently referred to as a punk act, which is a label that they don’t mind but equally they hope they’ve evolved beyond that genre.

Vincent tells TeamRock: “We’re trying to make our own genre – primal. That’s what I like to call it.”

His bandmate, drummer Isaac Holman, adds: “People have got to put you in a box somehow. Punk is an attitude, but it’s also something that’s been and gone. We’re on to something new I think.

“We’re more than happy to be related back to punk because we’re definitely influenced and inspired by it, but it’s something more than that for us.”

Asked to name a few acts that fans might be surprised to hear have influenced Slaves, they mention Fleetwood Mac, Elliot Smith, Leonard Cohen, Kraftwerk and “a shedload of hip-hop.”

This week, Slaves said they were would release their second album – the follow-up to 2015’s Are You Satisfied? – sometime this year. And Vincent will juggle life in the band with his day job as a tattoo artist.

Sometimes the two worlds meet though, and he’s inked fans while out on the road with the band – but he won’t make a habit of it.

Vincent adds: “I’ve tattooed on tour a bit and it’s not ideal. I’ve had some funny situations, I tattooed a guy in Paris. I’ve tattooed fans. It’s fun but it’s a stressful job and it’s serious, so I like to make sure I’m in the right environment.

“I’ve been working at Parliament Tattoo in London, which is Scott Move’s shop. It’s wicked. I’m going to be between there and a place in Tunbridge Wells called King’s Tattoo.

“I recently tattooed our first ever t-shirt design on someone.”

Slaves are currently on tour in the UK, playing a number of dates that were rescheduled after Holman dislocated his shoulder on stage last year.

Stef Lach

Stef wrote close to 5,000 stories during his time as assistant online news editor and later as online news editor between 2014-2016. An accomplished reporter and journalist, Stef has written extensively for a number of UK newspapers and also played bass with UK rock favourites Logan. His favourite bands are Pixies and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. Stef left the world of rock'n'roll news behind when he moved to his beloved Canada in 2016, but he started on his next 5000 stories in 2022.