Interview: Natti from Fickle Friends explains what Fickle Pickles is…
It seems like there’s no stopping Fickle Friends this year. They’ve just dropped their eagerly awaited debut album, and we’ve had it on repeat ever since.
Find out what happened when we caught up with Natti to grill her on everything from ‘You Are Someone Else’ to the band’s festival habits.
Hi! Thanks for taking the time to speak to us. First up, you’re no stranger to the Reading and Leeds’ stages – what’s your favourite memory from performing previously?
Haha, so many memories. My fave is me debating the massive jump down from the stage to the crowd during ‘SWIM’ last year. There was such tiny space to land without tearing down the BBC cameras. I eventually went for it whilst being egged on by our videographer.
Your long awaited debut album, ‘You Are Someone’ is a collection of 16 songs – some of which were written around 3 years ago. How did you decide which tracks you wanted on this album?
I think when we got to writing the track listing all the songs stood out for themselves. We wanted half existing half new stuff…and we wanted it to tell a story. Each song represents a specific time from the last 5 or 6 years. A bunch of songs didn’t make the cut…only because we kept writing through the album recording process and our mentality (maybe not the best) is “new is always better” ha. But I do think our writing developed a load over the last year and we wanted to share some of those songs on this record.
How would you describe your debut album in 3 emojis?
Palm Tree, Broken Heart, and the face with its brain bursting out of its head lol
Previously you’ve toured with The Kooks who are also on the line up for this year’s R&L. What’s the funniest tour story you can share with us?
As a thank you we wanted to get each of the guys a little present so we spent HOURS choosing them a pair of socks we thought reflected their personalities. I think we got Al some with parrots…cos he’s a tropical man…and dinosaurs for Luke. I can’t actually remember.
If you could pick any song that sums up Fickle Friends’ journey so far what would it be and why?
‘All Night’ (Feat Knox Fortune) by Chance The Rapper.
What’s the weirdest thing anyone has ever thrown on stage at one of your performances?
I think someone threw their shoe on stage once. I have no idea what happened to it…or how the guy managed for the rest of the festival with only one shoe.
You’re very open within your songs about mental health issues. What advice would you give to someone who’s struggling at the moment?
My main piece of advice is to tell someone. Bottling it up is the worst thing you can do and talking things out with my best friend (who also suffers with anxiety badly) I found that I could navigate my way through everything better and definitely felt less alone. Writing about it was also super therapeutic for me.
How do you like to get pumped up before you take to the stage? Do you have any pre-show rituals?
Ha erm…we usually have a few gins, blast ‘All Night’ by Chance the Rapper and jump about. Isn’t much of a ritual to be honest.
If you had to pack a fancy dress outfit to take to Reading and Leeds, what would you take?
Oooohhh erm…I’d defo come as a bat (my nick name is The Bat). I think I’d make the boys all dress up as eggs.
If you had a food stall at Reading and Leeds what would you call it?
Fickle Pickles….it would be a vegan stall selling deep fried pickles and other vegan fast food 😉
Leeds plays host to the Piccadilly Party late into the night in the campsite. Who on the line up would you like to party with?
Post Malone for sure. Diplo, Slaves, Kendrick and Bad Sounds (we love those guys).
Fickle Friends head to the BBC Radio 1 Stage on Friday at Reading.
Wanna be down the front?