Exclusive Interview with 'MY LATEST FAILURE'

With their 2019 debut EP “Failures, Vol.1,” recorded and mixed by Sore Teeth vocalist and guitarist Ross Walker, Hardcore Injected Punk trio My Latest Failure have been treading the boards since the summer of 2017 and have given us sing-along shouty choruses and punchy verses over the past 5 years. This compilation’s lead track, “Lies,” has received close to 4.5k streams across all platforms and can be found on the Swamp Records compilation “Rituals In Sound by Chaos Collective.” Soon after, their catchy single “Disappointment” was released. It was hailed as “definitely their best work,” a “absolute banger,” and “I can’t decide if it sounds like sick of it all trying to be good riddance or the other way around with consumed thrown in.”
Sharing stages with numerous bands from the Hardcore, Punk, and Metal genres has helped them hone their live performance and ensure they can compete with acts like Schemata Theory, The Freudian Session, and WEAPONRY. They are also a staple at one-day events like Sunday Tea Time Hardcore at The Holroyd Arms in Guildford.
During the Pandemic, they did not rest on their laurels A second EP titled “Failures, Vol. 2” was released in 2021 by Chris Underhill (guitar/vocals), Andy Hale (bass/vocals), and Jamie Boyle (drums). MetalNoise.Net praised the darkly humorous single “Voices” as “Catchier than an STD in Ibiza” and created the Facebook video series “A-Z of Failures.”

One of the first songs for My Latest Failure, Bad Dreams was originally recorded in 2019 for Failures vol:2, but it wasn’t included. In the summer of 2021, Ross Walker Productions and the band revisited the track, and were very pleased with the results. Check out the song and the interview below:

1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?

MY LATEST FAILURE (Chris U): From the ashes of a failed band reunion, myself and Andy decided to start something new and that’s how My Latest Failure started. We made our songs simple and catchy because I had never been lead vocalist and guitarist, doing the two together took a little time to get used to but worth it. We didn’t really where t was going until our drummer Jamie joined then it really started to come together.

2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?

MY LATEST FAILURE (Chris U): Self-taught, I didn’t start playing the guitar until I was around 16/17 years old. Bands like Blink-182, Green Day, Sum 41 and The Offspring got me interested in playing guitar. Used to print the tabs and play along, that’s how I started. Over the years developed my skills by playing music I like and creating my own.

3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘MY LATEST FAILURE’?

MY LATEST FAILURE (Chris U): I would have to start with Blink-182 was my first, Enema Of The State is still one of my favourite albums, it’s was super fun and catchy.

Sum 41, especially their album Does This Look Infected. The combination of Punk and Metal at the time was mind blowing to me. Late 90’s/early 00’s Punk Rock had a more clean pop and the Sum 41 slapped us with this. Definitely influenced our sound with the heavier guitar tones.

Grey Britain by The Gallows is a masterpiece, I went to nearly all of their London shows during their “Grey Britain” period. Was pissed off with the state of England, not like it’s got any better and this album resonated how I felt. To me, these three bands definitely play a part in how we sound.

I called the band my Latest Failure because at the time it could have been another failed band. So good so far.

4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?

MY LATEST FAILURE (Chris U): I think the lyrics are a key element in our music, we are known for our “4 chord progression”, simple but effective and believe without the words we wouldn’t sound as powerful as we do. Our songs are about our personal experiences and opinions so I do believe the lyrics resonate with the listener.

I would describe our sound as hard hitting Punk with catchy singalong chorus that will get stuck in your head. We have been going around with the tag line Hardcore Injected Punk for a few years now because we are Punk that packs a punch.

5. For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and music maker, and the transition towards your own style, which is known as ROCK?
**MY LATEST FAILURE** (Chris U):
I didn’t start until quite late, didn’t pick up my first guitar until I was 16/17. Self taught as mentioned earlier so my style has always been rough around the edges. I think originality is important to an artist, it’s what makes you stand out from the rest. I can proudly say is our music is very recognisable and you know you are listening to My Latest Failure as we have a distinctive sound. I haven’t come across another band like sand that’s what I love about the DIY scene, so diverse and exciting, so many brilliant bands that bring their sound.

6. What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative and entertainment?

MY LATEST FAILURE (Chris U):

My view as a writer and musician is to play and write about what you want and are passionate about. Yes we have songs about politics, about mental health struggles, and about getting dumped. It’s all personal experiences and my opinions but it’s what makes me, me and I am not afraid to put it out there.

7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfilment as the amount of work you are putting into it, or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?

MY LATEST FAILURE (Chris U):

I think it is, we playing shows, meeting loads of amazing people and realising music that anyone in the world can listen too. Already this is more than most bands I have been in so I wouldn’t do anything different , just keep pushing and seeing whee it goes from there. I’ve got my own band bucket list that still has a couple of things uptick including playing an established Punk festival like Manchester Punk Festival or Rebellion Festival , supporting a mainstream band and recording Failures Vol:3. So fingers crossed I tick these off in the near future.

8. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?

MY LATEST FAILURE (Chris U):

Most of the time it starts with the lyrics and then we piece it together from there. When I am writing a song I generally have a beat in my head so I know how the song is going to be sung or shouted and from there start building it. There is many songs where myself and Andy go back and forth with lyrics and guitar ideas, Andy is know for pulling out a brilliant intro as he did for our songs Disappointment and Demons. Once myself and Andy are happy Jamie comes in n lies it all together.

I don’t confine myself to a structure, or throw in any unwanted lyrics to bulk up songs and this is why some of our songs are short and straight to the point. I learn’t this early on, if you are’t passionate about the song you have crated it will become a regret.

9. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?

MY LATEST FAILURE (Chris U): Covid. 2020 we had a fantastic line up of shows right through until the end of the summer, recording planned and more. Covid shut that down and it took us a while to find our feet after, we din’t play a show in two years an d it felt like we were stating all over again when we started playing shows again. We managed to get into the studio in-between lockdowns to record Failures Vol:2 but couldn’t play any release shows to promote it or anything so we made ourselves a big presents on social media. It was a lot of hard work but was worth very second because Failure Vol:2 had a fantastic reception.

10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?

MY LATEST FAILURE (Chris U): I’m so proud of My Latest Failure, we had zero expectations at the beginning, we just wanted to have fun and play shows and I can’t thank everyone enough for helping and supporting us on our journey. One thing that standards out for me is our EP Failures Vol:2 making it to the final for best EP at Punk Rock Mag awards 2021 as well as making onto metalnoise.net best EPs of 2021.