Damp Cookie

Members

• Martin Sheridan – Vocals, Harmonica & Lyrics
• Lasse Girs – Guitars, Keys, Piano & Music
• Borje Sten – Percussion, Drums

Where in Finland are you from?

Martin is from Cork, Ireland. Resident in Vantaa, Lasse and Borje are both residing and from Helsinki

How would you describe your band for those who don’t know you?

Damp Cookie is a fusion of musical styles and influences. The lyrics are dark and deal with really diverse themes from the London Student Riots to the school shootings at Kauhajoki. Musically it’s hard to put into a category but if you like your protest songs loud, your lovesongs dark and melodic then Damp Cookie is the band you should be listening to.

When did you form as a group?

We got together in October 2009. I had known Lasse from before and he played with Borje in Flush. We got together for a few jamming sessions and kicked on from there.

What was the inspiration for your recent album?

St John & Other Stories came from a really dark place. I’ve suffered from Depression on and off for the past 15 years, it gives me a really different perspective when writing and most of the songs on St John came from there. I’m incredibly grateful to have such a talented writing partner that can really get where I’m coming from lyrically and set the stage for it’s delivery with melodies that compliment the lyrics but are fantastic pieces of music in their own right without me fucking them up with my whinging!. Borje adds a really interesting dynamic to the songs in that he’s coming from a metal / hard rock genre and always adds something really special.

What other releases do you have?

First bite was an EP that we put out last year and we did OK with it touring in Helsinki and Turku. At that stage we didn’t have a great deal of original material so the shows were quite interesting as we tried to come to terms with the kind of music we wanted to play Vs what people wanted to listen to. I think that “First Bite” gave us the introduction to our audience and we haven’t looked back from there.

What is your favorite song on your most recent album?

For me Blood and Bullets. Lyrically trying to write from the perspective of the shooter at the school massacre was really tricky. You definitely tread a very thin line between trying to portray his frame mind and somehow justifying what Matti Saari did. In the end I think I got it right but no song can convey the horror of what the families of the fallen went through at the time or subsequently.

Do you have any gigs coming up?

Yes we are back with the EP launch on 27th January at Cuba! in Helsinki at 22.00 as part of the “Live Garage” sessions. This is our second time doing it so we are really up for it and hope that people will come along and support us.

What’s your favorite type of venue to play?

We played LeBonk in Helsinki back in November. It was awesome, I’d seen a couple of people play there before so I was really up for it….a really great night with a full house and everyone in party mood!

If you could play anywhere in the world this week, where would it be?

The Troubadour LA . I could quite happily die thereafter:)

Do you have a Website, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter etc?

• Facebook
• MySpace
• Twitter

What are your influences as a band?

Frank Turner, Wilco, Counting Crows and Tom Waits and 1000′s more

People who enjoy your music tend to like what other bands?

Frank Turner, Counting Crows, Biffy Clyro, Muse, Radiohead, Pearl Jam, Alice In Chains

Are you signed to a label?

No, like all bands we are struggling because the labels are just not putting any cash into artist development anymore. You get signed when you’ve got your music out on iTunes, Spotify et. al. and you’re got 1000+ coming to every gig. At that point I guess you have to ask yourself why do I need a label if I’ve done all the work myself!

Where do you think you’ll be as a band in 5 years?

Still doing things our way, at our pace and playing together cause that’s what we want to do.

Is there anything else people should know about Damp Cookie?

We got some advice from a guy that runs the most well known concert venue in Helsinki…you know who you are! He told me that we would need to change the name because it was too offensive. The bizarre thing is that 99 people out of 100 have no idea what the name means:) Offensive it may be, but it’s damn funny:)

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