Words by Art Jefferson
Photography by Suzi Corker

London band Scrounge are explosive. Armed with simply a guitar, drums and microphones, the duo’s sound is grand, in your face and ultimately as timely as ever in this current climate of political and sociological winding. Comprised of Lucy Alexander and Luke Cartledge, the pair use bold indie, noise, punk and post-punk sounds combined with thought-provoking and challenging lyrics to create records that are utterly power-punching.

Having met whilst both attending Goldsmiths, the duo eventually formed the band and began heating up the London DIY scene, creating their Fame Throwa label and event night back in 2015. Scrounge would go on to release tracks like 2017’s ‘Harmony’ and ‘Brace’ before dropping the 2018 single ‘Etch’ and 2019’s ‘Crimson’ via Fierce Panda Records.

With their latest EP Ideal, Scrounge have not only spawned a bigger sound than before, but they are as fiery and fierce as ever, creating one of the best records of the year. Cutting through any of the extra noise in music, Scrounge is who the world needs right now.

I read that you met at Goldsmiths. How soon after did it take to form the band?

Scrounge – We played in loads of different projects while we were studying together at Goldsmiths but, as soon as we left, we decided to start a band together.

I would imagine that the both of you had a similar taste in music from the jump. If so, who were some of the musicians and bands that inspired you?

Scrounge – We actually have very different tastes in music but, there’s a lot of crossover. We both love guitar bands like Sleater-Kinney and St. Vincent but, you’ll often find Lucy listening to pure pop and Luke loves horrible techno.

Whilst looking back at a track such as ‘Crimson’ to the songs on your new EP Ideal, even though the blueprint is there, sonically it feels like you have fostered a bigger sound in that short span of time. Was that a conscious decision or did it just happen naturally during the recording process of the EP?

Scrounge – We spent a lot of time making this EP with our good friend Sam Miller. He helped to sonically push us and brought really interesting ideas with him. We recorded half the EP in a live room and half in his small studio in New Cross. With time on our side, we could get the bigger sound that we wanted.

In my personal opinion Ideal is one of the best EPs of the year. From the production to the content, and even the track arrangement, it’s consistent from start to finish. Creatively what was the process when you first began working on the record?

Scrounge – While we were making the record, we’ve been gigging a lot and during that time we’ve refined our songs. The process of gigging and recording worked together and we tried to take our live expectations into the studio.

One track that has been on repeat for me is ‘Starve’. It deals with trying to find something as simple as a peace of mind. What was the inspiration behind that particular cut?

Scrounge – ‘Starve’ was one of the first songs we ever wrote together and compared to a lot of other songs, it’s the only one that’s stood the test of time. This song always mattered to us because it gave us a moment of relief and time to regroup in a pretty hectic set. We wanted to give the listener a chance to take a breather when listening to Ideal too!

I think many people who struggle to deal with everyday life in general can surely relate to the content in your music. Living in London in itself can be a roller coaster of ups and downs. How do you personally deal with those waves of life?

Scrounge – We probably both have different coping mechanisms, but making music is a great way to process issues, express anxieties and seek catharsis. That’s probably why our music’s so restless and noisy – London’s hard work sometimes.

Are there any plans to do more Haus of Scrounge events?

Scrounge – We might be doing a Christmas show, but that’s all up in the air at the moment. Either way, yes we definitely want to put on more shows – that’s a big part of what we do really, having run our Fame Throwa gig series for a few years now.

Finally, is there an album in the works for the near future?

Scrounge – Not yet – soon, hopefully!

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