Forged from a cathartic need for release Britain’s hottest rising band Benefits are being lauded by Hollywood stars and music legends.
Hollywood star Elijah Wood, Garbage singer Shirley Manson, Pixies front-man Black Francis and Sleaford Mods are all supporters of the band.
Front-man Kingsley Hall outlines their journey from DIY songs of rage posted on Youtube to performing at Glastonbury and releasing critically acclaimed album Nails.
Benefits will bring their acclaimed, empowering live show to Aberdeen when they headline The Tunnels on Wednesday, October 9.
Kingsley said: “We were a relatively normal band before lockdown – guitars and drums.
“We used to get together once a week just to make noisy music and vent our frustrations.
“It was a cathartic thing, much more about friendship than any ambitions to play concerts or tour or make records.
“We just enjoyed meeting up and making a racket as an escape from our jobs and routines.
“Lockdown obviously put a stop to that so in an effort to save our mental health we continued to be creative.
“Myself and Robbie (Major) would send each other noises and lyrics and we’d mash them together and put them online.
“They started to gather interest on social media and people like Sleaford Mods, Steve Albini (legendary Shellac front-man and producer) and Black Francis from Pixies would post about them .
“Which for us was mind blowing.
“Even Elijah Wood tweeted about us. Frodo!!”
Mutation of sound during lockdown
During lockdown Benefits mutated from guitar-led punks into a brutal noise assault.
They are a furious gestalt of Crass, Throbbing Gristle, Suicide and Philip Larkin – delivering a unique voice that articulates alienation of abandoned class.
Kingsley said; “Lockdown ended and we started playing gigs during which Geoff Barrow (of the bands Portishead and BEAK) approached.
“He asked if we wanted to put an album out on his record label.
“Billy Bragg decided he wanted to chat to us about playing his stage at Glastonbury and Shirley Manson from Garbage posted online about buying our record.
“Such a strange and wonderful time!
“Our weird little album, that we made for absolutely nothing in bedrooms and kitchens, started to appear in “best of” lists at the end of last year.
“The band pretty much imploded on more than one occasion as it became a bit of an uncontrollable noise-rock beast.
“And we went through more drummers than Spinal Tap, but we persevered.
“Me and Robbie eventually decided to not just do more of the same punk noise that had become our trademark on the debut album.
“And instead worked with a couple of electronic and dance producers to attempt to reinvent what the band had morphed into.
“We needed to rediscover what we loved about it in the first place. It’s still very noisy, it’s just not a rock band.”
Alt-rock band Benefits become YouTube sensations
Benefits initially became a Youtube sensation, writing, recording then posting videos quickly within a week.
Kingsley said: “The point was to write pieces that instantly reacted to what was happening in the world around us – current urgencies.
“I’d write a lyric on Sunday, Robbie would send me some noise, we’d smash it all together by Tuesday.
“Do a video on Wednesday and get it all up on YouTube and Spotify by midnight Friday.
“It had to be done quickly so the subject was still fresh.”
Optimism and light within the fury
New single Land of the Tyrants is a further expansion of Benefits’ sound, exploring electronica.
That dark, furious anger remains.
But the band deal in chiaroscuro , there is light amidst the dark.
Kingsley said: “There was an impression from some of our early recordings that the only thing we had going for us was anger.
“I understand why that idea took hold, some of our songs are absolutely furious.
“But there has to be balance and there has to be a reason for all this rage.
“And somewhere in all the noise there needs to be a sense of hope and beauty.
“There’s no point in just shouting at the sky or into the void.
“We try to make our shows empowering, to help people realise that they have a voice and an importance.”
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