How did you discover the power of walking?

When I was sixteen, I came home from school one day in a terrible mood and my dad took one look at me and said “go for a walk and then we’ll talk.” I took his advice and vividly recall the way my mood had shifted by the time I got home 20 minutes later. Since then, walking has always been part of my personal practice.

How does walking help us?

Walking is a simple, but incredibly powerful practice. The research around all of the things walking does for us is truly remarkable. For our bodies, a regular walking practice reduces our risk of many diseases, from high blood pressure to dementia to several types of cancer. For our mood, walking has been shown to be an effective tool in the arsenal against depression and, as I often say, walking is a great antidote to a crappy day. And walking is good for our minds by improving our decision making, increasing our focus and fueling our creativity.

What does ‘better’ mean for you?

Oh, that’s such a good question — no one has asked me that. By better, I mean happier and working our way towards living a life that is more closely aligned with our true personal goals, priorities and purpose.

What has been the biggest ‘a ha’ moment you’ve had whilst walking?

I really can’t point to one “lightning bolt” moment. Walking is more of a process for me. A time in my day when I sort through what’s on my mind and untangle my thoughts.

What for you is the link between stories and walking?

I feel that we are all running so fast and doing so much that what’s missing for many of us is the chance to let our minds wander and process and percolate and create. It’s no surprise to me that the research shows a very significant increase in our ability to generate creative ideas following a walk. All of those things come together to make working and stories — whether creating stories or contemplating them — closely connected.

I raced through Hina Belitz’s To Lahore, With Love. But I didn’t love it. The book feels confused. Is it literary fiction, chick lit, or a recipe book? Not that a novel needs to fit neatly into a genre, but it does need to be consistent. All the tropes of a compelling piece of commercial fiction are there. There’s a complicated upbringing, an earth shattering secret, and broken promises. But you’re never really drawn in enough.

The relationship between Addy and her Nan is sweet, and the way that she writes rapturously about food glorious. Belitz’s first book Sofia Kahn is not Obliged was far more compelling. I’m sure it will do brilliantly in the summer reads rounds up. It just didn’t rock my world.

I had a chat with Hina to learn more about her writing and the book.

Is To Lahore With Love based on your own story and upbringing?

Yes! To Lahore With Love is based on the story of my life and upbringing, although it is a fictional version, so a number of things are different. It follows of the story of how protagonist, Addy Mayford, a mixed-race girl struggles with being different and not fitting in, and how she finds happiness, only to have it all stripped away in one earth shattering moment. It also explores how the trials in her life open her up to other ways of seeing the world. Addy Mayford challenges her beliefs about how we go about meeting our soulmate. Is there a right and a wrong way? I’ve been watching the current Netflix series Love Is Blind, presently Number 2 on Netflix, and there are a number of parallels between To Lahore With Love and that show.

The thread of the story that follows my own life was featured in Guardian Family and my interview by Morgan Freeman in The Story Of Us With Morgan Freeman (by National Geographic).

Stories, food, and faith – why are these so central to your book and to Addy?

What a great question! These themes are so central to the book because they represent the gifts I have received from the strong women who have been a part of my life, particularly my mother and grandmother. I see food as a bridge to other cultures and my mother was an epic cook who expressed her love for us through her cookery. I recall how in my childhood, I genuinely felt healed after one of mum’s meals. To Lahore With Love explores this idea further with the protagonist Addy Mayford believing that her food can actually change a person’s mind. I tragically lost my mother a few years ago and so including the recipes was a great way to immortalise a small part of her forever.

My grandmother was a great storyteller reminiscent of the ancient storytelling of Scherhezade in the Arabian nights. The story Nana tells Addy in To Lahore With Love is a real one my grandmother actually told me. Yes, she believed she had a Djinn lover! I made a connection between the idea of compelling stories that save lives and life changing meals. So, Addy Mayford is a sort of Scherhezade of the cookery world!

Faith, (by which I mean trusting that there is meaning to everything), has always been a central part of my life and for this reason I wanted it to become a part of Addy’s journey through the novel. I have always been amazed at how healing a small shift in mindset can be. And that requires faith. An example is the expression, ‘what hits you was never going to miss you, what misses you was never going to hit you.’ Believing these words is an act of faith which can give enormous relief from stress and anxiety. Sometimes a small phrase can blow you away. The Nietzsche quote at the opening of the novel is an example. It highlights how much suffering arises because we not open to the idea that what happens to us may be the best thing for us, even if it doesn’t seem that way. I think that the Nietzsche’s quote embodies the idea of faith beautifully.

Do you think we see enough characters from diverse backgrounds in English literature?

I do not believe we see enough characters from diverse backgrounds in English literature and for this reason I am passionate about writing such characters and hopefully as a result helping to normalise Asian stories. It is important to me that Addy Mayford is a cross-cultural and multi-religious. I want her to be relatable to different sectors and communities in the world. I am really interested in the similarities and differences in the outlook people from different cultures have, from the colour foundation they choose to how they deal with adversity.

It’s not enough, though, to just have more characters from diverse backgrounds. We also need to ensure they form part of varied and nuanced storytelling. One of the most damaging things is repeating a single story about a certain group of people because that is exactly how prejudice and bias can form.

What can people take away from your book? What do you hope it helps them consider?

The first thing I hope, the key take away I would like is for people to enjoy To Lahore With Love and connect with Addy Mayford like a friend they wish to keep visiting. If entering into Addy’s world introduces them to notions about people from other cultures and religions that they didn’t have before, that would be wonderful. Ultimately, I hope it helps people consider the great benefits of expanding your mind to understand and embrace any sort of ‘otherness.’

What’s your writing process or routine? Do you plan, pants, follow the character or something else?

My process is very organic. Before starting, I read around the subjects I am writing about and research a fair bit. I do make story plans in gorgeous Italian notebooks I buy from TK Maxx, but I mostly find I abandon them as the novel writing itself begins. I need silence to work and not only zero interuption, but no possibility of interruption, so I often go to the loft in our home or a library, like the Cambridge University Library. I get my best ideas in the shower, which is highly inconvenient, or sometimes in the dead of night when I should be asleep. In the end, it is hard hard work that leads to small openings and ideas which gradually accumulate. I am a real believer in the notion that the brain continues to work when you think you have signed off. And like Addy, I yearn for those moment of Lecto divino, those glimmers of transcendence when in the throes of creation, because when they do come, they are worth every moment of the hard graft involved in creating something original.

What’s the music scene like in Malta? I’ve been 30 odd times for holiday (family from there!).

I think there are many talented and hardworking musicians and producers in Malta which in my opinion merit a lot more support from the media and the government.

I think it would really benefit the music scene if a quota of local music played on radio stations were to be implemented. What a well-deserved platform this would be for local musicians who are made to compete with big budget worldwide stars.

Having said that, I can’t not mention the continuous hard work and dedication of a few key media people whose life mission is to support and promote local artists.

Why did you move to London?

We moved here to further our education in music. Deborah studied performance and Gian studied sound engineering in educational institutions in London. We feel really lucky that as a result of these experience we have found a space for our music to grow and continue to grow into something that excites us.

Your latest tune is about animal rights, and the previous was about migration. Serious stuff. Can music be used to change hearts and minds? Can pop music save the world?

Absolutely! Music is such a beautiful and clever art form. The world would be an incredibly dull place without it which makes it an important part of people’s lives. It brings people together and people power is exactly what is needed to change the world.

Who influences you?

Musically, we are influenced by different artists, although largely within the same genre. I bring my Agnes Obeland Adna influences and Gian brings his Joy Division and Radiohead influences and it morphs into something that we like.

Lyrically, we are inspired by society and the environment. Being the melting pot it is, London has accented the beauty of diversity in the world for us but also brought to light a lot of injustices in society. We’re also extremely environmentally aware. We feel encouraged to question the status quo and often think about the impact our actions have on our planet. Naturally, this makes its way into our songs.

What’s next for the band?

We’ve got so many exciting plans for the year which we can’t wait to share! Over the next few weeks, we will continue to share material around To The Lions. The music video, which we made with MarieClaire Portelli  out on Friday 20th March. We also have a few surprises and collaborations in store too! We’re also in the process of finalising our next releases and producing a brand new live show.

People can find out what we’re up to by following us on social media..

What has influenced your thinking around the production?

I think a big thing which has influenced my thinking on the production has been about what a forest is and what it represents. I did a lot of reading into the way forests function and the societal behaviour of trees. I was quite determined not to have any trees on stage, mainly because everybody kept asking me how are you going to do the trees?!

But actually, when you look into trees and their behaviour, they’re extraordinary. There’s a network of roots in a forest, so all the trees are connected to each other. If one tree is struggling then other trees who have enough, will send nutrients to try and save that other tree through the root system, regardless of species.  They believe – it sounds ridiculous(!) – the success of the forest depends on the success of every single tree within that forest.  I took that as a metaphor for society, and what Shakespeare is asking us to think about as audience members watching this play, especially right now in a time of increased borders and a rise of – you could say – nationalism, and concern with ourselves.

In the play there’s a marked difference between the restrictive world of the court and the forest.  In our version of the play the audience will represent the trees. When the play reaches the forest scenes, the actors will be able to see the audience, whereas they didn’t have access to them during the court scenes.  The forest world is a world where we can interact and communicate with each other.

You have said this production was all about putting the ‘you’ in As You Like It – can you tell us a bit about what you mean by that and how will this be reflected in the staging?

I think putting the ‘You’ in As You Like It is something that Shakespeare has done with this play – he’s constantly playing with the relationship between the actors and the audience, and lots of the characters in the play go between being characters, being spectators, being actors – he’s referring to the act of theatre constantly (“All the world’s a stage”). And so I think Shakespeare is asking us as theatre-makers to reconsider our relationship to the audience, making the audience feel that their presence in the theatre matters, that it changes what we’re doing. And they can be directly involved with what’s happening on the stage – so we’re really embracing that with the production.

I think it’s also reflected in the actors that are part of this show, and the other two plays that are part of the same season.  We want the acting company to reflect the nation in all its diversity.  This play was written at a time when society was becoming more diverse, and the play itself is about celebrating and embracing difference.

What are your current thoughts on the style of the production? Can you give us any early insights into the process?

I’m not setting the play in a particular time or place.  It doesn’t feel like a play which needs a certain period setting. And I’m very aware as a director of not choosing a setting which restricts the play, and that only tells one aspect of the play so I always look for the approach and the framework that allows all of the play to live.

In many ways the play is a massive exploration of theatre itself.  So there will be elements of panto, live music, stand-up comedy on stage.  And there will be audience interaction, political debate and improvisation.

Although everyone will look and feel very modern, we’ll be using a real mingle-mangle of costumes from different productions, and will be playing with different genres, different times, different periods.  It’s going to be a real mish-mash that celebrates the art of theatre making.

Would you say As You Like It is as much about ‘finding yourself’ as ‘getting lost’?

I think sometimes you have to lose yourself to find yourself. But Shakespeare isn’t asking us to get lost in order to just get lost – that would be pointless. He’s asking us to break down some of our barriers and to think outside of the boxes that we’ve put ourselves in, or that society has put us in.  And he puts the responsibility on the human being to do that for one’s self. I think the play is about the potential for change in humanity, and for us to be able to change the world we must first change ourselves and embrace other sides of ourselves.

We understand that this production features one of the most ambitious props and set elements ever created by the RSC’s production teams. Can you explain a little bit about where the idea for ‘Hymen’ came about?

Hymen is the god of marriage, which will be represented by a very large prop/puppet We have to believe in this God and yet, God is not a tangible thing. God is a leap of imagination, so how do we get 1000 audience members to take that leap in their imaginations and believe in this God? All of the actors will be involved in the scene in which Hymen appears – it will be a communal act, to give the sense of coming together and believing in a God or in something bigger than ourselves.

The role of Rosalind has been described as ‘the female Hamlet’ and is credited with more lines than any other female Shakespearean character. Was this something that attracted you to the play?

Yes absolutely!  I was attracted to a woman who is working out who she is as the play unfolds. I think sometimes with Shakespeare’s women, it feels like they already know who they are. Or that their internal life isn’t really the thing that Shakespeare is exploring in the play. With Rosalind it’s completely different. She changes her mind all the time, and she changes her mind with us, with the audience.

She talks about this magician, this uncle magician, who she’s conversed with since the age of 3, and Lucy Phelps, who is playing the role, and I have talked a lot about who on earth this magician is. We feel that this magician is inside of all of us, representing the potential for change and to be different people.  The play is really all about Rosalind having a conversation with herself to find a way to contentment, and that’s not easy.  Sometimes you have to crawl through the dirt to get to the diamond. 

Many well known actors have played Rosalind for the RSC, including Peggy Aschroft, Vanessa Redgrave, Eileen Atkins, Juliet Stevenson, and more recently, Katy Stephens and Pippa Nixon. What do you think Lucy Phelps will bring to the role?

Ah, Lucy Phelps! I think Lucy is relentlessly intelligent and rigorous in what she as an actress and as a woman wants from the world, and she does all of that with generosity and with the most infectious spirit.  I think you have to have both of those things to play Rosalind. And that’s something that she has very, very naturally.

Lucy’s never satisfied as an artist.  She’s always digging, she’s always chipping away.  But if you chip, chip, chip away in rehearsal, and then walk on stage and you’ve stopped chipping because you’ve decided what it is, then you’ve lost Rosalind – whereas Lucy has the bravery as an actress, to keep discovering… to keep searching…  

What do you hope audiences will take away from this production? 

I would like for the audience to take away a new relationship with their own ‘magician’.  To feel able to explore the possibility and potential of change, especially right now, with all of the uncertainty in this country and Europe and the rest of the world.  To feel that change is possible, and that change can come from working together, learning from each other and from being more honest.  Being brave enough to jump off the cliff into the unknown.

If you were given the chance to escape to the forest, what three things would you take with you?

My dog, Plato.

My husband.

And a really good walking stick!

Where did the idea of the story in A Love of Two Halves come from?

I’m from a Leeds United supporting family, mostly grown up in the south, and my sisters have done quite well for themselves. One weekend my brother in law took my sister to a game and parked his Mercedes outside a terraced home in Beeston, Leeds, near the stadium. It’s a low-income area. I imagined being challenged to write a story based on that image. I wondered if the car was worth more than the house it was parked outside; I checked online and it was. So I had the idea of a love story across the social divides. I had to point out to my brother-in-law David that the main character is not based on him!

The novel moves between the viewpoints of George and Karen, which enables the reader to get both sides of the story. Did you find it easier writing as one or the other?

I found it easier as George, as you might expect. I found the female lead role straightforward in some ways, and almost infinitely tricky in others. I think I was authentic in Karen’s desires and decisions, but getting the voice consistent, and getting details right on being a single mum, required advice. I had a brilliant beta reader Shannon Kyle, who’s a gifted author in her own right and has been a single mum; and my development editor at Unbound was brilliant – like being on a free editing course.

Novels about relationships are often dismissed as rom coms or chick lit, but it strikes me that relationships are the fabric of life and so should be of our novels too. What makes relationships your focus?

As I sometimes say when I give talks, I think it’s an absurd prejudice to regard war, violence, grief and despair as more weighty than love and romance; it’s all life. I’m out and proud as a writer of romcoms; others who have written in the genre include Mario Vargas Llosa and Jane Austen. Keep the Aspidistra Flying by George Orwell has funny moments and a genuine love affair. A relationship involves feelings of great depth, high emotional peril and complexity – so, great dramatic potential. In my books there are no baddies or corpses, but I would argue that there is considerable reflection and depth. That said, I enjoy a good thriller sometimes, too.

Your novels are set in Leeds. Is it important to you to write about a place that you know?

My first novel Close of Play is set in Sussex, then I switched to Leeds partly out of nostalgia for the region I’m originally from, but partly also for commercial reasons, as it’s easier to focus your marketing on a particular city or region. Yes, I very much place my dramas in places that I know intimately. I like to draw on first-hand experience when bringing a scene to life.

In A Love of Two Halves you look at social issues, such as the role of companies in the lives of their employees, the difficulties of surviving on low income jobs and benefits, and inequalities. What role do you think literature has in making us think about these things?

I think it’s very important that a novel shows social reality without preaching or proselytising. In A Love of Two Halves I sought always to keep the relationships and the drama central to the story arc. I do have unique insights, based on many years of journalism, both into social problems, and into how businesses are run and the impact they have. In my experience, conventional political movements do not base their policies on an understanding of actual human behaviour or social realities. I like to think I show some social and economic complexities in A Love of Two Halves – but, as I say, the story of Karen and George is the main thing. 

Your performances to support the book bring together readings, commentary, and music, in quite an immersive experience that echoes the book. Music plays a big role in the novel. Are you a fan?

I like to be a bit multi-media as it were, at an event, so that it’s not just an old man talking about his books. I enjoyed bringing in the singer and guitarist Nigel Girling. When I was young I always followed bands, and I wanted to bring characters to life who are in a non-professional band and who write songs. This features in Marching on Together. A song can have lasting emotional impact – in the case of Johnny in that book, one Beatles song will forever remind him of The One Who Got Away. So, powerful dramatic potential.

It’s only in the last few years that you’ve been publishing novels. Have you always written creatively? What changed for you and made you want to do it?

I’ve written creatively for over 20 years. I’ve only been published recently because, for me, it was a long apprenticeship. It didn’t come naturally and I had to learn the craft very patiently. The main catalyst that accelerated my learning and led to being published was joining a writing group, getting honest feedback, and realising that writing doesn’t have to be a lonely experience.

What’s next for you?

I have begun work on a fourth novel, with the working title No Traveller Returns. The theme is one of redemption for a man in his 40s who led a high, criminal life as a young adult and wants to atone. Central to his quest is to thank the supermum who lived next door when he was a teenager and tried to save him, but he discovers she’s died. But she has a daughter, and the two of them had some chemistry as teenagers…

Can you tell me a bit more about the band? How did you begin?

We met Robert when me and Emil switched schools in the eight grade. Each of us had some background of music school and some private lessons, but we never really thought about becoming a band. We had a wonderful opportunity to go to the rehearsal space of our fathers, so after school we would go there and just play around and have fun. And then the first gig happened and naturally the snowball got bigger and bigger and here we are.

Is there a theme to the new album? 

In the new album we try to be as honest as ever. Naïve melodies mixed with serious lyrics sometimes create an apocalyptic vibe. Each song has a different source and a different feeling. There is an irony flowing through it all, the melodies contrasting the lyrics. It is about three guys, trying to understand what it means to be human and how the universe works.

Where did the title Good Luck come from?

We were recording the album in Red Bull Studio in Sao Paulo, Brazil and our producer wished us good luck in the next take after we couldn’t get something right. And that’s how it come together, it happened very naturally. And also the name Good Luck could be seen as an ironic phrase.

Can you describe your ‘creative camps?’

Usually we go to the countryside of Latvia and spend the days with ease and no pressure writing new music, every day feels the same. Wake up, eat breakfast, write and record till dinner, watch an episode of a TV series, go back to writing till you fall asleep. It’s great.

What’s next?

Life goes on, we have to survive Good Luck tour first, and then we’ll see.

Check out the tour dates here.

Good Luck by Carnival Youth

I caught up with her to find out more.

Invitation takes its name from a quote by Thomas Moore which she stumbled upon while sifting through the cathartic journal entries of your mother: ‘To keep the unfolding self alive, you have to open yourself to change every step of the way. Of course there are times when it is appropriate to step back, settle down, and maybe not move for a while. But to be a person means to be faced every minute with the decision to live OR die; To accept the invitations for yet more vitality or to decline them out of fear or lethargy.’ Why did this speak to you?

At the time my mother sent me this quote I was beginning to transition out of a dark period of a couple years of feeling depressed and lost. Not only had I been going through some big personal life changes, but I was feeling the extreme weight of our political climate, meanwhile hearing each day of musicians, artists, and others who I’d looked up to taking their own lives. It was a heavy time and I was trying understand it all and find my own path through it. When I read this Thomas Moore quote it made things clear for me in a very basic way. I was already to ‘open myself to change’ and try to live as presently as I could. I realized it was my choice to make, and that I was to choosing to ‘accept the invitations’ as opposed to acting out of ‘fear or lethargy.’ It was a clear marker of time and understanding for me.

How did writing this album differ from the previous albums?

In previous years, I’ve always been touring with other musicians while trying to write my own material – making demos between tours. I would record a few songs here and a few songs there, and eventually have enough material for an album.

I wanted to slow down and have a more focused creative process this time, so I stopped touring so much and moved to the Oregon Coast to write Invitation. I wrote and recorded demos over a period of a couple of years at my home studio there. I had a pretty clear idea of how I wanted to record to sound going into the recording process, and I was lucky enough to work with D James Goodwin at Isokon studio in Woodstock, NY. So in the end the project felt more cohesive than records I’ve done in the past because I was able to stay in one place long enough to dream up the concepts and sonic palette ahead of going into the studio.

What inspires you?

While writing for Invitation I was very inspired by the landscape of the Oregon Coast – the juxtaposition of such harshness and beauty in one place, the flora and fauna that inhabit the area, solitude, playing the piano and cello, the beauty of a simple life, being outside in all sorts of weather, reading novels, to name a few.

You’ve been writing for a long time now. How does the process and sound evolve?

Generally I begin with a melody on an instrument. In the case of the material for Invitation, usually the piano. I just sit with the melody and play it over and over again until I begin to dream up words to sing along with it. Usually these first words inspire the story of the song. I have a journal where I write down things I see that strike me, moods, interactions with people, passages from books I’m reading, etc. Sometimes while I’m working on lyrics I open that journal and pick words or small phrases from those pages as a starting point.

You play with Sharon van Etten. Have you learned anything from the experience? How do you learn from other musicians?

Yes I’ve been playing with Sharon since 2011 now, and in many other bands as well. I’ve learned a lot through playing with all of these different bands. It’s interesting to work on other people’s songs because everyone’s understanding of and relationship to music is so different, so you learn a lot about other peoples process. You also learn a lot about patience, especially when touring. It’s a balancing act to mix livelihood with any kind of creative work, and adding in the element of relationships to bandmates and everyone’s personal ups and downs takes a lot of patience and compassion.

What’s next?

I’ll be touring with Sharon Van Etten quite a lot this year, and really hope to get out on the road with my own tour in support of Invitation later this year. Beyond that I plan to write some instrumental music next, and work on another record in collaboration with D James Goodwin. Really looking forward to all of it!

How did you begin making music?

I grew up around a lot of music. I used to play around on my father’s guitar when I was little and taught myself that way.

Why have you gone for a cowboy aesthetic?

I’m just a cowboy so I don’t know any other way.

Are you deliberately trying to challenge gender or masculinity norms?

I don’t think I’m challenging either to be honest. I’m a cis male so I’m not challenging anything about gender and as far as masculinity – I don’t really know what that means. I sing love songs about dudes so does that make me less masculine? I wear traditional cowboy gear so does that make me less feminine? I just don’t really waste any of my time focusing on that shit. I consider myself traditionally ‘masculine’ in some ways and I also have aspects to my personality that are a lot more traditionally ‘feminine’. So maybe to some people that may seem weird or different but to me it just seems ultra normal. I can tell you one thing – I’m definitely not the first cowboy to have ever kissed a man.

Country music isn’t trendy – have you always loved it?

I kind of think it’s starting to become really trendy. I see a lot more cowboy aesthetic in fashion and music these days than I ever have. But yeah I’ve always loved it. I just love a good story – and that’s what country music is really – storytelling.

Who inspires you?

Musically – it’s a pretty mixed bag. I grew up listening to punk and grunge bands, Country and soul, old musicals. So I draw from a lot there. But I get a lot of inspiration from film and literature.

Who are you listening to?

I’m loving the new Weyes Blood album. It’s got kind of Kate Bush spirit to me. Like when someone is making weird, interesting music but they are thinking “oh I’m just making a pop album”. That’s talent.

Released on 20th January 2017, all proceeds from the sale of the single via Bandcamp will go to the grass roots charity group Phone Credit for Refugees and Displaced People. They work to help keep a vital mobile phone lifeline open for refugees desperate to connect with families and to access important services and information.

As Ros and Vas explain ‘We hope our song helps make a difference by raising much needed funds. We chose Phone Credit for Refugees after meeting our Labour MP Stella Creasy at Walthamstow feminist bootcamp and she put us in touch with people who knew this fantastic volunteer group. You can see where your money is going and you are directly helping people to access important services and information and to stay connected to their families.’

The duo wholeheartedly belief in the value of music and the arts for making change. ‘We come from Greek and Scottish/Irish backgrounds and our music stands against the growing tide of suspicion and intolerance. We decided in 2013 that we had to use any skills or talent we had as musicians, as songwriters, as a band to question and challenge, to show what we stood for. Otherwise your music ultimately says everything is fine and acceptable. We also think we can help change our culture by being creative and making our own culture rather than just passively consuming it. This leads to a real communication between artists and people in different countries.’

They’ve previously contributed to the #moreincommon album in aid of Hope Not Hate, and found ‘a growing sense of horror ‘ through the experience of seeing our world fall apart in some ways, but know that ‘we have to wake up and act now to ensure our silence is not taken as acquiescence.’

But we have to finish our chat. They have to rush off and pick up their makeshift drums ready to bang outside Downing Street in protest against the UK government’s apparent complicity with Trump’s immigration policy and terrifying populist extremism. No silence here. ‘There is a time for songs and a time to take to the streets.’

We can make a noise too, helping the most vulnerable speak simple words of reassurance to loved ones, by buying Time to Mourn/From Fear to Fury here and see them live on March 18^th at the LOUD WOMEN Volume 1: Album Launch Party, with all profits going to Women’s Aid.

First published on Joyzine