The Sherpas

How did the band first come together and when did you first start playing gigs? The band came together from two groups of friends that were all playing music, or studying it. It just made sense to merge together.

You guys have listed some pretty diverse influences like Led Zeppelin, Bombay Bicycle Club and The Maccabees. Is there any particular person or artist that you feel has had the biggest impact on your sound? Its ever-changing who inspires us. As far as musical impact goes there are some artists that seem to always be there, like Jeff Buckley and The Maccabees.

There’ve been some pretty exciting albums out recently - AM, Kings of Leon, Haim etc. Who are you guys listening to at the moment? James is loving Everything Everything. Pierre (Singer) is, for the first time, dabbling in 80s band The Blue Nile. And of course, we are all loving the new Kings Of Leon album!

We really like the Soireé EP, particularly the songwriting on tracks like Wave To The Water. How does that process work for you guys? Do you all write together, or does one person take the lead on a particular song? Some songs are a solo effort brought to the band, but Wave To The Water was a few of us intensely writing as a group in one room. Sometimes it works like that, and sometimes its too much. For this song it works though. Lyrically, James and Pierre often work together.

What’s next for The Sherpas? What can people expect from your upcoming set at our PearShaped event? The Sherpas have a new single coming out (we’re not sure of the release date just yet), with a subsequent tour, music video and some more exciting radio airplay. The band have lots of upcoming shows in our home town, Exeter, so come and get involved!

What would you say is the best gig you’ve been to recently? We’ve all been attending big concerts that have inspired us a lot as individuals. Recently Ben attended a concert in London and was very impressed by Arcane Roots. Also James attended an Everything Everything gig and was impressed by the Tech Indie music he heard there. As a band we have really enjoyed playing alongside Little Comets and Yes Sir Boss - they were both really tight bands.