'Music is my way of connecting with the outside world. It makes me feel alive.'

Stevie Jones has been performing music for around four decades. He talks to Julia Thorley about the philosophy behind his song-writing and how the live music scene is changing.

Stevie Jones and the Wildfires at Weekley Hall Wood. (Neil Matthews image).

Stevie Jones began his musical path as bassist and lyricist in 1980s Kettering post-punk trio Voices Of Sin. He has since explored solo acoustic performances, as well as spending time in various partnerships and bands.

His current full band, Stevie Jones and the Wildfires, played their first gig in Leicester in 2010 and they are now well established, delivering a unique blend of modern alternative rock centred on powerful acoustic-based songwriting. Alongside Stevie are drummer Dave Carter, bassist Bob Dabrowski and Bob’s 20-year-old son Alfie Dabrowski on guitar. Stevie also performs solo, playing original music or classic cover sets, and with Rob Matheson as duo The Waltzers. 

“The way people listen to music has changed,” he says.“In this modern age, when we’re being programmed to have a short attention span, people might listen to something once and then go back to the old and familiar stuff. Music has become background noise.

“It’s hard for bands creating original music to connect with new audiences. I remember when I was a teenager listening to a new album with my headphones on, taking in every note and every word from start to finish, but today people shuffle their music, which is frustrating because the order of tracks on an album is important. Our songs are designed to be listened to more than once, and we really appreciate everyone who does take the time to listen properly. It’s why I write: to connect.”

This theme of connection is very important to Stevie, alongside his affinity with the natural world. This is the overarching theme of the Wildfires’ latest album, Clarity In Dusk, which has just been released.

“I played in the woods as a kid and many of my songs are inspired by walks in nature. I was a supporter of the recent successful Kettering-based campaign to Save Weekley Hall Wood, which was the inspiration for the track ‘False Gods’. Being part of the campaign and speaking at the planning inspectorate hearing was amazing. It was great to see the community spirit it generated. Actually, it’s things like this that give me hope. I think that some youngsters who might not care about or understand mainstream politics will connect with issues in their own communities, issues like this one.”

Stevie’s musical career extends beyond playing with the Wildfires. He used to host open mic nights, and continues to promote gigs and events under the banner of the Wildfire Sessions and more recently through the Little Ember Sessions in Oundle alongside co-promoter Bob Cheatham.

“It’s difficult for original bands to find places to play. Many pubs will only offer slots to covers bands, because they know people will come to hear songs they know. It’s tough to grab the attention of a pub crowd with new songs, no matter how good they are. It’s as though people don’t care about the music in itself. It might have been easier in the 1980s and 90s to follow a trend and then get picked up, but it’s much harder now. It takes a lot of work and strong self-belief. You have to create your own opportunities.”

What’s the live music scene like in Northamptonshire now?

“Corby has a few venues, the Black Prince in Northampton is great and so is the Ostrich in Peterborough. There are others, but you have to go out of your area and work with other bands. Even then, some venues are almost a closed shop; they won’t book anyone they don’t know, so it’s hard to get gigs outside your own town unless you get asked to support someone who is already being booked. In fact, I’d say in most counties you’re lucky if there’s more than one decent live music venue that takes on bands playing their own stuff.

“That’s why for many original bands the only way to reach new and bigger audiences is to become their own promoter – and this means hiring the venue, doing the advertising, booking support acts, everything. Then of course you have to charge for tickets. You have to be your own video maker, web designer, booker – it can be overwhelming.

“You can’t go into it purely for the money. I’m involved with music because I’ve just got to be! It’s my way of connecting with the outside world. It makes me feel alive.”

Stevie Jones and the Wildfires’ new single ‘Come In From The Rain’ taken from Clarity In Dusk, will be released on March 1, with bonus track ‘This Is My Church’. Find out more online from https://steviejones.com