COUNTDOWN TO MPF: SHOOTING DAGGERS INTERVIEW
Shooting Daggers are one of the hottest, most exciting new hardcore bands in the UK right now. We’re delighted to have them at Manchester Punk Fest 2023. This feminist/queercore trio are explosive live, channeling riot-grrl inspiration through a lens of modern frustration.
Shooting Daggers stormed onto the scene with their debut EP Athames, released earlier in 2022. Their songs are delivered with conviction and fire, full of juddering riffs, political bile and an unrelenting percussive assault. Shooting Daggers come highly recommended by the whole MPF team.
We spoke to Bea (bass, backing vocals), Sal (vocals, guitar) and Raquel (drums) and asked them twelve very serious questions.
How would you introduce yourselves to a punk fan who’s not heard of you yet?
We’re Shooting Daggers, we’re a trio of Europeans from London. If you’re not sure what your favourite genre of punk is, but you know you want it to be queer, then ‘hi’! Our music is a mix of different influences: from punk hardcore, to post-hardcore, to queercore, to thrash metal…with a sprinkle of riot grrrl magic, and our lyrics are sharp and upfront. Do you want to come help us smash the patriarchy?
Which of your songs/releases are you most proud of, and why?
Bea: ‘You Can’t Kill Us’. I’m really proud of the message in that song; it’s our little gift to queercore. But also I really think it’s a banger. Short but in-your-face.
Sal: To me, ‘Manic Pixie Dream Girl’ is the song I’m the most proud of. I love the structure of the song and the main guitar phrase. The topic of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl Trope is something that I can relate to so much, and it feels good to put words on the pain we experience because of the male gaze. We are no one if we don’t exist for the cis men, it’s all about them.
Raq: My favourite ones are ‘We Will Live’ and ‘You Can’t Kill Us’. For me, those two tracks are like one and I love the message and the contrast between the ‘mellow’ side of ‘We Will Live’ and the punch of ‘You Can’t Kill Us’.
Tell us a secret about your band.
All our social media passwords are named after food we got obsessed with as a band while on tour.
What was the first gig you ever went to?
Bea: An emo pop rock band that probably only mainland Europeans remember: Tokio Hotel. I was 13 and absolutely obsessed with them, I’m not even ashamed of admitting it.
Sal: My first (punk) gig ever was Jello Biafra in 2013. My first gig ever was a French pop singer called Jennifer and I was probably about 7 years old. There weren’t any gigs where I grew up!
Raq: My first gig was Marilyn Manson. I went with my older sister when I was just 15 years old.
What have you got in your pockets right now?
Bea: Nothing cause I’m in my PJ’s at home.
Sal: I am also currently in my PJs so unfortunately I don’t have any pockets. But if I were to have pockets, there would probably be tissues in there ‘cause I caught a cold!
If you were a biscuit, what would you be and why?
Sal: Tough one … I would be a vegan biscuit for sure. I would be a salty one for sure. I could be a cracker but it goes with everything and it’s too plain, so it wouldn’t match me at all. If I were to be my fav biscuit then I would be a dark chocolate finger (the vegan ones).
Bea: I would be a chocolate bourbon because no matter where you buy them, they are almost always vegan and they’re delish.
Raq: A chocolate chip cookie (vegan, of course).
Who’s your favourite Dave?
Bea: Dav(id) Lynch.
Sal: Dave from Abe (a mathcore band from Essex).
Raq: Dave Grohl.
Red or blue?
Bea: Blue.
Sal: Both but red might win by an inch. Red has little more spice than blue.
Raq: Blue.
Oasis or Blur?
Bea: Blur.
Raq: Oasis.
Too much ska or too little ska?
Bea: Too much ska!
Sal: Too little ska but it might be for the best.
Raq: Too little ska, I agree with Sal.
Help us settle the age-old bread debate. What do you call a roll / cob / bap / barm / batch / muffin / other (specify)?
Bea: A panino! And all the ways you call them here in the UK don’t make any sense to me.
Sal: I would say none of them cus I’m a freshy (English isn’t my first language) and I call bread ‘bread’ no matter the shape of it.
Raq: As a non-English speaker I also called it just ‘bread’.
Finally, which bands are you most excited to see at MPF2023?
Plastics, Comeback Clit, Youth Avoiders, Rat Cage, Going Off and Direct Hit are the ones we’re super excited to see. There are a few bands that we don’t know on the bill, we can’t wait to discover their sound!
Buy your MPF2023 ticket HERE.
