It’s been twelve years since Sid Ryan (vocals/bass), Jack Chatfield (guitar), and Jacob Hull (drums), aka Grade 2, first plugged in their amps and got down to business. Since then, like any proper punk band, they’ve always had something to say.
They went through a period when their dreams hung in the balance during the pandemic, with the singer working night shifts stocking shelves at Tesco, only to make a triumphant return in 2023 with their eponymous album. At the time, they felt like they owned the world, and judging by their memories of last year’s show at Rock am Ring and Rock im Park, they weren’t far from the truth.
“Slipknot were headlining both nights. I knew their frontman Corey Taylor had played our song Under The Streetlight on his BBC Radio One Rock Show takeover, so I came up with a skit to get the crowd going: I told them that Corey and I had been talking backstage and he’d made a bet with me that we couldn’t get a circle-pit going before two in the afternoon. But after I said it the second time I turned around and Corey was standing side-stage with his wife watching us play. I did not see that coming,” laughs Sid Ryan.
They shared the stage with stars like Rancid and Guns N’ Roses, but behind the curtain, they continued to grapple with the quiet disillusionment of childhood dreams. That is, one of the themes of their work.