PULP INTERVIEWS : BABYTEETH | Doing Alt-Rock in Lockdown
Cindy Mititelu
Trigger warning: themes of sexual assault are mentioned in this article.
BABYTEETH have punched 2020 in the face. Despite doubting to continue as a band after this year’s difficult circumstances, the London-based starlets release their debut EP, “Knock Yourself Out” , next month on 4th December.
Photo credit: 7 West Media
Consisting of Camilla Roholm (vocals, guitar), Eilidh McKellar (lead guitar), Rio Hellyer (bass), Samantha Lubin (drums) and Sam Hammond (guitar), BABYTEETH put an alt-rock spin on 90’s punk and Britpop sounds. Influenced by the music they grew up listening to, they credit Hole, The Beach Boys, Deep Purple, Radiohead, and Rage Against the Machine for inspiring their careers and song-writing. You can see their styles come to light in this grungy rendition of Ariana Grande’s “God Is A Woman”. Formed after meeting through mutual friends, the band have said, “giving up on music or giving up each other’s friendship, just would never be an option to us. We love it and each other too damn much.”
Before embarking on headline shows and signing with 7 West Music, they’ve supported Adam Ant, The Pearl Harts, and The Naked & Famous. Asked to describe themselves, BABYTEETH are the self-proclaimed ‘Nirvana with vaginas’. Their releases feature charged guitar riffs, punchy lyrics and a powerful stage presence you can feel through the screen. They’re sharp-witted, gritty, and full of energy to finish off the year with a captivating head-banger.
PULP caught up with BABYTEETH on how they’ve been, their new music, and words of wisdom they’ve picked up on the road.
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All of BABYTEETH: HI CINDY!
Camilla: Thank you for chatting to us. Wish we could give you a little lick on the face to show you how happy we are, but face licking is yet another thing 2020 has cruelly taken away from us.
It’s been one hell of a fucking year. How’s your November going?
Camilla: Cold and boozy. Lots of cats.
Rio: Bitchin’.
Samantha: Bit shit.
Sam: Not my best November, but not my worst.
Eilidh: I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my November!
Camilla: Eilidh's like a little ray of sunshine in all of our lives.
BABYTEETH’s debut EP, “Knock Yourself Out”, is out on 4th December. Has writing music in 2020 changed how you approach your music?
Sam: Due to social distancing, we now write exclusively via Ouija board.
Camilla: Yep Ouija and Zoom. It’s the perfect combination.
What does it feel like to release your debut EP?
Rio: Also bicthin’.
Sam: Erotic.
Eilidh: Feels like it’s about flippin’ time!
Camilla: It’s exciting. We’ve been sat on most of this EP for ages, not knowing what to do with it, because we had really wanted to tour around releasing it of course. But in the end we thought, why let it fester like a dirty little secret? That just means it doesn’t really exist in a way. Putting it out feels like a fresh start for next year and a bit of a defiant f**k you to 2020.
Do you have any memorable stories behind writing and producing the tracks on “Knock Yourself Out”?
Rio: Samantha was our muse for the title.
Samantha: I smashed my head against a concrete wall.
Camilla: She was head banging so hard during the Cut It video shoot that she fainted and knocked herself unconscious. We all ended the shoot together in A&E having drinks and sandwiches with Samantha’s mum.
Earlier this month, BABYTEETH released a cover of Ariana Grande’s God Is A Woman. What kind of icons do the band aspire to be?
Rio: God.
Sam: Like Kiss but with boobs.
Eilidh: Sam wants to be a strong independent lady.
Camilla: Sounds like too much responsibility. We’re way too ridiculous for that. Never aspire to be like us kids.
Does BABYTEETH have a favourite lyric? If so, why those words?
Camilla: There’s a song we play live but haven’t released yet that begins with the line “Little piggy let me in”. It makes us laugh every time we play it. It’s a fun little song about rape and victim blaming ha ha ha - not a laughing matter at all really.
In past interviews, your advice to aspiring musicians is ‘to become an accountant’ and ‘be willing to sell an organ or two to pay your rent’. What got you into doing music?
Rio: Satan himself.
Eilidh: Listening to old blues records got me into music.
Camilla: It’s not really a choice I don’t think. It gets you, not the reverse, and then you can’t stop. Even when it would definitely be more sensible to be an accountant. Both my parents were musicians too, so I was genetically unfortunate from birth. I wish I’d had more useful genes.
Photo credit: 7 West Media
BABYTEETH have sold out headline shows in London and Manchester, and made festival appearances at The Great Escape and Live at Leeds. Where’s your dream venue and why?
Rio: Madison Square Garden.
Eilidh: Alexandra Palace. I still haven’t played there and it’s just down the road from me.
Camilla: Yep, we all live pretty close to Alexandra Palace, so that’s up there for sure. And I’d love to play the Roskilde Festival main stage in Denmark, because that’s the town I went to high school in.
Have you ever been to Australia? As Brits, what’s your opinion of us?
Eilidh: 9. I’ve been there twice. I like you, but it’s complicated…
Sam: My mum got married in Australia when I was 11. I remember koalas stinking of piss. We love you guys!
Camilla: I'm not British, but I can’t wait to go. As far as I've heard, you guys still love music and aren't as jaded about it all. Is that true? What should we do when we visit?
How are BABYTEETH celebrating New Year’s?
Rio: A Mills and Boon book and a wank.
Sam: Cocaine and hookers.
Eilidh: Jigglin’ and jiving’ together
Samantha: Yes, hopefully getting really drunk together if circumstances allow.
Camilla: We like each other’s company almost too much, I’d like to spend New Years in a drunken piled up hug with these guys. Not a sexy hug. Well maybe a bit…
What are you looking forward to after 2020’s over?
Eilidh: It not being in 2020 anymore.
Camilla: Hell yeah.
Have any last words of wisdom to share with us before you go?
Sam: Never trust a man in white jeans.
Rio: There once was a man from Nantucket....
Camilla: Who put five Babyteeth in a bucket. He swung them around, but they just wouldn’t drown, so he put the thing down and thought ‘F**k it.’ That’s a poem about 2020... Samantha has a great saying that makes us laugh a lot.
Samantha: It will either be alright or it won't be alright, if it's not alright then it's not alright.
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Thanks for chatting with us, BABYTEETH! We’re sad you can’t do your usual street reviews for new music, but here’s an old one to cheer us all up: