One man project Byronic Sex & Exile is not only one of the most prolific acts on the current goth scene, but also arguably the most interesting, as evidenced by the latest release, a digital-only mini-album with the arguably tautological title Yorkshire Gothic. Although firmly based in the epicentre of “Goth’s Own County”, the city of Leeds where The Sisters of Mercy formed in 1980, BS&E main man Joel Heyes has cast his net to the further reaches of the county on this latest set of songs which are based on folk legends which prove that the region has a link with things dark and mysterious which significantly pre-dates not the music scene of the past four decades but the mid-nineteenth century novels of the Brontё sisters and Bram Stoker’s 1890’s tale Dracula which was dramatically set in the coastal town of Whitby (now the home of several annual goth festivals).
Heyes carefully researched the various spooky tales which tell of ancient themes like vengeance and fear, whether the phantom coach that rose into the air and swooped up the 199 steps to the cliffltop graveyard of Whitby Abbey to collect any fisherman and sailors who had died on terra firma and swept them over the cliffs to their rightful resting place in the North Sea (The Coach), local witch Mary Bateman who suffered the occupational hazard of being hung in York in 1809 having been found guilty of murder (The Witch), or the mystery location on York’s river Ouse where five stones dropped into the water would turn the fast-flowing stream into a mirror which would reveal the person concerned’s future (The Mirror), and his well-crafted lyrics imbue the resultant songs with a genuine air of mystique.
Sonically the tracks range from slower ballads where Heyes once again successfully harnesses his inner Nick Cave such as The Witch or The Sea (a story about fantastical mermaids in the old fishing port of Staithes), or more upbeat darkwave like the fuller arrangements of The Barghest (about a mythical black beast with crimson eyes which was a harbinger of death) and The Mirror, possibly the strongest track, which is set over a Bauhaus-esque syncopated backbeat. Arguably the most “on point” song is The Saint, which tells of the misfortune of those who removed (at the time of the English Reformation) the bells from St Hilda’s (Whitby Abbey) over an almost danceable beat, whilst the more muffled closing song The Hermit was recorded live on bleak Ilkley Moor itself, the erstwhile abode of the titular loner.
Most artists would be happy just to upload the album to
Bandcamp and Spotify and wait for the meagre royalties to trickle in, but
Heyes, the hardest working man in goth and ever the romantic, not only produced
a couple of live stream shows from his own candle-lit living room whilst
swigging from a goblet of blood-red wine but set off by public transport, locks
flowing and guitar case in hand, to perform windswept mini-sets troubadour-style from
dramatic locations like the US radar listening station at Fylingdales, the hill
opposite Whitby Abbey and even Ilkley Moor itself, before withdrawing to the
fireside snug of a country village pub for a well-deserved pint of Guinness and
the obligatory weather-beaten social media selfie.
Keen to discover more about the release of Yorkshire
Gothic and its accompanying tour, I got in touch with Joel and was both
grateful and delighted when he agreed to answer ten more questions, having
already responded to an initial batch last Spring when BS&E’s excellent Romanian-influenced album Cu Foc was released. I also took the
opportunity to throw in questions about his continued fundraising efforts for a
refugee charity, his recent purchase of a hearse (!), and his plans for the
future.
Like other Byronic Sex & Exile releases, Yorkshire
Gothic is available on Bandcamp.
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1. Whilst most artists licked their wounds and retreated to the studio during the pandemic, you continued to perform live, streaming regular intimate solo shows from the comfort of your own home. How difficult was it to perform just looking at a device rather than an appreciative audience?
It was pretty difficult after a while – I think the novelty
of livestream shows started wearing off for everyone towards the end of last
year, and as a performer it’s pretty boring and mundane to do shows to camera
like that. Everyone had to suddenly become experts in video editing, sound
engineering, and mime, in order to do a show. Plus I also had to completely
turn my flat upside down to set up for one, which I was pretty sick of doing.
So although I think I gave it a good go and made the best of it, I’m very happy
to begin the transition back to more standard live shows.
2. You released an EP last autumn and more
recently a new release entitled Yorkshire Gothic, which is lyrically inspired
by some spooky Yorkshire folk tales. Where did you learn about these stories,
and do you see the “goth” movement of the last forty years as being a
continuation of that local heritage?
I like to think of it that way, although that’s probably a
minority opinion. Although Leeds is very much the centre of the goth scene in
Yorkshire, I think it’s also clear that we all like travelling out towards the
periphery – York, then the moors and then Whitby – and I like to think there is
a link between the scene and the cultural memory of our collective, eerie
legacy. So I tend to consider the moors as the Mississippi Delta of Goth, in a
way. In terms of the stories themselves, I like to spend weekend breaks at a hotel overlooking the east
coast outside Whitby during the winter, which tends to involve a 3-mile walk
over the countryside from the main road, and I collected a few things to read
in that environment - The Caedmon Storytellers books were all very important,
as was ‘Ghosts & Legends of Yorkshire’ by Andy Roberts. Others I found out
about more naturally, such as that of the hermit of Ilkley Moor which I
discovered through a pub in Wharfedale named after him that I used to drink at.
3. Whilst “normal” live shows are still banned
in the UK, to celebrate the release of Yorkshire Gothic you boldly managed to
put together a one-man tour of notable outdoor locations across the county,
just you and your guitar, troubadour-style, streamed live on Facebook. Looking
back on what was clearly quite an arduous trek by public transport during a
pandemic, what do you feel that the tour achieved?
Apart from some great memories, such as performing ‘51st
State’ by New Model Army outside the American base at Fylingdales (after being
moved on by the police!) and performing a full set overlooking Whitby bay, it was
a great exercise in recovering my self-respect as a performer after being out
of commission due to lockdown. It’s actually much better to perform to the
crows in a field outside Pickering than it is to do yet another Facebook live
event, strangely enough. Plus it’s always valuable to see these things through
– I love putting crazy ideas into practice. But ultimately, it was great to
bring those songs into the environment they were written for, as it created
great energy.
4. Yorkshire Gothic marks a return to home
after the Romanian themes of the previous album Cu Foc. Will you be revisiting
Transylvanian themes on future releases?
Well, I think it’s inevitable that I’ll do something around
the vampire/Dracula themes that I avoided on Cu Foc, but that’s a
while off yet. What I would like to do is bring Cu Foc to a proper show
sooner rather than later, as it was never really performed in full last year.
Plus I’ve mostly finished an alternative mix of that album which I’ll be making
available on my Patreon (when I get round to launching it!).
5. The tour reminded me a bit of other heroic
ventures which ended up being chronicled in written travelogue form, like
“Round Ireland With A Fridge” or “The Uke of Wellington”. Have you ever thought
of documenting your life as a national gothic treasure in a more literary
format?
I am actually writing a mock-memoir called I, Wessie
– mostly a tongue-in-cheek gothic bitchfest where the beans are spilled without
discretion. But as ever, I need the time to write it. And a good lawyer!
6. Has the Yorkshire Gothic trek whetted your
appetite for fuller tours when the possibility returns, hopefully later in
2021?
Yep – got a full, two-week tour in September ready to
announce to support the next album proper (Unrepentant Thunder, which is
out in August). Being able to tour extensively is one of the advantages that
the BS&E project really has, and it’s easily my favourite thing to do as a
musician.
7. BS&E now seems to be having more of a
global reach, with more bloggers, DJs and reviewers picking up on the project.
What would be your ideal next step - would you like to play WGT, one of the
emerging US or Belgian goth festivals, or head to Latin America for example?
I’m extremely keen to play outside of the UK, so any
European shows would be the practical next step – although post-Brexit
logistics make these things difficult. I was actually looking to organise a few
shows through my contacts in France, Germany and especially Italy – which was
one of the strongest bases of support for BS&E from the start – but COVID saw to that. But I would especially like to play Greece (particularly Athens
and Missolonghi) with the next album, as that would tie in very nicely with the
Byron theme it deals with.
8. Your own credentials as Leeds’ unofficial
current Godfather of Goth have been further boosted (not that that was
necessary) by your recent purchase of an old hearse as your form of personal
transport. What kind of reaction has there been locally?
I’m glad to say that the reaction has been generally
positive – a hearse hasn’t really raised an eyebrow in Leeds 6, funnily enough!
Plus when it turned up everyone assumed it was mine anyway, which is the kind
of brand recognition that you have to be happy with. Probably fair to say that
everyone I encounter these days talks to me about it (whether I want to or
not). Fun times ahead with it, certainly.
9.
You’ve
always had a very clear political conscience and have supported refugee and
asylum-seeker charity PAFRAS through both compilation albums that you’ve put
together and with the proceeds of live events which you’ve put on as part of
Goth City. Are you encouraged to see that, in the wake of BLM, the worldwide
gothic community has nailed its colours to the mast of inclusion and diversity?
I’m glad where it happens, but it’s very much an uphill
struggle at the moment. The general understanding of political ideas, within
society as a whole not just within the goth scene, is so poor and suggestible
that it’s a matter of being constantly alert for reactionary elements within
the scene – as well as supporting those who are making their voices heard
against them. So I’m encouraged, but we all have a long way to go.
10. You’re just back from the Yorkshire Gothic
tour and you’ve immediately set off to walk along historic Hadrian’s Wall again
just now to raise more funds for PAFRAS. Do you ever rest?
When the work is done (or mostly done!) I’m actually on
holiday next week, so I’ll be watching all the matches in the Euros on TV and
having all the wine & Guinness I can take. Then it’s time to finish the
next album…
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