A Moment With Sad Dads: Interview With The Indie Band

Before we dive into the conversation, let me introduce you to a band that is sure to make waves with their infectious sound and humor-filled tunes. Sad Dads, a duo from Brighton, released their debut single ‘Surf Instructor’ on August 16th – a track featuring a blend of alternative-post-punk-inspired-indie vibes.

Formed by best friends Dan Noble and Owen Bullock, Sad Dads bring a sparkling, energetic sound reminiscent of early Squid, punctuated by self-deprecating lyricism and a playful take on everyday mundanity. Their track, ‘Surf Instructor’, combines bright, fuzzy guitars, driving drums, and a catchy spoken-word vocal delivery that propels the song forward with purpose and urgency. We caught up with them to learn more about their artistry, debut single, and upcoming plans.

Your band name, Sad Dads, is quite unique. What’s the story behind it and how did the band come about?

Thanks for having us! Why thank you! We’ve always said our spirit animal is a sad dad so we felt it was the perfect name for us – we’ve always felt like two 70 year old men in rocking chairs on a porch

The band came about in one of the countless evenings we spent hanging out together – probably around early 2019 in the bands original form as a humble acoustic duo!- Dan wanted to learn to drums and Owen wanted to learn guitar, so we set about writing songs on each others instruments. None of them remain, for better or for worse!

“Surf Instructor” has such a tongue-in-cheek vibe. What’s the most absurd job you think a “Sad Dad” could have?

Thanks – it’s on purpose (we think)! We could never take ourselves seriously enough to write a beautiful serious song, so we thought we’d try things our way instead.

If you’re talking Sad Dads as in the band – I think the most absurd job we could have would be anything that pays more than minimum wage. If you’re talking a real life bonafide Sad Dad, it would have to be a love island contestant – it’s a real under represented demographic that dating shows could tap into.

Cohabitation can be tricky—how did living together influence your creative process?

Lockdown was a real turning point for us writing together. We spent all day every day locked in the same room with only one another & our guitars (also our trusty PlayStation) for comfort – and from that time onwards we started slowly putting the pieces together for Sad Dads as it stands now.

Who wants to write sad music when you’re living through what seemed like a world wide apocalypse when you could write songs to make eachother laugh? That’s the Sad Dads way, baby!

Brighton’s music scene is thriving—how has the city influenced your music, and what’s your favorite part about performing there?

Brighton is the greatest music scene in the world! We’re sure it’s only a matter of time before the world catches on to even more of the fantastic bands and artists that are down here!

I think the city has influenced us mostly in our live shows – the freedom and confidence to go on stage and do whatever crazy thing you want is always encouraged here, it’s a special place

Our favourite thing about performing here has got to be playing alongside so many talented people – or maybe a post-show kebab?

What’s the funniest or weirdest thing that’s happened to you during a live performance?

The moment that will always stick with us until the day we die was our show at one of our Bucket list venues, Chalk in Brighton. We got offered the chance to support a Devo cover band (remember Devo?) with less than 24 hours notice so of course jumped at the chance – but when we got there we realised we’d be playing this huge venue to LITERALLY 5 people (one of them was on the bar and two of them were facing away from us having a chat) we realised that it was the best worst experience of our lives. What a show.

Also we got to jump on stage with the UK’s best Elvis Presley tribute band (shoutout Suspiciously Elvis) recently which was a pretty memorable one.

– You’ve shared the stage with some notable acts. What’s the most memorable advice or lesson you’ve picked up from other bands?

I think we’ve learnt to just give it your all, whether people watching resonate with it or not. Our live set can be marmite for some people – and we find our skits much funnier than some people watching. However it’s all worth it just to here that one solitary laugh in the back of the room – That guy gets it!

– Tell us more about your newest release “Surf Instructor”

Surf instructor was the first song we wrote with the whole band where we all thought “this is it!” – a real cornerstone in the long and long since forgotten history of the Dads. It felt like we had finally finessed our sound down to what we’re cooking with now!

Surf Instructor is about working those dead end, uninspiring jobs when you’ve got so much to give elsewhere! Also the lyrics make us laugh so we thought it’s a perfect introduction to Sad Dads – and here we are!

What’s the one thing you’ve learned about each other that you wouldn’t have known if you weren’t in a band together?

There are plenty of things that should never see the light of the day, but even if we weren’t in a band together I think we would already know far too much. One thing I think we have learnt is that if you fill your band with musicians far more talented than you, the songs actually start to sound alright (shout-out the rest of the Dads)