THE OPERATORS INTERVIEW

They met on the Isle of Wight in 2007 and self-released their first album "What You See Is What I Sell" earlier this year. The Operators are made up of Owen Taylor on Vocals, John Stevens on Bass, Charlie Westropp on Synths and Guitar and Ben Athey on drums. I have managed to see them live a couple of times so in exchange for my sweat, well trodden-on feet and mild whiplash I thought they owed me answers to some tough and probing questions. Luckily Owen and Charlie could spare a moment:

The Operators are (in no more than 5 words...) 

Charlie - A funky, dancey, geeky quartet.

Best on stage Moment? 

Charlie - March 12th 2008 , The Studio, Newport , Isle of Wight . Everyone knew the words...

Owen - Album launch November '07, The first pair of frilly white nickers ever to be thrown onto an Operators stage.

Worst on stage Moment?  

Owen- Album Launch November '07, they looked well worn.               

Charlie - When Owen twatted himself in the face with the microphone resulting in a bloodied moustache. Not an ideal look...

Favourite film character? 
Charlie - The Dude.

Owen - Obi Wan Kenobi.

Have you ever been in a fight?  

Charlie - Once with a Ukrainian guy called Eugene . He was reading a letter that I was writing 'out-loud' as I was writing it which was quite annoying. I restrained myself until the end of the first paragraph, and then sprung into action. He was bigger than me and I lost.

What angers you about the music industry? 

Owen - That we are not major players in it yet. 
Charlie - When really average acts appear to be able to sell a huge amount of records. By that I literally mean average acts. If someone's clearly appalling, there's usually some sort of gimmick that explains their success. I can not understand the success of 'Beautiful' by James Blunt. What an average tune.

What are you listening to at the moment?

Owen - The Archers.
Charlie - A lot of Justice (French dance duo hailed as the new 'Daft Punk') and other recent dance acts (SMD etc...). I don't really enjoy the current post-libertines climate of British guitar music.

Do you believe in life after death?
Owen - Around easter I suppose you have to. 

Charlie - No.

What is creativity?
Charlie - Somewhere between a means of showing off and something important. Probably more of the former in our case.

Owen - Taking the smallest element imaginable and making it into something enjoyable. And then saying something really pretentious.

Which band or artist do you most like being compared to? 
Charlie - Two acts that we all love are Kings of Leon and Justice. A direct comparison is a bit hard to draw because these acts are so diverse, but either would be fine!

Owen - Only the really big bands because I am arrogant and think we are better than everyone else.

Are you booked in for any festivals this year?
Charlie - Yes indeed. The Isle of Wight festival, Festibelly (in Lymington), and Bestival. It's going to be a belter of a summer.

Where will you be in 5 years time?
Charlie - Personally, doing anything musical and getting paid a bit for it would be ace. As a band, world domination beckons...

Owen - Alexa Chung.

www.myspace.com/theoperatorsrock